Jennifer Fitzgerald (1975-2007) received awards and fellowships from the American Composers Orchestra, the Aspen Music Festival, the American Opera Projects, Meet the Composer, the Millay Colony and others and she was a finalist for the National Symphony Orchestra’s American Residency Commission in North Carolina. Fitzgerald’s music has been performed by artists including pulsoptional, Robert Black, Capital M, Innovata Brass and Dan Trueman and has been featured at such festivals and venues as the American Dance Festival, the Duke/UNC Milestones Festival, Columbia University, Lawrence Conservatory, Tufts University, Adelphi University and Vasser College. She was a co-founder and pianist for pulsoptional. Fitzgerald received a Ph.D. in Composition from Duke University and was a postdoctoral fellow at Lawrence University. She has been on the faculty of Lawrence Conservatory, Duke University and the Duke University String School.
Jen passed away unexpectedly on December 23, 2007, following an extended battle with cancer. She was a founding member and longtime co-director of pulsoptional; as the group’s first Administrative Director, she laid crucial groundwork for our continued viability. In her too-short but well-lived life, Jen touched many; she was fiercely dedicated to her musical, intellectual, and moral ideals, as well as to her friends and fellow artists. We miss her dearly, and hope that you will take a moment out of your day to remember her as well.
Donations in her name may be made to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
For more information, please visit the following websites:
Susan G. Komen for the Cure || American Opera Projects || Real Bands, Real Bonds: In Memory of Jennifer Fitzgerald by Caroline Mallonée || Lawrence University || Jennifer’s website || Jennifer’s myspace page
pulsoptional is currently working on the Jennifer Fitzgerald Memorial Project, a permanent digital archive of recordings and scores of Jennifer’s music, which will be available for download through this site. The first batch of recordings and scores will be posted in September 2010; additional downloads will be made available as they are completed.