It is only in the darkest times that one realizes the true value of light. Polish-Belgian philosopher and writer Alicja Gescinska sketches the life stories and core beliefs of ten women who embody this. With the strength of their character and the ink of their pens, they fought for freedom, truth, and humanity in times of oppression, lies, and inhumanity. They battled totalitarian seduction, enslavement, and the urge for destruction, and were beacons of light in humanity's darkest hours. All the music you hear tonight was composed by female composers , including Florence Price and Grażyna Bacewicz , each with a unique story to tell .  

Alicja Gescinska rose to prominence with her philosophical debut The Conquest of Freedom (2011) , a book in which she interweaves autobiographical details with a philosophical plea for positive freedom. It was received with critical acclaim. With her debut novel A Kind of Love (2016), she won the 2017 Debut Prize and was nominated for the Confituur Bookstore Prize . An Exercise in Humanity (2018) was shortlisted for the Socrates Cup. Meanwhile, People Are Perishing (2019) was awarded the 2019 Liberales Book Prize. Her latest book , Women in Dark Times, about ten unjustly forgotten female thinkers, will be published on November 26, 205. Tonight she will introduce 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 – From Trois Pièces: I Modéré Florence Price – Songs