From soaring high notes to mellow bass tones, from operatic singing to the angelic sound of a boy choir, all of the voices on Sara Botkin's recordings are her own. Through multi-tracking technology, she builds harmonious choruses by layering her voice singing various parts. Said one reviewer, "There are no other voices [on this CD] but Sara's...think that is really no big deal? You would swear at times that there is a boy choir in the background."

Sara released her debut recording, An Angel's Christmas, in 2003 to high acclaim. Pittsburgh Magazine named it a Top 5 DJ pick in 2004 and christmasreviews.com called it "ethereal, expansive, full-bodied ether...classical with a new age feel and a vibrant impetuousness that bespeaks a desire to break the bonds of 'pure' classical music." An Angel's Christmas became the number 4 selling holiday album of all Pittsburgh area BORDERS stores in 2004, and Sara's appearances on WQED-FM and KDKA-AM radio and WTAE, WPXI and PCNC television earned her a growing public following. Her 2005 disc, The Spirit's Quartet: Songs of Love, Nature, Music and Faith was called "spine-tinglingly lovely" by England's daily classical magazine, Music & Vision.

Sara's latest release, Breath of Heaven: A Christmas Collection, is the culmination of nearly a year of arranging and recording. "I had 22 songs on my first Christmas CD, but when I finished it, I was still brimming with ideas for much more music. I always knew I would make a second holiday recording." Fans of An Angel's Christmas will find the same ethereal splendor in new tracks like "I Wonder as I Wander" (accompanied by Pittsburgh Symphony Principal Harpist Gretchen Van Hoesen), "Panis Angelicus" (featuring Pittsburgh Symphony Associate Concertmaster Mark Huggins) and the beloved Bach/Gounod arrangement of "Ave Maria." But Sara goes beyond the traditional by including upbeat and innovative arrangements sure to surprise and delight. "I sang a CD release concert when An Angel's Christmas came out," Sara remembers. "The songs on that record are contemplative and peaceful, and people told me that's what they liked about it - the purity, the serenity. But for a live performance, I needed to include some rousing numbers, and we finished off the concert with a calypso/Caribbean version of 'Mary's Little Boy Chile.' After that concert, so many people came up to me and said, 'Why isn't that song on the CD!? That was our favorite!'" Listeners will be thrilled to find it on Breath of Heaven, featuring Pittsburgh Symphony Associate Principal Percussionist Andy Reamer. "I was so happy with how it was sounding once Gretchen and I had our parts down," Sara reflects. "But then Andy came in and just took the song to another level, adding bongos, shakers, steel drums and a host of other things I'd never even heard of!" The result is a deliciously energetic performance that will have listeners hitting the repeat button.

Other unexpected delights featured on Breath of Heaven include "Christmas Time is Here" from A Charlie Brown Christmas and the title track, written by pop singer Amy Grant. Says Sara, "The song is sung from Mary's perspective about expecting, and being afraid, but ultimately putting her trust in God's hands. It moved me from the first moment I heard it, although for a while I never considered singing it myself. My style is more classical and the song has been recorded by pop and country singers, including Vince Gill and Jessica Simpson." On her new CD, Sara has made the song her own, creating a spellbinding experience for the listener with an arrangement memorable for its simple beauty and Sara's gentle vocal performance.

As a choral singer in New York City, Sara performed with some of the nation's finest ensembles in the city's most famous venues including Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, St. John the Divine, Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, and the State Theater at Lincoln Center. She was an original member of the 10-voice a cappella group The Douglas Frank Chorale which in 2001 won the CARA award for Best Classical Album - The A Cappella Singer.

While in New York Sara spent her nights singing and her days working for AON Corporation on the 105th floor of 2 World Trade Center. A survivor of the September 11 attacks, she relocated to her hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and joined the financial planning firm of Hefren-Tillotson, Inc. where she worked from 2001 - 2007. She is now a Certified Financial Planner™ and Vice President of Wealth Management at Smith Barney. Says Sara, "Being in New York was exciting; singing in places I'd only read about or seen on television was thrilling. But September 11 made me yearn, like never before, to be close to my family. I am surprised that the decision to leave New York was not more difficult - after all, in a way, it meant abandoning my plan of pursuing a musical career in the epicenter of the performing arts. But I have found a new, peaceful life at home in Pittsburgh. My husband and I have made a wonderful home, we enjoy warm and frequent adventures with my parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, and my career as a financial advisor is challenging, satisfying, and, ironically, has enabled me to realize my long-time dream of becoming a recording artist."

A musician since age three, Sara began her studies as a pianist, working with various Pittsburgh teachers: Virginia Casabona, Linda Ellison, and Natasha Snitkovsky. As a youth, Ms. Botkin won the Carnegie Awards Solo Competition, three Pittsburgh Piano Teachers' Competitions, the Pittsburgh Concert Society's Young Artist Competition, and the Duquesne Young Artist Competition. She later became interested in voice and graduated with Highest Honors from the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan with a double major in voice and piano. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in music with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia.

As a solo performer, Sara has sung the lead roles in Handel's Messiah, Semele, and Julius Caesar, Orff's Carmina Burana, and Honegger's King David. In Pittsburgh, the young artist has performed solo with Chatham Baroque and is a frequent guest soloist of the Bach and Baroque Ensemble of the University of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette classical music critic Andrew Druckenbrod wrote of Ms. Botkin's recent performance with the Bach and Baroque Ensemble, "Of the vocal soloists...one of the youngest shone the brightest: soprano Sara Botkin. Her voice resonated with a clear, pure timbre." Pittsburgh Tribune-Review music critic Mark Kanny praised her "pure-toned agility" and her "beautifully clean and clear" singing.

Says Sara, "Pittsburgh has been a great place for me to continue my musical pursuits while balancing my personal and professional life. The people of Pittsburgh are wonderfully receptive to music from independent artists and the cultural arts community is vibrant. I grew up here, but didn't fully appreciate what the city has to offer until I left it, went elsewhere, and finally came home."