Charmaine Lee: Laminals with Id M Theft Able & Andrea Pensado

For her inaugural residency performance, 2019 Artist-In-Residence Charmaine Lee premieres “Laminals,” the first of three movements of a new long-form piece for solo voice. Using the organic instrument as a vehicle for synthetic creation, this movement investigates the possibilities of both the grotesque and beautiful qualities that emerge from a mechanical treatment of the human voice. Lo-fi and hi-fi microphones amplified through multi-channel speakers, electroacoustic feedback, and other digital sound sources are utilized in the exploration of new expressions in vocal music.

The program is paired with an improvised trio performance featuring id m theft able (voice, objects) and Andrea Pensado (voice, electronics). Together, the trio demonstrates the dynamic nature of the voice, celebrating the human spirit in all its wonder and absurdity.

Charmaine Lee is a New York based vocalist. Her music is predominantly improvised, favoring a uniquely personal approach concerned with spontaneity, playfulness, and risk-taking. Beyond extended vocal technique, Charmaine uses amplification and microphones to augment and distort the human voice. She has performed with leading improvisers Nate Wooley, id m theft able, and Joe Morris, and maintains ongoing collaborations with contemporaries Conrad Tao, Zach Rowden, Lester St. Louis, Leila Bordreuil, and Ben Bennett. She has performed at venues such as ISSUE Project Room, the Lincoln Center, Roulette, The Kitchen, and the Stone. Charmaine is a member of the Editorial Board of Sound American. As a composer, she has been commissioned by the Wet Ink Ensemble (2018) and has a forthcoming commission with Spektral Quartet (2018). Her music has been released on Anticausal Systems.

id m theft able performs within and without the realms of noise, avant-improvisation, sound poetry, performance, etc. using voice, found objects, electronics, and whatever else is available. He has given hundreds of performances across four continents in various settings.

Based in the US since 2002, Andrea Pensado uses her voice and electronics to create her deeply personal sonic language. She works with Max as her main tool. The programming emphasizes the mapping of synthesis parameters into performance gestures. The resulting harsh cut up noise, mixed with the strong emotional component of her music, occasionally give her access to unknown inner states of the self. Pensado performs extensively in the US and abroad. She also curates and produces Sonorium, a series of experimental music based in Salem, MA. “…Pensado’s style is all tension and little release…the sound is simply fascinating…” - Ryan Masteller, TABS OUT