The seventh annual international Music by Women Festival will be held on the campus of Mississippi University for Women March 2-4.  The festival will feature concerts of new and historic music written by women composers as well as academic presentations and lecture recitals presented at historic Poindexter Hall. 

“We are excited for the 2023 festival,” said Dr. Julia Mortyakova, The W’s Department of Music chair and artistic director for the Music by Women Festival. “The festival has grown over the years, and this year we have over 230 professional musicians performing works by women composers, our largest event yet.”

As part of the festival, 18 concerts will be presented. Each day concerts will be held at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 3 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. All festival concerts are free and open to the public. Between the concerts lecture-recitals and papers will be presented.  

Renowned performers and scholars from different parts of the world will gather to celebrate the musical contributions of women. University faculty from top research institutions and conservatories as well as members of prestigious orchestras and opera companies can be heard on the festival program.

Mortyakova said,” We have presenters from as far away as Poland and Canada, as well as from all around the United States.”

Concert and events will be live streamed to the festival website.

Funding from the Mississippi Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, provides support for this project.

For more information, please visit www.muw.edu/musicbywomen. 

For questions about the festival, contact Mortyakova at musicbywomen@muw.edu.

About The W

Located in historic Columbus, Mississippi, The W was founded in 1884 as the first state-supported college for women in the United States. Today, the university is home to 2,227 students in more than 70 majors and concentrations and has educated men for 40 years. The university is nationally recognized for low student debt, diversity and social mobility which empowers students to BE BOLD.

Be Bold. Tower with Blue.