“Secret to Life unbinds the stories of Women Of Color through a process of gathering, performing, and preserving them. This is accomplished through phenomenological interviews, music composition, performance, and documentation. Secret to Life first mines stories from interviews. The resulting data inspires original compositions within the genre of creative improvised music or what is often called Free Jazz, an unfortunate misnomer since much structure exists within it. Then, the performances, which will feature Terry Jenoure ensembles, unveil the potent stories. Because the jazz canon is overwhelmingly male and compositionally traditional, Secret to Lifeenriches that terrain through the merging of women’s voices with the more abstract qualities of improvised music, with both, much like precious gems, revealed through excavating and vigorous polishing. During the Fellowship period, Terry intends to interview five participants, and complete five compositions that result in five 45-minute performances. The grant money from Markham Nathan Fund for Social Justice will be used toward the audio and video recording of the project.” Linda McInerney, Eggtooth Productions