2023-553-E-Arts Commission-Women's Voices Chorus -2023-24 Arts Grants

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Organizational Goals The mission of W VC is to provide a welcoming place in the Triangle for women to share the joy of singing together, promote choral works by and for women, and strive to achieve the highest standards of musical excellence. This proposal addresses two mission-based goals identified in our 2020 strategic planning process: to improve as artists, and to achieve diversity in membership, audience, and musical expression. Improve as Artists: Funds requested will help us meet this goal by supporting our Artistic Director and Piano Accompanist. Director Laura Sam’s stature in the field and work on behalf of W VC are outstanding. She is the reason W VC continued to fulfill our mission throughout the pandemic (producing three virtual concerts including 9 pieces and the 5-movement “Snow Angel”), and she tirelessly shared expertise to create virtual choirs during the pandemic so that many other choirs could continue, as well. She is a leader in NC choral music, as NC ACDA Repertoire and Resources Chair, and Director of Governor’s School East, and networks nationally with choral directors and composers, bringing home best practices for musical growth, innovative programming, and contacts for commissions of music by women/for women. Funding from Orange County would help us support her salary and that of our Accompanist, Deborah Hollis, whose pay we would like to raise to $100/hour over the next three years. W e also request funding for our annual professional vocal coaching clinic in 2024 and the purchase of tuning forks for the chorus so that each member can improve on pitch. Increase Diversity W e also aim to bolster membership and audience diversity. One strategy is to broaden our choices for where to hold concerts. Currently, we rehearse and perform in downtown Chapel Hill churches, the least expensive area options. Our members vary in physical ability, and our audience ranges in age, most recently from childhood to 99 years old. In-town churches have very little parking, and although they are ADA compliant their facilities are not as accessible as a more modern building. Our DEIA committee also noted that the churches we use may be less welcoming to non-white, non- Christian singers or audience members. Currently accessibility is the top priority, and any space used must meet concert criteria (acoustics, piano, ample space, etc.), but funding may allow us to address both of these issues. As mentioned above, we are planning a concert focused on music acknowledging and celebrating women’s courage in the face of struggle. That concert will include work by composer Michael Bussewitz-Quarm (a trans woman) and Chantal Sellers (an Indigenous woman), commissioned in 2019, among other pieces from diverse perspectives, and we aim also to commission work by an(other) underrepresented artist for that concert. W e request funds to seed that commission fund, also for sheet music in 2023-24, and our web presence, which allows us to share our music for free into the community. In all cases, W VC will match or exceed the amount being requested from the Orange County Arts Commission. DocuSign Envelope ID: 56ECA0F1-08AA-4A90-B1A0-B9B7C934B889