Earth's Protection: A Concert Reflection
This past weekend, we closed the books on our fourteenth season with our first-ever festival: Earth’s Protection. Despite the rain and cooler weather, community members from all over arrived to Lewis & Clark’s beautiful campus to share in an evening of profound visual art, powerfully vibrant dance, delicious local food and drink, and - of course - a dynamic and beautifully moving program of music by living composers.
PRE-CONCERT FESTIVITIES
The evening started with a stunning array of photographs by local photographer Joe Cantrell, whose brilliant images were given further context by the artist himself as viewers took in the gallery.
Festival-attendees even had the chance to purchase these one-of-a-kind works, taking a piece of the evening home with them—along with the fascinating stories Joe shared all evening!
You can read a wonderful write-up on the profound impact of the gallery from Oregon ArtsWatch by Friderike Heuer here.
Whether festival-goers were taking in the gallery, exploring the fascinating specimens on display with members from Portland Audubon, or partaking in delicious treats from Island Shave Ice, Fuego, Koi Fuision or Booze Trucks, guests were soon beckoned indoors by the Nez Perce drumming and dancing ensemble, Four Directions.
With stunning traditional garb, insightful explanations from leader Harold Paul, and the powerful performance of the drummers and vocalists, the performance was a highlight of the pre-concert activities!
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Photographer Joe Cantrell, joined by poet and traditional storyteller Ed Edmo, began the night’s main event with a visually-impactful land acknowledgement—using a long rope to represent different points in time, culminating in the longest section (spanning the length of the concert hall) showing the vast centuries First Peoples have inhabited this region. This powerful reminder was a perfect beginning for our concert - attendees shared later that this was the clearest, truest land acknowledgment they’ve ever heard. Thank you to Joe and Ed for leading it.
THE CONCERT BEGINS!
COVID had delayed many projects, and while Jasmine Barnes’ work Normal Never Was premiered to the world in video format in 2021, Friday was the first time this piece had been performed for a live audience since it was commissioned. The piece encourages us to consider the opportunity we have to move forward as better human beings to one another than the “normal” we had before the pandemic.
Next on the program, we were pleased to feature composer and Oregon Symphony principal cellist Nancy Ives along with poet Ed Edmo for their work Songs for Celilo - scored for singing cellist.
The work commemorates the indigenous community that lived near Celilo Falls before its intentional flooding in the 1940’s when the Dalles Dam was built. Interpolated with Ed Edmo’s powerful delivery of his original poetry, the solo cello lines beautifully accompany the soaring vocal writing of the same text — drawing out both the hope and pain of the community who lost their beloved home.
Wrapping up the first half of the program, Reena Esmail’s The Tipping Point features a fantastic collaboration with Indian classical percussionist Shrikant Naware. The work juxtaposes traditional Western choral writing with traditional Indian raga patterns and vocalizations. The result is a dynamic and moving work that boldly declares, while we are “balanced on the razor’s edge,” to remember that “light always returns.”
Joined by musicians from Portland’s Fear No Music Ensemble, the second half of the program featured the Oregon premiere of Sarah Kirkland Snider’s work Mass for the Endangered.
The work, divided into six movements, uses a mix of traditional Latin mass texts and original poetry in English by Nathaniel Bellows. Lush and playful orchestration accompanies sparkling melody lines and powerful choral textures.
When the performance concluded, audiences sat silent for nearly thirty seconds before erupting into a standing ovation. It was magical, and we couldn’t have asked for a better end to our season!
DRUM ROLL PLEASE…
Those who attended Friday’s concert were the first to hear the big news we’ll be announcing tomorrow — 15th anniversary 2023-24 season! With special guests that made our audience gasp in delight, this is an announcement you will NOT want to miss!
Unless otherwise credited, all photos in this post are by Rachel Hadiashar
Writer A. Mimi Sei Reflects on the Requiem
“Through it all, I remain hopeful that this and similar works will help America see and examine how the continued oppression of black and brown peoples shows up in her reflection. ”
A. Mimi Sei performs her work “Shout Out” at “Portland Protests” | March 2023 at Alberta House
A. Mimi Sei on a Resonance panel discussion with composer Kenji Bunch
On Sunday, May 21st, Resonance Ensemble unveils the premiere screening of Around the Requiem, a new film centering a conversation between artists and performers from An African American Requiem and moderated by Dr. S. Renee Mitchell. Filmed days before the premiere of this historic work, the film acts as a capstone to a series of materials inspired by An African American Requiem.
We celebrate the work’s one-year anniversary this month not only with the film premiere, but with additional reflections on those involved in its creation. You can read Damien Geter and Katherine FitzGibbon’s reflections here and filmmaker Kenny Hamlett’s here.
Today’s reflection comes from A. Mimi Sei—a writer, memoirist, and social justice advocate who authored the foreword to An African American Requiem’s score. Mimi has appeared with us this season as a guest poet for Portland Protests, and joins us again for the premiere film screening on Sunday as a panelist.
A. Mimi Sei | Reflecting on the Requiem
Mimi speaking with co-artistic advisor Shohei Kobayashi.
I knew when Damien called me into his classroom to hear the first concept of one of the movements that this work would be monumental. When he asked me to write the foreword, I paused but was honored. There’d been no other like it, so I did not know from where I could draw inspiration, but I hoped for divine direction. I did interview Damien and gleanings pointed to his respect for Ida B, Wells and James Baldwin. With that in mind, I wrote what spoke to my heart. The significance of the work moved me.
Mimi with singer and composer Judy A. Rose, who performed on both the Portland premiere and Washington DC performances of the Requiem.
I was also driven to do it justice, because of the significance of it, especially in these times. His calling to this arrangement is remarkably pertinent. We see the persistence of bigotry even as we are on our knees fighting this elusive enemy—COVID. Heavy shadows and difficult realities continue to overcast the light that is Black America.
Through it all, I remain hopeful that this and similar works will help America see and examine how the continued oppression of black and brown peoples shows up in her reflection. Racism and injustice tarnish the American tapestry, and this Requiem might just be one of the agents through which we begin to examine the stains, in an effort to eliminate them.
It honors many lost to injustice, taken so suddenly, some unaccounted for, and others completely forsaken. Damien remembers them. This Requiem holds such an important marker for us. It is no dirge; it is instead a clarion call for us to commit to continued activism, to stand up for the many we have lost, and to stand in the gap for those who continue to suffer at the hands of injustice.
Listen, experience it, and be a part of this light that illuminates a path to an appreciation for our shared humanity.
Mimi chats with singer DeReau K. Farrar after the premiere of her work at Portland Protests.
All photos in this post are by Rachel Hadiashar
Filmmaker Kenny Hamlett Reflects on the Requiem
“It was an absolute pleasure to be able to document and help share these stories.”
Onset at The Winningstad Theatre for “Around the Requiem”. Photo by Adam Edwards, Courtesy of Oh! Creative
Around the Requiem | Reflections
Photo by Karen Pride, courtesy of Oh! Creative
On Sunday, May 21st, Resonance Ensemble unveils the premiere screening of Around the Requiem, a new film centering on a conversation between artists and performers from An African American Requiem and moderated by Dr. S. Renee Mitchell. Filmed days before the premiere of this historic work, the film acts as a capstone to a series of materials inspired by An African American Requiem.
We celebrate its one year anniversary this month not only with the film premiere, but with additional reflections on those involved in its creation. You can read Damien Geter and Katherine FitzGibbon’s reflectons here.
Today’s reflection comes from Kenny Hamlett, with Oh! Creative Productions who served as the Director of Photography (DP) for the film. Kenny is passionate about creating stories that matter and we asked him to take a moment to share a little about what being a part of this project means to him.
We look forward to having Kenny with us for the premiere on Sunday as a guest panelist.
Photo by Karen Pride, courtesy of Oh! Creative
Kenny Hamlett | Reflecting on the Requiem
Being a Black man in the film industry as a creative, I find myself always looking to be a part of projects that focus on sharing stories that are personal and real to me.
Growing up, I struggled with my identity. What does it mean to be a Black man? I remember learning to play the violin, and feeling like I was a sellout, but I honestly wanted to be different. I didn’t like the idea of being put into a box, but that left me confused. I didn’t have people or stories I could go to that would affirm my decision to pursue things that weren’t traditionally Black.
Anyone that says they want to be a change maker knows that it starts with sharing our own stories. I love seeing Black and Brown folks challenge norms and stretch the world’s view of what it means to be a Black person and what we can and can’t do. It was so inspiring hearing about Resonance Ensemble’s project with Damien Geter and when I was invited to work with them, there was no way I could say anything but yes. I believe these sorts of stories need to be told and I’ve dedicated my career to sharing them as often as I can.
Filmmaker Kenny Hamlett on location for the Requiem Story Series | May 2022 Photo by Karen Pride, courtesy of Oh! Creative
A Free Arts and Music Festival is Coming to Portland!
“This festival is the result of artists from many disciplines and traditions working together to honor and celebrate our planet. We hope all who join us will leave with a renewed sense of ways in which we all can work together to heal our Earth.”
Resonance Ensemble presents “Earth’s Protection,” a free arts and music festival with Sarah Kirkland Snider’s Mass for the Endangered and special guests Nancy Ives, Ed Edmo, Joe Cantrell, Four Directions, and Fear No Music
PORTLAND, OR — Resonance Ensemble concludes their 2022-23 Justice For All season on Friday, June 9, with Earth’s Protection: a free festival of music, visual art, and dance—featuring special guest performances and partnerships with Portland Audubon, Fear No Music Ensemble, and Four Directions.
Harold Paul of Four Directions
Beginning at 5:00 PM, festival-goers are invited to the grounds of Lewis & Clark College to dine from local food trucks, and visit Portland-based Cherokee artist Joe Cantrell’s “Our Planet: Universe” photography exhibit with works available for purchase. At 6:30 PM attendees can enjoy a drumming and dance demonstration by the Nez Perce performing ensemble Four Directions, under the direction of Harold Paul, featuring jingle dance, fast and fancy, and circle dance—with audience participation welcomed.
Resonance is also excited to announce a new partnership with Portland Audubon, a nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to wildlife conservancy. Portland Audubon will be on site to share information about initiatives audience members can implement and support and is a featured community partner for this event.
Image from the release of a rehabilitated bald eagle in downtown Portland. Provided by Portland Audubon
The afternoon of commemoration and celebration will then culminate at 7:30 pm in a concert at Agnes Flanagan Chapel. In this final concert of the season, Resonance Ensemble presents the Oregon premiere of Sarah Kirkland Snider’s Mass for the Endangered, with projections by Joe Cantrell and Deborah Johnson. Composer and Oregon Symphony principal cellist Nancy Ives performs her Songs from Celilo, with poet Ed Edmo reading his original text. Other highlights include works by Jasmine Barnes and Reena Esmail, and appearances by tabla player Shrikant Naware and the Fear No Music ensemble.
The event is free to all, and pre-registration for the seated concert in Agnes Flanagan Chapel is required.
“As we began planning this concert in partnership with Native elder artists Joe Cantrell and Ed Edmo, it became clear that our regular concert format couldn’t contain everything we wanted to share,” says Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon. “This festival is the result of artists from many disciplines and traditions working together to honor and celebrate our planet. We hope all who join us will leave with a renewed sense of ways in which we all can work together to heal our Earth.”
Left to Right: Joe Cantrell, Ed Edmo, and Nancy Ives
This event is generously sponsored by Ronni Lacroute, the Oregon Arts Commission, Oregon Cultural Trust, and the Oregon Community Foundation.
Attendance is free, and donations in lieu of ticket purchase are gratefully accepted.
Concert pre-registration is required in order to ensure adequate capacity. Attendees are invited to bring blankets and lawn chairs for the pre-show picnic seating. Visit resonancechoral.org for more information.
Event Summary
The free festival, located on the grounds of Lewis & Clark College, will begin at 5:00 pm with:
A 5:00 picnic, with food available for purchase, in front of the Agnes Flanagan Chapel
The “Our Planet: Universe” exhibit of the photography of Joe Cantrell in the Diane Gregg Pavilion, adjacent to the Chapel. This collection of images will be available for purchase, with proceeds generously allocated to benefit future work of Resonance Ensemble
A 6:30 drumming and dance demonstration by the Nez Perce performing ensemble Four Directions, under the direction of Harold Paul, featuring jingle dance, fast and fancy, and circle dance—with audience participation welcomed.
The main concert event begins at 7:30 pm in the Agnes Flanagan Chapel, with free admission to those who have pre-registered, as capacity is limited. The concert includes:
The Oregon premiere of Sarah Kirkland Snider’s powerful work Mass for the Endangered with video designed by Deborah Johnson (CandyStations), conducted by Resonance Ensemble Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon, with the vocalists of Resonance Ensemble and instrumentalists of Fear No Music Ensemble.
The performance of an original work, Songs for Celilo, by composer-cellist Nancy Ives. Scored for “singing cellist,” this work includes original poetry and narration by renowned writer Ed Edmo (Shoshone-Bannock), with projected imagery by photographer Joe Cantrell (Cherokee). Songs for Celilo pays tribute to the human, cultural, and environmental costs of the 1957 flooding of Celilo Falls by the Dalles Dam installation.
The first live performance of Resonance’s pandemic-era commission Normal Never Was, by composer Jasmine Barnes
Tabla player Shrikant Naware will join Resonance Ensemble to perform Reena Esmail’s The Tipping Point
Note to Journalists: Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon, composer Nancy Ives, and photographer Joe Cantrell are available for print, online, and broadcast interviews. If you would like more information or would like to schedule an interview, please contact Liz Bacon Brownson at liz@resonancechoral.org or by calling (503) 427-8701.
FOR CALENDAR SUBMISSIONS
EVENT TITLE: Resonance Ensemble Presents: Earth’s Protection
TIME & DATE: Friday, June 9th | Festival begins at 5:00pm, Concert begins at 7:30pm
LOCATION: Lewis & Clark College: The Agnes Flanagan Chapel (615 S. Palatine Hill Rd)
PRICING: Admission is free, but pre-registration is required. Donations in lieu of ticket purchase are gratefully accepted.
Umatilla Indian women beside Celilo Falls on the Columbia River, 1899 - Courtesy of Washington Rural Heritage Museum
Resources and additional program information coming later this month - check back soon to see how you can enhance your experience!
Unless otherwise indicated, all photos in this release are by Rachel Hadiashar
Around The Requiem: An interview with Damien Geter & Katherine FitzGibbon
“Being able to sit with Dr. Mitchell, Onry (a member of the choir), the conductor Bill Eddins, and the soloists—who are also some of my closest friends —it was just really special. To see my friends doing their thing—I felt very proud to have been able to bring them along on the journey—and to be able to take a moment to talk about it on camera…It was just great.”
As we look forward to the premiere of our short film, “Around the Requiem,” we reflect with some of the artists who made ”An African American Requiem” possible.
This week, Resonance Ensemble Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon and composer Damien Geter met for a conversation about Geter’s pivotal work, “An African American Requiem,“ his ongoing work with Resonance, and how Kathy and Damien’s partnership came to be.
Photo by Karen Pride
Kathy: As you know, Resonance premieres a short film later this month called “Around the Requiem.” I thought it would be interesting for us to talk about our partnership to give folks a sense of how Resonance got involved with your work and who we are together as collaborators. First, how did you get involved with Resonance Ensemble?
Damien: Well, I moved to Portland in 2015. And ironically, Kathy is the sister of a very good friend of mine from when I lived in Indianapolis. And when I moved to Portland, Resonance hired me as a singer.
Kathy: We loved having you sing with us! And you even decided to join our board – why?
Damien: Well, the mission of Resonance aligned with my own personal artistic goals and philosophy. I think that the work that Resonance does is important in the world because it uses art in one of the ways that art should be used, and that is to promote social causes. It was a natural fit for me to join the board. Since then, I’ve taken on the role of Artistic Advisor, alongside the great Shohei Kobayashi. We are currently working on season 2023-24, which is going to be amazing.
Kathy: Let’s talk about An African American Requiem. How did it feel composing and premiering it, knowing it was in the hands of Resonance?
Damien: Well, I knew it was in good hands. I could write anything that I wanted, and I knew that it was going to be fine because not only is the group politically astute, but also musically just a beast. I knew I could write whatever I wanted to.
Photo by Rachel Hadiashar
Photo by Rachel Hadiashar
Damien: What was it like for you, when you started rehearsing the piece?
Kathy: Honestly, it was a dream come true. It felt like a weighty responsibility because I believe in you so completely, and I believe in your music. And I felt and I knew in my bones that An African American Requiem was going to be a generational piece of music that could really transform the dialogue, certainly here in Portland, but also nationally. By the time we got to rehearsals in 2022, having had our interrupted attempt in 2020, we knew it was going to be live-broadcasted coast to coast and syndicated thereafter by All Classical Portland. We also knew we were going to be able to do it both with the Oregon Symphony in Portland and then with the Choral Arts Society of Washington at the Kennedy Center. I knew it had the potential to have a huge impact.
Damien: It felt good to know I could count on Resonance to do this right.
Kathy: Thinking back on the time you were composing it, I felt so honored that you had let me into the compositional process. I had seen it PDF by PDF as it was being born over the period of a couple of years, really. And I felt so much love for the music and such a belief in the music that I wanted to be sure the performance was worthy of it. The stakes were so critical, and I wanted to give everything possible. It's really, of the things I have done in my life besides having my family, the most important thing I've ever been attached to. Thanks for trusting me with it, Damien.
Photo by Rachel Hadiashar
Damien: Yeah, thanks for trusting me. Because really, I had not written anything on that scale before. Honestly, some of those moments just poured out of me. I'm not going to say that it was easy to write, but there were certain movements that... For example, The Confutatis. I wrote that in a day.
Kathy: Oh, my goodness.
Damien: And then once I had the idea for Lacrimosa, that took longer to write because it was a little bit more complicated, but it didn't take me very long to write.
Kathy: Some composers write the tune in a basic harmonization, and then later on, they go back and do the orchestral detail. The thing that surprised me about witnessing your process, was that it flowed out of you fully orchestrated. You heard the whole orchestral color in your imagination as you were writing and it was like you had the three-dimensional picture of what you wanted the music to be from the very beginning.
Damien: Yeah, the piece was pretty much fully formed as it went along. To think that it was supposed to be this little short Requiem originally, and then as I moved forward, it was just like, no, we actually need to say this.
Kathy: What did it feel like to you to sit at the world premiere in Portland with Resonance, with the Oregon Symphony, and with the soloists who are not only amazing artists, but your friends? Can you describe that feeling?
Damien Geter with Oregon Symphony President and CEO Scott Showalter and flutist Adam Eccleston backstage at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.
Photo by Rachel Hadiashar
Damien: Honestly, I was sitting in there and trying to listen to it as if I did not write it and just listen to it as an audience member. And I think I was pretty successful in doing that. But at the same time, when I was sitting there, it felt like I was in another world because the moment was there.
Also, just to see the impact that the piece has on people. After I conducted it [in January with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra], this woman came up to me and she was like, I just got to tell you, I grew up in a racist household. And she told me that the Requiem changed her heart. This was down in Texas. I was like, okay, that says a lot. So, we need to get this thing out in the world. I'm really honored to have been a vessel to make this. I have nothing to do with it, I just put the notes on the page.
Kathy: Do you remember the “Around the Requiem” filming? What was that like?
Damien: This was filmed on the Winningstad Theatre stage - two days before the actual premiere of the Requiem. Remember, the original premiere had been delayed for two years. The piece was finished two years before that. So there were all these years, literally, that had passed. And then it was suddenly actually happening — and to think the whole hall was sold out. That was really cool. I don’t remember exactly what we talked about, but I do remember it was filmed in the middle of a whirlwind week of rehearsals and interviews and I was feeling excited and emotional about everything.
Kathy: I remember that so well. I was so happy it was finally happening. Do you remember what sitting on that film set was like?
Around the Requiem cast on stage at The Winningstad Theatre - May 2022 Photo Courtesy of Oh! Creative
Damien: Yeah, so being able to sit with Dr. Mitchell, Onry (a member of the choir), the conductor Bill Eddins, and the soloists—who are also some of my closest friends —it was just really special. To see my friends doing their thing—I felt very proud to have been able to bring them along on the journey—and to be able to take a moment to talk about it on camera…It was just great.
Kathy: I am looking forward to watching it with you on May 21 and remembering some of this journey we’ve been on together. Thank you, Damien, for trusting Resonance with this historic work.
Damien: Thank you, Kathy, for believing in it. I knew it was in good hands with Resonance Ensemble, and I was right.
Attendance for Around the Requiem on May 21st is free, but registration is required. To register today, or for more information, visit our event page.
Resonance Ensemble Presents new date for ‘Around the Requiem’ the world premiere film screening
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — April 25, 2023
RESONANCE ENSEMBLE PRESENTS NEW DATE FOR THE WORLD PREMIERE FILM SCREENING OF “AROUND THE REQUIEM” AT NEW EXPRESSIVE WORKS
The final film in a series of videos reflecting on the impact of ‘An African American Requiem’
PORTLAND, OR — On Sunday, May 21st, 2023, Resonance Ensemble invites the public to New Expressive Works for the world premiere of “Around the Requiem,” filmed in May of 2022. The short film features an intimate conversation with artists from An African American Requiem, the historic choral-orchestral work that had its premiere two days later. An opening reception will kick off the event at 4:00 PM, and the screening begins at 4:30 PM. Attendance is free, but registration is required.
From behind-the-scenes of the “My Requiem Story” series. Photo provided by Oh! Creative Productions.
About the Film
Baritone soloist Kenneth Overton talks with composer Damien Geter in Around the Requiem. Photo provided by Oh! Creative Productions.
Commissioned by Resonance Ensemble, the film was produced by Oh! Creative Productions and filmed on May 5, 2022—two days before the world premiere of An African American Requiem. In the film, poet Dr. S. Renee Mitchell moderates a conversation with composer Damien Geter; conductor William Eddins; soloists Brandie Sutton, Karmesha Peake, Bernard Holcomb, and Kenneth Overton; and Onry, a baritone from the African American Requiem choir. The group discusses the significance of Geter’s work, their experiences as Black artists in classical music, their struggles, and their joy.
Composer Damien Geter with All Classical Portland’s Adam Eccleston.
“Around the Requiem” is the final work in a series of videos and supporting materials that were produced to supplement the premiere of An African American Requiem. From the deeply personal My Requiem Story series to the educational curriculum—which reached hundreds of public school students—audiences and students in Portland were able to access the world premiere with deeper context. Resonance Ensemble has been working with Portland Public Schools to further develop this project for students across the nation to experience the Requiem and the larger history surrounding it.
“James Baldwin said it best, ‘you write to change the world...’” says A. Mimi Sei—author of the foreword for An African American Requiem. “Damien Geter was born to write this masterpiece, and it will change how we show up in the world.”
Along with A. Mimi Sei, speakers and post-screening panelists will include Resonance Ensemble Artistic Director Dr. Katherine FitzGibbon, composer Damien Geter, filmmaker Kenny Hamlett from Oh! Creative Productions, and more.
About the Event
An opening reception will kick off the free event at 4:00 PM and the screening begins at 4:30 PM. Resonance Ensemble’s Artistic Director Dr. Katherine FitzGibbon will introduce the 40-minute film. After the screening, all are welcome to stay for a conversation with FitzGibbon, Geter, Sei, Hamlett, and more.
A. Mimi Sei (left) and Dr. Katherine FitzGibbon (right).
Attendance is free, but registration is required. Donations are welcome.
For more information on New Artistic Works, including transit and parking, visit resonancechoral.org/new
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.
AROUND THE REQUIEM
WHEN: Sunday, May 21 @ 4:00pm
WHERE: New Expressive Works (N.E.W.) | 810 SE Belmont St. | Portland, OR 97214
TICKETS: Attendance is free, but registration is required.
For further details, visit resonancechoral.org or call our box office at (503) 427-8701
CLICK TO LEARN MORE:
Resonance Ensemble | Katherine FitzGibbon | New Expressive Works | Damien Geter | A. Mimi Sei | S. Renee Mitchell | Kenny Hamlett
*Unless otherwise credited, photos in this press release are by Rachel Hadiashar.
UP NEXT | Earth’s Protection
Our next event is also free! Visit our event page for Earth’s Protection to learn more.
Portland Public Schools presents the debut performance of the PPS Latinx Community Choir
A world premiere by composer Luz Elena Mendoza of Y La Bamba. Performed by a multi-generational group combining Latinx PPS singers with adult mentors from Portland’s award-winning professional choir Resonance Ensemble, along with additional musical groups.
On Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at 6:30 PM, Portland Public Schools and Arts for Learning Northwest (formerly Young Audiences) invite the public to the 2023 HeART of Portland event to hear the first ever PPS LatinX Community Choir perform the world premiere of El Agua De Mi Ser (The Water of My Being) composed by the powerhouse songwriter, guitarist, and frontwoman Luz Elena Mendoza of the popular Portland-based band Y La Bamba.
“Resonance is excited to support this project for young Latinx artists, this world premiere by Luz Elena Mendoza, and to continue our history of collaboration with Portland Public Schools.” says Artistic Director Katherine FitzGibbon. “I can’t wait to hear it next week!”
The PPS Latinx Community Choir, featuring singers from Resonance Ensemble and conducted by Lynn Mendoza-Khan. (Choir seen here with associate conductor DeReau K. Farrar) Photo by Kenny Hamlett, courtesy of Oh! Creative
“This premiere will serve as a catalyst for new directions providing opportunities for singing artists of color in PPS.”
The PPS Latinx Community Choir is a choir specially assembled for this work conducted by Lynn Mendoza-Khan with associate conductor DeReau K. Farrar—both Resonance Ensemble musicians. The choir features Latinx PPS student singers joined by musicians from other Portland-area groups, including the award-winning professional choral group, Resonance Ensemble. Luz Elena Mendoza and a backing band will also be featured.
Conductor Lynn Mendoza-Khan
“The rehearsal process has enabled PPS students who identify as Latinx to bring a piece of music to life that directly addresses experiences of Latinx artists,” conductor Lynn Mendoza-Khan notes, “It has been powerful working together with these brilliant student musicians on music that profoundly encapsulates aspects of our experiences, that centers our needs and our dreams. We’ve come together as a community on this project, and it has been a beautiful celebration of the students and of a connection across generations.”
El Agua De Mi Ser will draw from themes explored on Y La Bamba’s MUJERES, including the complexity of a bicultural childhood—further complicated by its context in the Eurocentric choral music world as well as the predominantly-white Pacific Northwest.
Resonance singer Zaria Williams supports the work of a student singer during rehearsal. Photo: K Hamlett courtesy of Oh! Creative
“El Agua De Mi Ser is a body of my work that I still have never gotten to hear.” Luz Elena Mendoza says. “I am so happy that the choir is learning this music and that they might find healing in it. This concert is only the beginning. What we are manifesting for the HeART of Portland will continue to grow.”
Following the launch at the HeART of Portland event, Luz has invited the choir to be part of an album release performance at the Wonder Ballroom on April 26, 2023.
The project is generously supported by a Creative Heights award from the Oregon Community Foundation. PPS and Resonance Ensemble extend gratitude to the Camas High School Choir under the direction of Ethan Chessin and Arts for Learning Northwest (formerly Young Audiences of Oregon & SW Washington) for their part in shepherding this work.
For more information about this event, please visit ppsarts.com
Associate Conductor, DeReau K. Farrar, takes in the music during rehearsal. Photo: K Hamlett, courtesy of Oh! Creative
“Portland Protests” delivers works with purpose.
Artists Kenji Bunch and A. Mimi Sei (left) and Judy A. Rose and Vin Shambry embrace following the concert
Earlier this month, Resonance Ensemble presented a concert of vocal music and poetry in dialogue with film, visual art, and photography. Curating an evening of what OregonArtsWatch has deemed “works with purpose,” co-artistic advisor and conductor Shohei Kobayashi’s vision explored a wide range of reactions to the Portland protests of 2020. Audiences were invited to consider and intentionally remember our city’s past, collectively grieve, and dare to envision more just futures.
Today, we share highlights from the program complemented by images captured by photographer Rachel Hadiashar. Thanks to our REAP initiative, online audiences will soon be invited to enjoy the concert virtually on our YouTube channel. (Click here to be added to the invite list!)
PORTLAND PROTESTS: THROUGH FILM & PHOTOGRAPHY
Still image from Arresting Power: Resisting Police Violence in Portland, Oregon
Throughout the program, the concert was interspersed with video excerpts from the moving documentary, Arresting Power: Resisting Police Violence in Portland, Oregon. Produced by local filmmakers Jodi Darby, Julie Perini, and Erin Yanke, the clips chosen feature members of Portland’s reform and abolition movements to help audience members further understand the impacts of police brutality in our own community, and imagine a world without institutionalized violence.
Also complementing the music and paintings was the photography of Tojo Andrianarivo. Images of the 2020 Portland protests provided powerful context throughout the concert.
The photo above the choir, taken by Tojo Andrainarivo reads: Black History is Our History. Black voices matter, Black pain matters, Black joy matters, Black men matter, Black women matter, Black feminism matters, Black spaces matter, Black healing matters.
PORTLAND PROTESTS: THROUGH COMPOSERS REMEMBERED
The program opened with a beautiful setting of the St. Francis Prayer by Margaret Bonds, whose impressive and rich catalogue of works has recently enjoyed a vivid resurgence in the classical music world. The lush textures ascend as the text asks to be the light in a dark place, to be hope where there is none, and to be a channel of peace in a world of chaos.
“Portland PROtests…Portland proTESTS…I think it’s both” Conductor Shohei Kobayashi
Pianist Hannah Brewer
Later in the program, another Bonds work, Troubled Waters—a darkly playful and cinematic interpretation of the spiritual “Wade in the Water” for solo piano. Starting with a low burble and building to gushing lines with towering leaps, Hannah Brewer’s dynamic, powerful, and graceful performance highlighted the fresh, contemporary feel of this Bonds work despite being one of the oldest works on the program for the evening.
PORTLAND PROTESTS: THROUGH LOCAL COMPOSERS AND POETS
Freshly-commissioned by Resonance, poetry and music by acclaimed local poets and composers were highlights of the concert. With texts from writer A. Mimi Sei, Resonance Ensemble Poet-in-Residence S. Renee Mitchell, and spoken word artist Vin Shambry set to music by Judy A. Rose, Kimberly Osberg, and Fear No Music’s Kenji Bunch, audiences will be invited to consider and intentionally remember our city’s past, collectively grieve, and dare to envision more just futures.
COMMISSION #1 RE-FLEC
Poetry by Vin Shambry
Composed by Judy A. Rose
RE-FLEC, a powerfully direct and hauntingly vivid depiction of the thoughts running through the speaker’s mind in the wake of yet another police-involved murder was the first of the three commissions to premiere. Alberta House director and poet, Vin Shambry read his poetry before the new piece was performed.
“My sense of loss stems from knowing any moment that I could be killed...History keeps repeating itself, our black bodies are turned into symbols. What if some of us chant, because we’re scared to be the chant?”
Composer and Portland-local Judy A. Rose left audiences in a breathless silence for nearly half a minute following the performance of her setting of RE-FLEC. Solos by Emily Lau and Onry soared over the ensemble texture—using not only a wide range of chorus textures, but powerful writing for the string quartet (from Portland’s beloved contemporary music organization, Fear No Music) and piano as well. A gut-wrenching work, this piece will certainly stay with listeners and performers alike for years to come.
Alberta House director Vin Shambry reads his poem, RE-FLEC.
Onry performs the spoken word solo from RE-FLEC
Guest composer Judy A. Rose following the premiere of her work.
“Where is the healing in all of this? Who is fighting for what? Where is the joy? The justice? An evoking of love?”
COMMISSION #2
SEEK WHAT YOU WANT TO FIND
Poet: S. Renee Mitchell
Composer: Kimberly Osberg
Also in conversation with Pander’s works—both the flood series as well as his colorful and dramatic depictions of the 2020 protests—was Dr. S. Renee Mitchell’s poem, Seek What You Want to Find. The text explores both the despair of the events captured, as well as the hope one can draw from these images—focusing on resilience, dignity, and humanity. Saturday’s audiences heard Dr. Mitchell read and our Sunday audience heard the poem read by poet Kendall Clay-Brown.
Poet-in-Residence Dr. S. Renee Mitchell performs her work, “Seek What You Want to Find”
Composer (and Resonance team member!) Kimberly R. Osberg set the text for chorus and string quartet—weaving the theme from Wade in the Water (which appears in the poem) with original motives depicting combat and chaos as well as hope and resilience. Brilliant and shimmering performances from the string quartet along with commanding solo moments from Vakare Petroliunaite, Cecille Elliott, Brandon Michael, and DeReau K. Farrar vividly captured the complexity of the events depicted in the paintings.
Guest composer Kimberly R. Osberg and conductor Shohei Kobayashi embrace after the performance of her work.
Resonance Ensemble performs “Seek What You Want to Find”
COMMISSION #3
Shout Out
Poetry by A. Mimi Sei
Composed by Kenji Bunch
Later in the program came a much-needed burst of hope from poet A. Mimi Sei—whose poem Shout Out, invites the reader to be motivated to action rather than to sit frozen in despair. The poem was beautifully accompanied by photos from Tojo, reminding audience members of not only the difficulty and division of the 2020 protests, but also of the great community outpouring and push towards change.
“We undressed lies, brandished our pain, Stood watch and shouted, “Never again!””
Guest composer A. Mimi Sei performs her work, “Shout Out”
Cellist Valdine Mishkin with Resonance Ensemble
Starting with sparse, percussive hits from a tambourine and caxixi and a simple repeating note from cellist Valdine Mishkin, the piece begins with much of the choir being divided from one another—joining only at key moments to highlight the gradual coming together. The work builds into an uproarious chorus of syncopated textures and playful counterpoint from the cello as the choir repeats “sing out, shout out, in wondrous harmony", before boldly ending in a quiet, reflective unison texture.
Guest composer Kenji Bunch following the premiere of his work, Shout Out.
PORTLAND PROTESTS: THROUGH VISUAL ART
Henk Pander’s Paintings
For the set of works by David Lang, anthems, audiences were invited to wander the space to get a closer look at the installation of paintings by local painter, Henk Pander that were on display Historic Alberta House. Listeners’ experience of the paintings were accompanied by sparse, meticulous invocations by the ensemble—both voices and strings—as well as a transcendent solo by Vakare Petroliunaite. In addition to the paintings, a short documentary on Henk Pander (produced by his son, titled The Stain) also played in the lobby.
Audience members walk throughout Alberta House to view the paintings on display.
PORTLAND PROTESTS: THROUGH HARMONY
To close the program, Joel Thompson’s powerfully bittersweet setting of two poems by Langston Hughes pleads with the listener to “hold fast to dreams.” Gorgeously lush, heartbreakingly conflicted harmonies left audiences holding both the pain of our communal memories of these events, as well as the challenge to envision a better Portland—for every member of our community.
Audience graciously gives a standing ovation upon conclusion of the concert.
PORTLAND PROTESTS: A PANEL DISCUSSION
From the panel discussion with artists
After the program, several of the artists involved spoke with artistic director Dr. Katherine FitzGibbon to share more about their experiences in creating, rehearsing, and sharing these works. The audience asked questions and shared their thoughts on the paintings, photos, film excerpts, poems, and compositions shared throughout the program.
A MOMENT OF GRATITUDE
From the artists and performers, and our team here at Resonance Ensemble, thank you for being a part of this weekend of community healing and reflection. The full concert—including the panel discussion—will be available for free next month.
We invite you to explore our Enhance Your Experience page to learn more about the topics, artists, and works shared as part of this program.
To support our initiative to provide free, high-quality videos of our performances, visit the Resonance Ensemble Access Project (REAP) page—and help us keep this vital accessibility tool alive!
UP NEXT: FREE WORLD PREMIERE FILM SCREENING!
Click here to read more about Around the Requiem, showing Friday, April 21st.
Imagining What is To Come | A Letter from Conductor Shohei Kobayashi
“The result, we hope, is an evening of music, paintings, photography, and film at Historic Alberta House that opens space for us to nuance and expand our understandings and memories of what happened here in Portland and to imagine what’s to come.”
Conductor Shohei Kobayashi | photo by Rachel Hadiashar
Guest conductor Shohei Kobayashi takes a moment to share their program notes from this weekend’s concert, Portland Protests.
Just a year or so ago when we began imagining this event, we learned that four previously unseen works by Portland-based artist Henk Pander would be on display at Historic Alberta House as part of the 7th Vanport Mosaic Festival.
Conductor Shohei Kobayashi | photo:Karen Pride
The oil paintings, inspired by Pander’s eyewitness accounts of the downtown protests sparked by viral videos of the state-sanctioned murder of George Floyd, make subjects of the federal courthouse and the justice center—two high profile epicenters of Portland’s racial justice protests in 2020—2021. Upon seeing these buildings-turned-fortresses flanked by armed federal officers in tandem with the increasingly emboldened white nationalist presence around the city, Pander recalled his childhood living in Nazi-occupied Holland at the end of WWII. “This is what fascism looks like,” says Pander.
The first of the set, called Stain, features the federal courthouse with a prominent vertical smudge, “a stain on the American justice system.” The paintings, in addition to Pander’s works depicting scenes from the 1948 Vanport flood, really demand our attention, and it was clear that we would need to program the concert to be in dialogue with them.
Just a few existing pieces came to mind as effective counterpoint with the artwork.
To open the concert: Margaret Bonds’ 1968 St. Francis’ Prayer, only recently rediscovered in 2015 and published in 2020, a plea to be made instruments of peace, change agents in the world, written the January after the summer protests of 1967—right around the time Pander moved to the states. Sounds like Bonds imagining in vibrant harmony the world she wishes to see.
To view the paintings: selected movements from David Lang’s 2014 the national anthems, with a stitched-together text of lines extracted from the multiple national anthems, set with the composer’s characteristically transparent style. Sounds like and encourages critical distance.
To close the concert: Joel Thompson’s 2016 Hold Fast to Dreams, commissioned as a response to Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, a choral recitative and aria combining two Langston Hughes texts contemplating the nature of dreams. Sounds like acceptance of a turbulent reality while still pressing on.
Guest composer Judy A. Rose and conductor Shohei Kobayashi | photo by Rachel Hadiashar
With these pieces and Pander’s artwork as the frame, we sought to fill out the concert with local perspectives. We commissioned three local poets – Dr. S. Renee Mitchell, A. Mimi Sei, Vin Shambry – to write texts for new choral works by three local composers – Judy A. Rose, Kimberly R. Osberg, Kenji Bunch. We collaborated with photographer Tojo Andrianarivo who spent several months in 2020 on the ground documenting protests in both Portland and Seattle to select images to project throughout the concert. We connected with filmmakers Julie Perini, Jodi Darby and Erin Yanke to share excerpts from their 2015 documentary Arresting Power: Resisting Police Violence in Portland, Oregon.
The result, we hope, is an evening of music, paintings, photography, and film at Historic Alberta House that opens space for us to nuance and expand our understandings and memories of what happened here in Portland and to imagine what’s to come.
Warmly,
Shohei Kobayashi
Conductor and Artistic Advisor
Resonance Ensemble
Tickets still available for both Saturday March 18 at 7:30 pm and Sunday March 19 at 3:00 pm. Click here for more information about Portland Protests and to buy yours today.
Rehearsals underway for "Portland Protests"
Resonance musicians at a recent rehearsal. (pictured: Top Left: Brandon Michael, Tim Galloway, Claire Robertson-Preis, Erik Hundtoft, Les Green, Hannah Brewer, DeReau K. Farrar Center: Vakare Petroliunaite, Ethan Allred, Kevin Walsh, Front Left: Jessica Israels, Emily Lau, Chris Engbretson, Kathy FitzGibbon, Amy Stuart Hunn, Shohei Kobayashi, Jackie Cano (Mar 2023)
Rehearsals are underway for our next concert “Portland Protests” and the musicians are busy rehearsing music by Margaret Bonds, David Lang, and Joel Thompson alongside newly commissioned works from local poets and composers (Pairings by A. Mimi Sei/Kenji Bunch, S. Renee Mitchell/Kim Osberg, and Vin Shambry/Judy A. Rose)
“To share these new works with this ensemble is an honor,” adds Shohei Kobayashi, guest conductor and co-artistic advisor for Resonance Ensemble. “These new choral works, their texts, and the visual and film media all speak to shared humanity, loss and being lost, the courage and fearlessness of the protesters, deep emotional exhaustion, and resilient, insistent hope.”
Also featured on the concert:
Vanport Mosaic presents four large-scale oil paintings by Portland-based Dutch artist Henk Pander, created in response to 2020’s racial justice protests. As part of the exhibit, visitors will also be able to watch The Stain, a short documentary by Jacob Pander about his father’s work lifelong commitment to unmasking fascism, shaped by his childhood in Nazi-occupied Holland.
Images from the 2020 Portland protests by photographer Tojo Andrianarivo will be projected during the concert.
Documentary filmmakers and Portland-based media artists Jodi Darby, Julie Perini and Erin Yanke share an excerpt from their film Arresting Power: Resisting Police Violence in Portland, Oregon, documenting the history of conflict between the Portland police and community members.
A panel discussion with guest artists will follow the performance, moderated by Shohei Kobayashi, inviting conversation and reflection
“Portland Protests” takes place at the Historic Alberta House on Saturday, March 18 and Sunday, March 19, 2023. Audiences will be invited to consider and intentionally remember our city’s past, collectively grieve, and dare to envision more just futures.
Tickets are on sale now. Click here to buy yours.
