Virtual Composers of Color Workshop Series
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Join Scrag this Fall for a four-part online series focused on expanding our awareness of and appreciation for Composers of Color in the classical chamber music world. This series will focus on the life and music of groundbreaking Composers of Color historical and living from the classical canon and from the contemporary music world. Musical examples, historical context, and articles will be shared and discussed at each session. The series will explore important musical figures including:
Louis Ballard
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges
Ornette Coleman
Helga Davis
Julius Eastman
Nathalie Joachim
Tania León
George E. Lewis
Jessie Montgomery
William Parker
Florence Price
Daniel Bernard Roumain
William Grant Still
Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate
Matthew Evan Taylor
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
George Walker
Pamela Z
Scrag Mountain Music is committed to doing our part to heal systemic marginalization through celebrating diverse voices in classical music and widening the circle of what voices are included in our programming. This series will provide good context for our concerts this season and beyond.
Louis Ballard
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges
Ornette Coleman
Helga Davis
Julius Eastman
Nathalie Joachim
Tania León
George E. Lewis
Jessie Montgomery
William Parker
Florence Price
Daniel Bernard Roumain
William Grant Still
Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate
Matthew Evan Taylor
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
George Walker
Pamela Z
Scrag Mountain Music is committed to doing our part to heal systemic marginalization through celebrating diverse voices in classical music and widening the circle of what voices are included in our programming. This series will provide good context for our concerts this season and beyond.
Virtual Meeting Sessions
Series hosts: Mary Bonhag and Evan Premo, Scrag Mountain Music co-Artistic Directors
Sunday, November 14 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Featured artists: Tania León, William Parker, Pamela Z, Jessie Montgomery
Sunday, November 21 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Featured artists: Joseph Bologne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, William Grant Still, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Florence Price
Sunday, November 28 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Special Guest: Dr. Matthew Evan Taylor, composer, musician, and Assistant Professor of Music at Middlebury College
Featured artists: Matthew Evan Taylor, Ornette Coleman, Nathalie Joachim, George Lewis
Series hosts: Mary Bonhag and Evan Premo, Scrag Mountain Music co-Artistic Directors
Sunday, November 14 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Featured artists: Tania León, William Parker, Pamela Z, Jessie Montgomery
Sunday, November 21 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Featured artists: Joseph Bologne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, William Grant Still, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Florence Price
Sunday, November 28 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Special Guest: Dr. Matthew Evan Taylor, composer, musician, and Assistant Professor of Music at Middlebury College
Featured artists: Matthew Evan Taylor, Ornette Coleman, Nathalie Joachim, George Lewis
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Composer and improviser Dr. Matthew Evan Taylor (1980) has been hailed as a composer whose music is “insistent and defiant…envelopingly hypnotic” (Alan Young, Lucid Culture). His music has been performed across the United States and Europe by such ensembles as the Cleveland Orchestra, the Detroit Symphony, and Metropolis Ensemble. As a performer, Dr. Taylor has collaborated with creators such as musician Elliott Sharp, visual artist Dannielle Tegeder, and dancer Sara Shelton. Dr. Taylor’s music is sparked by his curiosity about the surrounding world and the inherent social bonds built through music. Whether he is addressing issues about the nature of time or the bounds of the human breath on musical performance, Dr. Taylor writes music that is engaging, surprising, and unmistakably human. His aesthetic is typified by vibrant instrumental colors, mercurial juxtapositions, and an affinity for groove. Innovative projects such as Say Their Names, Postcards to the Met, and The Unheard Mixtapes were created as new templates for composition and performance in the wake of the pandemic. His ongoing series The Living Score aims to decolonize the compositional process by democratizing the most precious Western musical artifact – the musical score. He is also focusing much of his work on the climate crisis and redefining virtuosity. Dr. Taylor’s music is available on all streaming platforms through New Amsterdam Records. He serves as a member of the music faculty at Middlebury College – where he is Assistant Professor of Music – and the composition faculty at the Longy School of Music of Bard College.
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Sunday, December 5 at 7-8:30 pm ET
Featured artists: Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate, Louis Ballard, Julius Eastman, Helga Davis, Daniel Bernard Roumain
* Registration includes one Zoom link to all four sessions. Feel free to join the series as your schedule allows.
* 50% of donation proceeds for this series will go to support a BIPOC music organization.
* 50% of donation proceeds for this series will go to support a BIPOC music organization.
Resources
We invite you to explore these resources that we've found helpful in our learning process:
"Black Scholars Confront White Supremacy in Classical Music," Alex Ross, The New Yorker, September 14, 2020.
"For These Classical Musicians, It's Always Been About Racial Equity," Joshua Barone, The New York Times, January 27, 2021.
"Lifting the Cone of Silence From Black Composers," George E. Lewis, The New York Times, July 3, 2020.
"The Composer Tyshawn Sorey Enters a New Phase," Adam Shatz, The New York Times, January 7, 2020.
"Orchestras Are Rushing to Add Black Composers. Will it Last?" Joshua Barone, The New York Times, October 2, 2020.
Helga Davis, 2018 New Music gathering, keynote speech, May 17 2018.
Nathalie Joachim, 2020 New Music gathering, keynote speech, June 17, 2020.
We invite you to explore these resources that we've found helpful in our learning process:
"Black Scholars Confront White Supremacy in Classical Music," Alex Ross, The New Yorker, September 14, 2020.
"For These Classical Musicians, It's Always Been About Racial Equity," Joshua Barone, The New York Times, January 27, 2021.
"Lifting the Cone of Silence From Black Composers," George E. Lewis, The New York Times, July 3, 2020.
"The Composer Tyshawn Sorey Enters a New Phase," Adam Shatz, The New York Times, January 7, 2020.
"Orchestras Are Rushing to Add Black Composers. Will it Last?" Joshua Barone, The New York Times, October 2, 2020.
Helga Davis, 2018 New Music gathering, keynote speech, May 17 2018.
Nathalie Joachim, 2020 New Music gathering, keynote speech, June 17, 2020.
This program is generously sponsored by National Life Group Foundation.
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