Oakland composer and pianist presents a program of pairs of pieces she enjoys hearing side-by-side. Although none of the composers on the program are actually best friends in real life, in her imagination these works by Joshua Uzoigwe, Ali Osman, Stacy Fahrion, Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Ulvi Cemal Erkin make delightfully simpatico companions.
Monica Chew (she/her) is an Oakland composer and pianist who celebrates presenting rarely performed music and new works from around the world. A “gifted player with an affinity for deeply sensitive expression” (Whole Note), she has composed since 2017 and couldn’t be happier about it. Her work has been featured as part of the Gabriela Lena Frank’s Creative Academy for Music, Verdant Vibes, Hot Air Music Festival, and Left Coast Chamber Ensemble’s Intersection program. Her writing has been reviewed as “monumental” and “stunning” by San Francisco Classical Voice. Prior to 2015, she worked nearly a decade as a principal software engineer on security and privacy at Mozilla and Google. She lives in Oakland with her husband, an 1899 Steinway B, a clavichord, and a disused violin.