The CAIC Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship provides educational, performance, and entrepreneurial opportunities to select classically trained Chicago-based singers and pianists. Each season, one singer and one pianist may be chosen for this 30-week residency with Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago.
Vocal Chamber Music Fellows will receive weekly individual coachings and will work closely with CAIC artistic and administrative staff to gain first-hand experience in the inner workings of the arts organization. Additionally, Vocal Chamber Music Fellows will participate throughout the year in sessions (as individuals and in ensemble) with CAIC’s visiting artists, and can include participation in season workshops and masterclasses. The Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship serves as the ambassadorial arm of CAIC, with participants appearing regularly at fundraising and outreach events in programs guided by CAIC’s educational and artistic staff. Residency begins in mid-August, and lasts for one full performance season, with the option to renew for a second season.
Vocal Chamber Music Fellows will receive weekly individual coachings and will work closely with CAIC artistic and administrative staff to gain first-hand experience in the inner workings of the arts organization. Additionally, Vocal Chamber Music Fellows will participate throughout the year in sessions (as individuals and in ensemble) with CAIC’s visiting artists, and can include participation in season workshops and masterclasses. The Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship serves as the ambassadorial arm of CAIC, with participants appearing regularly at fundraising and outreach events in programs guided by CAIC’s educational and artistic staff. Residency begins in mid-August, and lasts for one full performance season, with the option to renew for a second season.
APPLY TO BE A CAIC VOCAL CHAMBER MUSIC FELLOW!
Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago (CAIC) is pleased to invite submissions for a new class of Vocal Chamber Music Fellows. Each year CAIC celebrates and fosters the artistry and vision of one singer, a pianist or one singer/pianist team, under the guidance of CAIC co-founder and Director of Education, Shannon McGinnis, and with the support of CAIC’s robust roster of professional affiliations.
ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP
CAIC’s Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship functions as a project incubator: Fellows will build a project from the ground up, with the support of CAIC’s institutional framework and professional staff. Vocal Chamber Music Fellows will be asked to balance the multiple demands and needs that established arts organizations contend with daily: Which venue? Should I print the program in color? Should we commission a piece? How much should we - the artists - be paid?
Fellowships are tailored to candidates’ interests and project proposals. During the two-year residency Fellows receive:
If you are interested in applying to the Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship for the 2024-2026 seasons, please send the following materials to us by May 1, 2024:
REQUIRED MATERIALS
Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago (CAIC) is pleased to invite submissions for a new class of Vocal Chamber Music Fellows. Each year CAIC celebrates and fosters the artistry and vision of one singer, a pianist or one singer/pianist team, under the guidance of CAIC co-founder and Director of Education, Shannon McGinnis, and with the support of CAIC’s robust roster of professional affiliations.
ABOUT THE FELLOWSHIP
CAIC’s Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship functions as a project incubator: Fellows will build a project from the ground up, with the support of CAIC’s institutional framework and professional staff. Vocal Chamber Music Fellows will be asked to balance the multiple demands and needs that established arts organizations contend with daily: Which venue? Should I print the program in color? Should we commission a piece? How much should we - the artists - be paid?
Fellowships are tailored to candidates’ interests and project proposals. During the two-year residency Fellows receive:
- An annual budget of approximately $5,000 to use as you see fit during your two-year residency, toward project planning and implementation
- regular mentorship, planning, and coaching sessions, provided by CAIC staff and guest artists
- logistical and programmatic project support.
If you are interested in applying to the Vocal Chamber Music Fellowship for the 2024-2026 seasons, please send the following materials to us by May 1, 2024:
REQUIRED MATERIALS
- Name
- Performance résumé
- Names and contact information for two references, one of whom must be a previous or current teacher or coach
- Project Proposal: this does not have to be a final proposal, by any means! We are happy to hear multiple ideas you are mulling over. Give us an idea of the repertoire you’re interested in, what your theme (if any) might be, where you might want to perform… Anything you’d like to share!
- 2 recordings (one of which must be video), captured within the last 2 years
23 / 24 SEASON FELLOWS
ELIZABETH SHUMAN, soprano
Soprano Elizabeth Shuman is relishing an increasing number of live concert appearances after years of pandemic performances for her backyard chickens. An enthusiastic networker, she especially enjoys collaboration with other composers, musicians, artists, and community organizations to craft unique and innovative productions. Her audiences are often treated to world premieres.
Recognized for her compelling art song interpretation, Elizabeth is currently featured as the Vocal Chamber Music Fellow with the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago.
Recent appearances include a solo recital at Chicago's Fourth Church and a musical comedy night where she was featured as "Annie" in the Chicago premiere of Annie and Joshua by Robbie Ellis. She also recently enjoyed a debut performance at The Green Mill premiering the newest baroque aria, "Express Lanes" written for her by Ellis, celebrating the highs and lows of life on the Kennedy. She is excited to join Chicago a cappella for the 2023 Christmas season.
Other performance highlights include the role of her doppelganger, Senator Patrick Leahy, in The Gonzales Cantata. She has also enjoyed solo performances at Early Music at the Barn, Friends of the Windows recital series, the Schubertiade festival, Liederstube and early music festivals in Boston and Berkeley.
Her recent choral credits include the Chicago Symphony Chorus, Chicago Choral Artists, and Camerata Chicago.
Elizabeth was raised in rural Colby Kansas, a beautiful small town boasting the only Starbucks in 173 miles, and a motto, “The Oasis on the Plains” which seemed more fitting of the resourceful community before someone installed giant aluminum palm trees at the truck stop.
Elizabeth is an advocate and educator on refugee issues. She lives with her family in Chicago and delights in her orchids, outdoor adventures, and crying at a good organ concert.
JENNIFER ALLOR, piano
Jennifer Allor is a pianist and vocal coach in the Chicago area and has recently completed her second year in the Chicago Opera Theater/Chicago College of the Performing Arts at Roosevelt University Professional Diploma and Young Artist Program. This summer, she will join Chicago Summer Opera as pianist and coach for their production of Le Nozze di Figaro.
During the 2021-2023 seasons, she worked on productions of Carmen, The Cook-Off (Shawn Okpebholo), Becoming Santa Claus (Adamo), The Beekeeper (Wang Lu), Król Roger (Szymanowski), and the world premieres of The Life and Death(s)
of Alan Turing (Justine F. Chen) and Quamino’s Map (Errollyn Wallen) with COT. She has also been an apprentice coach with Prague Summer Nights (Don Giovanni, Die Zauberflöte) and served as pianist and coach for Soo Opera Theatre (La Traviata, La Bohème).
She holds a Professional Diploma in opera from Roosevelt University, a Master of Music degree in piano performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
During the 2021-2023 seasons, she worked on productions of Carmen, The Cook-Off (Shawn Okpebholo), Becoming Santa Claus (Adamo), The Beekeeper (Wang Lu), Król Roger (Szymanowski), and the world premieres of The Life and Death(s)
of Alan Turing (Justine F. Chen) and Quamino’s Map (Errollyn Wallen) with COT. She has also been an apprentice coach with Prague Summer Nights (Don Giovanni, Die Zauberflöte) and served as pianist and coach for Soo Opera Theatre (La Traviata, La Bohème).
She holds a Professional Diploma in opera from Roosevelt University, a Master of Music degree in piano performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
2023-24 Vocal Chamber Music Fellow Project: Considering Peace
A concert of poetry set to music for solo voice and piano, Considering Peace, which has been curated by soprano Elizabeth Shuman, guides the audience through an exploration of peace and what it means in various aspects of our lives. This program features string quartet, and includes songs by Chicago based composers Eric Malmquist and Myron Silberstein. Languages represented include English, Arabic, Hebrew, German, and even a vocalise or wordless song.