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Join us after the concert for a Q & A with John King!

John King, composer, guitarist and violist, has received commissions from the Kronos Quartet, Red {an orchestra}, ETHEL, the Albany Symphony/”Dogs of Desire”, Bang On A Can All-Stars, Mannheim Ballet, New York City Ballet/Diamond Project, Stuttgart Ballet, Ballets de Monte Carlo, as well as the Merce Cunningham Dance Co. His string quartets have also been performed by the Eclipse Quartet (LA) and the Mondriaan Quartet (Amsterdam). His quartet Crucible has premiered many of his compositions at The Stone (June 2007) and The Kitchen (April 2009)

Kosmos (World Premiere) with live electronics

for Crucible Quartet
Conrad Harris, Cornelius Dufallo - violins
John King - viola
Yves Dharamraj - cello

Astral Epitaphs

for TILT Brass
Chris McIntyre, Jen Baker, Will Lang – trombones
Thomas Bergeron, Garreth Flowers, Timothy Leopold – trumpets

and featuring the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, Dianne Berkun director

Work written for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s final concerts at the Park Ave. Armory

(climax in) The Deserts of Love

For large ensemble and soprano, featuring Melissa Fogarty. A poetic reduction of the Arthur Rimbaud text.

 

JOHN KING, composer, guitarist and violist, has had his string quartets performed by the Kronos, Ethel, Eclipse and Mondriaan quartets, as well as his own group Crucible. Since 1985 he has been a composer and musician with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, and in 2011 he was commissioned by MCDC to compose Astral Epitaphs for brass sextet, choir and live electronics for their final performances at the Park Avenue Armory

He has written 3 operas: herzstück/heartpiece, based on the text of Heiner Müller; la belle captive based on texts by Alain Robbe-Grillet, and  his most recent opera, Dice Thrown, based on a Stéphane Mallarmé poem, which was premiered in LA in April 2010. King has also written 3 short pieces for the Brooklyn Youth Chorus using Ancient Greek texts, used within the composition Astral Epitaphs.

He has 3 recent CD releases of music for string quartet; 10 Mysteries and AllSteel (Tzadik); and Ethel (Cantaloupe). And he was also the recipient of the 2009 Alpert Award in the Arts for Music.

Funded in part through New Music USA's Metlife Creative Connections program.

 

 

 

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A BENEFIT TO HELP ROULETTE
$30

For a full updated lineup go www.roulette.org/decemberbenefit

Lenny Pickett
John King
Ned Rothenberg
and more!

On December 6th and 7th at Roulette, we'll be hosting a fundraiser to help raise money for Roulette as we prepare to move into our new home in Downtown Brooklyn. Each evening will feature performances by 4 or 5 of some of New York City's most exciting downtown improvisors!

All proceeds go directly towards funding construction on our new concert hall.
To find out more about our new space and to see how you can help, please visit: www.roulette.org/newroulette

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String quartet Crucible (Cornelius Dufallo and Chris Otto, violins; John King, viola; and Alex Waterman, cello) will perform music from composer John King's new CD "10 Mysteries" Saturday, May 15, 2010 at 8:30 pm.

Earlier this year, John King released his second CD, "10 Mysteries" on John Zorn's Tzadik label. King has 2 previous CD releases of music for string quartet; AllSteel (Tzadik) and Ethel (Cantaloupe). Featuring passionate and inspiring performances by the remarkable quartet Crucible with King himself on viola, the music on 10 Mysteries jumps from moment to moment with lightening speed and an organic sense of form. In his second CD on Tzadik he again embraces rock, jazz, blues and other popular styles in an energetic and colorful program for string quartet.

Crucible will also be joined by the TILT Brass project's quartet (Rachel Drehmann, horn; Joe Exley, tuba; Russ Johnson, trumpet; Chris McIntyre, trombone) and Charlotte Dobbs, soprano, for the world premiere of SAPPHO presto chango. These 12 short arias are based on the poem fragments of Sappho which are to be performed as an independent layer to the instrumental ensemble. To end the evening, pianist Jenny Lin will perform King's petite ouverture en forme de mErCE CunninGHAm, a piece written for Merce in honor of his 90th birthday.

Crucible features New York string luminaries Cornelius Dufallo, Chris Otto and Alex Waterman, who perform with such groups as Ethel, the JACK Quartet and the Either/Or Ensemble.

Led by trombonist and composer Chris McIntyre, Brooklyn-based TILT Brass is a versatile collective of brass and percussion artists that present works ranging from the historical avant garde to commissioned works by composers such as James Tenney, Anthony Coleman, and Lois V. Vierk.

Soprano Charlotte Dobbs maintains an active opera performance and concert career. In 2008, she appeared in recital with Mitsuko Uchida at the Marlboro Music Festival, performing Schoenberg's Book of the Hanging Gardens. Miss Dobbs made her Kimmel Center and Carnegie Hall debuts in Nielsen's Third Symphony with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra and Alan Gilbert in 2008.

Jenny Lin is one of the most respected young pianists today, admired for her adventurous programming and charismatic stage presence. Her ability to combine classical and contemporary literature has brought her to the attention of international critics and audiences alike.

Composer, guitarist and violist John King (www.JohnKingMusic.com) has received commissions from the Kronos Quartet, Red {an orchestra}, Ethel, the Albany Symphony, Bang On A Can All-Stars, Mannheim Ballet, New York City Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, the Ballets de Monte Carlo and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, with whom he worked closely for more than 20 years. He has written three operas (his most recent opera Dice Thrown was recently performed at CalArts in Los Angeles) and has composed for orchestra, chamber ensembles, rock bands, dance, film and theater. He was Music Curator at The Kitchen from 1999-2003. King won the Alpert Award in the Arts for Music in 2009.

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Trombonist, composer, and founder of Roulette Jim Staley has been shaking up the downtown experimental music scene for over 30 years. Working primarily with improvisation, crossing genres freely between post-modern classical music and avant-garde jazz, Staley has collaborated for many years with other highly experienced improvisers, both dancers and musicians. Tonight Jim will be joined by special guests.




Jim Staley, trombonist/composer moved to New York and has resided in a lower Manhattan since 1978. His work has been primarily working with improvisation, crossing genres freely between post-modern classical music and avant-garde jazz. He has worked for many years with other highly experienced improvisers, both dancers and musicians, including Sally Silvers, Pooh Kaye, Simone Forti, Ikue Mori, Davey Williams, Shelley Hirsch, Phoebe Legere, John Zorn and many others. Staley's recording projects include Blind Pursuits with Phoebe Legere and Borah Bergman; Mumbo Jumbo-different trio combinations with Wayne Horvitz, Elliott Sharp, Shelley Hirsch, Samm Bennett, Ikue Mori, Bill Frisell, Fred Frith and John Zorn; Jim Staley's Don Giovanni, with Mori, Davey Williams, Zeena Parkins and Tenko, plus several more.




Ikue Mori moved from her native city of Tokyo to New York in 1977. She started playing drums and soon formed the seminal NO WAVE band DNA, with fellow noise pioneers Arto Lindsay and Tim Wright. DNA enjoyed legendary cult status, while creating a new brand of radical rhythms and dissonant sounds; forever altering the face of rock music. In the mid 80's Ikue started in employ drum machines in the unlikely context of improvised music. While limited to the standard technology provided by the drum machine, she has never the less forged her own highly sensitive signature style. Through out in 90's She has subsequently collaborated with numerous improvisors throughout the US, Europe, and Asia, while continuing to produce and record her own music. 1998, She was invited to perform with Ensemble Modern as the soloist along with Zeena Parkins, and composer Fred Frith, also "One hundred Aspects of the Moon" commissioned by Roulette/Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust. Ikue won the Distinctive Award for Prix Ars Electronics Digital Music category in 99. In 2000 Ikue started using the laptop computer to expand on her already signature sound, thus broadening her scope of musical expression. 2000 commissioned by the KITCHEN ensemble, wrote and premired the piece "Aphorism" also awarded Civitella Ranieri Foundation Fellowship. 2003 commissioned by RELACHE Ensemble to write a piece for film In the Street and premired in Philadelphia. Started working with visual played by the music since 2004. In 2005 Awarded Alphert/Ucross Residency. Recived the grant from Foundation for Contemporary Arts in 2006. Tate Modern commissioned the live sound track for Maya Deren's silent films and premired in 2007.
In 2008 Celebrated 30th music year, presented 5 on-going projects at Japan Society in NYC.
Current working groups include MEPHISTA with Sylvie Courvoisier and Susie Ibarra, projects with Kim Gordon, duo project PHANTOM ORCHARD with Zeena Parkins, various projects with John Zorn.

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The mesmerizing pianist Jenny Lin will be performing selections from John King's "Rubai'yat" series of solo piano and electronics pieces. These compositions are based on the "rubai", an 11th century Arabic poetic form. The live electronics allow for improvisation and randomization of the material played by the pianist. Also on hand will be a string ensemble lead by King, performing new works involving composition, improvisation and a pair of dice.

JOHN KING, composer and guitarist, has had his music presented in many major festivals, including the tba/Time-Based Arts Festival (Portland, OR); Fronteras Festival (London); Next Wave Festival (NY); Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival (Hamburg); Intermedium 1 Festival (Berlin); Creative Time's "Music in the Anchorage" (NY); Warsaw Autumn and Bang On A Can (NY). Mr. King's experimental opera, "La Belle Captive", based on texts by Alain Robbe-Grillet, was premiered in Buenos Aires at the Centro Experimental de Teatro Colon in April 2003, receiving further performances in London and NYC.

He has had many working bands over the years, including ELECTRIC WORLD (with Abe Speller and Jean Chaine), VIBROVERB (with Nioka Workman and Michael Wimberly), and KING KORTETTE (Jonathan Kane, Nicki Parrott and Christopher McIntyre), all blues/funk/jazz based. He plays lead guitar with the avant-blues group Deep Blue Sea, led by French avant-noise guitarist Jean-Francois Pauvros and art rock drummer extraordinaire Jonathan Kane; and also performed with : William Parker's "Little Huey Creative Orchestra", Butch Morris' "Conduction #115 E-Mission"; Guy Klucevsek's "Ain't Nothin' But A Polka" band; and Rhys Chatham's 6-guitar band.

His commissions and collaborations include those for the Kronos Quartet; Red {an orchestra}, Ethel; the Albany Symphony/"Dogs of Desire", Bang On A Can All-Stars; Mannheim Ballet; the Royal Danish Ballet; New York City Ballet/Diamond Project, Stuttgart Ballet, Ballets de Monte Carlo; SüdWestRundfunk (Baden-Baden), Pennsylvania Ballet, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. He has written music for the Clussgarten Theater in Ludwigsburg, Germany (Shakespeare's "Tempest", Goethe's "Faust" and Hesse's "Steppenwolf") as well as Target Margin, in NYC and the Children's Theater Company, in Mpls., MN.

He has received grants from the NEA/Music in Motion, New York State Council on the Arts, Jerome Foundation, Asian Cultural Council, Meet The Composer/Readers Digest Dance Commissioning Program, Minnesota Composers Forum, the Fund for US Artists at International Festivals, and New York Foundation for the Arts.

Mr. King curated the music for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company's EVENTS at the Joyce Theater and at The Barbican Center in London. He was Music Curator at The Kitchen from 1999-2003 and is currently a co-director of the Music Committee at MCDC.

His radioplay "TORN/zerrisen" was commissioned by SüdWestRundfunk radio, Baden-Baden, Germany. His music can also be heard on HBO promoting the series "Deadwood".

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Live audio mixology:

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Taylor performs "Heraclitas," a wide screen movie (audio portion only) for digital electronics and vocals, plus The King Kabaret for electric guitar, electric violin, and a group extravaganza. Bring your cigars.