Sigma Alpha Iota

2 Spring 2022 • sai-national.org by Sara Bong, IAMA Director c --ountdown to Convention has begun! And with it comes growing anticipation of a perennial convention highlight: the IAMA Premiere Concert on Friday, July 29! e Inter-American Music Awards Composition Competition (or, IAMA for short) is one of SAI Philanthropies' most cherished projects; the 2022 IAMA concert caps the 23 rd recurrence of the competition. Since its inception, the IAMA Composition Competition has epitomized Sigma Alpha Iota's commitment to fostering the creation and performance of new music. IAMA not only provides an opportunity for composers to achieve the coveted goal of publication by an established and highly regarded music publisher, C.F. Peters, but also provides a very public—and very receptive—springboard for their winning work's debut at the triennial Convention. Not only will the winner's name and composition finally be revealed at Convention; the composer-judges tasked with reviewing the entries and selecting a winner from among them share the 2022 IAMA concert program. As is customary, each judge composed a new work specifically for the occasion, which will likewise receive its world premiere on the IAMA concert. In the last issue of PAN PIPES, readers got a peep into the formidable achievements of our two composer-judges, Amy Riebs Mills and Andrea Clearfield. Since then, I've been privileged to speak one-on-one with both women, who graciously took time from their busy schedules to expand on their twin IAMA roles as adjudicators and composers. Although their musical backgrounds differ, it was striking—albeit not necessarily surprising—the similarities in their parallel approaches to both aspects. is cycle's IAMA category, "Instrumental Solo with Piano," le ample room for aspiring applicants to stretch their wings creatively, and indeed, the submissions covered the gamut. "Everyone wrote beautiful music," said Riebs Mills; Clearfield noted that all of the submissions contained contrast with varying themes, but otherwise differed considerably from each other. However, in their evaluation of the entries, there was a strong concurrence between both judges in what set the winning composition apart. Over and above its originality, the unanimous choice was distinguished by the winning composer's attentiveness to form and structure in effectively putting forth its musical ideas. As our conversations pivoted towards the judges' own IAMA compositions, an intimate window opened into the "composer's process" that performers rarely have opportunity to glimpse within. e care each composer took in selecting their form and scoring was astounding. At the core of each was an acknowledgement and appreciation of the particular circumstances in which the work would be premiered, and all that represents. In effect, our sisterhood of Sigma Alpha Iota— and this particular gathering—were themselves a unique inspirational catalyst. "Each piece has its own 'world' around it," says Andrea Clearfield. An expansive world view, a sensitivity to nature, and the creation of cultural and artistic bridges are hallmarks of Clearfield's oeuvre; they influence and inform all of her musical works. e recipient of multiple awards, accolades, and fellowships in her extensive compositional career, she approached her IAMA commission by first "... thinking about the landscape of the composition—how it can reveal something that the performers can relate to." In this case, Clearfield contemplated SAI and our Fraternity mission, which sparked one connection to another. For example, when possible, she values working with living writers, especially women, which is the case with a concurrent cantata commission she's working on. Moreover, she finds that there are "gems of poetry that call (to her) to be set to music." is year's convention theme, "Music is Our Call," also resonated in her thinking. is ultimately circled around to Andrea's selection of a poem entitled, "Where Everything is Music," by the Sufi poet Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī (translated by Coleman Barks with John Moyne), which she envisaged for women's chorus. e poem had been haunting her for awhile and, the more she thought about her IAMA piece, it seemed to present the perfect opportunity to set it to music, retaining the title for the new work. "e poem le space between the words for the music to breathe and dance." To Clearfield, the poem hints at "what we hear with our inner ear…We can be touched by music at our deepest core. (It's about) the music on our breath; letting go and being connected in the space of art and love. Music is everywhere; one just has to be quiet and receptive enough to hear it: the music of the soul." To aurally illustrate these ethereal concepts, Andrea incorporated a descending 2022 IAMA Composer-Judges 2022 IAMA Composer-Judges Andrea Clearfield, above, Andrea Clearfield, above, and Amy Riebs Mills, below. and Amy Riebs Mills, below. 2022 Natial Cvention Countdown to Convention

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