On the eve of the fourth annual"Darmstadt Institute: Classics of the Avant-Garde", curators Nick Hallett and Zach Layton have a lively conversation on the works to be performed throughout this month-long festival.
Susan Alcorn is a Baltimore, Maryland-based composer and musician who has received international recognition as an innovator of the pedal steel guitar, an instrument whose sound is commonly associated with country and western music.
Legendary pianist and poet Cecil Taylor is one of the greatest improvisers in the history of modern jazz. On the occasion of his performance at ISSUE, he muses on his childhood, the evolution of his composition, and shares his poetry.
Legendary pianist and poet Cecil Taylor is one of the greatest improvisers in the history of modern jazz. Since the first performances of his quartet at the Five Spot Café in 1956, he has unflinchingly and tirelessly worked to define a sound that is still light years ahead of its time.
Norway’s Jenny Hval combines avant-garde structures with music at the edge of pop, working with explicit lyrics exploring sex and gender, and subverting expectations. In anticipation of her April 18th performance as part of Unsound Festival NY, she speaks with ISSUE curator Lawrence Kumpf about her work and process.
Right off the bat, from its first outing in February 2010, Unsound Festival New York has established itself with fans and critics as essential New York culture. Unsound Festival New York embraces a range of genres from contemporary classical music to post-industrial sounds to black metal to new directions in bass.
For the first concert of their residency, Yarn/Wire has collaborated on two new pieces: one by percussionist/composer Nathan Davis and another by electronic artist Pete Swanson, best known for his work with Yellow Swans. Here, Yarn/Wire percussionist Ian Antonio speaks with ISSUE curator Lawrence Kumpf.
Artist-in-Residence Sergei Tcherepnin and Woody Sullender construct sites for listening, touching, and direct engagement with sonic material. Their April performance includes a temporary architecture of rooms within rooms, difference tone difference tone doorways, and listening tables.
