Writing music is how I express myself. After all, “where words fail, music speaks.” — Chelsea Loew, composer
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Leading up to our Helia + Natalie Raney Catalyst concert on September 4th, we are featuring our collaborators to offer you a sneak-peak into their lives, their musical process, and their inspiration. Meet Natalie Raney! On September 4th, Natalie Raney will be giving the world premiere of four brand-new pieces for cello. Read our interview with her to learn more about her musical journey and how this concert came to be.  Tell us about yourself. What has been your musical journey so far? I started cello after seeing my super cool neighbor play it in the house next door in Cincinnati, OH. I had already been playing the piano, but after starting cello that became front and center for me. During middle school my family moved to Seattle where I got to work with my lovely teacher Mara Finkelstein who really sealed the deal for me when it came to completely falling in love with cello. After continuing with cello through high school in Illinois, I decided to pursue a life as a musician. While in college, I found myself most inspired by chamber music and most of my musical decisions were in pursuit of a life as a cellist in a chamber group. My journey led me to San Francisco to get an Artist Certificate in Chamber Music at the SF Conservatory of Music. I have lived here in San Francisco now for 9 years and as I continue to grow roots here, I find myself happiest when balancing a musical life of chamber music, solo performances, and teaching. What do you look for when choosing music? I had a student ask me once, “do women write music?” That one question verbalized all of the complicated feelings I had been having toward classical music. I made it a goal to do my part in chipping away at this incredibly one-sided foundation classical music stands on so I never have to answer that question from a student ever again. Since I spent much of my musical upbringing with the cello playing music by a bunch of guys, I find myself making up for lost time by trying to elevate only works by women. When choosing music there is no set formula, it’s mostly just whatever calls out to me, I think sounds cool, or scares me just enough to make me feel challenged. I also love to program with clear themes in mind... like spring and nature. ✿ ❀ Tell us a bit about the program for Catalyst. What was the initial concept for the program and how has it changed? I really love dreaming up programs of music with clear themes, and the theme of nature has always been one I keep coming back to. I had been wanting to collaborate with Helia for a long time, and approached them about doing a program centered around nature with the vision of doing a bunch of outside concerts during the springtime. The original plan was to present multiple performances in completely different spaces throughout the Bay Area having no two concerts with the exact same program, making each performance a unique and special experience. As planning was in full swing and the new works were being finalized, COVID-19 hit and derailed the timeline of the project. Concerts were postponed, cancelled, rescheduled, and then rescheduled again. COVID-19 is still here, but it seemed like a perfect opportunity to embrace the virtual space that musicians have paved during this time. I’m so grateful that after a tumultuous few months, we were able to lock down concerts with a virtual platform. However, in this new reality every performance opportunity felt incredibly precious, and it seemed best to use every opportunity to perform each and every work on the program in its entirety on all concerts rather than making the program modular. After months of planning, I’m beyond thrilled to finally get a chance to present this program of works by Elizabeth A. Baker, Julie Barwick, Emma Logan, & Belinda Reynolds with Helia! What music are you listening to right now? Any favorites or new discoveries? Honestly, I have been really into playlists of bird sounds. I could listen to birds all day long.
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