“Perigee” selected in Orlando competition

I was thrilled to find out last month that “Perigee” was selected by the Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra (OCCO) and their professional chamber choir, VoxO, in their call for submissions. The theme of the concert is “Through the Eyes of a Child” and takes place on Saturday, September 9, 2023 at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando, Florida. This will be the world premiere of the piece; there is a rehearsal recording by Voces Novae. Poet Mary Craig and I intend to be there, joined by my mother and my partner.

Two days after I received this fantastic news, my life changed drastically — my dad, Dan Henkel, had a stroke on April 27 and died the following day. My parents have always been my biggest musical supporters and guides, and I had just told them the good news the night I found out, when Jess and I met up with them to hear Emanuel Ax play at the IU Auditorium. My dad was so pleased about the news; he and my mom exclaimed right away that they would join us for the concert. I had to share that here because, at nearly every one of my concerts for the past 30 years, my parents would sit in the audience beaming up at me onstage. As I sit with my mom in the audience, listening to my piece about the death of a beloved one, I know I’ll be channeling my dad’s spirit every second of it.