English 
French As part of the podcast series, “ArtsAbly in Conversation,” Diane Kolin interviewed Brianna Matzke, a pianist, musical director and music educator, based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
This post presents the resources that Brianna Matzke mentioned during the conversation.
Brianna Matzke
Often called upon for her vision and planning, Matzke is a widely-respected artistic director. As the Executive Director for the Cincinnati-based concertnova new music ensemble, she oversees the production of five mainstage productions each season, as well as other community outreach and educational events. She is also the founder and artistic director of an ongoing and acclaimed commissioning initiative, called The Response Project, which asks composers to write music for piano in response to a pre-existing artwork or idea. The project has premiered and recorded dozens of new works, and often invites artists from other disciplines (such as film, painting, and poetry) to also create and present responses in large-scale community events.
Visit Brianna Matzke’s website
concertnova
concertnova is a collective of like-minded musicians who create unique multi-sensorial performances that bring art forms together. Their mission is to transform hearts, minds and communities through thought provoking musical exploration. Their collaborative process draws inspiration from everywhere: visual art, dance, film, gastronomy, even the performance location itself. They instigate an intimate dialogue between artist and audience, blurring the line between sender and receiver, creator and participant.
International Foundation for Contemporary Music
The International Foundation for Contemporary Music fulfills their mission to support the creation, performance, and education of contemporary music around the world through our many programs. Educational Programs include the Cortona Sessions for New Music, as well as plans in place to announce new educational programs in 2025. The IFCM Commissioning Programs include the Cincinnati-based initiative, The Response Project, and The Heibert Prize for Contemporary Music Performance at the Cortona Sessions. IFCM-Sponsored Performing Ensembles include New Morse Code, Duo Cortona, and The Cortona Collective. And finally, alumni of any IFCM Educational Programs are eligible for fee-free fiscal sponsorship.
Cortona Sessions for New Music
One of the world’s premiere educational programs dedicated to the creation and performance of contemporary music, the Cortona Sessions is a destination for emerging composers and performers seeking to collaborate, learn, grow, and create. The Sessions provide participants with an inspiring and supportive environment in which new music is explored in all its possible forms.
Visit the Cortona Sessions for New Music’s website
The Response Project
The Response Project is a commissioning initiative that asks composers and artists to create new music (usually for the piano) and new works (of many disciplines) in response to a preexisting artwork or idea.
Visit The Response Project’s website
Bryce Dessner
Bryce David Dessner is an American composer and guitarist based in Paris, and a member of the rock band the National. Dessner’s twin brother, Aaron is also a member of the group. Together, they write the music in collaboration with lead singer and lyricist Matt Berninger. In addition to his work with the National, Dessner is known for his work as an independent composer. His orchestral, chamber, and vocal compositions have been commissioned by many classical music ensembles around the world. His work, Murder Ballades, was featured on eighth Blackbird’s album Filament, an album he also produced and performed on, which won the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Small Ensemble Performance.
Learn more about Bryce Dessner
Mikrophonie by Karlheinz Stockhausen
Mikrophonie is the title given by Karlheinz Stockhausen to two of his compositions, written in 1964 and 1965, in which “normally inaudible vibrations … are made audible by an active process of sound detection (comparable to the auscultation of a body by a physician); the microphone is used actively as a musical instrument, in contrast to its former passive function of reproducing sounds as faithfully as possible”.
Learn more about the Stockhausen Response Project
The Tremor Project
The video shown at the beginning of the interview, Tremor, is one of the Response Projects, a response to Branna Matzke’s recently-diagnosed neurological condition, essential tremor, which makes her hands shake. Commissions for piano, visual art, and multimedia exploring perceptions of ability/disability, personal expression in the face of misunderstanding, and belonging in a world ill-equipped to welcome.
Learn more about the Tremor Project
Molly Joyce
Composer and performer Molly Joyce has been deemed one of the “most versatile, prolific and intriguing composers working under the vast new-music dome” by The Washington Post. Her music has additionally been described as “serene power” (New York Times) and “unwavering…enveloping” (Vulture). Her work is concerned with disability as a creative source. She has an impaired left hand from a previous car accident, and seeks to explore disability through composition, performance, collaboration, community engagement, and further mediums.
Visionaries + Voices
Established in 2003, Visionaries + Voices is a non-profit organization that provides creative, professional, and educational opportunities to more than 125 visual artists with disabilities. Artists working at V+V actively contribute to the greater arts community through creative, educational, and strategic partnerships with local and regional artists, schools, and business leaders. Collectively, we are growing a more inclusive arts community in Greater Cincinnati.
Visit Visionaries + Voices’ website
Britni Bicknaver
Britni Bicknaver is an artist, educator, history buff, and a seventh-generation Cincinnatian. A member of the storied Publico Gallery, she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Art Academy of Cincinnati and a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of Cincinnati School of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. Traditionally trained in sculpture and drawing, Bicknaver also works in the medium of sound, creating pieces from audio tours to soundtracks of found objects. Her work is fueled by concepts such as history, memory, arcane information, and the revelation of inner worlds.
Visit Britni Bicknaver‘s website
Adeliia Faizullina
Adeliia (Adele) Faizullina is an Uzbekistan-born Tatar composer, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and quray player. As a composer, she explores cutting-edge vocal colors and paints delicate and vibrant atmospheres inspired by the music and poetry of Tatar folklore. The Washington Post has praised her compositions as “vast and varied, encompassing memory and imagination.” Since 2023, Adeliia has worked alongside Joseph Butch Rovan (faculty of Music and Multimedia Composition at Brown University) to develop AMI: Asymmetrical Media Interface, a software allowing visually impaired musicians and composers to create interactive electronic music.