Welcome to the Women's Sacred Music Project
WSMP supports Wildflower Composers!
https://wildflowercomposers.org/
We have awarded a prize of $500 to Ksenia Stetsenko and a runner-up prize of $100 to Bridget Bourne. These young composers will write a sacred choral work in which God is described in gender-neutral or feminist names. Here's a bit more about Ksenia:
Ksenia Stetsenko is a Ukrainian composer, violinist, and pianist based in Philadelphia. Urged by global political events and inspired by personal experiences, she writes for solo instruments, chamber ensembles, orchestra, and a cappella voices. Her works have been performed in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Edmonton, Quebec, Lviv, Kharkiv, London, Berlin, and Frankfurt. Ksenia holds a B.M. in Music Composition from the Lviv National Music Academy, where she studied with Prof. Bohdana Frolyak. Her artistic voice is further shaped by her background in Cultural Studies and her lifelong passion for travel.
Ksenia is honored to receive this commission and excited to see how the text and music shape the piece, bringing the idea to life in such a beautiful and important project.
New Project, New Collaborations Underway!
The WSMP Board has approved a project to commission a collection of anthems for children, teens, and amateur adult choirs. We are partnering with the Curtis Institute of Music Composition Department as well as Wildflower Composers to commission several new anthems. These partnerships help the young composers and help us create new sacred anthems. Our hope is to find new gender-inclusive language for The Holy One and share it in musically accessible songs and anthems. The cost of a single 3-4 minute anthem is approximately $500-1000 depending on the composer. Would you like to donate a song?
Thank you for your support!
Since 1995, the Women’s Sacred Music Project has been advancing women’s achievements in sacred music
Discovering a broad range of sacred music by women, much of it unpublished.
Publishing women’s sacred music in Voices Found, Leader's Guide to Voices Found, and Resounding Voices.
Commissioning works by women addressing themes of women in Sacred Scriptures.
Presenting concerts of sacred music by women of various religious traditions.
Educating individuals and communities in the rich resources of women’s sacred music.
The Women's Sacred Music Project received a grant for $1000 to support the Hymns by Women Project! We are thankful for the Association of Anglican Musicians and their grants team. Your support makes this work possible.
This article appeared in the recent Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians. It is the second in a series offering hymn suggestions by women.
Resounding Voices
Resounding Voices is a collection of 70 new hymns and songs published in 2023 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Voices Found Hymnal. It can be downloaded for free on The Hymn Society website here. Read our blog and learn about the individual hymns and songs by going to the Projects tab here.
As a 501(c)3 not-for-profit entity, the WSMP asks for your generosity to support our cause of advancing women's achievements in sacred music. In order to fund comprehensive projects like Resounding Voices, including hymns which are Jewish, Christian, and stretching the boundaries, the WSMP has raised over $20,000 through grants and individual donations. Your continued support of this groundbreaking mission helps us bring many more musical opportunities to women.