(photo credit: Stephen Hennessey)
Concert 4 Program
Ceclia Suhr : I, You, We
Cecilia Suhr, violin
Hans Tammen, programmer
Christopher Chandler : from these old roots
Adam Vidiksis, bass drum
Elsa Justel : D'un souffle lointain
Sam Wells, trumpet
Jamie Sampson : Power Transfer
Martin Van Klompenberg, bassoon
Kittie Cooper : Earth Mother
Kittie Cooper, performer
Per Bloland : Shadows of the Electric Moon
Patti Cudd, snare drum
Notes
Ceclia Suhr : I, You, WeCameras are ubiquitous in the human environment of today. They are used as a method of self-expression (e.g., selfies), as a form of surveillance (CCTV), and as a means of augmented reality. Playing on this everyday ritualistic habit of documentation and self-representation, “I, You, We” is an interactive multimedia performance which was created to overlay a mirror image of the viewer with that of others, thereby blurring the concept of “me vs. you” into a collective “we.” In this collective performance, audiences are invited to stand in front of the camera to contribute their facial image. As the camera detects the face, a corresponding sound is simultaneously triggered in the performance space. This interactive sound is meant to give the viewer a feeling of an embodied presence as they place their head in between the lighting ring and then see themselves on the screen. This experience contributes to the creation of an architectural sonic environment. The individual electronic sound effect is intended to generate a different, additional sound texture that may seem odd and strange, but which nonetheless encompasses an eclectic sound complex. At some point during the audience participation, the interactive audiovisual installation turns into a unique electro-acoustic musical performance when the performer, present in the space, starts to improvise a sonic response on the violin and/or cello. In this improvisation, the sound impacts the visuals in real time, allowing live audiovisual interaction. The improvisation also explores varying degrees of pitch as it results in color changes on the screen. The lighting of the video is also affected by the amplitude of the sound. Overall, this performance celebrates a snapshot of a moment that stands as a variation to the selfie concept while being shared in a privately public setting. back to program
Christopher Chandler : from these old roots
from these old roots is a 12-minute work for bass drum and fixed media that features a variety of closely mic’d percussion instruments. Both the source material for the electronics and the percussionist's live performance are driven by activating the bass drum with various implements (e.g., fingertips, fingernails, wooden mallets, hair brushes, etc.) and physical gestures or techniques (e.g., striking, quick scrapes, circular motions, granular tremoli, etc.). The electronics were created both with standard sequencing methods and custom software developed in SuperCollider and Max that enables algorithmic and generative sequencing. back to program
Elsa Justel : D'un souffle lointain
D'un souffle lointain arises from memory and nostalgia, from the wind that snatches my ideas and drags me aimlessly, without sorrow, looking at the infinite horizon. This piece was composed for trumpeter Valentín Garvié whom I met as a child prodigy of the instrument. Many years later I had the satisfaction of working with him on this project with which I try to highlight his interpretative abilities. The project tends to highlight certain sound effects of the instrument and the development of extended techniques. Taking advantage of Valentine's collaboration, I developed an electroacoustic material based on the direct recording of the trumpet, which allowed me to build a fluid discourse, both organic and expressive. back to program
Jamie Sampson : Power Transfer
Power Transfer for amplified bassoon and fixed media was commissioned by Martin Van Klompenberg and draws inspiration from kinetic wind sculptures, natural to mechanical energy transfers, and even the peaceful transition of power in functioning democracies. The audio includes processed and natural recordings from political protests, bicycles, machines large and small, plants, and convolutions of those sounds. back to program
Kittie Cooper : Earth Mother
Earth Mother is a custom-built electronic instrument based on a female archetype of femininity, vitality, and creation. The Earth Mother produces life from within herself—all things come from her, are nurtured by her, and eventually return to her. Through physical contact, the performer is incorporated into the Earth Mother’s electrical circuit. Current flows through both bodies, and sound emerges with the forming and reforming of connections. back to program
Per Bloland : Shadows of the Electric Moon
In Shadows…, the timbral palate of the snare drum is altered in a number of ways. For the duration of the piece the drum is upside down, with the snare exposed. A medium cymbal and a single crotale are brought into contact both with the drumhead and this exposed snare. In addition a sound exciter rests on the snare for the much of the piece. This exciter receives an audio signal from a computer, and attempts to reproduce that signal by vibrating the snare at the frequencies it receives. The success of this endeavor is, of course, inherently limited. The piece is essentially cyclical, with the first cycle revealing the theme. The sound types emphasized in this theme tend to be abrupt and mechanical, with rapid shifts in playing technique. Subsequent cycles introduce increasingly long and static interruptions to this material, becoming ever more obsessivly transfixed. Further variations on the theme are introduced in later cycles as the material types begin to shuffle. This piece, as are many of my recent pieces, is based on a novel by the Norwegian author Pedr Solis. Den Elektriske Månen (The Electric Moon) is one of his earlier novels, written well before his better-known work Stillaset. It takes place in the northern reaches of Finnmark, the northernmost county of Norway. The writing is lyrical and dreamlike, with similar but slightly varied passages of text often recurring. back to program
Bios
Hans Tammen's works have been presented on festivals in the US, Canada, Mexico, Russia, Ukraine, India, South Africa, the Middle East and all over Europe. He has recorded on labels such as Clang, Innova, ESP-DISK, Nur/Nicht/Nur, Gold Bolus, Nachtstück, Creative Sources, Leo Records, Potlatch and Outnow. back to programCecilia Suhr is an award winning interdisciplinary artist and researcher, multi-instrumentalist (violin/cello/voice/piano), author, performer, and improviser, who is working at the intersection between art, music, sound design, and digital technology. Her work has been showcased and performed in various galleries, festivals, biennials, conferences and museums nationally and internationally in venues such as Nice Acropolis Convention Centre, Nice, France (upcoming), Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, NY, NY, CICA Museum, Gimpo, Korea, IANG Gallery, NamSeoul University, Seoul, Korea, Pylaia- Hortiati Municipal Conservatory, Thessaloniki, Greece, Center for Collaborative Arts and Media at Yale University, Pensacola Museum of Art, West Florida, Outside the Box 4, A Biennial of Outdoor Site-Specific Arts and Performance at Whitespace, West Palm Beach, Kimmel Gallery at New York University, (NY, NY), Venice Art House, Venice Italy, NIW Gallery, Tokyo, Japan, House Museum of Marina Tsvetaeva, Moscow Russia, Hill Center Galleries, Washington, D.C., Scholes Street Studio, Brooklyn, NY, etc. back to program
Christopher Chandler is a composer of acoustic and electroacoustic music and the co-founder and executive director of the [Switch~ Ensemble]. He serves as Assistant Professor of Music at Union College where he teaches courses in music theory, composition, and technology. He draws inspiration from nature, poetry, the acoustic properties of instruments, and his experiences working with sound in computer music studios. His work has been performed by leading ensembles including Eighth Blackbird, the American Wild Ensemble, the Oberlin Contemporary Music Ensemble, and Le Nouvel Ensemble Moderne. His has received recognition and awards for his music including a BMI Student Composer Award, an ASCAP/SEAMUS Student Commission, two first prizes from the Austin Peay State University Young Composer's Award, and the Nadia Boulanger Composition Prize from the American Conservatory in Fontainebleau, France. Christopher holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, Bowling Green State University, and the University of Richmond. back to program
Adam Vidiksis is a composer, conductor, percussionist, improviser, and technologist based in Philadelphia whose music often explores social structures, science, and the intersection of humankind with the machines we build. Vidiksis’s music has won numerous awards and grants, including recognition from the Society of Composers, Incorporated, the American Composers Forum, New Music USA, National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, and ASCAP. His works are available through HoneyRock Publishing, EMPiRE, New Focus, PARMA, and SEAMUS Records. Vidiksis is Assistant Professor of music technology at Temple University, a founding executive member of SPLICE Music, a Resident Artist at the Renegade Theater company, and a founding member of the Impermanent Society of Philadelphia, a group dedicated to promoting improvisation in the performing arts. He performs in SPLICE Ensemble and the Transonic Orchestra, conducts Ensemble N_JP, and directs the Temple Composers Orchestra and the Boyer College Electroacoustic Ensemble Project (BEEP). [www.vidiksis.com] back to program
Elsa Justel (Argentine-France) Doctor in Aesthetics, Science and Technology of the Arts at the University of Paris, Justel currently works as an independent composer and video artist. Her works have received numerous awards in international competitions and were commissioned by the French government and different European studios. She has developed a pedagogical and research activity at the Universities of Marne La Vallée (France) and Pompeu Fabra (Spain) and several European schools of music. Recordings by Empreintes Digitales (Canada) (http://www.electrocd.com/fr/bio/justel_el/discog/), and other publishers. In 2007 she creates the Foundation Destellos to promote electroacoustic music and digital arts, organizing an International competition. www.fundestellos.org/Bio.htm back to program
Sam Wells is a trumpeter, composer, improvisor, and technologist based in Los Angeles. As an advocate for new and exciting music, he actively commissions and performs contemporary works. Sam has performed throughout North America and Europe, as well as in China. He is a recipient of a 2016 Jerome Fund for New Music award. He has performed electroacoustic works for trumpet and presented his own music at the Bang on a Can Summer Festival, Chosen Vale International Trumpet Seminar, Electronic Music Midwest, Electroacoustic Barn Dance, NYCEMF, N_SEME, and SEAMUS festivals. Sam is a member of Arcus Collective, Kludge, and SPLICE Ensemble. Sam has recorded on the SEAMUS and Ravello Recordings labels. Sam is on faculty at SPLICE Institute, Molloy College, and the California Institute of the Arts. back to program
Jamie Leigh Sampson is a composer, bassoonist, author, and entrepreneur based in Western New York. She teaches music composition, theory, and entrepreneurship at SUNY Fredonia. She is the Co-Owner of ADJ•ective New Music and Head of Marketing and Engagement for the Institute for Composer Diversity. Jamie has written works for Amanda DeBoer Bartlett, Kayleigh Butcher, Ensemble Dal Niente, and Quince Contemporary Vocal Ensemble. Her compositions have been described as “impressionistic, enabling the listener to focus on the beauty, timbre, and nuance of the singing” and “transcendentally moving” by the Brooklyn Rail.
Her first published resource, Contemporary Techniques for Bassoon: Multiphonics, documents thoroughly tested multiphonic fingerings for bassoon, identifying and eliminating those found to be unreliable, and presents 271 stable fingerings in a concise and cogent format for bassoonists and composers. The book has been described as, “a jewel and necessity for all bassoonists,” by Thomas Dempster The Double Reed. back to program
Originally from Holland, Michigan, Martin J. Van Klompenberg has been a bassoonists with the United States Army Bands since 2013. Currently, he performs with the 282nd Army Band, and its resident wind quintet, the Dozier Winds. He previously performed with 323rd Army Band “Fort Sam’s Own” and the United States Air Force Band of the West. Prior to joining the ranks of military musicians, he attended the University of Arizona, where he obtained the Doctorate of Musical Arts degree, studying with William Dietz. He also earned degrees from Arizona State University and Western Michigan University, studying with Albie Micklich and Wendy Rose, respectively. A proponent of new music, Martin is active in commissioning projects for new works for bassoon, working with composers such as John Steinmetz, Bill Douglas, Damian Montano, Alyssa Morris, Rob McClure, Daniel Baldwin, and Brian Bunker. back to program
Kittie Cooper is a composer, performer, and educator based in Charlottesville, Virginia. She makes art that incorporates feminism and explores the spectrum between silliness and seriousness. Her work has been called ""highly original and wonderfully fun"". She is interested in text and graphic scores, improvisation, and DIY electronic instruments. She has recently performed and presented at festivals and conferences including SPLICE, the International Alliance for Women in Music Conference, Electronic Music Midwest, N_SEME, and MOXsonic Festival. She also performs locally in Charlottesville as a guitarist, electronic musician, and improviser. Kittie teaches music for students with visual impairments at the Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind. She holds a BM from Northwestern University in music education and guitar performance, and is pursuing a Master’s degree in special education at George Mason University. In her spare time, she enjoys taking care of the stray cats in her neighborhood. back to program
Per Bloland is a composer of acoustic and electroacoustic music whose works have been praised by the New York Times as “lush, caustic,” and “irresistible.” His compositions range from intimate solo pieces to works for large orchestra, and incorporate video, dance, and custom-built electronics. He has received awards and recognition from organizations including IRCAM, ICMA, SEAMUS/ASCAP, the Ohio Arts Council, Digital Art Awards of Tokyo, ISCM, the Martirano Competition, and SCI/ASCAP Bloland is the co-creator of the Electromagnetically-Prepared Piano, about which he has given numerous lecture/demonstrations and published a paper. He is an Assistant Professor of Composition and Technology at Miami University, Ohio, and in 2013 completed a five-month Musical Research Residency at IRCAM in Paris. back to program
Percussionist Patti Cudd is an active performer of the music of the 21st century. As a champion of modern music, she has given concerts and master classes throughout the United States, Korea, Thailand, China, Mexico, South America and Europe. Patti has worked closely with some of the most innovative composers of our time such as Brian Ferneyhough, Morton Feldman, Pauline Oliveros, John Luther Adams, John Zorn, Julia Wolfe, Christian Wolff and Frederic Rzewski.
As a percussion soloist and chamber musician she has premiered over 200 new works and has recorded under such labels as Hat Hut, Bridge, New World, CRI, Innova, Emf Media and Mode. She recently released on Innova Recordings, a solo CD of percussion and electronic pieces. Patti is a Yamaha Performing Artist, an endorser of Sabian Cymbals and a member of the Vic Firth and Black Swamp Education Teams.
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