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Silent Voices
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Brooklyn Youth Chorus
Conceived and conducted by Dianne Berkun Menaker
Developed with and directed by Kristin Marting
Composers: Jeff Beal, Mary Kouyoumdjian, Paul D. Miller, Nico Muhly, Shara Nova, Toshi Reagon, Kamala Sankaram, Caroline Shaw
Writers: Michelle Alexander, Patricia Bell-Scott, Pauli Murray, Shara Nova, Claudia Rankine, Toshi Reagon, Eleanor Roosevelt, George Savile, Caroline Shaw, Brooklyn Youth Chorus members
Silent Voices tackles systemic injustice in soaring soprano-alto harmony, entrusting the vital issues of our day to its most astonishing young singers. The Grammy Award-winning Brooklyn Youth Chorus (Black Mountain Songs, 2014 Next Wave) celebrates its 25th anniversary in this evening presenting 10 newly commissioned compositions by Nico Muhly (Planetarium, 2013 Winter/Spring), Shara Nova (My Brightest Diamond; YOU US WE ALL, 2015 Next Wave), Toshi Reagon, Jeff Beal, DJ Spooky, and others. Hosted by Helga Davis (Einstein on the Beach, 2012 Next Wave) and incorporating historical texts and interviews, original writings by Hilton Als and Claudia Rankine, and music by International Contemporary Ensemble, this multimedia concert places marginalized narratives of racial, gender, and economic disparity at the center of our discourse, giving resounding voice to the so-often voiceless.
Hosted by Helga Davis
Narrative by Hilton Als
Dramaturgy by Peter McCabe
Set and video design by Peter Nigrini
Lighting design by Jeanette Yew
Costume design by Kate Fry
Associate scenic & video designer Dan Scully
Stage management by Audrey Chait
Co-commissioned by Brooklyn Youth Chorus, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and WQXR, New York.
Silent Voices is generously supported by Aaron Copland Fund for Music; Amphion Foundation; Charles J. and Irene F. Hamm; Howard Gilman Foundation; the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund; New Music USA, made possible by annual program support and/or endowment gifts from Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, The Fidelity Foundation, The Rogers & Hammerstein Foundation, Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Helen F. Whitaker Fund, Aaron Copland Fund; The BMI Foundation; The MAP Fund, supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Silent Voices is also supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council; by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts; and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.
In the Brooklyn Youth Chorus’ latest project, Silent Voices, the performers offer an evening of newly commissioned works dedicated to those disenfranchised.
Silent Voices was conceived, and is conducted, by Dianne Berkun Menaker, and directed by Kristin Marting. The following notes are by the composers, including some lyric excerpts.
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