June Newsletter
Dear Friends,
In the wake of this historic moment, we wish to extend our solidarity for those impacted. We are devastated by this backwards decision but we hope this reinvigorates all to take action as much as we strive to take.
Hear Her Song Collaboration with Wellesley College
This month we are honored to share our recent collaboration with Wellesley College exploring the topics of gender equality and cultural diplomacy through the Hear Her Song and Future of Cultural Diplomacy initiatives. The collaboration included a variety of sessions involving musical performances, masterclasses, seminars and entrepreneurial workshops. We are especially grateful to Wellesley College Music Performance Faculty in Voice, Deborah Selig and Sonja Tengblad and Concert Manager Isabel Fine for bringing this collaboration to life.
‘Grateful’ by Rosabella Gregory (in honor of Shivika Sinha) performed by Anne Jiang
We are especially excited to showcase the Vocal Master Class which took place on April 12th. In this very special masterclass, six Wellesley College students performed songs from the Hear Her Song initiative, and worked with TCP founder Carla Canales not only on singing techniques, but also on expressive exercises to bring personal reflection to each song. Considering that each song is the musical creation of a woman-identifying artist inspired by the words and stories of a woman-identifying honoree, this masterclass truly demonstrates the power of collaboration that the HHS initiative seeks to manifest. The masterclass sought to forge a personal connection with each story and each singer, absorbing the varying challenges and triumphs within the lyrics, and performing the song in a uniquely original expression. It is through this process of connecting with the words of the honoree and the music of the artist that the musical commemoration of these women are continuously celebrated.
‘Someday’ by Faye Chia (in honor of Lina Li) performed by Neeraja Deshpande)
TCP founder and director, Carla Canales, providing background information on each song’s honoree and artist.
We were especially moved to have songs from the first years of Hear Her Song performed live this session. the following performed included the following:
The Gardener (In honor of Sakena Yacoobi written by Sara Coleman) performed by Lorelai Blau
Grateful (In honor of Shivika Sinha written by Rosabella Gregory) performed by Anne Jiang
Foster Love (In honor of Lynn Price written by Shaina Taub) performed by Jesse Lage
Diver (In honor of Kathleen Turner written by Grace McLean) performed by Kaiya Wilson
Someday (In honor of Lina Li, written by Faye Chiao) performed by Neeraja Deshpande
‘Diver’ by Grace McLean (in honor of Kathleen Turner) performed by Kaiya Wilson
‘Foster Love’ by Shaina Taub (in honor of Lynn Price) performed by Jesse Lage
In addition to these songs, founder Carla Canales performed Gwyneth’s Herbert’s ‘Yours is Ours’, dedicated to trailblazing feminist Gloria Steinem. In wake of this historic moment, we are honored to feature this performance and song to reinvigorate this fight for gender equality even more than ever.
Along with the masterclass, the collaboration included 2 special seminars focusing on entrepreneurial skills and artistic applications within cultural diplomacy. The first session includes an overview of The Future of Cultural Diplomacy, a project dedicated to harnessing the power of culture and art to advance foreign policy objectives and create human connections through shared values. Along with this diplomatic component of artistry includes entrepreneurial strategies, tying all together the elements of modern artistic, cultural diplomacy. You can find both sessions below:
Cultural Diplomacy Seminar
Artistic Entrepreneur Seminar
Future of Cultural Diplomacy
You can now access all sessions to the ‘Soft Power and Cultural Diplomacy’ Study group sessions on our FCD webpage! You can also access all other resources, opt-in information, and previous sessions of the FCD Seminar Series.
Thank you as always for your support, and please feel free to reach out at anytime for any inquiries.
Warmest regards,
The Canales Project