DuHamel receives McKnight Musician Fellowship grant

Ann DuHamel, associate professor of music and head of keyboard studies at the University of Minnesota Morris, has received a 2023-24 McKnight Musician Fellowship. DuHamel is one of four musicians to receive the statewide grant.

 The McKnight Fellowships for Musicians are intended to recognize and support mid-career musicians living and working in Minnesota who demonstrate a sustained level of accomplishment, commitment, artistic excellence, a distinctive musical voice, and a significant performing career over a period of time. The McKnight Fellowships for Musicians are committed to honoring the breadth of Minnesota musicians of all genres; aesthetically, geographically, and culturally. 

The process for the recipients began in January, with 59 solo musician applications consisting of recording samples, artist statements, and resumes. A four-member panel of experienced and well-respected music professionals chose nine finalists. The four recipients were selected to receive the $25,000 McKnight Fellowship for Musicians at the finals on Friday, May 5, 2023. A McKnight Musician Fellowship is unrestricted and can help an artist set aside periods of time for study, reflection, experimentation, and exploration; take advantage of an opportunity; or work on a new project.   

DuHamel adds, “I am delighted and honored to receive this prestigious award and recognition. The McKnight Artist Fellowship for Musicians has a distinguished history, and I am absolutely thrilled to join the ranks of the current and former recipients. 

“Moreover, I am extremely grateful for all of the support the University of Minnesota provides for faculty creative activity and research. As an associate professor of music on the UMN Morris campus, I have been fortunate with multiple resources over the span of several years to develop and perform my project ‘Prayers for a Feverish Planet’ – an IAS faculty fellowship in the Twin Cities in the Fall of 2021, a sabbatical in 2022-23 and a Grant in Aid award allowing me to tour during this sabbatical year, as well as Imagine Fund grants and UMM Faculty Research Enhancement Funds. This project, a musical response to climate change, constituted the basis of my McKnight application this year, from work samples and artist statement, to the live final round performance and Q&A for the panel. The McKnight award is a reality for me today because of the trajectory of my project, made possible by the University of Minnesota.”

The other award recipients are Shaiwna Adams aka The Lioness, Rascal Miles, and Evelyn Speers aka EVV.

Here is the profile included in the announcement of the grant: 

Ann DuHamel, Piano – Classical, Morris

Praised as poetic and “… a delight for the ears and the soul” (Encuentro Universitario Internacional de Saxofón, Mexico City), pianist Ann DuHamel delights in a multi-dimensional and eclectic musical career. Her performances have spanned 18 countries and 37 of the United States, including Carnegie Weill Recital Hall.

Hailed as a “forward thinking classical pianist” (Midwest Record) and applauded for “the depth of programming and playing” (Piano Magazine) for her debut album Rückblick (Furious Artisans, 2020), Ann actively champions contemporary composers, commissioning all of the works for this release. She can also be heard on Tyler Kline: Orchard (Neuma Records, 2022); Fanfare Magazine praised her performance as “alive … [played with] aching expression.” Tracks from Rückblick and Orchard have been featured on radio stations across the U.S.

Ann’s project “Prayers for a Feverish Planet” responds to the climate crisis with 60+ new works from composers around the world. In the spirit of eco-artivism, the program asks urgent questions of the listener: How can we live more mindfully as global citizens? How can we use our artistic talents to make a difference?

Featured in interviews on Modern Notebook Radio (WSMR) and Minnesota Public Radio’s All Things Considered with Tom Crann, Ann has been awarded artist residencies at Tofte Lake Center (MN) and Everwood Farmstead Foundation (WI), in addition to grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board, the Lake Region Arts Council, and the University of Minnesota. She currently serves as Associate Professor of Music at the University of Minnesota Morris, where she devotes herself to the mission of sharing high quality traditional and contemporary classical music with students and the greater community. She is Immediate Past President of the Minnesota Music Teachers Association.