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One Composer, One Community - 2023 Impact Report
First launched in 2021, ONE COMPOSER, ONE COMMUNITY (OCOC) focuses on the life and work of a single, often underrepresented BIPOC composer throughout the course of an academic year. This composer's work is featured in the "Nichols Concert Hall Presents" series as well as in student recitals, master classes, and other special events.
During the 2022–23 season, the Music Institute featured Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos. Considered the single most significant creative figure in 20th century Brazilian art music, Villa-Lobos synthesized contemporary European techniques with elements of national music to create his unique compositional style.
MUSIC FOR LIFE: HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS (1887–1959)
In conjunction with the OCOC initiative, MIC created a brand-new Music for Life program about the life and music of Heitor Villa-Lobos. Each year Music for Life offers people of all ages a compelling introduction to LISTEN, LEARN, and EXPLORE important people in music history using a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility framework. Composers from around the world and throughout history come alive through hands-on lessons and live demonstrations by MIC musicians. This year the Music for Life Villa-Lobos program was presented at The Mather Evanston and featured Brazilian cellist and MIC faculty member Bianca d’Avila do Prado.
Cuarteto Latinoamericano
MIC kicked off the Nichols Concert Hall season with the Latin Grammy Award-winning Cuarteto Latinoamericano, presented in partnership with the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago. The world-renowned quartet— recognized for premiering more than 100 new pieces and championing neglected musical gems by underrepresented composers—offered a free, public master class in which two Academy string quartets performed works by Villa-Lobos. They also offered a special pre-concert conversation for VIP ticketholders.
