About WAC: MadWAC Statement of Organizational Purpose

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		MadWAC Statement of Organizational Purpose

MadWAC Statement of Organizational Purpose

The Madison Chapter of the Wisconsin Alliance for Composers is a semi-autonomous group consisting of local composers, musicians, and arts supporters, functioning under the auspices of the statewide organization (Wisconsin Alliance for Composers, Inc.). Membership in the Madison Chapter in open to any Madison area composer, performer, or any other interested party who is a current member of the Wisconsin Alliance for Composers.

The group was created in order to showcase the talents and the wide diversity of compositional styles among Madison area composers, and heighten and enrich the local public's exposure to and appreciation for new composition by local artists. Primarily, it is the organization's intent to address the existing discrepancy between an expanding pool of area talent and the limited number of new music performance opportunities in the surrounding community.

The Chapter's function is fourfold:

to produce an annual concert of newly composed, previously unpublished/unperformed works for chamber ensembles of various sizes and instrumentation, thereby providing local composers of art music with an organized and guaranteed venue for the professional performance, recording, and subsequent broadcast of their works;
to have these works performed by local professional and semi-professional musicians who are receptive and interested in new music, thereby fostering more interaction between local composers and performers--a relationship which is, at best, tenuous, owing to the fact that very few composers have adequate resources to fund the professional performance of their works.
to furnish a venue for local composers to implement and present programs which feature the talents of chapter members for the benefit of member affiliates and the surrounding community.
to provide the Madison public with a means by which they can experience contemporary composition in an open, friendly, and intimate concert environment, away from an academic setting; to hear an eclectic sampling of works by composers who live and work in their own community, and to broaden their awareness and experience of new art music through the implementation of workshops/colloquia which address issues pertaining to new composition to which the general public is invited and encouraged to attend.

In short, the aim is to break through the feeling of elitism often surrounding contemporary music by creating an atmosphere in which those new to it are made to feel welcome, and especially by inviting and encouraging audience members to meet, talk to, and question composers and performers following performances.

It is a sad fact that in most communities, new music composition is the most misunderstood and under-represented branch of the arts. The vibrancy of a local art culture is dependent upon its constant renewal through the continual creation of new works in all of the various artistic disciplines, and upon the close and consistent interaction between creator, interpreter, and receiver. This organization, through its envisioned programs, is meant to address this concern, as it applies to music, in the most immediate and effective way possible.

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