In this Musical Moment, VocalEssence artistic director and founder Philip Brunelle shares insider information and beautiful music by the composer Jennifer Higdon.
Jennifer Higdon
b.1962
© J.D. Scott
Jennifer Higdon is one of America’s most acclaimed and most frequently performed living composers. She is a major figure in contemporary Classical music, receiving the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her Violin Concerto, a 2010 Grammy for her Percussion Concerto and a 2018 Grammy for her Viola Concerto, and a 2020 Grammy for her Harp Concerto. Most recently, Higdon received the Nemmers Prize from Northwestern University, given to contemporary classical composers of exceptional achievement who have significantly influenced the field of composition. Her works have been recorded on more than sixty CDs, and her Percussion Concerto recording was recently placed into the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. Higdon’s first opera, Cold Mountain, won the prestigious International Opera Award for Best World Premiere fromThe Opera Awards Foundation. Her choral compositions feature works for SATB choir based upon southern folk tunes and themes of love, grace, and tranquility. Dr. Higdon holds the Rock Chair in Composition at The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.
Suggested choral pieces:
- Southern Grace (Lawdon Press)
- Sanctus for Double Choir (Lawdon Press)
- On the Death of the Righteous (Lawdon Press)
For more about Dr. Higdon, visit her website: http://jenniferhigdon.com/