The centennial anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment provides an opportunity for the American Composers Forum (ACF) and I CARE IF YOU LISTEN (ICIYL) to celebrate this historic moment while highlighting the complexity of women’s suffrage and exclusion to participation, even in 2020. From August 18 (the ratification date) through the presidential election on November 3, ACF and ICIYL will invite today’s women, trans, and nonbinary artists to share what the 19th Amendment means to them through UNEVEN MEASURES, a series dedicated to advancing intersectional gender equity in 2020, prioritizing racial equity.
UNEVEN MEASURES is supported by a generous grant from The Elizabeth & Michel Sorel Charitable Organization Inc., established in 1996 by pianist Claudette Sorel and named for her parents. The Sorel Organization is committed to supporting gender equity in music and addressing systemic inequities by providing greater visibility for women musicians from underrepresented communities. Find out more at www.SorelMusic.org.
We are thankful for our promotional partnership with the New York Philharmonic, whose Project 19 is the largest women-only commissioning project in history and was born of the conviction that an orchestra can participate in conversations about social imperatives and even change the status quo. Find out more at www.nyphil.org.
ListN Up weekly playlists curated by artists and with their own narrative about why they love this music (theirs and those that inspired them)
Engaging with Women, Trans and Nonbinary Artists and Arts Leaders.
ACF’s ongoing story series, Resonance, by Sun Yun Shin focusing on the stories of Black, Indigenous, and Latinx trans/women artists.
The Healing Culture Work of Composer and Vocalist Mankwe Ndosi
Five Questions interviews with artists on icareifyoulisten.com.
In October, ACF’s Racial Equity Study Group will feature Tiffany Cross’ new book Say It Louder! Black Voters, White Narratives, and Saving Our Democracy in a discussion with the book’s editor, Patrik Henry Bass, Senior Editor, Amistad at HarperCollins Publishers.
Say It Louder! is Tiffany Cross’ explosive examination of how America’s composition was designed to exclude Black voters, but paradoxically would likely cease to exist without them. With multiple tentacles stretching into the cable news echo chamber, campaign leadership, and Black voter data, Cross creates a wrinkle in time with a reflective look at the timeless efforts endlessly attempting to deny people of color the right to vote—a basic tenet of American democracy.
Purchase the book: Say It Louder!
What does the 19th Amendment mean to you? (Part One)
Part One features contributions by JoAnn Falletta, Libby Larsen, Paola Prestini, Alex Temple, Alysia Lee, Angelica Negron, Natalie Calma, Aeryn Santillan, Nebal Maysaud, Wang Jie.
What does the 19th Amendment mean to you? (Part Two)
Part Two features contributions by Anne LeBaron, brin solomon, Chrysanthe Tan, Jenny Bilfield, Kristy Edmunds, Michelle Ramos, Stacy Garrop, Stephanie Lamprea, Tania León, and X. Lee.
Driving Gender Equity
UNEVEN MEASURES Roundtable Series
This month, I CARE IF YOU LISTEN and American Composers Forum will host a series of Zoom roundtable discussions on gender equity in the contemporary arts as part of our shared UNEVEN MEASURES series. Through interviews, collaborative essays, artist-curated playlists, and live discussions, UNEVEN MEASURES marks the centennial anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment while recognizing the complexity of women’s suffrage and barriers to participation that still exist today.
Transformative Power: Women Leading
October 8th 3:00pm EDT, 2:00pm CDT, 1:00pm MDT, 12:00pm PDT
Watch the Roundtable Event on Youtube.
Gabriela Lena Frank: Composer, Founder, Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music
Lisa Funderburke Hoffman: Executive Director, Alliance of Artist Communities,
Stephen Miles: Composer, ACF Board Co-Chair, Former Provost, New Music, New College
Mankwe Ndosi: Musicmaker, performer, educator, and culture weaver
Vanessa Rose (facilitator): President & CEO, American Composers Forum
Understanding Intersectionality
October 16th 2:00pm EDT, 1:00pm CDT, 12:00pm MDT, 11:00am PST
Watch the Roundtable Event on Youtube.
Mary Kouyoumdjian: Composer/Documentarian
inti figgis-vizueta: Composer
Jennifer Koh: Violinist
Melissa Dunphy: Composer
Amanda Cook (facilitator): Editor-in-chief, I CARE IF YOU LISTEN
Advocating for Gender Equity
October 19th 5:00pm EDT, 4:00pm CDT, 3:00pm MDT, 2:00pm PDT
Watch the Roundtable Event on Youtube.
Sarah Cahill: Pianist, Writer, & Producer,
Terri Lyne Carrington: Drummer, Producer, and Founder & Artistic Director, Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice
Niloufar Nourbakhsh: Composer, Pianist, Founder, Iranian Female Composers Association
Nirmala Rajasekar: Veena virtuoso, educator, ACF Board Co-Chair
Aiden Feltkamp (facilitator): Librettist, Director of Emerging Composers and Diversity, American Composers Orchestra