Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandi Berry Benson.
Brandi, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
My story begins in the state of Texas where one of my next-door neighbors introduced me to the violin. I loved the sound of the open strings so much that it led me to join the school orchestra in middle school where I first began to play classical music. Not long after, I was exposed to bluegrass fiddling and started attending the weekly jams at the local barbecue joint where I learned tunes by ear and how to improvise. Though I majored in classical violin in both my Bachelor’s and Master’s music degrees, I always played with bands and at jams in bluegrass, country, and jazz. After graduating from Indiana University, I thought I would move to either the East or West coast. Chicago was not on my radar! Thanks to the recommendation of David Douglass and Ellen Hargis, my mentors and co-directors of the Newberry Consort, to come to Chicago, I moved here on a leap of faith to Rogers Park in September of 2008. Now, a decade later, I live across the street from my first apartment with my husband and two cats, as an active performer and teacher in both the classical and folk worlds.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
While I perform with a number of ensembles in and outside of Chicago, the majority of my art-making is the music I program and produce with my ensemble, the Bach & Beethoven Experience. As the Artistic Director and co-director of the Bach & Beethoven Experience with Thomas Alaan, we produce music that transforms the classical concert from a passive listening presentation to an interactive experience that bridges the gap between performer and audience. Each season of the year brings a different experience to our audience: 1)in the summer, we put on a folk cross-over program exploring the intersections between folk music and classical music 2) in the fall, we produce Chicago Stories which features the works of 3 Chicago composers about various neighborhoods and communities throughout the city; 3) for the winter, we perform a concert tracing carols back through time; and 4) in the spring, the BBE does a special collaboration with another performing arts or Humanities organization. The heartbeat of everything we do is to give classical music a makeover from its stodgy reputation and restore it to its more social roots–accessible, fun, and refreshing, like folk music. We want people to know that our music is for everyone, and that the concert is as much about you, the audience, as it is about the us.
Do current events, local or global, affect your work and what you are focused on?
I think the role of artists has not altogether changed, but rather there is a different emphasis now. I think more than ever it is important that as artists we help each other and our neighbors find common ground and learn each other’s stories in the wake of such a divisive time for our nation. Local issues have a big impact particularly on our Chicago Stories project. Every year, we select 3 composers to write music about the stories of individuals in a Chicago community or neighborhood of their choice. Last year one of the composers wrote about two Assyrian immigrant refugees who fled a war-torn Iraq to eventually come and make a home here in the Rogers Park and Lincolnwood neighborhoods. This year, one of our composers is writing about individuals whose families moved to Bronzeville as a result of the Great Migration. Both of these topics are very relevant to current events and have huge impact on the audience and ourselves when we perform these works that share the stories of these communities.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
People can find out more about the Bach & Beethoven Experience and upcoming concerts at: bbexperience.org. You can support us by attending one of our shows and telling your friends about us! Like us and share us on all the various social medias: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat.
Upcoming shows:
A Cajun Summer
Saturday, July 28 3-5pm at Den Theater as part of Wicker Park Fest
Chicago Stories
Saturday, September 29, 6:30pm at Loyola Park as part of Night Out in the Parks
Saturday, October 6, 6:30pm at Armour Square Park as part of Night Out in the Parks
Sunday, October 7, 7:00pm at Den Theater
Contact Info:
- Website: bbexperience.org
- Email: bbe@bachandbeethoven.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bbefamily/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbefamily/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbefamily
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyKyH2Wo2-du3P_kqtmAnUQ
Image Credit:
2nd photo: Alexandra Olsavsky (left), Thomas Alaan (right)
3rd photo from left to right: Brandi Berry Benson, Kiyoe Matsuura, Jeremy Ward, David Walker
bottom photo from left to right: Brandi Berry Benson, Alexandra Olsavsky, Anna Steinhoff, Paul von Hoff, Sung Lee
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
