UW-Eau Claire Residency: Dr. Gail Robertson

From March 27-30, 2014, the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire hosted Dr. Gail Robertson as part of a special program the College of Arts and Sciences sponsored called "A Year of Inclusivity." This program was part of a year-long project in the Department of Music and Theatre Arts which highlighted the contributions of underrepresented composers and other musicians in the programming and curriculum of the department. The term “underrepresented” has been selected because of its inclusive nature which is open to interpretation, raising such issues as gender, racial or cultural background, and sexual orientation. Exclusionary historic traditions surrounding many types of music are still highly valued today creating a culture in which many individuals are marginalized. The world of Classical music, for example, by its very nature is defined by historic traditions in which the contributions of men have predominated and have been held up as models, and as a result, only a handful of compositions by women have appeared annually on departmental programs among hundreds of compositions by men. A central goal of this project was to increase the number of compositions involving underrepresented composers and musicians in the programming for the Music and Theatre Arts Department 2013-14 Season, and in so doing, raise consciousness of this phenomenon and its ramifications and have a positive impact on future programming. The project involved performances and presentations by faculty, students, and guests.

During Dr. Robertson's residency, she presented sessions on entrepreneurship and arranging, a master class for the low brass students at UW-Eau Claire, and a recital with Dr. Barbara Young (piano) and a rhythm section from the university's award-winning jazz program. Dr. Robertson was very busy throughout her residency, working with students from across the music department and from schools in the Eau Claire area.