The New York composer-performer collective Wet Ink Ensemble presents new work from their Artists-In-Residence program, premiering compositions by Gelsey Bell (voice/daxophone) and Carolyn Chen (keyboards), alongside premieres of the revised versions of works by Wet Ink members Mariel Roberts and Modney.

This concert also celebrates the release of Wet Ink’s album “Action, Choice, Thought” on Carrier Records.

Wet Ink’s Artist-In-Residence (AIR) program provides an open platform for composer-performers who are invited to create new work for/with Wet Ink, perform with the ensemble, present their own solo projects and bands, and work with Wet Ink’s open, collaborative model however they find meaningful. Past participants in the AIR program have included Ingrid Laubrock, Vicente Atria, Rick Burkhardt, Katherine Young, Nick Dunston, and Charmaine Lee.

Artists-In-Residence
Gelsey Bell: Archaeopteris, for two voices, daxophone, violin, cello, and percussion
Mariel Robets Musa: Hold (2023, rev. 2025), for octet
Carolyn Chen: Talk to Me, for voice, flute, piano, violin, and cello
Modney: Liminal (2023, rev. 2025), for octet

Wet Ink Ensemble
Erin Lesser flute
Alex Mincek tenor saxophone
Ian Antonio percussion
Eric Wubbels piano
Modney violin
Mariel Roberts Musa cello
Sam Pluta electronics
Kate Soper voice

Presented by Wet Ink in partnership with Roulette

A livestream will be available free of charge at 8pm on the day of the performance and archived for future viewing. Watch below or on YouTube.

The Wet Ink Ensemble is a NYC-based collective of composers, performers and improvisers dedicated to adventurous music-making. Named “The Best Ensemble of 2018” by The New York Times, Wet Ink’s work is rooted in an ethos of innovation through collaboration, extending from the music and the unique performance practice developed in the “band” atmosphere of Wet Ink’s core octet of composer-performers, to projects with a broad range of renowned creators, from Evan Parker to George Lewis to Peter Ablinger, and committed performances of music by young and underrepresented composers, from today’s most promising emerging voices to the next generation of artists. Recent Wet Ink releases include Glossolalia/Lines on Black (Carrier Records), featuring Wet Ink’s core ensemble; Missing Scenes (Carrier Records), featuring the 20 musicians of the Wet Ink Large Ensemble; and Kate Soper’s Romance of the Rose opera (New Focus Recordings). Wet Ink has been presenting an annual concert series of contemporary music in NYC for over 25 years, and has supported adventurous creators through an Artist-In-Residence program since 2019.

Wet Ink is co-directed by an octet of acclaimed creative musicians who collaborate in band-like fashion, writing, improvising, preparing, and touring pieces together over long stretches of time. These directors are Erin Lesser (flutes), Alex Mincek (saxophone), Ian Antonio (percussion), Eric Wubbels (piano), Modney (violin), Mariel Roberts (cello), Kate Soper (voice), and Sam Pluta (electronics).