Mixing Beatboxing with Opera, Acclaimed Composer Redefines Genre

left to right: Augusta Read Thomas and Nicole Paris

With an abundant imagination for sound and music, Prof. Augusta Read Thomas unfolds fresh sonic perspectives and a personal artistic voice in soaring pieces played around the world—all while shaping the field of classical composition at the University of Chicago. Now, the Grammy-winning composer renowned for her masterful use of instrumental color has created a new opera that features acclaimed beatboxer Nicole Paris, accompanied by a youth choir and chamber ensemble. The original work Sweet Potato Kicks the Sun will debut Oct. 26 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and is the second opera Thomas has composed in close collaboration with librettist Leslie Dunton-Downer.

October 3, 2019

UChicago Library Becomes Home to 2,700 Vintage Photographs by Vivian Maier

Unpublished work © 2017 The Estate of Vivian Maier. All rights reserved.

The University of Chicago Library has received more than 2,700 vintage prints by celebrated photographer Vivian Maier, few of which have ever been published or displayed. Collector John Maloof made the donation to the UChicago Library, where they will be preserved and made accessible to researchers in the Special Collections Research Center. The gift includes more than 1,200 black-and-white and 1,400 color prints that Maier made, ranging from her travels around the world to her street photography in Chicago that has received widespread critical acclaim. Because Maier chose to make the prints herself, the collection provides a rare glimpse into her creative process and the photos to which she was drawn.

August 26, 2019

Pages