| Grants: Grantees |
2005 Grantees
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Grant amount: $60,000 The Academy of Vocal Arts will produce concert versions of Giaccomo Pucinni's Le Villi and Jules Massanet’s La Navarraise, two important but rarely performed verismo operas. Vocalists will include Ailyn Perez (soprano), Jennifer G. Hsuing (mezzo-soprano), and Keith Miller (baritone). Performances will take place at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. Founded in 1934, the Academy of Vocal Arts provides tuition-free vocal
training and opera experience to talented young singers who have the
potential for international stature. AVA graduates include winners of
prestigious vocal competitions, such as the Richard Tucker Foundation
Award and the Pavarotti Competition, and frequently perform on the major
opera stages of the world. Each year AVA presents its resident artists
in fully stages opera performances; recent productions have included
Lucrezia Borgia, The Rake’s Progress, L'amico Fritz,
and the world premiere of Margaret Garwood’s The Scarlet Letter. |
Grant amount: $160,000 The Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts will engage the American Composers Orchestra (ACO) in a residency that will bring ACO’s acclaimed Orchestra Underground programs to the Annenberg Center for a series of six new music concerts. Guest artists and organizations participating in the project include Todd Reynolds (violin), Ryuichi Sakamoto (laptop), Bill T. Jones, So Percussion, Pilobolus, and the Ridge Theater. The residency will include educational and outreach activities, as well as a program of works by Philadelphia-area composers. Founded in 1971, the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts presents
more than 170 performances each year as part of its PENN Presents series.
The Annenberg Center attracts over 175,000 people annually to PENN Presents'
performances. In keeping with its tradition of presenting a varied program
of established artists and artists new to Philadelphia, PENN Presents'
roster for the 2005-2006 season includes a jazz series featuring some
of the world’s most acclaimed artists, such as the Bill Charlap
Trio and Jazz at Lincoln Center's |
Grant amount: $30,000 The Choral Arts Society of Philadelphia will host Maestro Dale Warland, the former music director and founder of the Dale Warland Singers, as guest conductor for a program of works by Howard Hanson, Rudi Tas, Arvo Pärt, Benjamin Britten, James MacMillan, Frank Ferko, Alexandre Gretchaninoff, Vytautus Miškinis, and Henryk Górecki. A regional choral conducting workshop is also planned with Mr. Warland and CASP’s Artistic Director, Matthew Glandorf. The Choral Arts Society is recognized for performing choral music at
the highest artist standards possible that is designed to enrich, engage,
educate and inspire large and diverse audiences. Growing in critical
acclaim and audience base, The Choral Arts Society was the 2002 National
Winner of Chorus America's prestigious Margaret Hillis Award for Choral
Excellence. This award was followed by Philadelphia Magazine's 2002
Best of Philly®. Choral Arts' 100-voice symphonic chorus is comprised
of volunteer singers as well as a 16-voice professional core. Founded
in 1982 and currently under the direction of Matthew Glandorf, Choral
Arts has performed nearly 200 works by more than 100 composers in many
languages. |
Grant Amount: $12,140 Doylestown School of Music and the Arts will present Stretched Strings, a series of four concerts exploring acoustic guitar practice within a variety of styles, including Travis Picking, Classical, Fingerstyle, and Blues. Each concert will feature resident artist Tim Farrell in duets with guest artists Thom Bresh, Mark Hanson, Robin Bullock, and Ernie Hawkins. An educational workshop will accompany each program. Doylestown School of Music and the Arts offers an expansive curriculum
of individual lessons, group classes, performing ensembles, seminars
and recitals to over 900 students annually. DSMA reaches 2,500 individuals
through its International Artist Series and student and faculty recitals.
It is the largest community school of the arts in Bucks County. |
Grant amount: $26,750 International House Philadelphia will present Ancient to the Future, five jazz concerts showcasing the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, Inc. (AACM). The series will both acknowledge the accomplishments of the members of the AACM, highlighting the remarkable trajectory of its elder statesmen, and represent its current musical repertoire, featuring new material, concepts and collaborations. Performing artists will include Henry Threadgill’s Zooid, Leroy Jenkins/Myra Melford Duo and Ethnic Heritage Ensemble, Wadada Leo Smith’s Golden Quartet, the Roscoe Mitchell Quartet featuring special guest Muhal Richard Abrams, and the Anthony Braxton Sextet. Founded in 1910, International House Philadelphia is an independent,
non-profit organization housing nearly 400 students, scholars, and interns
from over 65 countries. International House provides more than 150 cultural,
educational and social programs that assist its residents, and other
international students and scholars, with their adjustment to American
society and life in Philadelphia, while encouraging the cross-cultural
understanding and leadership skills. International House also presents
public programs to over 30,000 Philadelphia area residents throughout
the year. Film at International House, the Visiting Author Series, dance
performances, art exhibits, concerts, and cultural festivals all enable
area audiences to explore their own roots and learn about the heritage
of others. |
Grant amount: $40,000 The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts will present the third season of Fresh Ink, a three-concert series devoted to new music, to be held in the Kimmel Center’s Perelman Theater. The first concert presents pipa virtuoso Wu Man in a program of works by Chen Yi and Tan Dun. The second concert celebrates the 250th anniversary of Mozart’s birth with a series of Mozart-influenced commissions and improvisations by Philadelphia artists, including jazz pianist Uri Caine, violinist Gloria Justen, and Group Motion Dance Company. The series concludes with a recital by violinist Midori and pianist Robert McDonald performing works by Judith Weir, Isang Yun, Alexander Goehr, György Kurtäg, and Witold Lutoslawski. The Kimmel Center enriches lives and creates community through its
four-fold mission to: present artistic programming of the highest quality
that serves diverse audiences and brings internationally-renowned artists
to its stages; champion access to the arts through arts education and
community programming; operate and maintain world-class performance
venues; strengthen the Greater Philadelphia arts community by providing
a home for its resident companies and other regional performance groups.
The Kimmel Center’s facilities include Verizon Hall, Perelman
Theater, Innovation Studio, and the Merck Arts Education Center and
management of the Academy of Music. The Center’s facilities host
eight resident companies: The Philadelphia Orchestra, Peter Nero and
the Philly Pops, PHILADANCO, The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia,
The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, American Theater Arts for Youth,
the Opera Company of Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania Ballet.
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Grant amount: $30,000 Latin Fiesta will present Hispanos...Many Roots...Many Faces, a Hispanic music festival involving the Latin Fiesta ensemble with Dave Valentin, Grammy-winning flutist, Raul Jaurena, a master of the bandoneon, Christian Puig, flamenco guitarist and singer, and ALO Brasil, Philadelphia-based Brazilian ensemble. The festival will feature the premiere of a commissioned suite in six movements, Alma Latina, composed by Carlos Franzetti and Grammy Award-winner Oscar Hernandez. In addition, two concerts and workshops exploring Hispanic musical heritage will be presented at the Arts Bank. The event will inaugurate an annual “Hispanic Festival on the Avenue of the Arts.” Latin Fiesta has won national acclaim as pioneers in the presentation of crossover concerts. The 10 member ensemble is led by Cuban born concert pianist Maria del Pico Taylor, professor at Temple University and a well known authority in Hispanic music. The ensemble has performed nationwide with symphony orchestras, in festivals, residency and outreach programs.
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Grant amount: $30,000 The Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia will commission Philadelphia composer Andrea Clearfield for a work for chorus, orchestra, and baritone. Clearfield will set new poetry by Ellen Frankel based on the Jewish legend of the Golem. In concert, the work will be paired with Ernest Bloch’s rarely-presented masterpiece, Sacred Service (Avodah Hakodesh). The program will feature baritone Sanford Sylvan and the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and will be presented at the University of Pennsylvania’s Irvine Auditorium. One of Philadelphia's oldest avocational choruses, Mendelssohn Club
of Philadelphia provides audiences with innovative programming that
embraces the finest choral music of many cultures, traditions, periods
and styles, including commissions of new choral works. Founded in 1874,
the Mendelssohn Club's rich musical history includes the American premiere
of Mahler's Eighth Symphony and the Philadelphia premieres of Brahms's
Ein Deutches Requiem and Britten's War Requiem. |
Grant amount: $30,000 Montgomery County Community College will present Voices from Another World, two concerts by artists who bring extraordinary creative vision to vocal performance. Meredith Monk, a pioneer of extended vocal technique and interdisciplinary performance, will be presented with her Vocal Ensemble in a concert and residency program in collaboration with Bryn Mawr College. Azam Ali, born in Iran and raised in India, performs contemporary vocal interpretations that fuse medieval and Arab musical traditions. Her concert will be followed by a discussion. The cultural mission of Montgomery County Community College is to serve
as a focal point for cultural activities, providing public access to
the arts for county residents through arts presenting and educational
activities. Over its 15-year history, MCCC’s Lively Arts Series
has introduced audiences to the work of exemplary artists representing
a variety of performing mediums from different cultural traditions.
Recent seasons have included performances by jazz masters Benny Golson,
Ray Brown, and the Mingus Big Band. |
Grant amount: $80,000 The Opera Company of Philadelphia will present the world premiere production of Richard Danielpour’s Margaret Garner, co-commissioned by OCP with the Michigan Opera Theatre and the Cincinnati Opera. With a libretto by Nobel-prize winner Toni Morrison, the opera is based on the tragic story of a Kentucky slave who chose to sacrifice her infant rather than allow her to grow up in slavery. Margaret Garner’s cast will include mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, soprano Angela Brown, baritone Gregg Baker, and bass-baritone Rodney Gilfry. The Opera Company of Philadelphia, one of the fastest-growing opera
companies in North America, is Philadelphia's only grand opera company.
Established in 1975 through a merger of the Philadelphia Grand Opera
Company and the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company, the Opera Company
of Philadelphia is considered home to some of opera's brightest singers,
composers, directors, and conductors. |
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Grant amount: $30,000 Orchestra 2001 will present First Hearings, four programs highlighted by six world premieres and six area premieres. World premieres include works by Philadelphia-area composers George Crumb, Jennifer Higdon, Gerald Levinson, Larry Nelson and his son Jordan Nelson, as well as a new work by Liviu Marinesco. Area premiers include works by Oscar winner Tan Dun and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Aaron Jay Kernis. Works by Kaija Saariaho and Jennifer Higdon will receive their second U.S. performances, and Georges Enescu’s 1954 Chamber Symphony will receive its American premiere. The project’s four featured soloists will be Barbara Ann Martin and Sharla Nafziger (sopranos), Margaret Leng Tan (piano), and YuMi Hwang-Williams (violin). Orchestra 2001 is one of Philadelphia's most active, ambitious, and
internationally admired cultural assets, as well as one of America's
most important and widely respected 20th- and 21st-century music ensembles.
Recent highlights include four fully staged operas; works by 25 American
composers, including 11 premieres; Shostakovich's colossal 14th Symphony
in the first American performance of the composer's alternate version
of the work with texts in the original languages; and four performances
and a recording of Gerald Levinson's Time and the Bell. |
Grant amount: $50,000 The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society will present First Hearings, a series of world premieres of new works by William Bolcom, Nicholas Maw, and Stephen Jaffe; the U.S. premiere of a new piano trio by composer György Kurtäg; and Philadelphia premieres of works by Lewis Spratlin, Jennifer Higdon, Ezequiel Viñao, David Baker, and Augusta Read Thomas. The project features the Juilliard, Tokyo, Emerson, Miami and Guarneri String Quartet, the Beaux Arts Trio, Richard Woodhams (oboe), Jonathan Biss (piano), Diane Monroe (violin) with Michael Schmidt (piano), and Jennifer Koh (violin). Performances will be held at the Kimmel Center and other Philadelphia venues. The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society was formed to enable audiences
to enjoy exceptional international artists and ensembles, including
rarely heard repertoire and new music. Since its 1985 founding, the
Philadelphia Chamber Music Society has presented nearly 450 concerts
featuring artists of national and international renown. The annual program
today consists of more than 50 performances and 35 educational events. |
Grant amount: $60,000 The Philadelphia Classical Symphony will present Gateways to Global Music, concerts designed to emphasize cross-cultural influences on musical traditions with commissions by Chen Yi and Evan Ziporyn. Each concert will bring a leading world music ensemble – Music From China in 2005-2006, and Gamelan Galak Tika in 2006-2007 – together with the PCS in an effort to identify both intersections and creative tensions in such cultural exchange. Activities will include symposia, multidisciplinary collaborations, and school residency programs. The Philadelphia Classical Symphony was established in 1993 to foster
an appreciation for classical music among new and diverse audience groups,
as well as to provide a more relaxed, inviting performance format for
concertgoers. In an effort to engage audiences, symphony events are
organized around thematic programs and historical practices and frequently
include elements of audience participation and interdisciplinary collaboration. |
Grant amount: $25,000 The Philadelphia Museum of Art will commission acclaimed jazz musicians Stanley Cowell (piano) and David Liebman (saxophone) for works inspired by the Museum’s permanent collections. These works will be presented as the first original compositions commissioned for the Art After 5 program, expanding the Museum’s role as a performing arts venue and multidisciplinary cultural resource serving the greater Philadelphia community and the nation. Chartered in 1876, the Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest
art museums in the United States and houses collections of works from
around the world. The museum presents two weekly concert series: a Wednesday
night series featuring eclectic music and dance performances, films,
gallery talks, and menus based on themes derived from museum exhibitions;
and a Friday evening jazz series that features performances by acclaimed
jazz artists. |
Grant amount: $160,000 The Philadelphia Orchestra will commission 6 new works, to be presented in 22 concerts at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. The 2005-2006 season will feature world premieres of Jennifer Higdon’s Percussion Concerto, Gerald Levinson’s Fanfare for Organ and Orchestra, for the dedication of Verizon Hall’s new organ, and new works by Sofia Gubaidulina and Bright Sheng. In the 2006-2007 season, commissioned works will include John Harbison’s Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra, featuring the Orchestra’s Harold Robinson, and a new composition by Oliver Knussen. Guest soloists on the project will include Colin Currie (percussion), Oliver Latry (organ), and Simon Rattle (conductor). Founded in 1900, The Philadelphia Orchestra has distinguished itself
as one of the leading orchestras in the world through a century of acclaimed
performances, historic international tours, and best-selling recording.
The Orchestra presents a major subscription series at the Kimmel Center
for the Performing Arts and comprehensive education and community partnership
programs. The Philadelphia Orchestra also presents a series of concerts
each year at New York's Carnegie Hall, performing encores of some of
its acclaimed concerts from Philadelphia. Its summer schedule includes
a month-long outdoor season in Philadelphia at The Mann Center for the
Performing Arts, free concerts in local neighborhoods, and a three-week
residency each August at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in upstate
New York. Christoph Eschenbach began his tenure as the Orchestra's seventh
music director in September 2003.
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 Philomel
Benjamin Franklin’s Musical World Grant Amount: $30,000 Philomel will present Benjamin Franklin’s Musical World, a three-program festival celebrating Benjamin Franklin’s Tercentenary and Philomel’s 30th anniversary. Repertoire, commentary, and program notes will explore Franklin’s tastes and interests, his role as a dedicated musical amateur, and aspects of his cultural environment. Guest artists will include Peter Sykes (organ), Laura Heimes (soprano), Chatham Baroque, and Julianne Baird (soprano), and WHYY, WRTI, and Philadelphia On Foot will collaborate. Founded in 1976, Philomel specializes in the performance of 17th- and
18th-century music on period instruments. Philomel has performed with
world-renowned artists such as Stanley Ritchie, Jaap Schroeder, and
Anner Bylsma. The ensemble has released three compact discs on leading
audiophile labels, Omega, Dorian, and Centaur. |
 Piffaro,
The Renaissance Band Church Feasts and Worldly Songs Grant amount: $30,000 Piffaro, The Renaissance Band will present Church Feasts and Worldly Song: Two Programs from the Renaissance. The two contrasting programs will feature, first, sacred works of early 17th century composers – Michael Praetorius, Heirich Schütz, Samuel Scheidt and their contemporaries – in a recreation of a Lutheran feast day service, and second, secular works of Jacob Obrecht, a late 15th century Flemish composer, in conjunction with a visual presentation of the paintings of his contemporary, Hieronymous Bosch. Guest artists will include the Choir of St. Ignatius Loyola of New York, Capilla Flamenca, and Laura Heimes (soprano). Piffaro, the Renaissance Band, brings to its audiences historically
informed performances of music from the late Medieval, Renaissance,
and early Baroque periods, in the manner of the civic, court, and chapel
wind bands that existed between 1450 and 1650. The ensemble has toured
extensively throughout the US and Europe. Piffaro has had successive
recording contracts with Newport Classic, Deutsche Grammophon’s
Archiv Produktion, and Dorian Recordings, and has released eight recordings. |
| Sedgwick Cultural
Center Up the Neck: New Practices in Guitar Discourse Grant amount:
$16,505 The Sedgwick Cultural Center will present Up the Neck: New Practices in Guitar Discourse, a series that will bring together three ensembles for concerts and workshops. The concerts will approach the guitar as a locus of innovation and cross-cultural influence, and specifically, African music’s influence on recent jazz and blues. The workshops will offer guitarists and other musicians the opportunity to explore new practices in guitar technique and ensemble performance. Guest artists will include the Campbell Brothers, the Vinicus Cantuária and Bill Frisell Duo, and the Mamadou Diabate and Eric Bibb Duo. The Sedgwick Cultural Center, dedicated to building community through
the arts, provides a common meeting ground in the heart of Philadelphia’s
historic northwest. Highlights of past seasons include concerts by nationally
known jazz, world, folk, and classical music artists, including Benny
Golson, Doc Gibbs, Sam Newsome, and Odean Pope. |
 Sruti,
The India Music and Dance Society Masters in Carnatic Music Grant amount: $20,000 Sruti, The India Music and Dance Society will present Masters in Carnatic Music, a performance series involving three groups led by outstanding musicians of India. Two concerts – a vocal concert by K.J. Yesudas and a mandolin concert by U. Shrinivas and U. Rajesh – will present compositions by Purandaradasa, Annamacharya, Thyagaraja, Dikshitar and Syama Sastri, along with improvisations in the raga and tala aspects of Carnatic music. The mandolin concert by U. Shrinivas and U. Rajesh, which will be preceded by a lecture-demonstration, will also include Konnakkol, an ancient vocal percussion tradition of South India that recently has been revived for concert settings. Sruti, the India Music and Dance Society strives to enhance the cultural
awareness of the region by presenting live Indian classical music and
dance programs. Founded in 1986, Sruti has organized over 85 concerts
featuring more than 300 distinguished artists, including acclaimed sitarist
Ravi Shankar. |
 Strings
for SchoolsNew Expressions in Jazz Grant amount: $40,000 Strings for Schools will present two concerts and a student workshop featuring the McCoy Tyner Trio with guest artist Gary Bartz (saxophone) and Strings for Schools roster artists John Blake (violin) and Marlon Simon (percussion). Involving both jazz and Latin traditions, the artists will perform new and recent compositions by both Tyner and Blake. The public concerts will be held at Temple University and in a nearby North Philadelphia community venue in conjunction with numerous intensive in-school and community outreach endeavors. Founded in 1974, Strings for Schools presents educational programs
on jazz, classical, and multicultural/multiethnic musical traditions
to students in Philadelphia and the surrounding communities. Strings
for Schools offers over 500 school and public concerts a year and has
collaborated with such renowned artists as Billy Taylor, Quincy Jones,
and Geri Allen. |
|
Carmen Balthrop Martin Bresnick Philip Brunelle Robert Garfias Evans Mirageas Jason Moran Limor Tomer Elisabeth Wright |
Academy
of Vocal Arts
Annenberg
Center for the Performing Arts
The
Choral Arts Society of Philadelphia
Doylestown
School of Music and the Arts 
International
House Philadelphia 
Kimmel
Center for the Performing Arts 
Latin
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Mendelssohn
Club of Philadelphia
Montgomery
County Community College 
Opera
Company of Philadelphia 
Orchestra
2001
Philadelphia
Chamber Music Society 
Philadelphia
Classical Symphony 
Philadelphia
Museum of Art 
Philadelphia
Orchestra