ISSUE presents the world premiere of Alvin Lucier’s Double Helix for four guitars, his second ever piece written exclusively for the instrument. The piece is performed by composer and multi-instrumentalist Oren Ambarchi and doom-metal legend of Sunn O)))) Stephen O’Malley, who together gave the NY premiere of Lucier’s Criss-Cross at ISSUE in 2014, and additionally features Ever Present Orchestra director Bernhard Rietbrock and sound studies lecturer Jan Thoben to complete the quartet.
Past
The first evening of a series observing the legacy of experimental music collective the Sonic Arts Union and its founding members: David Behrman, Alvin Lucier, Gordon Mumma, and the late Robert Ashley (1930-2014), features both performances from Sonic Arts Union members and stagings of their compositions.
More
Alvin Lucier: I am sitting in a room
Alvin Lucier stages his paradigmatic 1970 work I am sitting in a room. The piece consists of several sentences of recorded speech simultaneously played back into a room where they are re-recorded sequentially. As the repetitive sequence continues, those sounds and resonances common to the original spoken statement and those implied by the structural dimensions of the room are reinforced. The others are gradually eliminated.
Alvin Lucier: Bird and Person Dyning
Alvin Lucier stages his seminal 1976 work Bird and Person Dyning, reprising a performance done at ISSUE in 2013 on a program that included the premiere of December 12th, performed by the Ensemble Pamplemousse. Bird and Person Dyning stands as an essential work demonstrating the composer turning inward to the fundamental sparks of aural phenomena.
November 9th, our series observing the work of Alvin Lucier continues. Oren Ambarchi and Gary Schmalzl reprise 2013 piece Criss-Cross. The Ever Present Orchestra perform NY premieres of Two Circles and Double Cross-Hatch. Lucier stages his paradigmatic 1970 work I am sitting in a room.
More
ISSUE presents the first of two days observing the work of revolutionist composer Alvin Lucier. The Ever Present Orchestra stages two recent Lucier works: Braid and Hanover. Joan La Barbara gives the American premiere of Double Rainbow. Lucier himself performs Bird and Person Dyning.
More
Tectonics Festival New York 2014
Video excerpts from the inaugural Tectonics Festival New York in May 2014, featuring an array of emerging and iconic voices in contemporary composition. Including Eyvind Kang, performed by Oren Ambarchi, Jessika Kenney, Hildur Guonadottir & Stephen O’Malley; Eric Richards performed by Alan Zimmerman; Harley Gabor’s magnum opus string quintet; Crys Cole; Alvin Lucier by Jenny Lin; and Ilan Volkov with Eli Keszler.
Tectonics concludes highlighting works by Eric Richards, a little-known but influential avant-garde composer. Hildur Guðnadóttir, acclaimed cellist known for collaborations with múm and Pan Sonic, plays solo. Alvin Lucier plays two works with Jenny Lin, and Baritone Jeffrey Gavett plays Lucier, Scelsi and others.
More
Tectonics Festival New York
Ongoing Series
The inaugural US iteration of Iceland’s acclaimed Tectonics festival comes to NYC in four events at ISSUE, presenting a rich program of new composition, improvisation and unique cross-genre collaborations exploring iconic voices in experimental composition.
Alvin Lucier’s "Criss Cross" opens Tectonics, performed by two pillars of experimental rock: Stephen O’Malley and Oren Ambarchi. The guitarists and ensemble play Iancu Dumitrescu and premiere a piece by Eyvind Kang. Crys Cole and Jessika Kenney play solo sets, Kenney and Kang play Giacinto Scelsi.
More
Ensemble Pamplemousse open their decennary season with a program focused on works by composers Alvin Lucier and Klaus Lang, who each use fabrics of heightened minimalism to create musical tapestries that invite the listener to rediscover the acoustic mechanics taken for granted in everyday experience.
More
An internationally acclaimed cellist Charles Curtis has woven a unique career through the worlds of classical performance and musical experimentation. He has worked extensively with pioneers of new music including Christian Wolff, Alison Knowles, and Éliane Radigue, whose works— among others— he plays tonight.