Join us in celebrating the winners of this year’s Hildegard Commission, National Sawdust’s groundbreaking mentorship initiative dedicated to empowering extraordinary women and marginalized genders in the early stages of their careers.
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Join us on March 6, 2025, for an extraordinary evening celebrating the winners of this year’s Hildegard Commission, National Sawdust’s mentorship initiative designed to highlight and elevate the voices of exceptional women and marginalized genders in the early stages of their careers. This year’s focus is on the transformative power of film music, featuring collaborative commissions that bring live music and visual storytelling together in compelling new ways.
The Hildegard Commission concert will showcase world premiers of five remarkable composers —Danae Venson, Lingbo Ma, Kayla McIntyre, Nina Fukuoka, and SiHyun Uhm—developed alongside visionary filmmakers and under the mentorship of luminaries Laura Karpman, Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum, Tamar-kali, Laura Rossi, and Germaine Franco. These groundbreaking works will be performed by the National Sawdust Ensemble, led by acclaimed cellist Jeffrey Zeigler.
Adding to the program, Hildegard Commission finalists Arowah, Mizu Issei, Katie Jenkins will have works from their current repertoire performed, offering an additional glimpse into their creative brilliance.
The five Hildegard Commission winners each receive a $5,000 cash prize, a commission for Pierrot-plus ensemble, a professional performance, a live recording, and one-on-one mentorship with leaders in the field, guided by Paola Prestini, Composer, National Sawdust Co-Founder, and Artistic Director.
The Hildegard Commission is made possible through the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Join us for this inspiring evening of innovative artistry, where music and film converge to celebrate the next generation of creative talent.
ABOUT NINA FUKUOKA
Nina Fukuoka is a Japanese and Polish composer and performer based in NYC. She makes instrumental and computer music and uses various media and technologies to express extramusical meaning. Her works are focused on the contemporary world through the lens of horror esthetics, video games, and feminist scholarships.
She has collaborated with ensembles such as Hashtag, Ekmeles, Distractfold, Mivos, Spółdzielnia Muzyczna, Talea, and ICE. Her works have been featured at numerous festivals and venues in Europe, North America, and Japan, including MATA, Warsaw Autumn, and the Darmstädter Ferienkurse. Nina is pursuing a doctorate in Music Composition at Columbia University.
ABOUT LINGBO MA
LINGBO MA, a recipient of the Presser Foundation’s music award, is a Chinese-born, US-based composer and pianist whose work has been performed in the USA, China, and Europe. She strives for unique ways of reaching the ultimate simplicity and clarity while unfolding diverse narratives in her music. Notable recent commissions include works for the Dutch National Opera, National Sawdust, and Collage New Music. Her upcoming project features a chamber opera with a libretto by John de los Santos in collaboration with New England Conservatory’s opera department. A Juilliard School alumna, Lingbo is currently pursuing her doctorate at the New England Conservatory.
ABOUT KAYLA MCINTYRE
Kayla McIntyre is a Los Angeles based composer. As a guitarist, she has played in several venues and festivals around Atlanta, and recorded for many artists. She studied composition at Georgia State University, and Screen Scoring at University of Southern California. She has written for various ensembles, such as jazz band, symphonic wind ensemble, and orchestra. She has also scored several short films, web series, games, and various visual media. As a composer, she has had concert works premiered by the UN Orchestra, GSU Symphonic Winds, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
ABOUT SIHYUN UHM
SiHyun Uhm is a versatile composer, pianist, and multimedia producer, based in Los Angeles and South Korea. She has received commissions from Cecilia Kang (New Music USA), YAMAHA, Enhakē Ensemble, and the Rockies Clarinet (Air Force Academy Band), and has earned prizes and awards from esteemed organizations like the President’s Own Marine Band and the Art Council of Korea. A graduate of Eastman and Juilliard, she is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at UCLA. SiHyun’s work spans classical, electronic, and film music, and she merges art and science in interdisciplinary projects focused on environmental conservation and brain activity research.
ABOUT DANAE VENSON
Danae Venson is a composer and multi-instrumentalist from Houston, Texas. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree at The Juilliard School with the combined guidance of Dr. Amy Beth Kirsten and Dr. Valerie Coleman.
In 2020, after paying close attention to troubling events of racial violence, Danae decided to find a way to “speak without words.” Since then, she has received the opportunity to work with the Denyce Graves Foundation, MATA Festival, New York Youth Symphony, the Houston Ballet Academy, Castle of our Skins, and The Juilliard School.
ABOUT FINALIST AROWAH
Arowah seeks to embody the role of the artist as philosopher, community builder and collective healer, with their work a meditation on the social and the spiritual. Having danced around many scenes, they’ve enjoyed an extraordinarily multi-hyphenate career, including training as a sound healer and performing around the world as a jazz guitarist. They’ve received commissions as diverse as writing a musical protest stunt for Global Justice Now and a Healing Suite for a hospital to composing a string quartet for the Royal Philharmonic Society to premier at Wigmore Hall.
ABOUT FINALIST MIZU
MIZU builds expansive soundscapes through her singular cello playing. Her signature stratiform style of composition, melding self-recorded layers of her instrument with electronic manipulation and experimental production, explores themes of transformation and the infinite possibilities within queerness.
MIZU's two self-produced albums, Forest Scenes and Distant Intervals, received critical praise and attention from platforms such as Pitchfork, NOWNESS Asia, Bandcamp Daily, New Sounds, Stereogum, and Them. She also recently scored the music for 4 | 2 | 3, a full-length contemporary dance production by choreographers Baye & Asa, which premiered at The Baryshnikov Arts Center in Spring 2024.
ABOUT FINALIST KATIE JENKINS
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Katie Jenkins is a Welsh composer and producer based in New York City, known for her collaborative work across stage and screen. Her projects have been featured at NASA, the New York Choreographic Institute, and New York Fashion Week. Jenkins has collaborated with companies such as Chamber Dance Project and Revolve Dance Project, and her works are published by Hal Leonard and Murphy Music Press. Her awards include the American Prize in Composition and the New York Federation of Music Club’s prize. She recently graduated from The Juilliard School where she studied under Melinda Wagner. Listen to her music at www.katiejenkinscomposer.com.