“The Emerging Black Composers Project, the annual commissioning and mentorship program run in partnership by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and the San Francisco Symphony, has named the Bay Area composer and singer Jens Ibsen as its second winner,” writes Joshua Kosman in Tuesday’s (6/28) San Francisco Chronicle. “The prize brings a cash award of $15,000 and a chance to workshop a new work, which will then have its world premiere as part of the Symphony’s 2023-24 season conducted by Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen…. Ibsen, 26, was born in Accra, Ghana, to a Ghanaian mother and an American father. He grew up in Pacifica and Daly City…. He holds degrees in music from Pepperdine University … and from the Mannes School of Music…. As a composer, Ibsen boasts a varied musical portfolio that ranges from opera to heavy metal…. The Emerging Black Composers Project was created in 2020…. Michael Morgan, the late music director of the Oakland Symphony, was an early backer of the project, along with Salonen and San Francisco Conservatory Music Director Edwin Outwater. The first award was given in 2021 to New Jersey composer Trevor Weston, whose … orchestral work is scheduled for its world premiere Sept. 29-Oct. 2.”
Change font size
