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Tag: John Zorn

ACFNY Presents: Studio Dan / Breaking News

What: US premiere performance of commissioned pieces by George Lewis + Oxana Omelchuk from Austrian ensemble Studio Dan.
When: Sunday, December 3, 2017, 8:00pm
Where: Roulette, 509 Atlantic Ave Brooklyn, 2/3/4/5/A/C/G/D/M/N/R/B/Q trains & the LIRR
Cost: $25/20 Online: $20/15 Doors
Info: www.roulette.org / (917) 267-0368
Tickets: General Admission $20, Members/Students/Seniors $15, $25/20 Tickets at the door

Brooklyn, NY – Austrian ensemble Studio Dan presents an evening of US premieres and performances of commissioned pieces by George Lewis and Oxana Omelchuk, followed by works by Johannes Kreidler, John Zorn, and others.

The key work for the concert is George Lewis’ new piece commissioned by the group, followed by another commissioned piece by Belarusian composer Oxana Omelchuk, featuring two solo trombones. Both pieces will be premiered in October during the 50th edition of musikprotokoll held in Graz, Austria. The second half of the program will be dedicated a collection of short pieces for smaller ensembles, including Johannes Kreidler’s concept piece “Charts Music,” composed with the aid of stock exchange and trading charts.

Founded in 2005 for the first JazzWerkstatt Wien festival, Studio Dan started as big band, but has since morphed to perform in various permutations, depending on the project. The group operates on the borders between diverse subgenres of contemporary music: improvisation, new music, jazz, and (art) rock, and others. Studio Dan curates and produces new programs, concert series, and recordings, working alone or in cooperation with large institutions. In 2016, Studio Dan brought new programs to several internationally-renowned stages as Wien Modern, Kampnagel Hamburg, musikprotokoll graz, and the Tagen für Neue Musik in Zurich. The ensemble also presented works Anthony Braxton, George Lewis, Cornelius Cardew, George Crumb, and others during a  four-concert series at Vienna’s Porgy & Bess. Past guest soloists and collaborations with Studio Dan include Vinko Globokar, Elliott Sharp, Michel Doneda, and Friedrich Cerha.

Program:
Johannes Kreidler (1980) – Charts Music
George Lewis (1952) – New Work
Oxana Omelchuk (1975) – wow and flutter
Caitlin Smith (1983) – Wie schön ist es zu leben
Christoph Walder (1967) – vozmozhnost
John Zorn (1953) – Ceremonial Magic

Illustrations of John Zorn’s The Book Beriah

Illustrations by artist Julia Sverchuk who attended The World Premiere of New Music from John Zorn’s Masada Book Three—The Book Beria at Roulette on Thursday, September 10, 2015.

Loren Sklamberg + Frank London, from “Nigunim”
From Zion 80: Marlon Sobol on percussion, Cyro Baptista on percussion, Frank London on trumpet and John Zorn on saxophone

 

Matt Hollenberg on guitar, from “Cleric”
Shanir Blumenkranz on bass and Tim Keiper on drums, from “Cyro Baptista and Banquet of the Spirits”

“The Exoskeletal Shadow of Laminated Desire”

“The Exoskeletal Shadow of Laminated Desire” performed on Saturday, April 21, 1990 at the original TriBeCa loft by a trio of Jim Staley, trombone / didjeridu; Sally Silvers, dance; and John Zorn, reeds.

John Zorn: Game Pieces

What: Prolific composer John Zorn presents two of his game pieces, Cobra and Hockey at Roulette in May.
When: Saturday, May 6, 2017, 8pm
Where: Roulette, 509 Atlantic Ave Brooklyn, 2/3/4/5/A/C/G/D/M/N/R/B/Q trains & the LIRR
Cost: $30/25 Online/Doors, $40 Premium
Info: www.roulette.org / (917) 267-0368 =
Tickets: General Admission $25, Premium $40, $30 Tickets at the door

Brooklyn, NY –  Roulette is thrilled to welcome back prolific composer John Zorn to present two of his game pieces, Cobra and Hockey. This will be the second time Cobra is performed at Roulette since the 2014 performance celebrated the work’s 30th anniversary. A concert experience of extraordinary vitality, the musical thrills and astoundingly visual interaction of the ensemble is deeply satisfying, seductive, and thought-provoking.

Zorn’s game pieces, a series of which these two are superb examples, rely on the use of tactics and strategy in a mix with musical imagination, communal and subversive instincts, personal style, and chutzpah wrapped inside a healthy set of rules. With no time limit, written musical material, or pre-arranged sequence of events, game pieces unfold freely under the prompter’s watchful eye. A number of methods are used to determine communication between ensemble members and the prompter and the direction and evolution of the music, including hand gestures and cue cards. Cobra, which has been recorded several times for various labels, will be performed by an all-star ensemble of some of New York’s most cutting edge improvisers. Hockey is one of Zorn’s earliest and most unique game pieces and features the composer himself on game calls, the classical virtuoso Mike Nicolas on cello and Aaron Edgcomb, the punk-jazz drummer from Trigger on percussion.

John Zorn’s untangling, extending, and illuminating of unresolved, highly potent concepts dangled by artists from Artaud to Braxton to Earle Brown to Hieronymus Bosch, his study of and immersion in Jewish culture, mysticism, military strategy and tactics, aural traditions, cartoons, cinema, and brutal noise has produced one of the most important bodies of musical work of the last century, and opened a path for the next. Beyond his compositions, Zorn is an accomplished saxophonist, bandleader, and an ardent promoter of experimental music. He founded the record label Tzadik in 1995 and has served as curator and artistic director at numerous New York music venues, including the Knitting Factory, Tonic, and The Stone, which he founded in 2005. A highly prolific creator, Zorn has hundreds of recordings and compositions to his name and has toured throughout the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

Cobra:

Eyal Maoz – Electric Guitar
Taylor Levine – Electric Guitar
Matt Hollenberg – Electric Guitar
Ikue Mori – Electronics
Sylvie Courvoisier – Piano
Michael Nicolas – Organ
Trevor Dunn – Acoustic Bass
Simon Hanes – Electric Bass
Ches Smith – Vibraphone
Tim Keiper – Percussion
Kenny Grohowski – Drums
Jim Black – Drums

Hockey:

John Zorn – Game Calls
Michael Nicolas – Cello
Aaron Edgcomb – Percussion

Ned Rothenberg’s 60th Birthday Party: A Benefit For Roulette Featuring Muhal Richard Abrams, John Zorn, George Lewis, and More

What: Ned Rothenberg convenes John Zorn, Muhal Richard Abrams, George Lewis, Sylvie Courvoisier, Ikue Mori, Mark Feldman, Jim Staley, Mivos Quartet, Erik Friedlander, Marty Ehrlich, and Gamin for an improvisational performance on the occasion of the composer’s 60th birthday.
When: Sunday, September 18, 2016, 7pm
Where: Roulette, 509 Atlantic Ave Brooklyn, 2/3/4/5/A/C/G/D/M/N/R/B/Q trains & the LIRR
Cost: $20/15 Online $25/20 Doors $60 Benefit Ticket (Premium Seating + CD)
Info: www.roulette.org / (917) 267-0368
Tickets:  General Admission $20, Members/Students/Seniors $15, $25/20 Tickets at the door, $60 Benefit Ticket

“What could be a better way to celebrate 60 years on this earth than playing with some of my favorite musicians?  And what better purpose than to support the wonderful activities of Roulette? It’s an honor to have some of my oldest partners in crime, musical heros, most amazing improvisers on the planet and dearest friends (all these categories cross over each other) to join me for the festivities.”

— Ned Rothenberg

– John Zorn is a composer and saxophonist with hundreds of album credits as performer, composer, and producer across a variety of genres. Zorn established himself within the New York City downtown music movement in the mid-1970s performing with musicians across the sonic spectrum and developing experimental methods of composing new music.

– Muhal Richard Abrams is a composer, cellist, and jazz pianist working in the free jazz medium. Following his move to New York in 1975, Abrams began involved in the Loft Jazz scene. In 1983, he established the New York chapter of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians.

– A member of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) since 1971, George Lewis‘ work in electronic and computer music, computer-based multimedia installations, and notated and improvisatory forms is documented on more than 140 recordings.

– Sylvie Courvoisier is a pianist, composer and improviser born and raised in Lausanne, Switzerland and currently residing in Brooklyn. As the leader of several groups over the years, Courvoisier has recorded over 25 records for top labels in including ECM, Tzadik, and Intakt Records.

– 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. After becoming involved with the city’s flourishing improvisational scene via John Zorn, she began experimenting with drum machines, and in recent years utilizes the laptop as her primary instrument.

– Mark Feldman is currently a member of the John Abercrombie Quartet along with Joey Baron and Marc Johnson. In addition to international concert tours the resulting recordings “Open Land,” “Cat n’ Mouse,” and “Class Trip” on ECM Records.

– Roulette artistic director and producer Jim Staley occupies a unique position among trombonists, crossing genres freely between post-modern classical music and avant-garde jazz. He boasts spectacular technique, including the ability to spit forth clusters of notes at rapid speed.

– Gamin is one of the most celebrated piri, taepyeongso (Korean traditional oboe family), and saengwhang (ancient wind-blow instrument) performers in Korea today. Solidly trained in jeongak, the classical court music, Gamin also studied the techniques of sinawi, the shaman ritual music.