The Hildegard Composer Competition is National Sawdust’s mentorship initiative highlighting outstanding trans, female, and nonbinary composers in the early stages of their careers, supporting them with a commission, visionary mentorship, and access to a network of leading working collaborators.
Glad to be a part of this album, playing with The National Sawdust Ensemble. Take a listen here.
Excited to announce the release of cellist Amanda Gookin’s, “Forward Music Project 1.0” My piece “Stolen” is featured on this record which you can purchase here. Here’s more info about the project:
For elevating stories of suffering and joy. For raising awareness of injustice. For shining a light on a culture of musical patriarchal deification. Whether you come with caution and leave with curiosity, come as a victim and find a voice, or come as an ally and feel a sense of community, I founded Forward Music Project for you.
For mothers. For sisterhood. For brave storytellers and quiet listeners. I sing, I gasp, I fight, I breathe life into the work of these fearless artists. I founded Forward Music Project for you. And you are not alone.
-Amanda Gookin, April 2020
Cellist and creator of Forward Music Project
Super excited to announce my participation in the Boccaccio Project! I’ve composed a piece for my Flutronix partner, Nathalie Joachim entitled, Have and Hold. Watch video of the performance here. Read for more details about the project from The Library of Congress:
In the mid-14th century Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375) wrote the Decameron, a collection of 100 stories shared between a group of 10 acquaintances who had removed themselves from society during the darkest period of a plague. This early artistic response to an outbreak provided context and a means of expression, and the parallels to the quarantine and social distancing phenomena we have been experiencing worldwide in these difficult past few months resonate with us.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we draw on Boccaccio’s example to offer some musical responses. We have asked 10 pairs of composers and performers to write and perform brief solo works to be premiered online over the course of 10 weekdays in June.
Have and Hold reflects the desire to be near others during an extended period of social distancing and isolation. Personally, I have realized that being around people and experiencing life with them not only brings me great joy, but fuels my energy, creativity and spirit. This piece is truly dedicated to all of the people in my life who I miss dearly and long to be near again.
It was an honor to join violinist Randall Goosby, harpist Charles Overton and tenor George Shirley for a panel discussion on our experience as Black musicians working under the “classical” canon. Our talk concluded with powerful performances from each artist. Watch the performance of my piece “Hammers” with myself on flute and the wonderful, Sandbox Percussion.
I had a great time putting together this online concert for The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “Balcony Bar From Home” series. It was wonderful to revisit some Flutronix classics and learn joyful music by Yusef Lateef and Andy Akiho. Thank you to my friends at ETHEL for inviting me. Watch the full performance here.