Chicana poet and cultural theorist Gloria Anzaldúa says: “Making anthologies is also activism. In the process of creating the composition, the work of art, you’re creating the culture. You’re rewriting the culture, which is very much an activist kind of thing.”
Similarly, I have curated this presentation as an anthology - from the composers and artists that I have commissioned and programmed, to the interviews, images, the words of Latina scholars, and parts of my own story. As a person of color, as a Latina, a chicana. I have learned that telling our stories is a form of activism. This is why in many ways, silencing us is also an act of violence.
I am curating this collaboration of new music by Latina composers to facilitate a public platform and to open a dialogue about Latina culture, identity, and experiences in higher education, specifically in the field of western classical music. This project enriches the art form by contributing a diverse collection of new works to the repertoire, addressing societal issues and promoting Latina artists in classical music.
To a listener or performer, music written and performed by someone who shares the same culture, music that tells stories to which one can relate, can be empowering. Specifically, in regard to my own instrument, the opportunity to study and perform repertoire by Latina composers is not offered through the core curriculum, and is not readily available. When I started thinking about this project around 2019, a single solo horn work by a Latina composer started making the rounds, but that was only one work and only one composer. I will talk a little bit about this piece later. While I was thrilled to see this, a major gap in the repertoire, or in the repertoire that is taught and performed, still remains. There is this pattern of people latching onto the one black composer or the one white female composer and thinking that the work is done, or waiting until someone else does it for them. As a Latina in classical music, I had never performed a work by a Latina composer or even performed with another Latina hornist. I also had only ever had one opportunity to perform with a Latino hornist. I had never seen a professional Latina horn player perform and didn’t know of any who were professors. Frequently, I am the only woman and/or person of color in an orchestral brass section. This presentation serves to increase the representation of Latinas in the field of classical music, which will foster the development for more Latina/o/e in classical music, ultimately addressing issues of racial inequality in society at large. Additionally, it will demonstrate how a Latina cultural perspective can be expressed in the historically euro-centric classical music genre
People of Latin culture are frequently labeled by oversimplifications, and we sometimes adopt those labels. When speaking about Latin culture there rarely is a distinction of the Americas. Through a conversation with Argentinian composer Carolina Heredia, issues were raised about the “lack of interest in understanding diversity and richness of the culture. No one sees or acknowledges the differences, which make minorities feel unseen and ignored.” This is an example of a type of systemic racism that pervades our society, and a goal of this project is to combat that. One way of doing that is by creating “new stereotypes”, such as that Latinas have a place in the classical music field. While it is impossible to escape labels, we have the opportunity to use our own voices, experiences, and perspectives to express our identity, rather than be identified by others.
Latinas are not a monolithic group, and our experiences/identity cannot be defined by a single term. Calling oneself “Latino/a/e/x” and feeling a member of this group unites individuals of different nationalities from throughout the Americas, but it does not erase racial, class, gender, and sexual differences, in the way it is often used as an all-inclusive term. The variants of intersectionality and parts of self, create unique experiences in how we interact with society, but despite our diversity, we are still faced with many similar adversities. When I conducted the interviews, I did not know what they were going to say, but I found that I was hearing them explain many experiences very similar to mine, and I started to feel less alone. It became more clear that the problems are rooted in the system, not in ourselves.
I would like to point out that this presentation is only an introduction to this project, that I will continue to expand, incorporating more voices, disciplines, so it will be more representative of the Latina community. Due to time constraints on the day of the presentation, I chose a selection from a larger program of music, as well as from a much longer script. I think I had to cut 80% of what I wanted to present, but I had to remind myself that I wasn’t writing a full dissertation. I wish I would share with you every word of every book you saw displayed earlier, every interview in its entirety, and all of my story. Anything and anyone that I introduced in this presentation could easily have a presentation of its own.
Since the completion of the presentation, a recording project was completed in the Duderstadt, which will be made public online at a later date, and produced in a CD format.
Dr. Mary Elizabeth Silva-Garza is an activist, musician and music educator in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and has recently completed her DMA at the University of Michigan. She was recently selected as a fellow for the inaugural Cleveland Institute of Music’s Future of Music Faculty Fellowship in 2021/2022. Prior to Michigan, Mary studied at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria and Die Hochschule für Musik und Theater “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” in Leipzig, Germany. She has performed extensively throughout Europe, China, South Korea, and the Midwest, performing with members of the Gewandhaus Orchestra, Mozarteum Salzburg Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and she has been a regular guest with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra. Mary has also been invited for solo performances and presentations at international conferences, sharing her work in activism and wellness. As an international award winning soloist, Mary has won first prize at competitions such as the International Women’s Brass Competition in New Jersey, and the International Horn Society’s Premier Soloist Competition in Australia. Mary has a deep interest in using the arts to support communities and create a platform for marginalized voices. She has been a recipient of many grants including the Sphinx MPower Artist grant, EXCEL Enterprise grants, the U-M Diversity and Inclusion Grant and most recently, the U-M Library Student Mini Grant to support her work. She has commissioned several works to expand the modern horn repertoire and create a more representative canon. In addition to her private studio, Mary is a teaching artist for the Michigan Artist Citizens program, organized by the U-M SMTD Office of Engagement and Community Outreach. She is also passionate about the Vienna Horn and enjoys incorporating it into her double horn playing. In addition to her studies in performance and pedagogy, Mary holds a PAMA Essentials for Performing Arts Medicine Certificate.