In Community, Together
By: Michele Scott, Board Member
One of the things COVID-19 made me realize was the importance of being with people in community. It was always something that I knew, but the message was made very clear during the lockdown. I am happy that we can gather and embrace the concept of being in community once again.
In that spirit, I am inviting you to join the board, staff, and residents of the Cambridge YWCA at the Longwood Symphony Orchestra (LSO), where we are the Community Partner. For some this invitation will be enough to plan a night out and join us; however, I realize that some of us need an additional push to get in the door. Don’t worry we have something for you- If you are familiar with the YWCA Cambridge, you know we exist to work towards eliminating racism and empowering women. That is why partnering with the LSO for this concert was a natural collaboration. This concert will feature a woman conductor, Avlana Eisenberg, in front of the LSO for the first time in decades! Her bio states that she is ”an advocate for emerging and underrepresented American composers…. making symphonic music accessible for all,” and that is what we are hoping to do. What a privilege for us to be able to experience this. Women conductors are still underrepresented on the large stages of the symphony.
The LSO didn’t stop there. The featured soloist for the night is Anthony Trionfo, a Black man! We know that representation matters and this concert is a chance to expose our communities to see that women and people of color are making an impact in classical music. Anthony started studying the flute at eleven, and went on to curate the panel discussion “Learning to listen: A discussion addressing the nuances of the Black experience within classical music”. Anthony is intentional about connecting and giving back to the next generation to expose them to opportunities in classical music. Anthony is the founder of Umoja Flute Institute, a non-profit dedicated to providing flutist of African descent with the tools needed to succeed and thrive at all levels of music making.
That was enough to sell me on the event. So, what are you waiting for? This year’s concert will be held at Kresge Auditorium at MIT, Saturday, May 20th at 8PM. Go and buy your tickets! If you can’t attend you can still purchase a ticket and donate it so one of the residents of our housing and shelter programs can have an opportunity to experience this unique orchestra concert.
In the car on the way back to our Tanner Residence last year, a client asked our staff if the event was in support of Tanner and when she was told yes, she smiled and said she couldn’t want to tell her neighbors
that the event helped support their home at Tanner Residence. This is what we mean when we mean being in community. Bringing every person who is impacted by YWCA Cambridge's work together.
We are excited to meet you there and spend time in community enjoying the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, with Avlana and Anthony sharing their talents. I hope to see you then!