Awesome Women Composers Part 4: Contemporary Female Composers

Happy International Women’s Day! To celebrate, I want to share with you some of my favorite contemporary female composers. Check out these posts here for more awesome women composers!

Contemporary Female Composers

Jennifer Higdon

My first introduction to Higdon was a listening assignment for my music theory class in college. The professor made us listen to Blue Cathedral, and I was immediately hooked. Just listen to the incredible juxtaposition in tone between the chimes and the strings at the beginning! And then at 0:46 where those lush chords prep the stage for a gorgeous flute and clarinet duet! As the work progresses, the energy increases until 8:45 where the sound suddenly dies away and the opening ideas return.

In Higdon’s program notes for Blue Cathedral, she outlines the imagery in this piece:

Blue…like the sky. Where all possibilities soar. Cathedrals…a place of thought, growth, spiritual expression…serving as a symbolic doorway in to and out of this world. Blue represents all potential and the progression of journeys. Cathedrals represent a place of beginnings, endings, solitude, fellowship, contemplation, knowledge and growth. As I was writing this piece, I found myself imagining a journey through a glass cathedral in the sky. Because the walls would be transparent, I saw the image of clouds and blueness permeating from the outside of this church. In my mind’s eye the listener would enter from the back of the sanctuary, floating along the corridor amongst giant crystal pillars, moving in a contemplative stance. The stained glass windows’ figures would start moving with song, singing a heavenly music. The listener would float down the aisle, slowly moving upward at first and then progressing at a quicker pace, rising towards an immense ceiling which would open to the sky…as this journey progressed, the speed of the traveler would increase, rushing forward and upward. I wanted to create the sensation of contemplation and quiet peace at the beginning, moving towards the feeling of celebration and ecstatic expansion of the soul, all the while singing along with that heavenly music.

Dobrinka Tabakova

In the rustic and folk-like Suite in Old Style, Tabakova masterfully interweaves both eastern and western European musical styles. Each of the five movements spins a tale of color and life, peeking into the everyday activities of an 18th century aristocratic household. Here are some things to listen for in each movement:

1. Prelude: Fanfare from the balconies and back from the hunting
   • Dance rhythms played by the percussion along with the folk melody in the opening
   • Viola cadenza at 1:54
2. Through mirrored corridors (2:41)
   • Light waltz accompaniment played by the harpsichord
   • Fun interplay between the harpsichord and viola at 3:22
   • Interesting musical ideas starting at 4:10 (remember the title of this movement!)
3. The rose garden by moonlight (6:07)
   • Gorgeous harmonies and dramatic buildup at the start of the movement
   • Deep deep bass lines
   • Awesome harpsichord section starting at 10:22
4. Riddle of the barrel organ player (14:00)
   • Humorous and light counterpoint that unravels throughout the whole movement (characteristic of Baroque music)
   • Harpsichord solo at 15:00
5. Postlude: Hunting and finale (16:05)
   • Dramatic percussion – timbre, rhythms, thematic ideas reminiscent of the Prelude
     • Compare 17:21 with 0:20

Sarah Dukes

I had the pleasure of meeting Dukes via Instagram, and she was kind enough to send me some of her piano music to play. Dukes has composed an astounding amount of piano solos that you can listen to on Spotify! Her music has an incredible way of transporting you to another world.

Her piece Raining Rockets really stood out to me, and here’s what her website says about the meaning behind this piece:

Raining Rockets is a moving piece composed by Sarah Dukes during the 2014 Gaza War when daily headlines highlighted the incessant rockets raining down on Israel. The song reflects feelings of helplessness, fear, and loss of control many of us felt at the time. Yet despite the fact that rockets continued to rain down, God comforted us. He was there with us- guarding and protecting us, showing us revealed good and open miracles.

Sarah Dukes

Judith Bingham

This gorgeously dissonant rendition of Ave Virgo Sanctissima is just one of Bingham‘s many choral pieces. Prudentius (b.348 AD), St. Ambrose (c.337-397) and an anonymous writer penned the words as part of the Catholic Mass centuries ago. Here’s what they’re singing:

Latin Text	English Translation
Ave Virgo sanctissima, Dei Mater piissima, maris stella clarissima. Salve semper gloriosa, margarita pretiosa, sicut lilium formosa, nitens olens velut rosa.	Hail, Holy Virgin, most blessed Mother of God, bright star of the sea. Hail, ever glorious, precious pearl, lovely as the lily, beautiful and perfumed as the rose.

However, the earliest known musical setting of Ave Virgo Sanctissima was by Renaissance composer (and Catholic priest) Francisco Guerrero (1528-1599) in 1566:

I find the differences between Guerrero’s and Bingham’s music fascinating. Guerrero’s motet is characteristic of the music of the time: flowing and free of any rhythmic constraints with pure and simple harmonies. The words are the focus. Bingham’s music, on the other hand, is tense and contemporary. The focus is still the words, but the harmonies and dissonance add to the meaning of the text in a much more raw way. Bingham pushes the boundaries of Catholic music in her choral music.

Who are your favorite contemporary female composers?