The Score | New Philadelphia Sounds

In September, the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted readings of music by six women composers: Melody Eötvös, Robin Holcomb, Chen-Hui Jen, Hilary Purrington, Xi Wang, and Nina C. Young, led by Assistant Conductor Kensho Watanabe. At the readings, held in collaboration with the American Composers Orchestra, composers received feedback on their scores from ACO Artistic Director Derek Bermel and composer Melinda Wagner, and their pieces were recorded. Four of the six composers were earlier identified through the League of American Orchestras’ Women Composers Readings and Commissions program, made possible by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation. The Philadelphia Orchestra will commission a work from each composer, said Philadelphia Orchestra President and CEO Matías Tarnopolsky, and the commissions are part of what the orchestra calls “a greater investment in the compositional process to support diversity and the creation of new works in innovative forums such as workshops, public dialogues, and listening sessions.” The Philadelphia Orchestra plans to commission works from other women composers in coming seasons, and a new mentoring program for emerging women composers is in the works. Gabriela Lena Frank will be the Philadelphia Orchestra’s composer-in-residence through 2020-21.