Tonality
- Music Department
Established in 2016, Tonality is an award-winning ensemble known for "open hearted
singing" (Lauri's List). Tonality's most recent award is the 2020 Chorus America/ASCAP
Award for Adventurous Programming, a prize given for commitment to singing and
commissioning new works. Tonality is led by founder and Artistic Director Alexander
Lloyd Blake. Blake imagined Tonality as an ensemble that represents the diverse
cultures and ethnicities within the Los Angeles area. Within a year of its forming,
Tonality's mission evolved to use their collective voices to present concerts on themes
of social justice in hopes to act as a catalyst toward empathy and community activism.
The group premiered its first album in 2019 titled Sing About It.
Tonality is best known for creating choral concerts that focus on issues rarely presented in choral music. Concerts themes have included gun violence, homelessness, refugees, climate change, mental health, women's rights, and exercising democratic rights.
Tonality has collaborated with choral composers and film composers to create the works presented in concert, striving for diverse voices and perspectives within the composer community. Collaborators include Joe Trapanese, Roman Gianarthur, Gaayatri Kaundinya, Reena Esmail, Shawn Kirchner, Zanaida Robles, Moira Smiley, Alex Wurman. Tonality has performed with MacArthur Fellow Taylor Mac, Pete Townsend of The Who and acclaimed pianist Lara Downes.
Tonality has performed in their first film score, adding vocal textures, depth, and warmth to original compositions from Kris Bowers' score for Space Jam: A New Legacy. Their second recording of Joe Trapanese's score for Escape from Spiderhead will be released in 2022.
Tonality is best known for creating choral concerts that focus on issues rarely presented in choral music. Concerts themes have included gun violence, homelessness, refugees, climate change, mental health, women's rights, and exercising democratic rights.
Tonality has collaborated with choral composers and film composers to create the works presented in concert, striving for diverse voices and perspectives within the composer community. Collaborators include Joe Trapanese, Roman Gianarthur, Gaayatri Kaundinya, Reena Esmail, Shawn Kirchner, Zanaida Robles, Moira Smiley, Alex Wurman. Tonality has performed with MacArthur Fellow Taylor Mac, Pete Townsend of The Who and acclaimed pianist Lara Downes.
Tonality has performed in their first film score, adding vocal textures, depth, and warmth to original compositions from Kris Bowers' score for Space Jam: A New Legacy. Their second recording of Joe Trapanese's score for Escape from Spiderhead will be released in 2022.