San Luis Obispo County ladies nurturing hopes of being choral singers now have a chance to try their luck.
Canzona Women’s Ensemble, which has been spotlighting women for 15 years, is now holding auditions on Dec. 5 and 7 in SLO and Shell Beach, respectively, for its spring concert called Embracing the Earth.
“You know, there have always been women composers, and we’ve highlighted women from the Renaissance and even earlier than that,” Canzona Artistic Director and Co-Conductor Cricket Handler said. “But I think now there’s such a huge body of music by women composers to choose from, and it just seems an appropriate thing for us to be doing as an all-female ensemble.”
Even the name “Canzona” has a woman’s touch. It’s the feminine Italian term for “song.” The choir’s other artistic director and co-conductor, Jill Anderson, nominated it as the group’s name. She cofounded the Pacific Repertory Opera—now called Opera SLO, served as its artistic director until 2008, and established the women’s ensemble with Handler in 2009.
“Really, at the beginning, Jill was able to bring many singers to us because of her work with the opera company,” Handler said.
Now in its 16th season, the choir comprising roughly two dozen women between the ages of 20 and 80, treats the county to a fall concert and a spring concert every year. A highlight of the choir is its attempt to feature at least one or more female composers at each of its concerts. According to Canzona’s website, barely 5 percent of classical concerts around the globe included works by a female composer in their 2018 and 2019 seasons.
“Let’s face it, in the world of music, women have been somewhat subjugated,” Handler said. “Nowadays, many women are trained as composers, and so they’re out there working, and we’re trying to do a lot of contemporary female composers, as well as Renaissance and 19th century female composers. … When I was in school, I was not particularly pushed to be a conductor, although there were women conducting women’s and children’s ensembles.”
Some of the group’s beloved composers include Joan Szymko from the Pacific Northwest, 19th century musician Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel, Cornell’s Elizabeth Alexander, and Kansas City’s Emma Lou Diemer.
For its spring concert, the ensemble roped in a local nonprofit to match the program’s theme.
“We happen to know the woman who is the president of the board of the Land Conservancy,” Handler said. “The theme of nature and embracing the earth is so broad, it really gives us a lot of flexibility for choosing repertoire, and it’s an opportunity to highlight an organization that maybe shares some of our values in the community. Then get new people to know who we are, and also get our audience knowing more about the Land Conservancy and the theme of embracing the earth.”
Auditions are open to women with previous choral experience who are eager to showcase their vocal abilities. Auditions will consist of a prepared solo piece of the singer’s choice, some sight-reading exercises, and vocal range exploration. Once selected, singer dues are $50 for each concert semester. Singers are also responsible for assembling their own concert attire.
The spring concert is slated for March 9 at the United Methodist Church. To schedule an audition or for more information, interested singers can visit the Canzona Women’s Ensemble website at canzonawomen.org/audition.html.
“Thank goodness we came through COVID. Honestly, all the choirs had to make it through two years of either trying to sing online or come up with these virtual performances where each of us was recording our part in our own home, and then a technician was putting it all together,” Anderson said. “We were very fortunate that our audience stuck with us, and it’s stronger than ever. And our choir has grown too.”
Fast fact
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Reach Staff Writer bulbul Rajagopal at brajagopal@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Dec 5-15, 2024.