Brittany J. Green’s “Connected”


This February, the Daily Classical Music Post celebrates Black composers and musicians whose music has been suppressed and ignored. All of these musicians should be added to the music history and music theory curriculum.

https://youtu.be/Izi5Jc9yeEo


The music of Brittany J. Green (born 1991) has been described as “cinematic in the best sense.” As she says on her website (http://www.brittanyjgreen.com/), her music “is centered around facilitating collaborative, intimate musical spaces that ignite visceral responses. The intersection between sound, movement, and text serves as the focal point of these musical spaces, often questioning and redefining the relationships between these three elements.”


Green was encouraged by her high school band director to arrange and also compose works for the band. She said, “Having feedback and validation at such a young age, I think, was important and gave me the foundation and confidence to continue to compose and share my work. I’ve been fortunate to have wonderful teachers, mentors, and support along the way, which I think has helped me walk into the contemporary classical space and feel comfortable sharing my voice.”


Castle of our Skins (http://www.castleskins.org/) was founded to “celebrate Black artistry through classical music.” Green was one of the composers who submitted a miniature for their summer 2020 virtual concert series, the Black Composer Miniature Challenge, and her work, “Connected,” for viola, piano, and fixed media, premiered on 24 July 2020. “Connected” is only just over 1 minute long, but it is incredibly exciting and I can’t stop listening to it over and over again.


My classical music post for today is Brittany J. Green’s “Connected.”

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