Resonance Ensemble announces its 2021-2022 season: “RECLAIM,” featuring new commissions by celebrated composers and a safe return to in-person performances.
Resonance Ensemble, under the direction of Founder and Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon, announces its new 2021-2022 season: RECLAIM.
Featuring visionary guest artists, inspired new commissions by celebrated composers, and a safe return to in-person performances.
“There is immense power in who tells history and how. Resonance will work this season to recover the stories of marginalized voices that have been traditionally cut out of the narrative,” says Resonance Ensemble Artistic Advisor Damien Geter. “Our concerts will offer perspectives that allow us all to reclaim a deeper understanding of our shared histories. Only through this reflection will we have the opportunity to build a more just and hopeful future.”
A season of reclamation:
The season will premiere new music from dynamic composers that explores the gap between housed and houseless communities, celebrates the identities of indigenous people, and honors past and present victims of racial violence.
“Arts organizations around the world have been challenged in extraordinary ways over the last year,” said Resonance Ensemble Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon. “Resonance responded with innovation and perseverance by creating safe ways to perform important music. We reexamined fundamental priorities, and we now continue our work to forge entirely new paths of music-making. We look forward to presenting this inspiring 2021-2022 season that builds upon all we’ve learned over the last 17 months.”
Resonance will have limited numbers of in-person tickets available for subscribers who are fully vaccinated, in accordance with our Health and Safety protocols. In addition, Resonance is committed to continuing to offer virtual access to all of our concerts this year, with optional donations requested in lieu of ticket purchases. As Dr. FitzGibbon shares, “We are following the latest scientific research to ensure everyone’s safety, and our vaccination and masking requirements are part of that commitment. We’re also thrilled to be able to livestream our performances, ensuring access for audiences globally.” Our final concert of the year, An African American Requiem, will be broadcast live by our partners at All Classical Portland and WQXR New York.
Subscriptions on sale now at resonancechoral.org
THE RESONANCE SEASON: RECLAIM — building a more just and hopeful future
HOME - a reclamation of space
Cerimon House
OCTOBER 2, 2021, 7:30 p.m.
Alexander Lloyd Blake, guest conductor
Vin Shambry, guest performer
Tickets available for a limited audience; please see our Health & Safety policy. Video access available live and afterwards; donations gratefully accepted
For this concert, Resonance welcomes Alexander Lloyd Blake, the highly-regarded conductor of the Los Angeles vocal ensemble Tonality. Tonality’s mission parallels Resonance’s, seeking to “deliver authentic stories through voice and body to incite change, understanding, and dialogue.”
Dr. Blake has chosen a program exploring displacement, sharing the stories of poets and composers writing about houselessness, refugee experiences, and immigration. He will lead Resonance in new music by Reena Esmail, Ted Hearne, Melissa Dunphy, Saunder Choi, Cristian Larios, Nathan Heldman, Ysaye Barnwell, and others.
Resonance is also proud to partner with Operation Nightwatch, a Portland nonprofit organization which provides nighttime hospitality for Portland’s unhoused population—committed to promoting dignity, community and social connection.
A panel discussion will follow, with Dr. Blake, artists, and community partners speaking on the music, their experiences, and opportunities for the audience to take action in their communities.
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ABYA YALA - a reclamation of place
Cerimon House
MARCH 5, 2022, 7:30 p.m. (Portland, OR)
MARCH 6, 2022, 3:00 p.m. (Portland, OR)
MARCH 12, 2022, performance at the ACDA Northwest conference in Spokane, Washington
Tickets for March 5-6 are available for a limited audience; please see our Health & Safety policy. Video access available live and afterwards; donations gratefully accepted
The Guna people, members of a sovereign nation in today’s Panama, have a concept called “Abya Yala,” the idea of the “land in its full maturity.” Indigenous cultures in much of North and South America have adopted the term to describe the vision of interconnectedness between many indigenous cultures, and between the cultures and the land. The Bolivian Aymara leader Takir Mamani advocates for indigenous cultures to use this term in their governing documents, arguing, “Placing foreign names on our villages, our cities, and our continents is equivalent to subjecting our identity to the will of our invaders and their heirs.”
In this concert, Resonance partners with indigenous composers and poets, both locally and globally, who are creating works reflecting on this vision, and the gap between the vision and the reality for many indigenous individuals. Resonance unveils the world premiere of our latest commission, the Abya Yala Choral Suite, by Chilean-born Portland composer Freddy Vilches, co-commissioned with the American Choral Directors Association. This work explores pan-American indigenous experiences in partnership with indigenous poets from across Latin America, with musical accompaniment by Vilches’s own group, Matices Latin Ensemble. The concert also features works by Gabriela Lena Frank, Mari Esabel Valverde, and Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate.
A panel discussion will follow, with artists, and community partners speaking on the music, their experiences, and opportunities for the audience to take action in their communities.
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AN AFRICAN AMERICAN REQUIEM - a reclamation of truth
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
May 7, 2022, 6:00 pm
The eagerly-anticipated world premiere of An African American Requiem, by Resonance’s Artistic Advisor Damien Geter, commissioned by Resonance Ensemble. Performed jointly with the Oregon Symphony
Broadcast live on All Classical Portland and WQXR New York
The Oregon Symphony and Resonance Ensemble join forces to present the world premiere of An African American Requiem, Portland composer Damien Geter’s bold, thought-provoking musical response to violence against African Americans in the United States. Combining traditional Latin Requiem texts with civil rights declarations, poetry, and the famous last words of Eric Garner and now George Floyd, “I can’t breathe,” this performance will honor past and present victims of racial violence and spur reflection on how to build a more hopeful future. Originally set to premiere in May of 2020, An African American Requiem will now debut at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall on May 7, 2022 beginning at 6:00 pm.
Season subscriptions are on sale now. Subscription packages offer savings off single ticket prices, exclusive benefits and personalized customer service. Regular full-season subscriptions are available for $150 and $200 and include reserved seating tickets to all of the Resonance Ensemble concerts for vaccinated individuals, plus a ticket to the Resonance Ensemble “Building Bridges” Gala (date to be determined.) Also available are VIP Subscriptions for $300 which offer all the subscriber benefits PLUS a guest pass to bring a friend to one of the first two exciting concerts of the season, plus reserved seating to all concerts, plus a tax credit for a $75 donation and more! For more information about subscriptions, visit resonancechoral.org or contact RE’s Box Office, (503) 427-8701.
Single tickets to our first two concerts at Cerimon House will be made available after September 28, if space remains. Single ticket prices for those two performances will be priced at $35/adult, $30/senior, $10/student, and $5/Arts for All members.
Single ticket prices for the “Building Bridges” Gala will be $125/ticket.
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Introducing the REAP Initiative: Resonance Ensemble Access Project
The world looks a lot different now, but artists are still finding a way to safely create, foster community, and share powerful stories. Last year showed us at Resonance Ensemble the incredible global demand for free, online access to our programming - which is why we are proud to present the Resonance Ensemble Access Project (REAP), our initiative to ensure that all of our concerts are available to the world both in-person and online.
We can’t do it without you.
Providing this vital accessibility also increases the expenses of producing our concerts, so we are asking viewers like you to make a donation in lieu of a ticket purchase, at whatever level you're able, and for our supporters to consider an additional donation to underwrite this access for those who cannot afford to donate.
The REAP Initiative. Providing free, online access to the music of Resonance Ensemble.
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It's Your Choice How You Join Us.
We are creating safe options that will allow you to make the best choice on how you want to enjoy our concerts.
Live Stream. With the magic of live-streaming, we can provide an option that brings Resonance Ensemble's concerts into the safety and comfort of your homes.
In-Person. Because of vaccinations (thank you, science!) we are now able to provide a safe, in-person option for those of you who are vaccinated and feel ready to come to live events.
Resonance has access to a limited number of discounted tickets for the African American Requiem; patrons may select their seats and make their purchases by calling the Resonance box office at 503-427-8701, or by emailing info@resonancechoral.org, prior to April 1, 2022. After that time, please visit or call the Oregon Symphony box office.
Special thanks to our sponsors Oregon Cultural Trust, Oregon Community Foundation, Miller Foundation, Collins Foundation, and the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
Note to Journalists: Katherine FitzGibbon and Damien Geter are available for print, online, and broadcast interviews. If you would like more information on our season or would like to schedule an interview, please contact Liz Bacon Brownson at liz@resonancechoral.org or by calling 971-212-8034
HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICY
Resonance Ensemble is thrilled to be part of the Portland Performing Arts Vaccine Coalition. Find other arts organizations that are requiring proof of vaccination HERE.
We are excited to be back in action with the possibility of in-person rehearsals and live performances. We are also sensitive to the need to be responsive to public health conditions and official guidelines, as they evolve.
Resonance Ensemble will require all guests who attend Resonance sponsored events to be masked and fully vaccinated for COVID-19. All patrons will be required to show proof of vaccination, as well as a matching photo ID, to enter the performance or event space.
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