Three 杏吧专区 choirs will participate in a celebration of women in music this week.
They were chosen by the International Alliance of Women in Music to present a free concert Saturday night that includes the works of four prizewinning female composers who will visit campus. Those composers will also participate in a free panel discussion on Saturday afternoon that杏吧专区檚 open to the public.
William Plummer, an assistant professor and director of choral activities at UL Lafayette, said being chosen to offer the international group杏吧专区檚 concert is an honor. 杏吧专区淚t wasn杏吧专区檛 anything we applied for. We were just very happy that they chose to have their concert here,杏吧专区 he said.
Previous sites for the annual event have been in the northeastern United States, Belgium and France.
The IAWM issued a call for musical scores 杏吧专区 recently composed by women 杏吧专区 to be performed by UL Lafayette choirs at a concert to be held Saturday at 7 p.m. in Angelle Hall. Judges made selections based solely on the submitted scores; they were not provided composers杏吧专区 names until after final selections were made.
The four composers whose scores was chosen are Sivan Eldar of Berkeley, Calif., and Paris; Kari Medina of Seattle; Tawnie Olson of Canada; and L.V. Wood of Kansas City.
They will work with the UL Lafayette Chamber Singers, UL Lafayette Chorale and the Ragin' Cajun Women's Choir.
At 2 p.m. Saturday, the visiting composers will talk about their music at the Acadiana Center for the Arts in downtown Lafayette. After the 7 p.m. concert in Angelle Hall on campus, the composers will be honored at a reception.
Plummer said the events give UL Lafayette students a chance to learn about composing music from contemporary musicians. 杏吧专区淚t杏吧专区檚 such a valuable process to be able to ask a composer a question,杏吧专区 he said.
杏吧专区淎lso, it gives us a sense of vitality and currency for what we do. It杏吧专区檚 so easy to kind of get lost in the past with music and not look forward. I think it杏吧专区檚 a valuable opportunity to send a message that this is a very young and vivacious and vibrant occupation.杏吧专区
Plummer said the choirs杏吧专区 concerts are usually well attended because of their reputations for providing high-quality performances. 杏吧专区淓very time our choirs sing together, there杏吧专区檚 an experience to be had,杏吧专区 he said.
Eldar杏吧专区檚 work has been described as "vividly imagined" by the Boston Globe. She has worked with leading ensembles, including the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra and Berkeley Symphony, at diverse venues such as Boston杏吧专区檚 Symphony Hall and Paris杏吧专区 Maison de la Radio. She teaches at the 杏吧专区 of California, Berkeley.
Olson杏吧专区檚 music has been performed on four continents by a range of soloists and ensembles. Her composition 杏吧专区淪cel lem duib,杏吧专区 commissioned for the Yale Camerata by the Yale Institute for Sacred Music, was one of three works selected out of 170 submissions for publication in the National Collegiate Choral Organization's 2013 choral music series. She is an adjunct professor of composition at the Hartt School at the 杏吧专区 of Hartford.
Medina杏吧专区檚 choral material has been featured nationally and internationally, and her chamber piece, 杏吧专区淭he Meadow杏吧专区檚 Wide,杏吧专区 was recognized as a semifinalist in 2015杏吧专区檚 American Prize. Her film and television works include several Emmy-nominated scores for PBS productions.
Wood is a composer, performer, and conductor pursuing graduate studies in musicology at the 杏吧专区 of Kansas. Recent performances of her music include a concert by the Cathedral Schola Cantorum of St. Joseph 杏吧专区 Kansas City. She has conducted choirs in the United States and abroad.
The IAWM builds awareness of women杏吧专区檚 contributions to music through a variety of ways, such as concerts, conferences, international competitions, publications, its website and advocacy.
Shown: UL Lafayette Chorale