Walder Foundation

#PanelistHighlight ✨ The Platform Awards recipients were nominated by Chicago-based academics, field experts, and cultural leaders and chosen by a national panel of established practicing artists. As the primary tap dance instructor at Old Town School of Folk Music for 29 years, Reginald McLaughlin has presented programs at many schools, libraries, and other educational institutions that combine performance, historical commentary, and demonstrations. In 2021, the National Endowment for the Arts honored McLaughlin with the National Medal of Arts, recognizing him as a living treasure in folk and traditional arts. He has also received the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) “Esteemed Arts Award” (2022), American Tap Dance Foundation’s prestigious “Hoofer Award” (2023) and “Flo-Bert Award” (2014), as well as the Old Town School’s “Distinguished Teaching Artist Award” (2015), with a dance studio named in his honor in 2020. Widely regarded as a true Chicago tap icon, McLaughlin continues to inspire and elevate the art of tap dance. https://lnkd.in/gXJJEaMr

“Music has been the greatest teacher about life for me.” — Matthew Ulery #PlatformAwards recipient Matthew Ulery is a bassist and composer who leads several ensembles, including Sifting Stars Orchestra, Loom Large, and his latest band, Mother Harp. Starting his music career in Chicago in the late '90s, Ulery has released 15 albums and collaborated with groups like Grammy-winning Eighth Blackbird P A A, Miami String Quartet, New Millennium Orchestra of Chicago, and more. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, NYC Winter Jazzfest, Chicago Symphony Orchestra Hall, and Pritzker Pavilion. A full-time professional musician for 24 years, Matt holds degrees from Roosevelt University and DePaul University. He teaches at Loyola University Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University, and Roosevelt Universities in Chicago and leads masterclasses and clinics internationally. #WalderFoundation #ChicagoArts #MatthewUlery #Composer

From all of us at the Walder Foundation, wishing you a Happy New Year. We look forward to furthering our mission of uplifting Chicago’s contributions to the world in 2025!

“I feel very free within this kind of constriction of what is the melody and what is the harmony.. and then how I can play with that. It’s very much a part of who I am and my whole being has to do with creation.” — Lisa Kaplan #PlatformAwards recipient Lisa Kaplan is a composer, educator, and pianist specializing in the performance of new work by living composers.   Kaplan is the Executive Director of the four-time Grammy Award-winning sextet Eighth Blackbird P A A. As the co-founder of the Blackbird Creative Lab, a musical educational initiative for emergent musical artists, Lisa is passionate about forging community and mentoring musicians who will shape the future of contemporary music. She has premiered new pieces by hundreds of composers, including Andy Akiho, Jennifer Higdon, Amy Beth Kirsten, David Lang, Missy Mazzoli, Nico Muhly, Steve Reich, and Pamela Z. She has collaborated with an eclectic array of artists and musicians, such as Laurie Anderson, Jeremy Denk, Bryce Dessner, Philip Glass, Bon Iver, and J. Ivy.   #WalderFoundation #PlatformAwards #ChicagoArts #Pianist #ContemporaryMusic

The Platform Awards recipients were nominated by Chicago-based academics, field experts, and cultural leaders and chosen by a national panel of established practicing artists. Aparna Ramaswamy is the Executive Artistic Director, Choreographer and Principal Dancer of Ragamala Dance Company with her choreographic partner, and mother, Ranee Ramaswamy, merging rich traditions and deep philosophical roots of Indian heritage with the perspective of a first-generation South Indian America Described as “thrillingly three-dimensional… rapturous and profound” (The New York Times) and “a marvel of buoyant agility and sculptural clarity” (Dance Magazine), Aparna engages the dynamic tension at the intersection of tradition and innovation, approaching her artistic lineage as a dynamic, living language and a potent tool to speak to the contemporary human experience. Her work has been commissioned and presented by The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Adf American Dance Festival, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, The Joyce Theater Foundation, Inc., and the National Centre for the Performing Arts, among others. Learn more about the Platform Awards Panelists: https://lnkd.in/gXJJEaMr #WalderFoundation #PlatformAwards #AparnaRamaswamy #Dance #Choreography

“I create plays and musicals and music driven storytelling experiences that really uplift and center Latine history and the lives of everyday Latine people living in the United States. My work is inspired by underknown Chicago histories that I feel deserve wider recognition.” — Sandra Delgado #PlatformAwards recipient Sandra Delgado is a Colombian-Chicagoan writer, performer and producer who creates joyful spaces of connection for all. Hailed as “her own brand of triple threat” (New City Chicago), she is best known for La Havana Madrid, her hit play with music, originally produced by Teatro Vista Productions in Chicago. Her new musical, “The Boys and the Nuns,” was developed with the Latiné Musical Theatre Lab and California State University, Fullerton in 2023. Awards include a United States Artist Fellowship, NALAC Grant, Illinois Arts Council Fellowship in Literature, 3Arts Chicago Award, Joyce Award, TCG Resident Actor Fellowship, and more. https://lnkd.in/gVWnhz8H #WalderFoundation #SandraDelgado #Theater

“I know you have the right stuff…the fortitude and the talent to elevate your game and lift up this sector for the enrichment of ever broader audiences and the benefit of our entire Chicago region.” —  Elizabeth Walder, Walder Foundation co-founder and President We hosted a fantastic celebration this fall honoring our inaugural Platform Awards recipients. Speakers ranged from the Walder Foundation’s own ELIZABETH WALDER and Ebony Chuukwu; to principal clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic, Anthony McGill; Grammy Awards winners Kurt Elling and J. Ivy; Artistic Director of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell, MFA; actress Charín Alvarez; and dean of the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University, Jonathan Bailey Holland. Each presenter encouraged the artistic community to push boundaries, embrace challenges, and continue creating with unwavering determination! #WalderFoundation #PlatformAwards #PerformingArts #PerformingArtists

Learn about the Field Museum’s “Magnifying Conservation Impact and Biodiversity Understanding in the Guiana Shield” project from Conservation Ecologist Dr. Lesley de Souza and Environmental Social Scientist Dr. R. Elliott Oakley on WBBM | CBS Chicago! With support from the Walder Foundation’s 2022 grant to the Field Museum, the largest-ever scientific expedition to Guyana’s rainforest is contributing to the country’s biodiversity inventory, aiming to help protect 30% of its land by 2030.   https://lnkd.in/evkttZzM

A look back at our inaugural Platform Awards Celebration in October. Attendees were treated to performances from Keynote Speaker Anthony McGill, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and Interdisciplinary Award presenter, J. Ivy, in celebration of Chicago’s performing arts community! Stay tuned as we highlight more memorable moments from the celebration. #WalderFoundation #PlatformAwards #PerformingArts #PerformingArtists

“Walder Foundation is proud to support this important partnership which advances nature-based solutions that benefit biodiversity and communities in the Chicago region. This work will help mitigate the negative effects of climate change in some of Chicago’s most impacted communities while boosting access to safe green spaces, restoring critical habitats, and enhancing community health. By demonstrating multiple benefits, these projects can serve as a catalyst for advancing nature-based solutions across the region.” — Jack Westwood, Senior Program Director, Environmental Sustainability