Black Brilliance Competition 2021
In honor of Black History, the Pleiades Project held its first Black Brilliance Competition in January and February of 2021. Thanks to a generous donation from Darrell Acon, three winners were awarded a prize of $150 each. All submissions had to include the work of a Black woman composer, and could be of any length, genre, or format. We will be featuring the winners and a selection of all the submissions on this page.
Winners
Elise Christina Jenkins-"I want jesus to walk with me," arranged by Jasmine Barnes
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*This submission was produced and submitted by Thea Tullman Moore, Executive Director of Baltimore Musicales.
What does Black music by Black female composers mean to you and what is its importance in your life?
Elise: "Songs by Black female composers are sacred treasures. When I have the opportunity to perform selections by Black female (classical) composers, I take it seriously like with any composer. The difference is my spirit is even happier. This music tells stories of breaking racial barriers, demanding equality and justice, exploring the beauties of being a Black woman, and spiritually thanking our ancestral sisters for everything. Representation matters in all aspects of classical music from performing to composition. I wouldn't be the artist I am today without knowing about Marian Anderson, Jessye Norman, Shirley Verrett, Leontyne Price but also Florence Beatrice Price, Undine Smith Moore, Margaret Bonds, and many others. Their stories, legacies, and countless contributions all inspire me to continue on with training. They never gave up on their dreams, and I won't either." |
Baltimore MusicalesBaltimore Musicales expresses the human experience through song, while celebrating the shared joy and fellowship of music. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a rotating roster of professional singers and pianists, Baltimore Musicales presents diverse and engaging programs of art songs, opera, musical theater, and vocal chamber music. Bridging the traditional boundaries between artist and audience members, Baltimore Musicales’ singers offer interesting biographical information about the composers and poets, historical and literary contexts, as well as their own personal stories, allowing listeners to form deeper connections to the music and to the artists. Baltimore Musicales also champions and commissions contemporary composers writing for the voice, and hopes to cultivate new audiences for this extensive and varied repertoire. For more about Baltimore Musicales, please visit: www.baltimoremusicales.org
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Thea, I’ve noticed that your company does a lot of work by less recognized composers, can you talk about how and why this came about? And what are the benefits and challenges of programming less known work like this?
Thea: "When I first heard Jasmine Barnes’ compositions, I was blown away by her talents and knew that I wanted to introduce her music to our audiences. The vocal repertoire is vast—there are so many incredible songs written for voice and piano—and I think it is important to include lesser known works and composers along with familiar favorites. I had created a program called “The Voices of Time” to be performed at the Baltimore War Memorial, which paired songs by living composers with those by past composers who had provided inspiration or who shared a common passion. I wanted to explore the universal themes that connect poet, artist, and listener through time: love and loss, connection to nature, and spirituality. I also wanted to challenge the stigma that is sometimes associated with contemporary music—that it is somehow less accessible. Elise Christina Jenkins and Andrew Stewart performed Jasmine’s arrangement of “I Want Jesus to Walk with Me” paired with Florence Price’s arrangement of “My Soul’s Been Anchored in the Lord.” It was a powerful pairing and brilliantly delivered by these two talented artists, as you can see from the video!"
Jasmine Barnes
Jasmine Arielle Barnes is a promising young composer/vocalist who has performed and has had her music performed all over the world. She is a multifaceted composer who embraces any writing style of music using a variety of instrumentation and specializes in writing for the voice. She was the very first composition major of Morgan State University, thus hosting the first composition recital, setting the bar high for those to follow. Jasmine is also the head of Compositional Studies and Jazz Voice Studies at Booker T Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas, TX. For more about Jasmine, please visit: https://www.jasminebarnescomposer.com
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Elise Christina Jenkins
Elise Christina Jenkins is a promising dramatic soprano, who has charmed audiences in repertoire ranging from opera and art song to operetta. She has performed with various companies such as The IN Series, Opera NOVA, Baltimore Musicales, Shakespeare Opera Theatre, CAAPA, AfroHouse, and Bel Cantanti. Ms. Jenkins received her Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance from George Mason University in 2016 and currently studies with Mr. Russell Penney.
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Danielle Buonaiuto & Jules Biber-"Loisaida" by Jessie Montgomery
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Danielle Buonaiuto believes in community, compassion, and access, whether she is singing or running the show. A co-founder of ChamberQUEER, she is also the Executive Director of Musica Viva NY, one-half of experimental vocal duo REXDuo, and an active self-producer and freelancer, presenting art song, performing chamber music, and appearing as soloist with symphonies and choirs throughout the United States and Canada. Though an accomplished performer of standard repertoire, she primarily focuses on working with contemporary composers, especially in commissioning new pieces and cultivating emerging composers. Her album “Marfa Songs” is out on Starkland. A dog lover, kombucha brewer, and kitchen experimentalist, she feels at home in Brooklyn. www.daniellebuonaiuto.com |
Learn more about composer and violinist Jessie Montomery on her website: www.jessiemontgomery.com |
Cellist Jules Biber is committed to bringing classical music to a diverse community in and around Brooklyn through performance in alternative and community-oriented spaces. In addition to being a co-founder of ChamberQUEER, she has curated the chamber music series ‘Branded Classical’ at Branded Saloon in Prospect Heights, and "Classical at Pete's" in Williamsburg. In the before times, she was the cellist of the Elixir Quartet, had appeared with ACME and PubliQuartet, and could be found in the pit of a number of Broadway shows. Though her dog Una is happy she is home more these days, Jules looks forward to returning to New York chamber music and early music stages soon. julesbiber.com |
Why did you choose to perform "Loisaida"?
Jessie is a good friend of ours, and we have always loved her music, and as we began working together as a duo, it was at the top of our list of pieces we both wanted to perform. Getting to work on music written by people we love carries special meaning. We are both strong believers in music as a community builder, and that it is especially meaningful when shared amongst friends and family, whether by playing together or for each other.
It's important to us to do work we resonate with personally - "Loisaida" is a love song to New York and its denizens, both as a text and as a musical piece, and that resonates with us, especially now.
It's important to us to do work we resonate with personally - "Loisaida" is a love song to New York and its denizens, both as a text and as a musical piece, and that resonates with us, especially now.
What music of Black women means to us and how we integrate it into our repertoire
Our participation in queer spaces, where the work of consciously creating inclusive, intersectional space is a common practice, has shaped our worldviews about inclusivity, expanding our ideas of what that means, and putting that into practice daily. This is a frame of mind, as well as a series of actions - not just because it's the "right thing to do", but because the tangible benefits for the community are plainly seen. In terms of music: the work is about cultivating a richer artistic environment that can be accessed, contributed to, enriched, and enjoyed by a wider range of people. It's better for everyone.
There is so much great music by Black composers and it's easier than ever to expand your ears and cultivate new, meaningful artistic connections. Building relationships with artists whose work speaks to you is a pathway to an equitable framework of curation. Making a world in which those relationships know no limits is our common goal.
We acknowledge and celebrate the fact that Black women have instigated, and are propelling, so much of the progress we are making as a society. It's important to give credit where credit is due, and to take every opportunity given to us to amplify their voices and they have to say. They're voices that speak with a lot of generational wisdom and power, and the amount that they get to be heard is disproportionate to what they have to offer. Jessie's piece brings to life a history of the Lower East Side from a perspective that is little-heard in conversations about gentrification. We value this perspective, as well as the love for it with which Jessie has crafted every phrase.
There is so much great music by Black composers and it's easier than ever to expand your ears and cultivate new, meaningful artistic connections. Building relationships with artists whose work speaks to you is a pathway to an equitable framework of curation. Making a world in which those relationships know no limits is our common goal.
We acknowledge and celebrate the fact that Black women have instigated, and are propelling, so much of the progress we are making as a society. It's important to give credit where credit is due, and to take every opportunity given to us to amplify their voices and they have to say. They're voices that speak with a lot of generational wisdom and power, and the amount that they get to be heard is disproportionate to what they have to offer. Jessie's piece brings to life a history of the Lower East Side from a perspective that is little-heard in conversations about gentrification. We value this perspective, as well as the love for it with which Jessie has crafted every phrase.
Eunice Ayodele-"I too" by Margaret Bonds
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Why did you choose "I too", by Margaret Bonds?
The poem is one that my Grandmother who was a Black Panther always recited. It's always spoken to me during times I've felt cast aside due to my skin color. It never fails to remind me that no matter how many times someone tries to tell me I don't belong, I will always have a place at the table. It is a place setting my ancestors set for me on both my African side and Black American side. A table setting that can never be taken away from me. Composers like Bonds and others in a Black female composers are commonly excluded from the canon. Why are their works important and how do you integrate these works into your repertoire?
I often find that anytime we engage in discussions about Blackness and music we leave women out. This isn't unique to classical music, it goes with the overall need to erase Black women and their accomplishment because we have never fit into the scope of white patriarchy. Their works are important because they represent a voice in the world that often goes unheard. Even when you think of composers you never think of women who look like me. When I was growing up I loved opera, however being an opera singer was never something I considered I could ever do. This was because I was alway told Black people don't do opera. I had no argument because I never saw a Black person do opera until college when I eventually switched genres from Musical Theater to Opera. I feel the same goes with composers. The more I sing from Black Women composers, the more Black girls see that they don't have to look, act, or write a certain way to be composers themselves. I want the idea of a Black female composer to become so natural that it breaks us away from the idea of canon and explore all of the wonderful music my community has to offer. What message did you want to portray with this piece?
Because of my acting background I often come with a backstory to each character of a piece even if it's short. "I, Too" was easy because I already had a strong connection to it. However, this time I drew inspiration from my 4 year old niece who recently read a book adaptation of the poem. She always makes the best faces. Her reaction to not being allowed in all the way to the ending of pride when they see my beauty are all expressions I stole from her. Kids have a way of expressing an extremely raw version of things like irritation, wit, and pride. These were all things I felt were important to give the person in the poem nuance and depth in the short Bonds composition.
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