Alicja Gescinska & ensemble

In the darkest times, one truly understands the value of light. The Polish-Belgian philosopher and writer Alicja Gescinska paints the life stories and core ideas of ten women who embody this truth. With the strength of their character and the ink of their pen, they fought for freedom, truth, and humanity in times of oppression, deceit, and inhumanity. They resisted totalitarian temptation, subjugation, and the urge for destruction, serving as beacons of light in humanity’s darkest hours. All the music you will hear tonight is composed by female composers, including Florence Price and Grażyna Bacewicz, each with a unique and remarkable story. And it is played by Merel Vercammen, Dina Ivanova en Shanice Skinner.

Alicja Gescinska gained recognition with her philosophical debut The Conquest of Freedom (2011), a book in which she intertwines autobiographical elements with a philosophical plea for positive freedom. It was highly praised. Her debut novel, A Kind of Love (2016), won the 2017 Debut Prize and was nominated for the Confituur Bookstores Prize. An Exercise in Humanity (2018) was shortlisted for the Socrates Cup. In the Meantime, People Die (2019) was awarded the Liberales Book Prize 2019. In the fall of 2025, her latest book about ten unjustly forgotten female thinkers will be published. Tonight, she introduces you to these ten women.

Program

Grażyna Bacewicz – Violin Sonata No. 3
Lili Boulanger – Nocturne
Lili Boulanger – Cortège
Lili Boulanger – D’un matin de printemps
Nadia Boulanger – I Modéré (from Trois Pièces)
Florence Price – The Glory of the Day Was in Her Face
Florence Price – Sympathy
Florence Price – Song to the Dark Virgin (from 4 Songs from The Weary Blues)
Florence Price – The Poet and His Song
Florence Price – Resignation
Florence Price – My Soul’s Been Anchored in The Lord