On Wednesday, Nov. 23, LACMA presents a one-year anniversary performance of Diné artist and composer Raven Chacon’s (Music MFA 04) Pulitzer Prize-winning work Voiceless Mass at the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles.
Conducted by Charles Floyd, the program features a selection of Chacon’s compositions performed by LACMA’s resident group the ABC+ Ensemble. Also performing are guest artists Laurann Angel, Dr. Christoph Bull, Sergio Coelho, Marissa Honda, Sidney Hopson, Chang Lu, Rocio Marron, Marlon Martinez, Dorothy Micklea, Jonathan Sacdalan, Adrienne Woods, and Christopher Woods.
Note that all individuals entering the FCCLA property must be fully vaccinated (learn more at the website’s COVID-19 protocol page).
Originally commissioned and presented by Present Music in Milwaukee as part of its annual Thanksgiving concert, Voiceless Mass is an ensemble piece intended to be played on the nearly century-old pipe organ at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Milwaukee. The composition’s work refers to how a physical space can amplify voices, as well as suppress them. Six months after its premiere, Chacon earned the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Music, making him the first Native American artist to receive the coveted award.
“I felt that this was one of the best works that I had written, one of the works that was important to me,” Chacon was quoted in the last issue of CalArts’ alumni magazine The Pool. “I felt it was a piece of music that was able to convey a concept and topic about the world we’re living in today, more than instrumental music usually has the ability to do so.”
Related: Read more about Chacon and Voiceless Mass in The Pool.
