ChamberQUEER @ NMG2023
Jules Biber, cello+
Danielle Buonaiuto, voice+
Chuck Dillard, piano+
Michael Genese, violin+
Bonnie Miksch, violin+
Program
Tuning Meditation: Pauline Oliveros — Everyone is welcomed to join in
koʻu inoa, Leilehua Lanzilotti [5] — Jules Biber, cello
“Five Eccentric Optimists”, from Utopia House, Bonnie Miksch [3] —
Danielle Buonaiuto, voice
Jules Biber, cello
Bonnie Miksch, violin
Chuck Dillard, piano
fleet/hold, Rajna Swaminathan [5] — Everyone is welcomed to join in
Undercurrents, Jules Biber [5]
And an Encore!
Notes
ChamberQUEER exists to serve the queer community in “chamber music” in a number of ways. We platform and perform queer composers and creators — increasingly, in ways that allow them to experiment and cultivate their practice in a process-based, artist-led format. We also highlight queer voices in our shared musical history, allowing queer genealogy to emerge as an assemblage of voices, influences, and kinship networks. We reimagine the “classical” concertgoing experience as a radically inclusive, intentionally queer gathering space and musical community for the 21st century.
That last part is the aspect that sticks out the most to artists who join ChamberQUEER projects, as well as to our audiences and community members. We hear time and again that it is powerful and emotionally moving, even transformative, to be creative and vulnerable in this way within intentionally queer space.
Each year, we host a festival during Pride month; this year’s festival brought together seven performer-creators to devise an evening-length piece. Some broad themes were advanced, but we wanted the process to support the artists’ own visions and working styles, and we wanted collaboration and fruitful, artist-led process to be one of the outcomes of the work — a values-driven endeavour. It was a leap of faith, as we had not done such open-ended work with artists before on such a large scale. Today we will perform two of the newly-composed sections of that work for you, fleet/hold by Rajna Swaminathan, and Undercurrents by our very own co-founder, Jules Biber, who made her compositional debut in this project.
Rounding out our offering today are some selections which embody other aspects of our purpose. Tuning Meditation helps us to invite the audience in as active participants in the music, setting the tone for deep, engaged listening and a shared sense of creativity and openness. We always include participatory musicmaking on our concerts (and we are always looking for more practices and pieces like this to share with our community!)
ko’u inoa by Leilehua Lanzilotti as well as “Five Eccentric Optimists” here represent our commitment to amplifying the music of our community members, especially when they can be with us in the room either to help share it, whether that’s from the audience or the stage. In general, engaging with local queer and musical communities when we are out of NYC is extremely important to us, especially when it is in places where queer communities are not as visible or have fewer ways to be safely out and organized, or are being actively legislated against. Representation and visibility continue to matter crucially; but these days, it is not always safe to be visible, so it is vital to create opportunities for queer people to show up authentically to a safe and affirming space within their musical worlds.
For more information about us, to learn more about creating safe, affirming queer musical space where you live, to get involved, or just to say hi:
www.chamberqueer.org
hello@chamberqueer.org
To learn more about the ways in which you can support queer and trans people this Pride month, here are some starting places:
Learn about the anti-LGBTQ+ bills that are being introduced and being fought right now
Follow Chase Strangio and Lambda Legal on Instagram to learn about all the work so many incredible attorneys are doing to fight these bills and how to help
Check out PFLAG to find your local chapter and learn about ways to support queer youth in your area, family or kinship web
Make a donation to an organization in your city that supports queer people, especially Black trans women and youth — our most vulnerable populations
Here is a good starting place to search for national and local orgs to follow and support
Program notes from composers
Pauline Oliveros’ Sonic Meditations are intended for group work over a long period of time with regular meetings. No special skills are necessary. Any persons who are willing to commit themselves can participate… With continuous work some of the following becomes possible with Sonic Meditations: Heightened states of awareness or expanded consciousness, changes in physiology and psychology from known and unknown tensions to relaxations which gradually become permanent. These changes may represent a tuning of mind and body. The group may develop positive energy which can influence others who are less experienced. Members of the group may achieve greater awareness and sensitivity to each other. Music is a welcome by-product of this activity.
Instructions:
First, listen as long as you like.
then: choose a note you hear and try to sing it exactly the same as the person playing it or singing it.
then, listen again and sing a note you don’t hear anyone else doing.
repeat the cycle.
everything is played and sung quietly and warmly.
Leilehua Lanzilotti — ko’u inoa
koʻu inoa translates from ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi to "my name is" and frames a perspective and statement to absorb the meaning of identity. Melody is the most substantial element to impart musical distinction and identity. A succession of pitches is the equivalent of letters to a name. Even when the rhythm is altered, the original melody lingers and is recognizable. This connection between pitch, melody, time, and personal identity is one of many metaphors at the heart of this music.
Bonnie Miksch — “Five Eccentric Optimists”
This aria comes from Scene 1 of the opera, Utopia House, currently under development. The text of the area comes from a flyer advertising Utopia House, an intentional community looking for a sixth member.
Rajna Swaminathan — fleet/hold
This piece is dedicated to finding the ‘queer’ in our inherited expressions, where queerness manifests as fleeting and ephemeral possibility. Sounds are offered in dialogue with spontaneously conjured memories, inviting us to collectively transform our languages from within. Together, we move from the hold a form may have over us to holding ourselves and our desires with compassion. To those sharing this moment and process with us— feel free to close your eyes and move your body— I invite you to notice what these sounds and gestures spark in your imagination and memory. Here is a new moment, a fleeting togetherness– hold it, nurture it, and let it bring us to a state of convergence in remembering, sounding, and listening.
Undercurrents — Jules Biber
Undercurrents is a piece inspired by my late cousin Nancy Brous, who died of a glioblastoma in February 2022. Fiercely intelligent and creative, she was one of my favorite people and a true New Yorker: fast-talking, fast-walking, and not afraid to tell you what she really thought. Nancy could most often be found navigating the waters of the Hudson River in her kayak. I think Nancy found a calmness and peace on the water that in some ways balanced the often chaotic nature of her life in the city. Undercurrents explores seemingly opposing sides of a personality, taking the listener on a journey from chaos to calmness; from the bustle of the city to a gently lilting tide.