Tag: Concerts

Connecticut Children’s Chorus Commission

Posted on by Jessica

CCC-6I’m very excited to announce that the Connecticut Children’s Chorus has commissioned me to write a new work for their Prelude, Canticum, and Concert Choirs.  The work is based a text by Walt Whitman about equality, and the project involves an educational outreach component.

In January, I met with students from the choirs to explore their thoughts and experiences relating to equality.  I led short discussions with each choir about the text, its message, and its relevance today.  In addition to highlighting the students’ voices through the music, I am also incorporating some of their words and ideas about equality into composition alongside the Whitman text.  It’s been really wonderful getting to know the students and working on the music/words!

The new work will be premiered on the Connecticut Children Chorus concert on May 22.  More details coming soon!

Related event

  • Performer(s): The Connecticut Children’s Chorus
  • Date: 05/22/16
  • Time: 2:00pm
  • Venue: St. Thomas the Apostle
  • City: West Hartford , CT
  • Address: 872 Farmington Ave
  • Country: Afghanistan
  • Age restrictions: All Ages
  • Notes: The Connecticut Children’s Chorus premieres “Of Equality”.

“Iseult Speaks” Premiere on 2/20/16

Posted on by Jessica

12687941_1260700267277901_4387299462751896765_nMy new work, Iseult Speaks, for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra will be premiered on 2/20 by Charity Clark and the Hartford Independent Chamber Orchestra.  The concert will take place at 8pm in the auditorium of the Mark Twain House.  Tickets are $20 for general admission, $15 for seniors/Lets Go Arts & MTH members, or $10 for students.  They can be purchased online here.

Iseult Speaks is an extended song cycle for mezzo-soprano based on a retelling of the Tristan/Iseult myth. For those of you who might not be familiar with the story, the basic outline—and there are many variations on this skeleton—is that Tristan is supposed to bring Iseult to marry his uncle, but on the way they fall in love, usually because of a potion they accidentally ingest.  Portrayals of Iseult range from passive cypher to tragic heroine to wanton seductress, but she is almost always cast as a one-dimensional accessory to Tristan.

Elizabeth Hamilton’s evocative and provocative poems reexamine the legend from Iseult’s point of view, here somewhat omniscient and shaded with a modern sensibility that links the tale to contemporary experiences.  The text touches on questions of gender roles, societal pressure, and personal power as the narrator contemplates her life, rages against the unfairness of fate, wallows in memories of physical affection, condemns Tristan for his inaction, and vacillates between confidence, insecurity, hope, and despair.

The work was commissioned by HICO with generous support from the City of Hartford Arts & Heritage Jobs Grant Program.

WCFH Benefit Concert on 10/23

Posted on by Jessica

As part of our Fall Fundraising Campaign running from now until Oct. 23, board members from the Women Composers Festival of Hartford, along with a few special guests, will present an exciting evening of music. “Love, Motherhood, and the Female Gaze” explores the ways that women composers offer unique perspectives on parenthood, romantic relationships, and the female body.  The program will include music by Pauline Viardot, Florence Price, Amy Beach, Lori Laitman, Gala Flagello, myself, and more.

The concert will be held on Oct. 23 at 7:30 pm in the historic Charter Oak Cultural Center.  Tickets are a suggested donation of $20 for general admission or $5 for students, educators, and seniors.  Tickets are available ahead of time online or at the door.

Additionally, we have teamed up with Savers Thrift Store as part of this event, which means that we are accepting donations in the form of cash, check, and bags of gently used clothing, accessories, books, and small household items! We will also be selling swag from our Indiegogo campaign, which you can check out ahead of time here.

We hope you will join us for the concert.  If you can’t make it but would still like to support the Festival, please consider making a tax-deductible donation – every little bit helps us to continue presenting high quality music by women composers!

Related event

  • Performer(s): Women Composers Festival of Hartford
  • Date: 10/23/15
  • Time: 7:30pm
  • Venue: Charter Oak Cultural Center
  • City: Hartford , CT
  • Address: 21 Charter Oak Ave
  • Country: United States
  • Admission: $20/$5
  • Age restrictions: All Ages
  • Notes: Miguel Campinho will perform “Glimpses” for solo piano and Amanda Kohl will perform “There Will Come Soft Rains” for solo voice. Music by Pauline Viardot, Amy Beach, Lori Laitman, Gala Flagello, and more will also be included.

Parma New Music Festival/SCI Region I Conference

Posted on by Jessica

parmaOn August 15-17, I will be heading up to Portsmouth, NH to participate in the Parma New Music Festival/SCI Region I Conference.

My friend and frequent collaborator, Mike Lunoe, will be attending to perform my “St. Teresa in Ecstasy” for solo gyile on Friday, Aug. 16 at 11 am.  The concert will be held at St. John’s Church in Portsmouth, NH and is free to the public.  If you can’t make it out (or if you want a preview of the piece), you can check out one of Mike’s previous performances of the work on Youtube.

Additionally, the Boston New Music Initiative has selected the Pierrot ensemble version of “First Praise” for inclusion on their concert at the festival.  That event will be held at the same venue at 2 pm on Aug. 16.

Lastly, I will be presenting my paper “Disruption and Development: Pitch Processes in the Music of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich”.  The paper is a small portion of my dissertation research, on which I am currently hard at work.

A full schedule and other important information can be found online at Parma’s website.  Hope to see you there!