The Silent Voices Project exists to raise awareness of emerging women-identifying and non-binary composers through commissions, performances, education and other research venues. We focus on four tenants to achieve this goal: (1) Project Collaboration: We will build a collaborative group of performers interested in diversifying the current representation of composers in the classical music repertoire; (2) Commission: We will continually seek new funding for emerging women-identifying and non-binary composers; (3) Performance: We will perform select works each year, and we will seek out to perform together as much as possible; and (4) Scholarship: We will seek out performance and academic scholarship in conferences, journals and other professional and academic settings, so we create awareness for others interested in the project and in performing the music.
Sarah Elizabeth Lee is second bassoon with the Erie Philharmonic Orchestra. She plays regularly throughout the Southern Ohio region, with ensembles like the Dayton Symphony, the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, and the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra. Passionate about outreach, she founded and directed an outreach program called the Whiz Kids Music Program in Cincinnati during her studies, and created a yearly, long-term residency in Erie, PA that partners the Erie Philharmonic and PNC’s Grow Up Great grant program to reach underserved early education centers in downtown Erie.
She is co-founder of Silent Voices Project, a non-profit organization that exists to create opportunities for emerging women-identifying and non-binary composers. Sarah is originally from Wichita, Kansas and was taught to love arts and culture from an early age under the influence of her music-loving family. She currently lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with her husband, two daughters, and favorite rescue terrier, Londie. Her teachers include Kimme Whittemore, Keith Sweger, William Winstead, and Nancy Goeres.
Dr. Miriam Brack Webber is currently Associate Professor of Music and Director of the Honors Program at Bemidji State University where she teaches classes in music theory, bassoon, and interdisciplinary courses in the Honors Program. She holds a Bachelor’s of Music from Ball State University in Bassoon Performance, and Master’s of Music from McGill University and the University of Kansas in Bassoon Performance and Music Theory, respectively, and a Ph.D. from the University of Kansas in Music Theory.
Her research interests include pedagogy and performance studies. Currently principal bassoonist of the Bemidji Symphony and Heartland Symphony Orchestras, Webber is an active bassoonist and has performed with orchestras across the country, including the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas, and St. Joseph Symphony, Fort Hays Symphony, Southeast Kansas Symphony, Springfield Symphony, Kokomo Symphony, Muncie Symphony, and Springfield-Drury Civic Orchestras. She has also published an article in The Double Reed.
Krista Weiss is the Lecturer of Clarinet and Woodwind Area Coordinator at Northern Kentucky University. She is a graduate of Indiana University, where she earned both a BM and MM in Clarinet Performance as a student of Eli Eban. Ms. Weiss is an active freelancer in the Cincinnati area and has recently performed with ensembles including the Cincinnati Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Dayton Philharmonic, Louisville Orchestra, Lexington Philharmonic, and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic. In addition to her position at NKU, Ms. Weiss is also an active clinician and private teacher in the Cincinnati area and an Artist Clinician for D’Addario Woodwinds.
