Lori Laitman's The 19th Amendment, + America the Beautiful Encore

This week's #artsongfix is a two-for-one!  Lori Laitman's setting of the 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, followed immediately by the quartet's a cappella encore of America the Beautiful.  The 19th Amendment is the last movement of Lori Laitman's song cycle Are Women People?, jointly commissioned by Eastman School of Music and the Susan B. Anthony Center for Women's Leadership.

Speaking live at this concert, ensemble tenor Ace Gangoso said:

While we’ve had this legislation for a hundred years now, the work towards women's equality and women’s rights still marches onward.  And on a broader scale, there are people in our nation who feel persecuted and who feel that for simply being who they are, their livelihood and even their lives are at stake.  It’s a message of the work that is yet to be done.

Since this November 9, 2019 performance, Fourth Coast Ensemble has recorded the cycle in studio with pianists Maria Sumareva and Andrew Rosenblum for inclusion on Laitman's next CD release.

Photo: Elliot Mandel

Author

Bridget Skaggs is the founding mezzo-soprano and Executive Director of Fourth Coast Ensemble.  She studied opera at Oklahoma City University's Wanda L. Bass School of Music, and moved to Chicago in 2012 to pursue a dual career in singing and yoga.  Bridget's passion for art song grows from her lifelong love of words, communication, and the human voice.