In honor of the late Wilma Machover, beloved Hoff-Barthelson Music School faculty member, pianist, colleague, and friend, the School has established a new contemporary music residency and commission – as well as a creative development fund for students – in her memory. These elements have been designed as signature components of the School’s Music of Our Time Festival and Compose Yourself! Project, each of which Wilma founded more than 30 years ago and which continue to flourish today.
Wilma Machover Residency and Commission
Annually, in a partnership with Copland House initiated in part by Wilma, Hoff-Barthelson engages an emerging composer to collaboratively develop a new work for a student chamber ensemble which premieres the work at the School’s Music of Our Time Festival in May. Generous support to the Machover Fund underwrites the composer’s commission and honorarium and also collaboration with HB community students, faculty, and families.
Wilma Machover Creative Development Fund
This new fund will enable especially promising composition students at different stages of their development to enhance their studies through participation in extraordinary learning opportunities such as visits to the MIT Media Lab, The Greene Space at WQXR, Carnegie Hall, Copland House, the Concert Artists Guild, New Music USA, and artistic events to learn firsthand how new music is created, performed and disseminated. Other opportunities may include lessons, mentoring sessions or studio visits with renowned composers, performers, presenters, producers, and music technologists. Recipients will be selected by a panel comprising members of the School’s leadership and composition faculty along with current or former guest composers and performers.
- To make an online contribution to the Machover Fund, please donate here. Indicate “Wilma Machover Fund” in the note field.
- To send a contribution by mail, please make a check payable to “Hoff-Barthelson Music School” and write “Wilma Machover Fund” in the memo.
Mail to: Attn: Wilma Machover Fund, Development Department, Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, NY 10583.
The Wilma Machover Residency, Commission and Creative Development Fund has been established through the generosity of Wilma’s family, friends, and students. Thank you for your support!
About Wilma Machover
Besides teaching the classic repertoire, Wilma was particularly interested in contemporary music – electronic and acoustic, composed and improvised, tonal to well beyond – and built a vast collection of new works of different levels of difficulty that she made a central focus of her pedagogy, which focused as much on musical creativity as on performance. In 1989, Wilma founded Celebration: The Music of Our Time; it continues to be the centerpiece of the Festivals in Styles at the School. Her abiding interest in contemporary music and its role in a comprehensive music education led to an artistic collaboration between Aaron Copland House and the HB composition department, which resulted in HB’s annual Compose Yourself! Project, which encourages students to create original works worthy of performance in the Music of Our Time Festival. As with the festival, Compose Yourself! continues to be a foundation of music instruction at the School.
