While using a familiar musical vocabulary her compositions are nonetheless fresh and engaging. Compelling and inspiring, her text selections are as notable as her music. Composing for vocal ensembles is an extension of Szymko's creativity as a choral director; her passion for the art of singing, an embodied approach to sound, her dedication to storytelling and an insistence on quality texts all relate to her predilections as a conductor and are reflected in her choral compositions.