Encore University Masterclass #34 - Meet the Composer: Diana Sáez, Composer of “Temporal”
Description
Encore University's Artistic Masterclass Series
Meet the Composer: Diana Sáez, Composer of "Temporal"
with Diane Sáez, Heather Fetrow, and Kathryn Harsha
Wednesday, April 15th
4:00pm-6:00pm (ET)
Fee: Pay what you will
Due to a generous sponsorship by AARP, Encore University Masterclasses are available for whatever you want to pay starting at $0.
Attend for FREE, or if you would like to assign a value to this lifelong learning experience, choose one of the ($) admission tickets.
All Encore University Masterclasses are open to the public!
CLASS DESCRIPTION: This special masterclass will be BOTH in-person and live on Zoom!
If you are joining in-person:
- DATE: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
- TIME: 4:00-6:00pm (ET)
- LOCATION: Grace Episcopal Church - Undercroft Room, 1607 Grace Church Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20910
If you are joining us on Zoom:
- DATE: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
- TIME: 4:00-6:00pm (ET)
- You will receive the Zoom link in your confirmation email, and you will join that link at 4:00pm (ET) on the day of the class.
Live and streamed: Meet the Composer: Diana Sáez, Composer of “Temporal”
Join us in person or via zoom to rehearse "Temporal" with the composer, Dr. Diana Sáez. She’ll teach us about the traditional plena from Puerto Rico and demonstrate how the elements of Spanish and African music have influenced “Temporal."
Discover the music’s connection to Caribbean hurricanes and the resilience shown by the people of Puerto Rico. And get ready to sing and move to the incredible rhythmic intensity of "Temporal."
This session will be available for attendance in person and via zoom.
Join us to sing with the composer!
Chorale singers, please bring your copies of "Temporal"; if you are not in Chorale, you can print the sheet music for "Temporal" from the link in your confirmation email, or share with a friend!
INSTRUCTOR BIO:
Dr. Diana V. Sáez is Director of Choral Activities at Towson University, where she conducts the University Chorale, Women's Choir, and Choral Society. Previous posts include Visiting Choir Director at Knox College, Visiting Conductor at McDaniel College, six years directing the Catholic University Women's Choir, and sixteen years as artistic director of the World Bank-IMF Chorus.
A leading specialist in Latin American choral music, Dr. Sáez is a frequent guest conductor, adjudicator, and lecturer across the U.S. and abroad, with recent presentations at ACDA national and regional conventions and engagements throughout North and South America.
She is perhaps best known as founder and artistic director of Cantigas, an award-winning chamber choir dedicated to Latin American and Spanish choral music. For 25 years, Cantigas performed at the Kennedy Center, Strathmore, and the ACDA Eastern Division Convention, and toured Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. The ensemble received the Choral Excellence Award for Most Creative Programming from the Choralis Foundation in 2014.
Dr. Sáez holds degrees from Temple University (MM), the University of Maryland (DMA), and Harvard University (MEd), and began her musical training at the Escuela Libre de Música in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Her compositions are published by Hal Leonard, Boosey and Hawkes, and Lorenz/Roger Dean.
"In the coming years, I look forward to a choral community where there is no segregation between choruses and where we will embrace choruses of all sizes, styles, andn genres. I look forward to when a gospel choir will be as celebrated as a choir performing Bach and to when most choirs will be flexible in tone, able to perform various styes of music with the same level of agility and quality. Most importantly, I look forward to when choirs will look as diverse as our society and all kinds of music will be celebrated and appreciated by all.”
Date: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM ET
Price: Pay What You Will
Registration for this class is required, and students will receive the Zoom link for this class in their confirmation email. Registration will close when the class begins. The recording will be made available on our Masterclass page for the public within one week of the class. There is no need to register to watch the recordings, only to attend the live Zoom class.