Concert: East Wing Songs Volume II

530 Tuscarawas Street West,Canton OH 44702

18 March, 2023

Description

Classical song literature has often presented women as they relate to men. The same may be said of the First Ladies of our nation. East Wing Songs seeks to humanize the first ladies of the United States through song and to use music to share their stories and memorialize their achievements and challenges as women. For the second volume of East Wing Songs, composer Linda Lister selected women that span time, age, political party, and approach to their role within the White House. Texts have been adapted from primary sources when possible, including letters, speeches, biographies, interviews, and diaries. For women who were more reclusive, or destroyed their correspondence and personal effects, we have created “historical fiction” dialogue based on what we know from first-hand accounts of the women as witnessed by their families, friends, president spouses, and the staff of the White House. Volume II will include songs for Louisa Adams, Ellen Wilson and Edith Wilson, Lady Bird Johnson, Michelle Obama, and Hillary Clinton. The compositions will have their world premiere at Christ Presbyterian Church in Canton, Ohio in collaboration with the National First Ladies' Library. The lecture recital for 2023 will also include Civil Words by Jennifer Higdon, compositions inspired by Civil War era poetry. The performers, Dr. Ann Marie Wilcox-Daehn and Dr. Elizabeth Avery are long-time collaborators committed to sharing interesting art song, collaborating with living composers, and creating art that educates and inspires.