We Sat Down with Medieval Luminary Shira Kammen

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Written By Beth Beauchamp

In celebration of our upcoming digital premiere of Awesome Is This Place we got some insight from our beloved collaborator and composer!

Join us along with Shira to celebrate the work of Guillaume Dufay: 


PREMIERE with Musician Chat
April 29, 2023 at 7:30pm ET
(available through May 13)
Tickets: FREE for New Yorkers

☞ Use the coupon code: NYC<3

This program includes works by Dufay as well as compositions and arrangements by Alkemie and Shira Kammen.

Q: Why do you love Dufay?
 

Shira: "Dufay is one of my top 3 favorite composers for many reasons. I find composers on the cusps of musical eras particularly fascinating, and Dufay straddles the late Medieval and early Renaissance eras (whenever those really start/end...) Some of his music seems like it is looking backward to the past and some into the future, in the way he uses consonance and dissonance, modal alterations, text setting, and so much more. Also, his tonalities and interplay of rhythms are gorgeous."


Q: When did you start composing, and what do you enjoy about it?

Shira: "I started composing music perhaps 25 years ago—I have done way more arranging than composing, but enjoy doing both immensely. As much as I love playing—it will always be the musical activity that I am most comfortable with—I find composing to be so interesting as a way to both discover the formulas and tendencies of a particular style of music, and also gain a glimpse into how one’s own musical mind works (or doesn’t). I love working with medieval or Renaissance texts and setting them with part of an ear on early music, and part something newer. I find it challenging and delightful to mix up the musical roles of composer vs performer vs improviser."

Q: What are you working on (musically or otherwise) that you're excited about right now?

Shira: "I'm currently composing music to medieval texts about the Lady Fortune, learning a bunch of Cape Breton & Breton tunes, playing in a Balkan/Americana fusion band, planning all sorts of projects that may or may not happen."

Awesome Is This Place will also be On Demand from
April 29 - May 13

☞ Get a FREE** digital ticket at checkout by using the coupon code: NYC<3

**Thank you to Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and to the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature for making free tickets for New Yorkers and NYC metro area residents possible.**

Beth Beauchamp

Having worked as a professional musician, a music-educator, and the Executive Director of a number of non-profit arts organizations, Beth has over 10 years of experience in catering to the unique needs of artists. Beth believes that the talent, education, and skill-sets of her clients have inherent worth. As a passionate artist advocate, she aims to help her artists improve the quality of their own lives by encouraging them to honor the value of their own work, and by creating materials which allow them to champion their art with confidence. Equally interested in building community, Beth aims to create a roster of artists who are excited to support and collaborate together. 

http://www.beauchampartistservices.com
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Alkemie awarded NYSCA and DCA grants