Voices of Change is the Southwest's premiere professional chamber music ensemble dedicated to the performance of music of our time. Voices of Change fills a unique niche in the music world by performing small ensemble works by 20th- and 21st–century composers.

History

Founded in 1974 by pianist Jo Boatright and clarinetist Ross Powell, Voices of Change is one of the longest-lived and most distinguished new music ensembles in the United States. In 1999, VOC was nominated as a finalist for the prestigious Grammy Award for Best Performance by a Small Classical Ensemble. The CD, Voces Americanas, features works of five living composers of Hispanic descent. This is a first nomination for any Dallas/Fort Worth area chamber music ensemble. Voices of Change has been awarded the annual ASCAP Award for Adventuresome Programming an unprecedented five times and has recorded LPs and CDs on the CRI, Crystal, Innova, Albany, Centaur, and Redwood labels.

The ensemble has been privileged to host more than 87 composers who have come to hear, discuss, and, often, participate in the performance of their pieces. VOC has presented over 60 world premieres (more than 25 of which were commissioned by the ensemble), performed music by over 300 composers, and made numerous recordings, including 5 CDs. Voices of Change is also dedicated to commissioning new works and recording them, and produces an annual modern music competition to introduce the music of budding composers.

Members

Joe Illick, Artistic Director, Piano,

Virginia Dupuy, Soprano

Helen Blackburn, Flute

Paul Garner, Clarinet

Deborah Mashburn, Percussion

Maria Schleuning, Violin

Jolyon Pegis, Cello

Discography

2003. dancesing in a green bay (Music of David Dzubay)

2001. Mythologies (Music of Harold Blumenfeld)

2000. Music by Donald Grantham

1999. Tango/Frida (Music of Robert Xavier Rodriguez)

1998. Voces Americanas (Music of Robert Xavier Rodriguez, Mario Lavista, Roberto Sierra, Mario Davidovsky, Tania León)

1991. American Contemporary (Music of William Kraft, Larry Alan Smith, Dan Welcher, Robert Xavier Rodriguez)