Classical music news: How many living women composers can you name? Which ones have ties to the University of Wisconsin-Madison or will be performed there Wednesday night by The Lincoln Trio at a FREE concert?

By Jacob Stockinger

Forgive my tardiness: Several weeks ago we celebrated international Women’s Day.

And one curator, compiler and blogger – Rob Deemer — has compied a list of 202 contemporary women composers, assuming that someone might want direction in finding such composers.

I find this list useful also as a check list of the women composers I have heard performed and ones I should watch out for.

For example, I recently heard University of Wisconsin cellist Parry Karp, with UW grad and UW-Oshkosh pianist Eli Kalman, perform a terrify work of “Twenty-Four Preludes and a Postlude” by the young Russian composer and polymath  Lera Auerbach. It was a stunning piece of work, not only for its composition and sound, but also for its virtuosity. And her biography will tell you what a remarkable woman in so many ways.

Then, as I went down the list further, I noticed that one of the composers – Pauline Oliveros – served as a artist-in-residence at the UW-Madison, where she composer and premiered an opera, for semester (or maybe a year).

And then I noticed that current UW composer and professor Laura Schwendinger, who also directs the UW Contemporary Chamber Ensemble ,was listed.

So I will admit it: I personally know the work of only a very few of these women composers – and, yes, the number I know includes Joan Tower, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich and Jennifer Higdon – but there many, many more I do not know.

Some of the work of those women composers, many of whom are featured on Cedille Records‘ series “Notable Women,” will be performed in a FREE upcoming concert on this Wednesday, April 11, at 7:30 p.m. in Morphy Hall at the UW-Madison by the acclaimed guest artists, The Lincoln Trio (below).

Here is a link to the complete list:

http://www.newmusicbox.org/articles/a-helpful-list/

And here are some links to reviews of the “Notable Women” CD:

Notable Women is named a January Critics Choice: Naxoshttp://www.naxos.com/feature/Critics_Choice_January_2012.asp

Notable Women is also named one of “hidden gems” by The Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/dec/18/hidden-gems-classical-2011-maddocks

Notable Women lands on  Audiophile Audition’s Best of the Year Discs round-up for 2011:

http://audaud.com/2011/12/best-of-the-year-discs-for-2011/

So now I turn to you, readers of The Ear.

How many of these women composers do you personally know of or have heard?

Do you have favorite composers or works?

Which ones do you recommend the most and which pieces do you like the best?

And are there others who have been left out?

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Posted in Classical music
Tags: Cedille Records, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, Jacob Stockinger, Jennifer Higdon, Joan Tower, Laura Schwendinger, Lera Auerbach, List of female composers by birth year, Pauline Oliveros, University of Wisconsin–Madison