“I loved the variety of music, exposure to new composers, the performance space and the enthusiasm of all of the performers. Keep it up!”

Bringing together repertoire from a diverse array of traditions, the Capital Hearings illuminate the commonalities between songs of all styles, from all eras – and the communities that birthed them. Our genre-busting mission unites complex jazz, transcendent global and classical music, and dynamic modern hits into a thought-provoking message, breaking down barriers and prompting our audiences to build new bridges of understanding.

What’s New?

REQUEST FOR SUBMISSIONS: POWER PLAYS – how does power shape your world?

When you’re at the bottom of the ladder, the top seems unreachable.  As soon as you feel empowered, though, it’s as if you’re unstoppable.  How has our society’s expression of power most affected you? The Capital Hearings are proud to announce our 6th Annual Young Composers Competition!  This year, we’re requesting submissions focused on the subject of “Power Plays” - the contrast between powerful people and those with none, the ways we gain and lose our own power, and any other way that power expresses itself to you. All U.S. & Canadian residents age 18-40 are welcome to submit a ...
Read More

Young Composers Competition: Southard’s “In this short Life” Takes Top Prize

The Capital Hearings announced Keane Southard (keanesouthard.instantencore.com) as the winner of its 2018 Young Composers Competition. The group will premiere his piece, “In this short Life,” at its eighth annual fall concert, Worlds of Our Creation, on Saturday, Sept. 15 at Live at 10th and G. Southard’s lush work combines two short Emily Dickinson poems to create a meditation on time and the preciousness of life. The second half of the piece repeats the stanzas in reverse order, reminding listeners of time’s transience and circularity. “In setting these two short poems of Emily Dickinson, I had a strong musical idea ...
Read More

Fall Concert 2018: Worlds of Our Creation

Hello! You see the world like no one else.

This year’s fall concert explores music that speaks to the realities and illusions of perspective: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’s “Pure Imagination,” the magnetic funk of Stevie Wonder, the seductive optimism of Duke Ellington, the incisive commentary of Ted Hearne, and the melodic nostalgia of Sara Bareilles. In The Capital Hearings’ fashion, the music spans hundreds of years, multiple languages, and showcases classical, jazz, and pop a cappella. It draws inspiration from diverse places, including the gothic deep south, the technological enthusiasm of the 1980s, the poetry of Emily Dickinson, ...
Read More

This is box title