Chorus America Presents New Documentary: "ALICE: At Home with Alice Parker"

Documentary Premiere and Talkback

October 8, 2020 | 7:00 pm EDT

Watch on our YouTube Channel

FREE to all viewers

Composer, conductor, and teacher Alice Parker is a champion of the power of the human voice and a hero in the world of choral music. The new documentary “ALICE: At Home with Alice Parker” illuminates Parker’s life and art through a series of intimate conversations with filmmaker Eduardo Montes-Bradley.

Parker’s reflections on her childhood and career are interspersed with stories about the creative process and collaborators behind some of her most significant works as a composer, such as Songs for Eve and A Sermon from the Mountain. Against a backdrop of the wintry mountains of Western Massachusetts where she makes her home, she shares her thoughts on life, morality, and the elemental and joyful importance of song.

Use this link to view the premiere on October 8 at 7:00pm EDT

The virtual film premiere will be followed by a talkback with Parker and director Eduardo Montes-Bradley, moderated by Chorus America president and CEO Catherine Dehoney.

The event will also feature “On the Common Ground,” a new piece composed by Parker, with a premiere recorded on September 27 at Plymouth Congregational Church in Minneapolis. Special thanks to vocalists Maria Jette (solo) with Jenny French, Lisa Drew, Dan Dressen and James Bohn; and to Philip Brunelle, Organist-Choirmaster at Plymouth Church, as well as Artistic Director and Founder of VocalEssence.

Parker and ECS Publishing Group have partnered to make “On the Common Ground” available at a greatly reduced rate of $1.50 per copy, with a percentage of proceeds from the sale going to support Chorus America.

Establishing the Alice Parker Fund

It is with immense gratitude that we announce, in conjunction with the film premiere, the creation of the Alice Parker Fund. Chorus America establishes this fund to support the composition and thoughtful presentation of choral music based in the traditions of Black and Latinx communities, which have so deeply inspired Alice Parker's work. This fund has a permanently restricted core and will be used to generate an annual award of $2,000 recognizing a Black and/or Latinx composer or an ensemble that respectfully and authentically presents works incorporating these traditions.

Chorus America has set a goal of raising $50,000 to establish the Alice Parker Fund. Make your contribution to the Alice Parker Fund today online or by texting CHORUS to 56512. For more information, contact André Coleman, associate director of development, at andre@chorusamerica.org.

"ALICE: At Home with Alice Parker" Clips

"The Clothesline"

"A Muse that Dwells in Song"

"Emily Dickinson"

"Emily Dickinson 2"

“ALICE: At Home with Alice Parker” was produced by Heritage Film Project in association with Melodious Accord. Academic Distribution Kanopy Streaming. HD | 30 mins. English. Produced by Soledad Liendo Directed by Eduardo Montes-Bradley. The premiere is presented by Chorus America.