Reina Dickey, artistic director
One of the oldest social justice women’s choirs in the United States, MUSE was founded in 1984 by Catherine Roma, a founding conductor and organizer of the U.S. women’s choral movement. MUSE members are volunteers with diverse musical talents and training, chosen by audition and led by professional artistic staff.
From the beginning, MUSE has chosen repertoire to reflect the lives of women, commissioning choral works by women composers and crafting choral arrangements from contemporary women’s movement singer-songwriters while consciously including voices of marginalized communities.
MUSE leadership and performers embrace their responsibility as global musical ambassadors, value artistic partnerships with other leading social justice and women’s organizations, and advocate for the rights of all people on the grounds of political, social and economic equality.
Since its inception, MUSE has performed in colleges, schools, churches, prisons, temples, hospices, street events, conferences and workshops promoting peace, equality and justice. They seek out opportunities to sing for their diverse local community and have traveled and performed across the U.S., Canada, Europe and Latin America. musechoir.org
Reina Dickey is artistic director of MUSE Cincinnati Women’s Choir and assistant professor of music at Miami University, where she directs chamber singers, instructs choral courses and supervises student teachers. Her research and performance passions include 18th-century repertoire and works of historically underrepresented composers. Prior to her appointment at Miami, she served as director of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music’s treble chorus, Alta Petit. She also is an assistant director for Cincinnati’s Martin Luther King Chorale. Prior to her graduate work, she taught junior high and high school choirs at Walnut Hills High School.
An avid choral singer, Dickey performs with professional ensembles around the country, including the Spoleto Festival USA Chorus, Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble and Philadelphia Symphonic Choir.
Dickey holds conducting degrees from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (DMA), Temple University (MM) and Miami University (bachelor’s degree in music education).