Poster A portrait of a woman
Mari Esabel Valverde is an award-winning composer from Texas currently based in Minnesota.
Veronique Kherian
Pride Month

Classical Queery: 'How can you support the work of trans artists?'

Classical Queery – Part 3: Mari Esabel Valverde

The LGBTQIA+ community is here and queer all year, but Pride Month is a great time to spotlight LGBTQIA+ musicians and the impact their art, experiences, and ideas have on the classical music world. Classical Queery, hosted by YourClassical’s Mya Temanson, illustrates how classical music can uplift queer voices and how queer experiences can transform the classical music scene.

This week’s question, “How can you support the work of trans artists?” is answered by Mari Esabel Valverde (she/her).

A portrait of a woman
Mari Esabel Valverde
Veronique Kherian

Valverde is an award-winning composer from Texas who is currently based in Minnesota. She is a graduate of St. Olaf College and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Her work has taken her across the country, composing for the likes of the American Choral Directors Association, Boston Choral Ensemble, Cantus, and more (scroll down in this post to listen to some of Valverde’s works).

More than anything, Valverde foregrounds the voices and stories of marginalized people in her music. “I see the value of my work reflected whenever I go anywhere and make music with people,” she says.

Click on the player above to hear Valverde’s response to this week’s question, and explore further with the audio below.

Additional queeries for the curious listener:

When it comes to centering the voices of trans and BIPOC poets in your music, how does your experience as a trans woman of color inform you?

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Classical Queery – Part 3 – Experience

 

How can the classical music community better support the work of artists from marginalized communities?

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Classical Queery – Part 3 – Support

 

Why are stories of trans joy important?

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Classical Queery – Part 3 – Visibility

Music by Mari Esabel Valverde

When Thunder Comes (2016) performed by the St. Olaf Choir

Cantares (2013) performed by Polyphony: Voices of New Mexico

The Lady and the Tiger (2016) performed by Matthew Valverde, Ksenia Leletkina, and Tiffany Valvo

her first snow (2008) performed by the Lirica Chamber Ensemble

Check back in next week for another queery: “Why should you care?” Scholar Martha Mockus returns, joined by Sonia Mantell, a cellist with the Minnesota Orchestra.

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Latest Pride Month Episodes

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Latest Pride Month Episodes

Listen: 'Proud to Be' celebrates the LGBTQIA+ community in classical music

Listen: 'Proud to Be' celebrates the LGBTQIA+ community in classical music

Pride Month is a wonderful time to celebrate our unique identities and to reflect on how authenticity shows up in our lives. We asked classical musicians in the LGBTQIA community to share their thoughts on Pride. Listen now. [Support for Pride Month programming is provided by Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church.]

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'True Colors': Sounds from the heart for Pride Month

'True Colors': Sounds from the heart for Pride Month

As we celebrate Pride Month in June, join hosts Julie Amacher and Gabrielle Glass as they interview five LGBTQIA+ artists from the operatic world who will share their story with you, and how their pride impacts their musical identity.

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10 contemporary queer composers to listen to in honor of Pride Month
Classical Queery: 'How can you support the work of trans artists?'

Classical Queery: 'How can you support the work of trans artists?'

In celebration of Pride, host Mya Temanson presents Classical Queery, a series that illustrates how classical music can uplift queer voices and how queer experiences can transform the classical music scene. This week, composer and singer Mari Esabel Valverde answers the question: “How can you support the work of trans artists?”

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Classical Queery: 'What are queer spaces?'

Classical Queery: 'What are queer spaces?'

In celebration of Pride, host Mya Temanson presents Classical Queery, a series that illustrates how classical music can uplift queer voices and how queer experiences can transform the classical music scene. This week, three special guests answer the question: “What are queer spaces?”

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Classical Queery: 'Can you queer classical music?'

Classical Queery: 'Can you queer classical music?'

In celebration of Pride, host Mya Temanson presents Classical Queery, a series that illustrates how classical music can uplift queer voices and how queer experiences can transform the classical music scene. This week, special guest Martha Mockus answers the question: “Can you queer classical music?”

1:57
Extra Eclectic: Classical Pride!

Extra Eclectic: Classical Pride!

It's a different world today for those in the LGBTQIA community, and classical music is becoming refreshingly open and accepting in the 21st century. This week’s episode of Extra Eclectic, with host Steve Seel, showcases composers who paved the way in the 20th century by confronting old prejudices head-on and composers who have benefitted from their courage in the 21st century.

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'Goose, Goose, Baby Goose!'

Bruce the goose always swims his morning laps alone, until his life changes forever on one fateful summer day. Find out what happens in ‘Goose, Goose, Baby Goose!’ – the new episode of YourClassical Storytime. [Support for this program is provided by Minnesota Waldorf School. Support for Pride Month programming is provided by At Sara’s Table/Chester Creek Cafe and Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church.]

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Extra Eclectic: Out in Front

Extra Eclectic: Out in Front

June is Pride Month, and Steve Seel features a few different proudly out composers and performers on this episode of Extra Eclectic, including guitarist Sharon Isbin — who came out at 18 and who has long been a vocal advocate for LGBTQ rights.

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