recent premiere!

songs of the chickasaws: epic tales told through music

saturday, february 28 at 7:30pm @ the checkout, 4116 n clark st chicago, IL

sunday, March 1 at 4pm @ the checkout, 4116 N clark st chicago, il

 

about songs of the chickasaws

featuring the following bbe musicians:

Rachael Youngman, soprano and narrator (Choctaw)

Mark Billy, baritone and narrator (Choctaw)

Leighann Daihl Ragusa, Native American flute and Traverso

Brandi Berry Benson, violin (Chickasaw)

Kiyoe Matsuura, violin

Alicia Valoti, viola

Kiegan Ryan, cello (Cherokee)

Michaela Marchi, indigenous percussion (Isleta Pueblo)

Songs of the Chickasaws is a series of five chamber works, each about a dynamic Chickasaw who had a profound impact on the Chickasaw Nation - 

Tishu Miko: the fierce but compassionate warrior chief who led his people to Indian Territory after the forced removal from their homelands.

Governor Jonas Wolfe - the stoic leader of "rugged integrity" who humorously tests a young man to see if he is worthy to marry one of his daughters.

Lushanya - the Songbird of the Chickasaws, and the first native prima donna to tour Europe with great acclaim during the reigns of Hitler and Mussolini.

"Sadie" Humes - the co-author of the first Chickasaw dictionary despite struggling in school as a young child.

Jesse Lindsey - an elder and current culture keeper of the Chickasaw Nation, especially known for his flute playing.

images and video from the premiere coming soon!

Album ReleaseD!

Silver Linings

Brandi Berry Benson

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A mix of Baroque and Bluegrass music in the form of suites, preludes, and new fiddle tunes, this album is the culmination of the music that kept flowing within me when our nation went into lockdown in response to the Read more

A mix of Baroque and Bluegrass music in the form of suites, preludes, and new fiddle tunes, this album is the culmination of the music that kept flowing within me when our nation went into lockdown in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. My life, like everyone else, completely changed. Within weeks, I saw my whole season of performances get cancelled, and all teaching and other activities transition online. Rather than dwell on the losses, I decided to see the silver linings. Everything that had been inside of me, I let out, and wrote it down. At the time, I wasn't sure when I would get to perform in public next, but I was certain that I would continue to make music in whatever way that I could. This album was recorded while I was pregnant with my daughter, and also includes a Chickasaw suite based on the melodies of the Chickasaw Nation of which I am a member. All tracks are original compositions except La Furstemberg which is my arrangement of the tune for solo violin.

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