The 2018 WPA Performance Grant cycle brought a record number of applicants, exciting and diverse concerts to consider, and many wonderful programs to anticipate throughout the years of 2019 and 2020!
As in the past, the strongest applicants programmed works by more than one composer, included works by both contemporary as well as historic composers, with plans for extensive outreach opportunities and collaborations within their communities. Each ensemble demonstrated a commitment to providing a more inclusive and diverse representation of music history, reminding their audiences that there is much more to orchestral music than just the traditional “top 40” classics of Mozart, Beethoven, etc..
The spectrum of works being programmed is also the widest we’ve ever heard – from an arrangement of music by Hildegard von Bingen to new compositions by rising stars. More than one ensemble will be celebrating Clara Schumann on the anniversary of her 200th birthday, and Florence Price’s symphonies will be heard across the country! In addition, new works by Du Yun, Katherine Balch, Julia Adolphe, and many more, are scheduled for performance!
Winning ensembles for 2018 are:
American Composers Orchestra
Bay Area Rainbow Symphony
Black Hills Symphony Orchestra
Brockport College-Community Orchestra
Brookline Symphony Orchestra
California Chamber Orchestra
Carson City Symphony
Channel Islands Chamber Orchestra
Chattanooga Symphony & Opera
Chicago Composers Orchestra
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
Denver Young Artists Orchestra
Experiential Orchestra
Greater Pensacola Symphony Orchestra
Intersection
Long Bay Symphony
Mount Holyoke Symphony Orchestra
Nashville Symphony
North/South Chamber Ensemble
Orchestra Iowa
Orchestra of the League of Composers
Orchestra Seattle
Portland Youth Philharmonic
Prometheus Symphony Orchestra
Quad City Symphony Orchestra
River Oaks Chamber Orchestra
San Francisco Bach Choir
San José Youth Chamber Orchestra
Santa Fe Community Orchestra
Saratoga Orchestra of Whidbey Island
Seattle Collaborative Orchestra
Seattle Philharmonic Orchestra
Springfield Symphony
Stockton Symphony Association
Symphony of the City of New York
Symphony of the Potomac
Symphony Tacoma
The Dream Unfinished
The Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra
Unitas Ensemble
University of Kansas Symphony Orchestra
Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra
West Shore Symphony Orchestra
Wintergreen Festival Orchestra
Through WPA Performance Grants these ensembles will be helping to educate and engage audiences – new and returning – and to reimagine what classical music performances can look and sound like. You can help support the work of Women’s Philharmonic Advocacy, and our ability to provide more grants in future, by purchasing a 2019 Women Composers Calendar!