THURSDAY, June 5
10 PM Nate Wooley, Joe Morris, Agusti Fernandez, Ben Hall
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Nate Wooley (trumpet) Joe Morris (guitar) Agusti Fernandez (piano) Ben Hall (drums)
ADMISSION: $15
FRIDAY, June 6
8 PM John Zorn, Joe Morris, Nate Wooley, Ikue Mori – A Stone Benefit
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS:
John Zorn (alto sax) Joe Morris (guitar) Nate (trumpet) Ikue Mori (electronics)
ADMISSION: $25
FRIDAY, June 6
9 PM Brad Linde & BANFF Alumni with special guest Wadada Leo Smith
VENUE: Seeds
DETAILS:
Brad Linde – tenor saxophone
Patrick Booth – tenor saxophone
Erika Dohi – Rhodes
Jonathan Taylor – drums and cymbals
*special guest Wadada Leo Smith – Trumpet
ADMISSION: check with the venue
SUNDAY, June 8
7:30 PM Birthday Concert of Two Raga Legends
VENUE: Jack
DETAILS: Pt. Krishna Bhatt – Sitar, Pt. Anindo Chatterjee – Tabla
Brooklyn Raga Massive, Gurukul and ACST
ADMISSION: $20-$30
WEDNESDAY, June 11
7:00 PM Vision Festival 19, Charles Gayle – A Lifetime of Achievement
VENUE: Roulette
DETAILS: Charles Gayle Trio + Dance, Charles Gayle Quartet, & The Vision Orchestra
ADMISSION: $20-30
THURSDAY, June 12
10:15 PM Brotzmann/Drake/Parker Trio
VENUE: Roulette
DETAILS:
Peter Brötzmann – reeds
Hamid Drake – drums, percussion
William Parker – bass http://roulette.org/events/vision-festival-19/
ADMISSION: $20-30
FRIDAY, June 13
10 PM Onset
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS:
Briggan Krauss (alto sax) Mary Halvorson (guitar) Wayne Horvitz (keyboards) Ches Smith (drums)
ADMISSION: $10
SATUDAY, June 14
10 PM 300 and Elliot Sharp
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS:
Briggan Krauss (alto and baritone saxes) Wayne Horvitz (keyboards) Elliot Sharp (guitar) Kenny Wollesen (drums)
ADMISSION: $15
Saturday June 14
8:15 PM Matthew Shipp Trio
VENUE: Roulette
DETAILS:
Matthew Shipp – piano
Michael Bisio – bass
Whit Dickey – drums
ADMISSION: $20-30
MONDAY, June 16
9:00 PM Frauke Aulbert voice + Shanna Gutierrez flute
VENUE: Spectrum
DETAILS:
Preliminary program: Beat Furrer (*1954): Auf tönernen Füssen (1998) for amplified voice and contraalto flute Francisco Castillo Trigueros (*1983): Sûr les debris (2013) for bassflute and 4-channel-live-electronics Luigi Nono (1924-1990): La Fabbrica illuminata (1964) for soprano and 4-channel-tape Luciano Berio (1925-2003): Altra voce (1999) for soprano, flute and live-electronics
ADMISSION: $10-15
WEDNESDAY, June 18
8 PM Elizabeth Weisser—Densities and Light
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Elizabeth Weisser (viola)
Giacinto Scelsi: “Coelacanth” (1955) Arcangelo Corelli: “Sonata no. 5, op. 5” (1700) Salvatore Sciarrino: “Di volo” (1974) Don Carlo Gesualdo: “Questi leggiardri odorosetti fiori” (1594) Niccolo Paganini: “Caprice #17” (1802-1817) Pierluigi Billone: “ITI KE MI” (1995) *US Premiere
ADMISSION: $15
FRIDAY, June 20
7 PM Terry Riley and Friends at the River to River Festival
VENUE: Federal Hall
DETAILS: Composer Paola Prestini curates the second iteration of the Ex-Situ series and showcases work created and inspired by Terry Riley with a quartet formed just for this occasion: Cornelius Dufallo, Jenny Choi, Ljova and Jeffrey Zeigler. http://o-m-w.org/events/ex-situ-terry-riley-friends/
ADMISSION: check with the venue
MONDAY, June 23
8 PM – 11PM Garth Knox
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS:
8 PM Part One: Solo
Garth Knox (viola, viola d’amore) with special guest Melia Watras (viola)
Works by Frederic Rzewski, Rory Boyle, Olga Neuwirth, Garth Knox, John Zorn.
9 PM Part Two: Duos
Garth Knox (viola, viola d’amore) John Stulz (viola) Mark Feldman (violin)
Works by George Benjamin, Garth Knox, Mark Feldman.
10 PM Part Three
Garth Knox (viola, viola d’amore) Equi(k)nox Ensemble
Works by Garth Knox and John Zorn.
ADMISSION: $15 per set
MONDAY, June 23
7 PM Kimmo Pohjonen and Jeffrey Zeigler at the River to River Festival
VENUE: Pier 15
DETAILS: Inspired by the lure of Aokigahara – which has long been associated with demons and spirits in Japanese mythology, and in recent years has become a popular place for suicides – innovative Finnish accordion player Kimmo Pohjonen and former Kronos Quartet cellist Jeffrey Zeigler collaborate to weave a potent and energetic musical tapestry rife with hope, faith, and resignation. http://o-m-w.org/events/ex-situ-kimmo-pohjonen-jeffrey-zeigler/
ADMISSION: check with the venue
TUESDAY, May 6
8 PM Ches Smith (drums) Okkyung Lee (cello, composition)
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS:
Premiere of Okkyung’s new compositions for cello and drums.
ADMISSION: $15
WEDNESDAY, May 7
8:15 PM James Ilgenfritz, bass/Briggan Krauss, saxophone/Denman Maroney, piano
VENUE: Spectrum
ADMISSION: $10
THURSDAY, May 8
7:30 PM Inuit Throat Songs with Tanya Tagaq.
VENUE: Carnegie Hall
DETAILS:
The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, including the Derek Charke composition 13 Inuit Throat Songs featuring Tanya Tagaq. Vincent Ho’s The Shaman featuring Dame Evelyn Glennie.
ADMISSION: $25
SUNDAY, May 11
8 PM Craig Taborn (piano) Tyshawn Sorey (drums) Okkyung Lee (cello)
VENUE: The Stone
ADMISSION: $15
SATURDAY, May 31
8:00 PM Arvo Pärt with Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir Tallinn Chamber Orchestra
VENUE: Carnegie Hall
DETAILS:
Fratres
Cantus in memoriam Benjamin Britten
Adam’s Lament
Salve Regina
Te Deum
On April 19, having rushed to Roulette leaving behind the last minutes of an international Sound and Affect conference in order to experience Anthony Braxton’s Trillium J (The Non-Unconfessionables), at first I could not stop thinking: how does this performance affect me and why? And – “whose are these emotions?” – as Deniz Peters questioned earlier that day.
I fail to describe my feelings having never experienced anything like this before. Perhaps one could compare Trillium J to Richard Foreman’s plays in the way it captures the absurd, the unexpectedness and ambiguity of contemporary world. Weave these into the voices of 12 vocalists and the sounds of 12 instrumental soloists with full orchestra, excellent acting, pseudo-philosophical digressions, visual projections, young skipping-rope Jazzy Jumpers and two of New York’s best contemporary dance improvisers Rachel Bernsen and Melanie Maar, and you get the mix.
At any specific moment I could not recognize what exactly (music, words, acting, etc.) made me smile in a very strange way – the smile that sometimes comes from experiencing the misfortunes of Daniil Harms’s characters. This is perhaps the genius of a gesamtkunstwerk artist (Braxton wrote both the music and the libretto) – to blend all the media so naturally that a spectator cannot recognize the source of their feelings.
How does the absurd feel?
As an interlude before the Second Scene of Act IV, Jazzy Jumpers entered with their skipping-ropes and the choir started improvising “random” sounds to their movements. I sensed tears in my eyes, obviously neither out of sadness or joy. What catalyzed the sublime was (perhaps?) the excitement that something so contemporary and so musically apt was composed –the genre of opera has a future; at least it definitely has a present.
But the climax was still to come. The interlude could either feel like just another meaningful nonsense – the ridiculousness that was so fittingly at the wrong place, – or depict a stratum of society to be juxtaposed with the final scene – the trial of Sally Wanton. Despite the obvious references to social injustices of American society, Ms Walton reminded me of Russian President Vladimir Putin in her ability to pour complete nonsense and reject obvious evidence of crime with complete confidence (as well as accept it and immediately render crucial statements trifle). This is where, perhaps, “the concept of affinity,” the opera’s major theme, lies. Everyone walked out with a radiant face – those who thought of multiple possibilities of political connotations, or those who just took “the poetic transiency” and “undefinition that seeks its own level” as a flow of beautiful nonsense.
George Crumb once said that he was “frightened of a possibility to write an opera, nothing comes close to Wozzeck.” Whether you agreed with that or not in the past, you would definitely have to consider replacing Wozzeck with The Non-Unconfessionables. Should 21st century opera, and music for that matter, only be political? It is not always this or that, it is often the other.
Highlights of the month: JACK Quartet residency at the Stone, Anthony Braxton’s Tri-Centric Series at Roulette and David Lung’s collected stories at Carnegie Hall
FRIDAY, April 4
8 PM JACK Quartet and Joshua Roman
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: music by Jefferson Friedman, Carlo Gesualdo, and John Luther Adams
Chris Otto (violin) Ari Streisfeld (violin) John Pickford Richards (viola) Kevin McFarland (cello) Joshua Roman (cello)
ADMISSION: $15
FRIDAY, April 4
10 PM JACK Quartet performing music by John Zorn
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Chris Otto (violin) Ari Streisfeld (violin) John Pickford Richards (viola) Kevin McFarland (cello)
ADMISSION: $15
SATURDAY, April 5
9:30 PM Dollshot: New Art Songs
VENUE: Spectrum
DETAILS: Dollshot performs new art songs inspired by Lyonel Feininger, Clarice Lispector, and Franz Schubert. We’ve enjoyed performances at (le) Poisson Rouge, The Stone, Galapagos Art Space, and WNYC’s The Greene Space. The band features Rosalie Kaplan (voice); Noah Kaplan (saxophones); Wes Matthews (keyboard); Peter Bitenc (bass); and Mike Pride (drums).
ADMISSION: $10-15
SATURDAY, April 5
10 PM JACK Quartet, Jay Campbell, David Fulmer, and Stephen Gosling performing music by John Zorn
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Chris Otto (violin) Ari Streisfeld (violin) John Pickford Richards (viola) Kevin McFarland (cello) Jay Campbell (cello) David Fulmer (violin) Stephen Gosling (piano)
ADMISSION: $15
SUNDAY, APRIL 6
6:00PM Bocian Showcase: Paal Nilssen-Love & Robert Piotrowicz / James Rushford & Joe Talia / Kapital https://vimeo.com/69867966
WEDNESDAY, April 9
8 PM Kenny Wollesen
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: As part of a month long celebration of William Burroughs in the East Village, The Stone presents a special two week program of music, film and poetry inspired by and/or dedicated to the work of this radical American genius.
ADMISSION: $15
THURSDAY, April 10
10 PM Anthony Coleman
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Anthony Coleman (piano)
ADMISSION: $15
FRIDAY, April 11
8 PM INTERZONE—Raha Raissnia and John Zorn
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Raha Raissnia (film, projections). Raha performs live visuals to John Zorn’s Burroughs tribute INTERZONE
ADMISSION: $15
FRIDAY, April 11
7:30 PM Jane Sheldon performs Feldman’s “Three Voices”
VENUE: Spectrum
DETAILS: http://janesheldonsoprano.com/
ADMISSION: $10-15
FRIDAY, April 11
7:30 PM Quartet for the End of Time
VENUE: Lincoln Center, Alice Tully Hall, Starr Theater, Adrienne Arsht Stage
DETAILS:
Jalbert Visual Abstract for Flute, Clarinet, Violin, Cello, Piano, and Percussion (2002)
Carter Esprit rude/esprit doux II for Flute, Clarinet, and Marimba (1995)
Widmann Fantasie for Clarinet (1993)
Rautavaara Variations for Five, Quintet No. 2 for Two Violins, Viola, and Two Cellos (2013) (CMS Co-Commission, New York Premiere)
Messiaen Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Time) for Clarinet, Violin, Cello, and Piano (1940-41) http://lc.lincolncenter.org/shows/208004?show_date=2014-04-11
ADMISSION: $30-$62
SATURDAY, April 12 8:00 PM The Tri-Centric Presenting Series: Anthony Braxton’s Falling River Music Nonet plus the Fay Victor Ensemble
SATURDAY, April 12
8:00PM Tim Berne & Michael Formanek play Greenwich House Music School
VENUE: Greenwich House Music School
DETAILS: Saxophonist Tim Berne & bassist Michael Formanek – Two Avant-Jazz Titans – Revive Their Head-to-Head Relationship with a Duo Concert. https://www.facebook.com/events/600277956714785/
ADMISSION: $15
WEDNESDAY, April 16
9:30 PM The Good, The Holy, and The Ugly
VENUE: Spectrum
DETAILS: Jocelyn Ho, piano, Chris Pidcock, cello
Music by Kaija Saariaho, Anna Clyne, Olga Neuwirth, Arvo Part, Mauricio Kagel, Giacinto Scelsi, and Kapustin. Jocelyn will also be presenting her composition “Torus”
ADMISSION: $10-15
FRIDAY, April 18
8:00 PM Storylines: The Music of Alfred Schnittke and Avner Finberg
VENUE: The Firehouse Space
DETAILS: http://thefirehousespace.org/event/eunbi-kim/
ADMISSION: $10
SATURDAY, April 19
8 PM John Zorn and Bill Laswell Duo
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: John Zorn (sax) Bill Laswell (bass)
ADMISSION: $20
SATURDAY, April 19
10 PM Bill Laswell and Wadada Leo Smith
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Bill Laswell (bass) Wadada Leo Smith (trumpet)
ADMISSION: $20
SUNDAY, April 20
1 PM Neue Vocalsolisten: American Premieres
VENUE: The Kitchen
DETAILS:
Georges Aperghis: Vittriool (2001)
Silvia Rosani: T-O (2013)
Brahim Kerkour: intone (2013)
Zaid Jabri: Two Songs from Mihyar from Damascus (2013)
Francesco Filidei: Dormo molto amore (2013)
Gabriel Dharmoo: Notre Meute (2013)
Lars Petter Hagen: The Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart Notebook (2011)
Jennifer Walshe: Paddy Reilly Runs with the Devil (2007) http://www.thekitchen.org/event/mata-16th-annual-festival-of-new-music
ADMISSION: $20
WEDNESDAY, April 23
6 PM collected stories: spirit
VENUE: Carnegie Hall, Zankel Hal
DETAILS: Tuvan Throat Singing, ARVO PÄRT Passio
The otherworldly throat singing group Huun-Huur-Tu creates overtones, hymns, and chants that defy conceived limitations of the human voice, while offering audiences a glimpse into the remote region. Their astonishing exploration of spiritualism is juxtaposed with Arvo Pärt’s meditative and mystic Passio, a contemporary setting of the gospel according to St. John. http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2014/4/23/0600/PM/-collected-stories-spirit/
ADMISSION: $10 – $40
MONDAY, April 28
8 and 10 PM Jon Madof’s Zion80 plays John Zorn’s Book of Angels
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Jon Madof (guitar, conductor) Matt Darriau (alto sax) Greg Wall (tenor sax) Frank London (trumpet) Jessica Lurie (bari sax, flute) Zach Mayer (bari sax) Yoshie Fruchter (guitar) Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz (bass) Brian Marsella (keyboard) Marlon Sobol (percussion) Yuval Lion (drums)
ADMISSION: $15
TUESDAY, April 29
10 PM Sylvie Courvoisier, Ha-Yang Kim and Annie Gosfield
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Sylvie Courvoisier (piano) Ha-Yang Kim (cello) Annie Gosfield (sampling keyboard). A reprise of this improvising trio, with Gosfield performing “ghost electronics,” a phantom electric bridge drawn from her extensive collection of altered cello and piano sounds.
ADMISSION: $15
TUESDAY, April 29
6 PM collected stories: memoir
VENUE: Carnegie Hall, Zankel Hal
DETAILS:
John Cage – Indeterminacy, 27’10.554″ for a Percussionist, Fontana Mix
David Lang – mystery sonatas (World Premiere, commissioned by Carnegie Hall)
ADMISSION: $10 – $40
WEDNESDAY, April 30
8 PM Kathleen Supové, MIVOS Quartet, Olivia De Prato
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Kathleen Supové (piano) MIVOS Quartet: Olivia De Prato and Joshua Modney (violins) Victor Lowrie (viola) Mariel Roberts (cello). Kathleen Supové performs “Shattered Apparitions of the Western Wind.” Imagined as a hallucinatory duet with Claude Debussy, it couples Supové’s wild playing with distorted fragments of the prelude “What the West Wind Saw”, on site recordings of Hurricane Sandy, and lush Debussy harmonies. MIVOS quartet plays “The Blue Horse Walks on the Horizon,” inspired by codes used by resistance groups in WWII, and Olivia dePrato performs a piece for violin and satellites.
ADMISSION: $15
MONDAY, March 3
8:45PM – 9:45PM William Parker & Ingrid Laubrock
VENUE: Evolving Series, 107 Suffolk Street
DETAILS: Ingrid Laubrock – sax, William Parker – bass http://artsforart.org/event/evolvingseries/schedule
ADMISSION: $8-11
WEDNESDAY, March 19
8 PM John Zorn’s Masada Book Three: The Book Beriah
VENUE: The Town Hall
DETAILS: World Premiere, with John Zorn, Marc Ribot, Uri Caine, Secret Chiefs 3, Steve Lehman, Vijay Iyer, Tyshawn Sorey, John Medeski, Jon Madof and Zion 80, Klezmatics members Frank London and Matt Darriau, Abraxas, Cyro Baptista and Banquet of the Spirits, Many Arms, Sofia Rei, Eyvind Kang, Ikue Mori, Mark Feldman, Erik Friedlander, Jamie Saft, Cleric, Uri Gurvich and many more. http://thetownhall.org/event/524-john-zorns-masada-book-three-the-book-beriah
ADMISSION: $45-65
FRIDAY, March 21, SATURDAY, March 22
8 PM Okkyung Lee
VENUE: The Kitchen
March 21 – 22, 8pm
Tickets $15
DETAILS:Inspired by Samuel Beckett’s “First Love” and Korean surrealist writer Yi Sang’s “The Wings,” composer and cellist Okkyung Lee presents a new suite of fragile yet visceral and dark compositions for strings and percussion. http://www.thekitchen.org/event/okkyung-lee
ADMISSION: $15
FRIDAY, March 21
8 PM, 10PM Banquet of the Spirits
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS: Cyro Baptista (percussion, voice) Brian Marsella (piano, keys) Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz (bass, oud) Tim Keiper (drums, hunters harp)
ADMISSION: $15
MONDAY, March 24
8:45PM – 9:45PM Tom Rainey & Ingrid Laubrock
VENUE: Evolving Series, 107 Suffolk Street
DETAILS: Ingrid Laubrock – sax, Tom Rainey – drums http://artsforart.org/event/evolvingseries/schedule
ADMISSION: $8-11
WEDNESDAY, March 26
8 PM Ostrava Days in New York
VENUE: Roulette
DETAILS: A part of Christian Wolff’s 80th birthday and the Ostrava Days Institute and Festival.
Compositions by Christian Wolff and Petr Kotik, Martin Smolka, Petr Cígler, Idin Samimi Mofakham, Gyorgy Ligeti. http://www.semensemble.org/concerts/ostrava-days-in-new-york/
ADMISSION: $20/$15
WEDNESDAY, March 26
10 PM Ches Smith and Jim Black
VENUE: The Stone
DETAILS:Ches Smith, Jim Black (percussion)
ADMISSION:$15
THURSDAY, March 27
7:00 and 9:00 pm | Christian Wolff: Concert & Party Christian Wolff at 80
VENUE: Czech Center
DETAILS:
This evening will feature Christian Wolff, S.E.M. Ensemble, Philip Glass and Ostravska banda, conducted by Petr Kotik http://new-york.czechcentres.cz/program/event-details/christian-wolff-2/
ADMISSION:Free
FRIDAY, March 28
8PM Kronos Quartet and Friends
VENUE: Carnegie Hall
DETAILS:
ALEKSANDRA VREBALOV Bubbles
BRYCE DESSNER Aheym (Homeward)
TERRY RILEY The Serquent Risadome (World Premiere, commissioned by Carnegie Hall)
WILEY “Last Kind Words” (arr. Jacob Garchik)
OMAR SOULEYMAN “La Sidounak Sayyada” (“I’ll Prevent the Hunters from Hunting You”) (arr. Jacob Garchik)
TRAD. “Tusen Tankar” (“A Thousand Thoughts”) (arr. Kronos Quartet, trans. Ljova)
BRISEÑO “El Sinaloense” (“The Man from Sinaloa”) (arr. Osvaldo Golijov)
LAURIE ANDERSON Flow (arr. Jacob Garchik)
PHILIP GLASS Orion: China (arr. Michael Riesman) (NY Premiere)
JHEREK BISCHOFF “A Semiperfect Number”
CLINT MANSELL “Lux Aeterna” from Requiem for a Dream (arr. David Lang)
CLINT MANSELL “Death is the Road to Awe” from The Fountain (arr. Kronos Quartet) http://www.carnegiehall.org/Calendar/2014/3/28/0800/PM/Kronos-Quartet-and-Friends/
ADMISSION: $15 – $75
extended techniques 