About Musica delle Donne

It was the goal of Musica delle Donne to bring to the attention of both the educated musician and the general music lover the contributions of women composers both past and present to the great body of both vocal and instrumental music. To this end, a series of concerts featuring chamber music by women was held each March, Women’s History Month. Some of our major performance groups also selected repertoire to include on their regularly scheduled Spring Quarter concert dates in late February and March. First held in 1995, Musica delle Donne was started by Deborah Hamouris, a music major in vocal performance also minoring in Women’s Studies. While music by women composers did receive sporadic attention during previous years at CSU Hayward, this first concert series was the beginning of what would become a regular part of the Music Department concert calendar. Deborah Hamouris organized the series for three years before leaving to pursue other professional interests. It was taken over by Marianna Wolff, a graduate in vocal performance from the CSU Hayward Music Department. The year 2004 marked her seventh year of Musica delle Donne. In 2005 Ms. Wolff turned the artistic directorship over to Irene Gregorio, lecturer in accompanying at CSU East Bay. The 2006 concert season featured Music from Asia; CSUEB Student and Alumnae Composers, and Composers of the Paris Conservatory.