Raices Trio
There’s lots to be excited about for women in music as we kick off December! (Including a few gift ideas.)
On Wednesday November 27, the Raices Negras Trio performed at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. The group featured three members of the larger Raíces Negras Collective (pictured left): Dr. Ceylon Mitchell (flute), Erin Murphy Snedecor (cello), and Dr. Elizabeth Hill (piano). The trio performed work by four American women composers. The chamber music pieces chosen for their program celebrate writing for flute, cello, and piano, as well as elements of nature. They included: Undine Smith-Moore’s Afro-American Suite, Tania León’s Sands of Time, Elisenda Fábregas’ Voices of the Rainforest, and the world premiere of Clarice Assad’s Flight of the Fairies (which the group commissioned). The collective performs chamber music celebrating Black & Latine voices across the Americas; their repertoire and lineups range from more traditional classical chamber music (duos, trios, Pierrot ensemble) to Brazilian choros, to Afro-Cuban jazz, blending tradition and improvisation. Their work has been made possible by a 2019 Prince George’s Arts and Humanities Council Artist Fellowship Grant.
Below is a recording of Undone Smith-Moore’s Afro-American Suite, performed at the 2020 LunART Festival COVID-19 Quarantine edition by Iva Ugrcic (flute), Magdalena Sas (cello), and Satoko Hayami (piano).
Katherine Needleman—oboist, activist, tireless campaigner for women’s equal treatment and representation in music, and self-proclaimed “Queen of Filth”—has continued her tireless advocacy in her essay “Why Does It Matter That No Women are on the Committee?: Some Thoughts on the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Trombone Audition.” (Published November 25.) Needleman’s justified critique of the institutional practices of symphony orchestras, the systemic flaws in the so-called blind audition process, and analysis of the deep and abiding “boys club” culture of the CSO brass section is a testament to how much work classical music still needs to do to join the 21st century. Her essay is available with photos via Substack and Facebook.
On November 29th tickets for the 49th Annual National Women’s Music Festival were released for purchase. The festival will be held from July 3-6, 2025 at the Marriott West Hotel & Conference Center in Madison, WI. Keep checking back for festival lineup announcements. This could be a great experience gift for the music lovers in your life!
The classic compilation album New Music For Electronic and Recorded Media (1750 Arch, 1977) is being reissued on vinyl by Blume (Milan). The album features work by female electronic music composers, including Laurie Anderson (New York Social Life; Time to Go), Pauline Oliveros (Bye Bye Butterfly), Johanna Beyer (Music of the Spheres), Annea Lockwood (World Rhythms), Laurie Spiegel (Appalachian Grove I) and Megan Roberts (I Could Sit Here All Day). In the 70s their “exciting, wide-open, free-wheeling approach to the medium of electronic music” marked a sea change in how composers approached music containing electronic media. Instead of limiting themselves to purely synthesized sounds, these women were mixing sound materials and media as freely as possible to create an aesthetic that was both experimental and genre-defining. The reissued album will include brand-new liner notes, written by Jennifer Lucy Allen and Bradford Bailey, that celebrate this first collection of experimental music by female composers. Many of these women were unknown at the time, but have since been recognized as foundational voices of electronic music. Below is a playlist featuring music from the re-released album.
Let us know what you’re listening to, or what news you’d like to share! Contact us at [email protected]