Intersection receives $50,000 NEA grant to fund LISTEN project, plans to premiere its first piece and performance on December 3, 2020
November 23, 2020 – Nashville, TN – Intersection, Nashville’s professional contemporary music ensemble, announces LISTEN, a multi-year initiative celebrating the voices of female composers through a series of 25 new works. The organization is one of 15 non-profit arts organizations in Tennessee to have been awarded a $50,000 grant from the National Endowment of the Arts funded through the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act, and LISTEN Is supported in part by this National Endowment for the Arts grant. Composers will be commissioned and paired with Intersection musicians to create new, original, solo works designed for young audiences, and the project’s installations will premiere on Intersection’s Facebook page and archived on their website.
In addition to these virtual performances, Intersection will be hosting interviews with the composers and musicians involved and creating activities and curriculum to correspond with each new work, all of which will be free and available to the public. “Intersection is committed to the creation of new works, amplifying artistic voices and reaching new audiences,” says Intersection’s Founder and Artistic Director Kelly Corcoran. “LISTEN will be highlighting 25 female composers writing new works specifically for our Intersection musicians. We’re excited about how these 25 solo works will contribute to the canon of contemporary music and live on well beyond this project. This project supports composers and performers, creates new quality content for musicians, educators, families and more, and allows Intersection to engage with audiences and performers beyond Nashville.”
LISTEN will feature works by Wu Fei, Cristina Spinei, Errollyn Wallen, Nailah Nombeko and many other musically diverse composers. “Each composer is unique, and we are so excited to discover what they all bring forward through this project,” continues Kelly. The project’s first premiere will be a piece composed and performed by Alicia Enstrom, a renowned violinist and Intersection performer. The performance will premiere on December 3, 2020, at 11 a.m. CT on Intersection’s Facebook page and also made available on Intersection’s website.
LISTEN is made possible with support from the National Endowment for the Arts, and to find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov. Additional funding for Intersection is provided by Metro Arts / Nashville Office of Art + Culture.
Visit www.intersectionmusic.org for more information on LISTEN and other Intersection initiatives.
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About Intersection: Intersection is a flexible contemporary music ensemble dedicated to challenging the traditional concert experience, exploring music of the 20th and 21st centuries, supporting living composers, presenting programs for younger audiences, embracing collaboration, technology and the avant-garde, while expanding, respecting and embracing the musical and cultural diversity of Nashville.
