Click here for a full schedule of the festiva l\, and for more information.
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20181102 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20181104 GEO:+37.574386;-77.542125 LOCATION:Camp Concert Hall @ 455 Westhampton Way\, Richmond\, VA 23173\, US A SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Third Practice Electroacoustic Music Festival URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/third-practice-electroacoustic-mu sic-festival/ X-COST-TYPE:free END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-46548@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:Residencies CONTACT:https://eugenesymphony.org/events/special-events/artist-residency DESCRIPTION:We’ll be participating in a number of residency activities d uring our time in Eugene. For a full list of activities\, click here.
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20181112 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20181115 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Eugene Residency Activities URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/eugene-residency-activities/ X-COST-TYPE:free END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-46045@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:Residencies CONTACT: DESCRIPTION: DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20190131 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20190203 LOCATION:UNCSA - Winston Salem\, NC @ 1533 S Main St\, Winston-Salem\, NC 2 7127 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:UNCSA Residency URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/uncsa-residency/ X-COST-TYPE:free END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-46046@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:Residencies CONTACT: DESCRIPTION: DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20190204 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20190208 LOCATION:Modlin Center for the Arts - Richmond\, VA @ 28 Westhampton Way\, Richmond\, VA 23173 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:University of Richmond Residency URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/university-of-richmond-residency- 6/ X-COST-TYPE:free END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-46047@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:Residencies CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Tickets: https://www.jeffco.edu/community-outreach/performing-arts/pace/upcoming- pace-event.
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20190214 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20190215 LOCATION:Jefferson College - Hillsboro\, MO @ 1000 Viking Drive Hillsboro\, MO 63050 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Jefferson College Residency URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/jefferson-college-residency/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.jeffco.edu/community-outreach/performing-arts/pac e/upcoming-pace-event END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-46053@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:Residencies CONTACT: DESCRIPTION: DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20190304 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20190308 LOCATION:Modlin Center for the Arts - Richmond\, VA @ 28 Westhampton Way\, Richmond\, VA 23173 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:University of Richmond Residency URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/university-of-richmond-residency- 7/ X-COST-TYPE:free END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-46054@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:Concerts\,Residencies CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Program
\nNina Shekhar: ice ‘n’ S
PICE
\nAlex Mills: Four Rain-Begging Songs – World Prem
iere
\nFjola Evans: Eroding
\nViet Cuong: Electric
Aroma
\n-intermission-
\nNathalie Joachim: Madam Belleg
arde
\nAngélica Negrón: Quimbombó
\nJonathan Baile
y Holland: The Clarity of Cold Air
\nJulius Eastman: Sta
y On It
The Chicago Artists Workshop Presents:
\nKarim Sulayman\, tenor
\nLebanese-American ten or Karim Sulayman has garnered international attention as a sophisticated and versatile artist\, consistently praised for his sensitive and intellig ent musicianship\, riveting stage presence\, and beautiful voice. A 2019 G RAMMY® Award-winner\, he regularly performs on the world’s stages in orche stral concerts and opera\, as well as in recital and chamber music.
\n< p>
His diverse p
erforming career has included roles with the Drottningholms Slottsteater i
n Stockholm\, Houston Grand Opera\, Florentine Opera\, Boston Lyric Opera\
, Chicago Opera Theater and New York City Opera\; orchestral appearances w
ith the Chicago\, Pittsburgh\, and National Symphony Orchestras and the Au
stralian Brandenburg Orchestra\; and engagements at Hamburg’s Elbphilharmo
nie\, Carnegie Hall\, Lincoln Center\, the Kennedy Center\, International
Bach Festival\, the Aspen Music Festival\, the Aldeburgh Festival\, and th
e Marlboro Music Festival.\nHis growing discography includes his de
but solo album\, Songs of Orpheus\, which was released in April
\n201
8 to international acclaim on the AVIE label. Named “Critic’s Choice” by O
pera News\, and praised for his “lucid\, velvety tenor and pop-star charis
ma” by BBC Music Magazine\, the album debuted at number 5 on the Billboard
Traditional Classical Chart and number 3 on the iTunes Classical Chart\,
and was honored with the GRAMMY® Award for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album
in 2019. His sophomore solo recording project\, an album of Schubert song
s with fortepianist Yi-heng Yang\, Where Only Stars Can Hear Us\, will be
released in March 2020\, also on the AVIE label. He is also featured in th
e ARTE documentary Leonard Bernstein – A Genius Divided\, which premiered
throughout Europe in the summer of 2018 and was subsequently released on D
VD. His performance of Bernstein’s Mass with the CSO was recorded live and
is slated for national broadcast on PBS Great Performances in 2020.
Additionally\, Karim created a social experiment/performance art piece called I Trust You\, designed to build bridges in a divided political clim ate. A video version of this experiment went “viral” on the internet\, and was honored as a prizewinner in the My Hero Film Festival. He has been in vited to give talks and hold open forums with student and adult groups abo ut inclusion\, empathy\, healing from racism\, and activism through the ar ts.
\n—
\nPROGRAM
\nNous Voulons un Petit Soeur (1934) –
Poulenc
\nLune d’Avril (1960) – Poulenc
\nLost and Lookin’ – Sa
m Cooke
\nBleuet (1939) – Poulenc
\nSuéltate las cintas (2004)-
Gustavo Santaolalla
\nC. (1943) – Poulenc
\nFêtes Galantes (1943
) – Poulenc
\nLi Beirut (1984) – Fairouz
\nMy Dearest Ruth (2013
) – Stacy Garrop
\nPiano Piece #4 (1977) – Frederic Rzewksi
\nTo
morrow’s Gonna Be A Better Day (2013) – Billy Bragg
Program re pertoire is subject to change.
\nClick here for program notes\, texts\, and translations.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20201020T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Karim Sulayman\, tenor URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/karim-sulayman-tenor/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2020/09/Sulaymanctbd06-1.jpg?resize=462%2C308&ssl=1\;462\;308 \,medium\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/202 0/09/Sulaymanctbd06-1.jpg?resize=462%2C308&ssl=1\;462\;308\,large\;https:/ /i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Sulaymanctbd 06-1.jpg?resize=462%2C308&ssl=1\;462\;308\,full\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eig hthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Sulaymanctbd06-1.jpg?resize=46 2%2C308&ssl=1\;462\;308 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-karim-sulayman-tenor-october-20-2020/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-70147@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:The Chicago Artists Workshop Presents:
\nRebecca Rego featuring Leah Casey – Songs for Cleaning Women< /strong>
\nRebecca Rego has been a Midwest singer-songwriter\, recor ding artist\, and producer for over 15 years. She has written and recorded eight albums and toured the country many times over\, solo and with her C hicago-based band The Trainmen.
\nIn 2014\, a mysterious package arrived on her doorst ep.In it was Lucia Berlin’s short story collection\, “A Manual For Cleanin g Women.” The note simply said: “I think you’ll love this.” As Rego began picking through the dark\, witty\, romantic prose\, the stories slowly beg an to seep into her consciousness and affect her songwriting. After a few years\, she realized she had created a unique set of songs based on Berlin ’s book.
\nIn the fall of 2019\, Rego traveled to Northern Californi a\, where a handful of Berlin’s stories take place\, and recorded six of t hese songs at Panoramic Studio in Stinson Beach with engineer Beau Sorenso n (Death Cab For Cutie\, tUnE-yArDs\,) backed by multi-instrumentalist J. Tom Hnatow (Horse Feathers\, Ringo Starr\,) and Alysia Kraft\, Staci Foste r\, and Tobias Bank of Fort Collins\, CO based band Whippoorwill. The resu lting album “Songs For Cleaning Women Pt. 1” will be released November 11\ , 2020. The release will be celebrated with a livestreaming performance du ring Grammy Award-winning music ensemble Eighth Blackbird’s “Chicago Artis ts Workshop” series.
\nAs an independent female artist\, Rego is inf luenced by the unflinching\, raw honesty found in Berlin’s art. Many of Be rlin’s stories are semi-autobiographical accounts of her time working blue -collar jobs\, raising four children as a single mother\, and dealing with her own alcoholism. Berlin died in 2004\, never receiving critical acclai m in her own lifetime. Rego’s goal with this release is to pay homage to B erlin’s stories and introduce new audiences to her work.
\nRebecca w ill be joined by Leah Casey\, a Chicago-based actress\, w riter\, and dancer with a love for fictional podcasts.
\n
Some of her previous c redits include Frankenstein with Manual Cinema\, For Colored Girls at Cour t Theatre\, and Romeo and Juliet with Teatro Vista. When not onstage\, she can be found behind the mic as Rebecca Neil\, a reporter for The Onion’s daily news podcast\, The Topical\, or working with the cast of Project STE LLAR\, a science fiction podcast about a group of crazy kids who have clos e encounters of the awesome kind.
Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/p roduct/chicago-artists-workshop-rebecca-rego-november-11-2020/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20201111T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Rebecca Rego featuring Leah Casey – Songs for Cleaning Women URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/rebecca-rego-songs-for-cleaning-w omen/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2020/08/Pressphoto-1.jpg?resize=471%2C315&ssl=1\;471\;315\,me dium\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08 /Pressphoto-1.jpg?resize=471%2C315&ssl=1\;471\;315\,large\;https://i0.wp.c om/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Pressphoto-1.jpg?res ize=471%2C315&ssl=1\;471\;315\,full\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird .org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Pressphoto-1.jpg?resize=471%2C315&ssl=1\;4 71\;315 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-rebecca-rego-november-11-2020/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-70255@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:The Chicago Artists Workshop Presents:
\nJustin Roberts and Anna Steinhoff
\nFor nearly 20 years\, Justin Roberts has been creating the soundtrack to families’ l ives\, helping kids navigate the joys and sorrows of growing up while allo wing parents to remember their own childhoods. Along with his band\, The N ot Ready for Naptime Players\, Justin has travelled the globe from Hong Ko ng to New York\, and Miami to Seattle\, performing at venues and festivals such as LEGO land\, Ravinia\, Lollapolooza and Austin City Limits festiva l. Justin has performed in front of millions of people on The Today Show\, he’s been featured on Nick Jr. TV\, and has received three GRAMMY nominat ions for his work.
\n
Justin ’s latest album\, Wild Life\, is his 14th album for families and his most personal project yet. Inspired by the birth of their first child\, Justin wrote cello parts for Anna into almost every track. They were joined by an eclectic group of instrumentalists including pianist Lisa Kaplan (Eighth Blackbird)\, percussionist Gerald Dowd (Robbie Fulks)\, and vocalist Nora O’Connor (Flat Five\, the Decemberists). Wild Life includes songs about an ticipation\, uncertainty\, unconditional love and advice for a life well-l ived\, and aims to evoke the wonder of what poet Mary Oliver called this “ one wild and precious life.”
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20201118T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Justin Roberts and Anna Steinhoff URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/justin-roberts-and-anna-steinhoff / X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2020/09/image4.jpeg?resize=422%2C417&ssl=1\;422\;417\,medium\ ;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/imag e4.jpeg?resize=422%2C417&ssl=1\;422\;417\,large\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eig hthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/image4.jpeg?resize=422%2C417&s sl=1\;422\;417\,full\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content /uploads/2020/09/image4.jpeg?resize=422%2C417&ssl=1\;422\;417 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-justin-roberts-and-anna-steinhoff-november-18-2020/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-70256@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:The Chicago Artists Workshop Presents:
\nXuan
\nXuan is a new media artist\, filmmaker\ , and pianist working at the intersection of music\, visual art\, and tech nology.
\n
Her work focuses on the distinct intercon nectivity between sound and image\, and encompasses experimental animation \, narrative documentary shorts\, music videos\, abstract scenography\, in teractive installations and real time audio-visual programming. With a bac kground as a contemporary classical pianist\, she actively develops innova tive\, cross-disciplinary projects that broaden the immersive scope of new music through technology.
\nShe has collaborated with artists such as Glenn Kotche\, Pierre Jodlowski\, Michael Burritt\, Gemma Peacocke\, An nika Socolofsky\, Third Coast Percussion\, Nois Quartet\, Parhelion Trio\, Rubiks Collective\, and Ensemble Garage\, which have led to performances at the Metropolitan Museum of Art\, the MCA Chicago\, the Smithsonian Inst itution\, University of South Carolina\, Carnegie Mellon University\, Cons tellation\, SF Jazz\, Le Poisson Rouge\, and the Indie Grits Film Festival . Recent projects in interactive design have been exhibited at the ErsterE rster Gallery in Berlin\, DE\, the ibug Urban Art Festival in Reinchenbach \, DE\, and Design Biennale 2019 in Zürich\, CH.
\nXuan is a graduat e of the Eastman School of Music and has studied Media Spaces at the BTK U niversity of Art and Design in Berlin.
Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/produ ct/chicago-artists-workshop-xuan-december-1-2020/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20201201T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Xuan URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/xuan/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2020/01/Zhang_Amy-headshot-scaled-e1579637552623-480x480.jpg? resize=392%2C392&ssl=1\;392\;392\,medium\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblac kbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Zhang_Amy-headshot-scaled-e1579637552 623-480x480.jpg?resize=392%2C392&ssl=1\;392\;392\,large\;https://i0.wp.com /www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Zhang_Amy-headshot-sca led-e1579637552623-480x480.jpg?resize=392%2C392&ssl=1\;392\;392\,full\;htt ps://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Zhang_Am y-headshot-scaled-e1579637552623-480x480.jpg?resize=392%2C392&ssl=1\;392\; 392 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-xuan-december-1-2020/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71031@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:The Chicago Artists Workshop Presents:
\nJ. Ivy
\nJ. Ivy is an Award Winning Performanc e Poet\, Recording Artist\, Song Writer\, Author and Actor. Over the years his work has earned him a Peabody\, Clio\, Telly\, and NAACP Image Award and he is widely known for being the “Poet” featured on Kanye West’s Gramm y Winning Album\, “The College Dropout\,” on the classic song “Never Let M e Down\,” along with Hip-Hop icon Jay-Z.
\n
Not only ha s he collaborated with countless musical artist\, J.Ivy has recently relea sed his 4th studio album\, “Catching Dreams\,” which is a beautiful blend of poetry and music. He also recently finished co-writing and co-producing \, singer-song-writer\, Tarrey Torae’s upcoming album\, “Thanks for the Lo ve\,” and co-wrote the new song\, “Freedom Ride” with Grammy Nominated Hou se Music Legend\, DJ Terry Hunter\, which is also by Ms. Torae. He is the Poet Laureate for the famed visual artist Ernie Barnes’ Foundation.
\n< p>A fun fact for many\, is J. Ivy is the man who gave Emmy\, Oscar\, Gramm y\, and Tony Award-Winning singer\, songwriter\, actor\, and activist John Stephens the stage name John Legend\, as told by John himself on Oprah’s Next Chapter. In 2019 J. Ivy became the first Spoken Word Artist to hold a Chapter President’s seat (Chicago Chapter) in the history of the Recordin g Academy.\nTickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/prod uct/chicago-artists-workshop-j-ivy-december-8-2020/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20201208T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:J. Ivy URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/j-ivy-2/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2020/09/J.-Ivy-headshot.jpg?resize=448%2C358&ssl=1\;448\;358\ ,medium\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020 /09/J.-Ivy-headshot.jpg?resize=448%2C358&ssl=1\;448\;358\,large\;https://i 2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/J.-Ivy-headsho t.jpg?resize=448%2C358&ssl=1\;448\;358\,full\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighth blackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/J.-Ivy-headshot.jpg?resize=448%2C 358&ssl=1\;448\;358 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-j-ivy-december-8-2020/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-70257@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Chicago Artists Workshop Presents: Tarrey T orae
\n
Chicago br
ed\, but southern at heart\, Tarrey Torae’s melodic presence springs from
the crossroads of city living\, southern geniality\, essential womanhood\,
and passionate soul. No amateur to music\, Tarrey is a 6x Apollo Winner a
nd has appeared on 2 GRAMMY Award Winning Albums for her work with Kanye W
est on The College Drop Out and John Legend’s\, Get Lifted.
This musical powerhouse has performed on stages with The Roots \, Common\, Talib Kweli\, Patti Labelle and Stevie Wonder and has shared s tages with the likes of Jill Scott\, Mos Def\, Nas\, Usher\, Anthony Hamil ton\, Faith Evans\, Dave Chappelle\, Lupe Fiasco\, Cee Lo Green\, Little B rother\, El Debarge\, Lyfe Jennings\, Eric Roberson\, India.Arie\, Amel La rrieux\, Erykah Badu\, Miguel\, Marsha Ambrosius\, Roy Ayers\, Snoop Dogg\ , the late great Gil‐Scott Heron\, Will.I.Am\, and many more.
\nAlon g with her audacious voice\, her songwriting skills have been featured on Platinum & Gold records with Kanye West\, John Legend\, & Freeway. She’s a lso been on records with Talib Kweli\, DMX\, J. Ivy\, Pete Rock\, and The Last Poets\, and has been commissioned to do work in the advertisement wor ld for brands such as All State\, General Mills\, Ford\, and Toyota.
\nBeyond singing and writing\, her acting background has extended to thea ter\, film and television\, where she landed the lead role on the Off‐Broa dway play “Me and My Shadow.” She also appeared on an episode of the Emmy Award Winning Drama Series “ER\,” and in an independent comedy called “Not Another Black Film” (Amazon 2017). Recently she has taken on a new role i n the upcoming film “Hal King” and is playing the character named Madame Q uickly\, which is set to release in the summer of 2018.
\nSome of To rae’s other endeavors include the release of her album\, The Sweetest Surv ivor\, her House Music singles\, Marching On\, Let It Go\, and most recent ly\, Freedom Ride. Freedom Ride was produced by Grammy Nominated House Leg end\, DJ Terry Hunter. Tarrey is currently preparing for the release of he r upcoming R&B Soul album\, as she continues to tour with the Iconic Hip-H op Legend Slick Rick the Ruler\, and International Award-winning Poet\, J. Ivy.
\nFurther\, Tarrey works in the community with children and yo ung adults giving self‐esteem and creative workshops. An example of this c an be seen in her music video titled\, Little Girl. With Tarrey Torae’s ta lent and creative fervor\, she is bound to leave a timeless mark on music and art.
\nTickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-workshop-ta rrey-torae/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210213T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Tarrey Torae URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/tarrey-torae/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i1.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2020/08/474A9031-scaled.jpg?resize=507%2C338&ssl=1\;507\;338\ ,medium\;https://i1.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020 /08/474A9031-scaled.jpg?resize=507%2C338&ssl=1\;507\;338\,large\;https://i 1.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/474A9031-scale d.jpg?resize=507%2C338&ssl=1\;507\;338\,full\;https://i1.wp.com/www.eighth blackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/474A9031-scaled.jpg?resize=507%2C 338&ssl=1\;507\;338 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-tarrey-torae/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71048@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Chicago Artists Worksho p Presents: Tom Lee
\n< img data-attachment-id='71084' data-permalink='https://www.eighthblackbird .org/event/tom-lee/tom_lee_sm_creditayumisakamoto/' data-orig-file='https: //i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_ CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?fit=997%2C997&ssl=1' data-orig-size='997\,997' dat a-comments-opened='0' data-image-meta='{'aperture':'0'\,'credit':''\,'came ra':''\,'caption':''\,'created_timestamp':'0'\,'copyright':''\,'focal_leng th':'0'\,'iso':'0'\,'shutter_speed':'0'\,'title':''\,'orientation':'1'}' d ata-image-title='Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto' data-image-description='' data-medium-file='https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/up loads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?fit=480%2C480&ssl=1' data -large-file='https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/ 2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?fit=720%2C720&ssl=1' loading='l azy' class=' wp-image-71084 alignleft' src='https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthbl ackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg? resize=408%2C408&ssl=1' alt='' width='408' height='408' srcset='https://i0 .wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_Cred itAyumiSakamoto.jpg?w=997&ssl=1 997w\, https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbi rd.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resiz e=480%2C480&ssl=1 480w\, https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-cont ent/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=900%2C900&ss l=1 900w\, https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/20 21/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1 150w\, htt ps://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_ SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=32%2C32&ssl=1 32w\, https://i0.wp.com/ww w.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSak amoto.jpg?resize=640%2C640&ssl=1 640w\, https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackb ird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resi ze=440%2C440&ssl=1 440w\, https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=45%2C45&ssl =1 45w\, https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021 /01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=300%2C300&ssl=1 300w\, https ://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM _CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=100%2C100&ssl=1 100w' sizes='(max-width: 4 08px) 100vw\, 408px' data-recalc-dims='1' />
\nThe Gr
eat Zodiac Animal Race
\nGrowing up in Hawai’i\, Tom Lee’s m
emories of Lunar New Year included narcissus blooms\, tasty dim sum dishes
and bowing to your elders before running off to your room to open your lu
cky red envelope with money in it! Tom Lee retells the classic Lunar New Y
ear zodiac tale with shadow puppet animals inspired by Asian languages and
pictograms. Suitable for all ages.
Stream begins 6pm CT/7pm ET/4p m PT.
\nA recorded version of the show will be available at the same link starting at 12:00am CT on 2/28 until 11:59pm CT on 3/1.
\n—
\nBorn in Seoul\, Korea and raised in Mililani\, Hawai’i\, Tom Lee is a director\, designer and puppet artist based in New York & Chicago. Mr. Le e began his career at La MaMa Experimental Theater in New York with the encouragement of Ellen Stewart and\, later\, the St. Ann’s Warehouse P uppet Lab. His original puppet theater work includes Shank’s Mare (La MaMa \, International Tours)\, Hoplite Diary (St. Ann’s\, La MaMa)\, Tomte (Chicago International Puppet < span style='font-weight: 400\;'>Theater Festival)\, Odysseus and Ajax (La MaMa) and Ko’olau (La MaMa/Hawai’i tour). Mr. Lee directed & designed puppetry for Pinocchio with the House Theater of Chicago\, The Scarlet I bis by Stefan Weisman and David Cote at the Prototype New Opera Festival a nd for the National Asian American Theatre Company\, among others. Mr. Lee collaborated with director Stephen Earnhart on a multimedia staging of Haruki Murakami’s The Wind Up Bird Chronicle\, for which he designed the scenery\, puppetry and projecte d puppet miniatures at the Edinbur gh International Festival in 2011 and the Singapore Arts Festival in 2012.
\nMr. Lee has performed ext
ensively as a puppeteer\, including the Tony Award-winning War Horse at Lincoln Center Theater with puppetry
by Handspring Puppet Company of South Africa. He is a principal puppeteer of Cio-Cio-san’s child in the lat
e Anthony Minghella’s production o
f Madama Butterfly at the Metropolitan Opera with puppetry by Blind Summit
Theatre. Tom directed the puppetr
y for the Giants Are Small production of Petrushka with the New York Philharmonic on tour at London’s Barbic
an Centre and was a puppeteer in Le Grand Macabre at Avery Fisher Hall directed by Doug Fitch and conducted
by Alan Gilbert. He has performed
in Dan Hurlin’s Obie-award winning puppet work Hiroshima Maiden and Disfar
mer\, on tour and at St. Ann’s War
ehouse in Brooklyn. Tom recently performed in Lee Breuer’s epic
Tom’s theater design wor
k includes puppets\, projections and sets for Lookingglass Theater\, Yoshiko Chuma\, Bora Yoon\, Tom O’Horga
n\, Czechoslovak American Marionette Theatre\, Paper Canoe Company\, The Georgia Shakespeare Festival\, Chri
stopher Williams\, The Swedish Mar
ionette Cottage\, The Stonington Opera House\, Lone Wolf Tribe and Ellen S
tewart\, among others. In 2013\, h
e designed the Korean pop musical The Lost Garden\, directed by
In 2005\, supported by the NEA/TCG Career Development Program for Des
igners\, Tom spent two months stud
ying traditional and contemporary puppetry throughout Japan. He
Tom was a guest faculty member at Sarah Lawrence College for te n years and was co-director of the St. Ann’s Puppet Lab from 2009-2011. Eileen Blumenthal\, author of Puppet ry: A World History\, wrote of Hoplite Diary\, “An extraordinary piece of theater–huge in scope and filled w ith exquisite detail and emotion. Tom Lee is an exciting new talent.”
Tickets: https://www. eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-workshop-tom-lee/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210226T180000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Tom Lee URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/tom-lee/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=408%2C408&s sl=1\;408\;408\,medium\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-conte nt/uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=408%2C408&ssl =1\;408\;408\,large\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/ uploads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=408%2C408&ssl=1\ ;408\;408\,full\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uplo ads/2021/01/Tom_Lee_SM_CreditAyumiSakamoto.jpg?resize=408%2C408&ssl=1\;408 \;408 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-tom-lee/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71057@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Chicago Artists Workshop Presents: Nick Zoulek
\n
“…Zoulek’s performance\, on saxophones in ever
y range\, is stunningly virtuosic\, whatever the genre.” -The Wall St
reet Journal
A modern saxophonist of “pure mindfulnes s and talent” (PopMatters)\, Nick Zoulek’s focus on performance\, col laboration\, multimedia\, and improvisation\, has led to a diverse portfol io of distinctive artistic ventures\, performing across France\, the Unite d Kingdom\, Canada\, and the United States.
\nAs a soloist\ , Nick’s craft has been lauded as “wickedly contagious” (The Huff ington Post) with the capacity to “[take] you to other worlds” (M ilwaukee Magazine). The versatility Nick displays on the saxophone has bee n praised as “[b]eautiful harmonies [singing] in contrast to mysteriou s knockings and hums\, and finally to ungodly\, soul-shattering blasts” (Shepherd Express). Bringing together diverse musical landscapes\, Nick ’s performances traverse genre\, bringing together classical\, jazz\, expe rimental\, and rock idioms. He has garnered numerous awards as a classical soloist\, and has been featured in concerti with the University of Wiscon sin Whitewater Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Symphony Orchestra\, the Univer sity of Wisconsin Eau Claire Wind Ensemble\, and the Boulogne Ensemble du Vent. Committed to advancing the classical saxophone\, Nick performs frequ ently as a visiting guest artist at universities across the United States\ , most recently as the featured artist of the Shockingly Modern Saxophone Festival and as the year-long Artist in Residence for the University of Wi sconsin-Milwaukee SENSORIA series.
\nAs an interdisciplinar y artist\, Nick is “a no-holds-barred engine of avant-garde exploratio n\,” (Portland Press Herald). Currently\, Nick is working on his seco nd album project\, Enter Branch\, which will combine his performance and compositions with members of Bon Iver\, Eighth Blackbird\, Field Report\, the Tontine Ensemble\, ~nois saxophone quartet\, and many more. He has served as music director with Wild Space Dance Company\, and has scored and performed dance works with the Madison Ballet\, HYPERlocal\ , and with members of Zenon and Like You Mean It dance companies. Nick of ten works with film and animation\, experimenting with the expressive pote ntial of visual media. His films center on self-composed scores\, and have been screened at festivals in England\, Canada\, Serbia\, Africa\, and ar ound the United States. Nick’s media works have garnered numerous awards\, including Best Experimental Film from the London Modcon International Fil m Festival and Largo Film Festival. Nick’s music can be heard on R ushing Past Willow (INNOVA Records)\, which fuses all of facets o f his work through self-composed pieces for alto\, tenor\, and bass saxoph one.
\nNick maintains an active profile researching the sax ophone’s role in contemporary classical music\, presenting on contemporary aesthetics and saxophone performance. He has served on faculty at the Uni versity of Wisconsin-Whitewater (sabbatical replacement)\, teaching saxoph one and jazz studies courses. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Contemporary Music Performance with a cognate in Digital Media from Bowlin g Green State University. Additionally\, Nick holds a Master of Music Perf ormance from BGSU\, a Certificat des Études Musicales from the Conservatoi re à Rayonnement Régionale de Boulogne-Billancourt\, and a Bachelor of Mus ic Performance with Magna Cum Laude honors from the University of Wisconsi n-Whitewater. He has previously learned with Dr. John Sampen\, Jean-Michel Goury\, Dr. Matthew Sintchak\, and Dr. Jon Amon.
Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/pro duct/chicago-artists-workshop-nick-zoulek/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210310T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Nick Zoulek URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/nick-zoulek/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/NZ.jpg?resize=457%2C305&ssl=1\;457\;305\,medium\;http s://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/NZ.jpg?re size=457%2C305&ssl=1\;457\;305\,large\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbi rd.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/NZ.jpg?resize=457%2C305&ssl=1\;457\;305\ ,full\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/0 1/NZ.jpg?resize=457%2C305&ssl=1\;457\;305 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-nick-zoulek/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71065@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:
Equal parts meditation and evocation \, The World Inside This One invites us to consider the past\, pr esent\, and future lives of our homes and the relationships among the obje cts within them.
\nThe evening includes a new long poem by Bielak an d Schmalz\, inspired by works of Ceslaw Milosz and Jean Valentine\, whose poem inspired the title of this work.
\nVideos by Bielak and Schmalz present tableaus of domestic daily life and ritualistic acts in home and nature.
\nThe musical score by Duvall and Kaplan—weaving through the entire piece—references works by Aphex Twin\, John Cage\, Emahoy Tsegué-M aryam Guèbrou\, and Hiroshi Yoshimura\, among others.
\nAbou t the artists:
\nSusy Bielak and Fred Schmalz are artists a nd writers who frequently collaborate with each other\, as well as with ch oreographers\, engineers\, historians\, musicians\, and others. Their ongo ing collective\, Balas & Wax\, mines social histories\, texts\, and archiv es to create multimedia works that reflect the gravity and strangeness of daily life and contemporary cities.
\nCritic\, poet\, and translator Gabriela Jauregi wrote that Balas & Wax’s work expands:
\n“the prac tice of artmaking to embrace walks around the city\, archival work\, music \, poetry\, monument and anti-monument… often joined by multiple accomplic es\, who make the urban landscape theirs by questioning what’s there\, by excavating what they encounter\, thereby effectively transforming the city \, rendering it strange (as in the Russian concept of ostranenie\ , or defamiliarization) through the process of paying attention to the inn er lives of certain objects and places.
\n‘Most people don’t see wha t’s going on around them. That’s my principal message…For Godssake keep yo ur eyes open. Notice what’s going on around you\,’ William Burroughs couns els in The Third Mind. And indeed Balas & Wax elevate this act of noticing the everyday into an art form.”
\nBalas & Wax’s work has manifested in exhibitions\, performances\, and publications including EXPO CHICAGO\, the Hyde Park Art Center\, Lit & Luz Festival\, Museo Tamayo\, and Poetry Magazine.
\nBielak’s work has been collected and exhibited widely\, including by the International Print Center\, San Diego Museum of Contemp orary Art\, and Walker Art Center. Her artwork and writing have been publi shed in Art Papers and New American Paintings\, among others. Bielak recei ved her MFA from the University of California San Diego. She is a 2020-21 BOLT artist in residence at Chicago Artists Coalition.
\nFred Schmal z’s debut poetry collection\, Action in the Orchards (Nightboat B ooks)\, responds to encounters with dance\, music\, and visual art. He was poet-in-residence for the LA Philharmonic’s 2018 FluxConcert in its seaso n-long fluxus festival. His recent writing has appeared in Conduit and Oversound and is forthcoming in The Canary. He cur rently co-curates the Poetry & Biscuits reading series.
\nwww.susybielak.com
\nwww.fredschmalz.com
\nwww.balasandwax.com
Tickets: https://www.eighth blackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-workshop-susy-bielak-fred-schmalz/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210423T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Susy Bielak & Fred Schmalz: The World Inside This One URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/susy-bielak-fred-schmalz/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/image-asset.jpeg?resize=379%2C569&ssl=1\;379\;569\,me dium\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01 /image-asset.jpeg?resize=379%2C569&ssl=1\;379\;569\,large\;https://i0.wp.c om/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/image-asset.jpeg?res ize=379%2C569&ssl=1\;379\;569\,full\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird .org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/image-asset.jpeg?resize=379%2C569&ssl=1\;3 79\;569 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-susy-bielak-fred-schmalz/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71508@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:
5th Wave Collective is a Chicago-based classical
music ensemble dedicated to performing and promoting music by womxn and g
ender-nonconforming composers. Demonstrating their commitment to composers
throughout classical music’s history\, the Collective performs repertoire
by composers such as Teresa Carreño\, Clara Schumann\, Florence Price\, A
ugusta Read Thomas\, and Aftab Darvishi. With a roster of over 110 musicia
ns\, 5th Wave curates concerts with configurations ranging from solo instr
uments to symphony orchestra\, and performs in venues across Chicago\, inc
luding recital halls\, art galleries\, community centers and restaurants.
Learn more at 5thwavecollective.com\, or by following 5th Wave on F
acebook\, Instagram\, and YouTube at @5thWaveCollective.
Tickets: https://www.ei ghthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-workshop-5th-wave-collective-may -5/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210505T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:5th Wave Collective URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/5th-wave-collective/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/04/shortfinal-scaled.jpeg?resize=341%2C341&ssl=1\;341\;3 41\,medium\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2 021/04/shortfinal-scaled.jpeg?resize=341%2C341&ssl=1\;341\;341\,large\;htt ps://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/shortfin al-scaled.jpeg?resize=341%2C341&ssl=1\;341\;341\,full\;https://i2.wp.com/w ww.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/shortfinal-scaled.jpeg?r esize=341%2C341&ssl=1\;341\;341 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-5th-wave-collective-may-5/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71475@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:
Half Gringa (Isabel Olive) is joined b y her guitarist Sam Cantor for duo arrangements of songs from her most recent release\, Force to Reckon\, as well as new\, unreleased material.
\nEmerging from Chicago’s fl ourishing indie music scene\, Half Gringa blends contemporary indie-rock a nd Latinx pop with midwestern folk. “When you grew up in the Midwest reall y into alternative rock\, but heard a lot of country music in the supermar ket\,” offers Isabel Olive\, the songwriter and multi-instrumentalist at t he core of Half Gringa\, when asked to place her music in a specific genre . “Or when your mom loved Bruce Springsteen and Maná and sometimes your br ain starts playing them at the same time.” The name Half Gringa is both a tribute to and study of her legacy\, stemming from a childhood term of end earment as “la Gringa” in her Venezuelan family and her bicultural experie nce growing up in the United States. Olive’s work seeks to narrate her tir eless pursuit as a pupil of both her origins and her experiences.
\nForce to Reckon is the Chicago-based artist’s second ful l-length album\, following her locally acclaimed debut\, Gruñona\, which landed on Chicago Magazine’s “10 Best Chicago Albums of 2017” and Chicago Reader’s “Best Chicago Albums of the Decade.” On the self-produced 9-song set\, Olive is joined by her full-time band members — Nathan Bojko (drums)\, Sam Cantor (guitar)\, Andres Fonseca (bass)\, Lucy Little (viol in) — as well as Ivan Pyzow on trumpet\, with occasional harmonies and pia no from fellow Chicago singer/songwriter Gia Margaret. But Force to Re ckon has the intimacy of a solo project\, and engaged listening feels like a glimpse into Olive’s journals of the last three years.
\n“I’m very goal-oriented\, but I’m also a very anxious person\,” she says. “And I always need to have a plan or a process and try to predict ev ery outcome so I’m prepared with my next move. When I started writing thes e songs I was feeling emotionally upended\, a bunch of things came at me t hat I did not predict\, and instead of feeling and responding in the momen t\, I swallowed all of it. These songs feel like little eruptions as a res ult\, they’re all trying to reach a point of catharsis\, but you can’t for ce catharsis.”
\nVocally forward and instrumentally full\, the songs on Force to Reckon have a quality that feels personal\, yet meant to be shared. Olive’s poetry background is prominently displaye d\, with carefully selected words used to craft narratives grounded in var ious different textures\, and each part feels intentional and precise. It’ s meticulously composed but not cautious. “I was trying to figure out how to express my own vulnerability\, my love towards other people\, in a way that felt like I was giving myself permission to do so\, while accepting t hat loss and estrangement are inevitable\,” she goes on to say.
\nEach song reaches a climactic peak in its own way and even slower t racks on the album capture something that feels expansive\, both sonically and emotionally. “I don’t know your feelings by their first name \,” Olive sings emphatically on “Afraid of Horses\,” an apology punctuated by a pizzicato violin echo and soft harmonies from Gia Margaret. And alth ough the record is steeped in heavy-hearted themes\, Olive often dissects those subjects using tongue-in-cheek humor: “1991 was good to you and I\,” the 28-year-old deadpans at the start of upbeat opener “1990\,” which traces the anxieties of adulthood back to oft-forgotten childhood me mories.
\nElsewhere\, on “Transitive Property\,” Olive expl ores grief and loss\, over a bed of bittersweet fingerpicked guitar\, by e xpertly placing the abstract concepts into the context of everyday change rather than mortality. “I’ve realized that bereavement is about more than a person dying\,” she explains. “It’s an absence that you can’t control.” After her grandmother passed away while Olive was on tour\, she tried to b ury her grief in productivity but eventually realized she needed to set as ide time to process. On “Forty\,” the album’s string-heavy closer\, she fi nally allows herself long-overdue space to mourn.
\nFor ce to Reckon is\, as the title suggests\, an album with a powerful pr esence. Though deeply personal\, Olive leaves listeners space to relate an d experience their own catharsis. “None of the songs on this record resolv e\, really\,” she explains. “Many end in the middle of a thought\, because this record is about how much I’m still in the middle of my grieving proc ess. Lines like ‘Time will tell if nothing else’ and ‘I will mourn you in advance\, but I never really get the chance’ sound like hindsight\, but they were more like predictions when I wrote them. I spend a lot of time looking away from things I don’t want to deal with\, but I know they’re still there. And my eyes are getting tired\, I guess.”
\n< p>Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/pr oduct/chicago-artists-workshop-half-gringa-may-13/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210513T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Half Gringa URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/half-gringa/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/MG_4933.jpeg?resize=470%2C314&ssl=1\;470\;314\,medium \;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/MG_ 4933.jpeg?resize=470%2C314&ssl=1\;470\;314\,large\;https://i0.wp.com/www.e ighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/MG_4933.jpeg?resize=470%2C31 4&ssl=1\;470\;314\,full\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-cont ent/uploads/2021/01/MG_4933.jpeg?resize=470%2C314&ssl=1\;470\;314 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-half-gringa-may-13/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71072@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:
Molly Joyce comes to the Chicago Artists Workshop to perform songs that “explore disab ility as a creative source\, including those centered on my direct embodim ent of disability as well as from Perspective\, an ongoing communally-enga ged project featuring disabled interviewees. The songs will be complemente d with visual footage including open captions of the lyrics sung\, as well as sound descriptions by Chicago-based sound artist Andy Slater\, in orde r to emphasize access as aesthetic.”
\nMolly Joyce’s music has been described as “serene power” (New York Times)\, written to “superb effect” (The Wire)\, an
d “impassioned” (The Washington
Post). Her work is primarily
concerned with disability as a creative source. She has an impaired left h
and from a previous car accident\, and the primary vehicle in her pursuit
is her electric vintage toy organ\, an instrument she bought on eBay which
suits her body and engages her disability on a compositional and performa
tive level. Her creative projects have been presented at TEDxMidAtlantic\,
Bang on a Can Marathon\, Danspace Project\, Gaudeamus Muziekweek\, Nation
al Gallery of Art\, Classical:NEXT\, National Sawdust\, and featured in ou
tlets such as Pitchfork\, Red Bull Radio\, and WNYC’s New Sou
nds. Molly is a graduate of The Juilliard School\, Royal Conservatory in T
he Hague\, Yale School of Music\, alumnus of the YoungArts Foundation\, an
d currently serves on the composition faculty at New York University Stein
hardt.
Andy Slater is a Chicago-based media artist\, soun
d designer\, teaching artist\, and disability advocate.
He is the founder of the Society of Visually Impaired Sound Artists and director of the Sound As Sight accessible field recording project.
\nAndy holds a Masters in Sound Arts and Industries from Northwestern University and a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He was a 3Arts/Bodies of Work fellow at the University of Illinois Chicago in 2018 and an Insti tutional Incubator resident at High Concept Labs 2016-2020. Last year Andy was acknowledged for his art by the New York Times in their article\, “28 Ways To Learn About Disability Culture.”
\nAndy is a teaching artis t with the Midwest Society for Acoustic Ecology and is a member of the Atl antic Center for the Arts’ Young Sound Seekers advisory board.
\nHe has exhibited and performed at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago\, th e Contemporary Jewish Museum San Francisco\, Ian Potter Museum of Art Melb ourne\, Critical Distance Toronto\, Experimental Sound Studios Chicago\, t he Art Institute of Chicago\, Flux Factory New York\, and the City Gallery Wellington New Zealand.
\nAndy’s current work focuses on advocacy f or accessible art and technology\, Alt-Text for sound and image\, document ary film\, spacial audio for extended reality\, and sound design for sci-f i film and video games. He has created a large catalog of compositions fea turing the sounds of the blind body navigatingdifferemt acoustic spaces. T hese pieces include the bangs and swipes of his white cane and echo locati on clicks interrupting and disrupting natural and built environments. His recent album\, Unseen Reheard (No Index records)\, epitomizes this tangent of his artistic practice.
\nhttp://www.thisisandyslater.net/
Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chic ago-artists-workshop-molly-joyce/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210603T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Molly Joyce URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/molly-joyce/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/Molly-Joyce-photo-by-Shervin-Lainez-scaled.jpg?resize =446%2C298&ssl=1\;446\;298\,medium\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird. org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Molly-Joyce-photo-by-Shervin-Lainez-scaled. jpg?resize=446%2C298&ssl=1\;446\;298\,large\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthb lackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Molly-Joyce-photo-by-Shervin-Laine z-scaled.jpg?resize=446%2C298&ssl=1\;446\;298\,full\;https://i2.wp.com/www .eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Molly-Joyce-photo-by-Sherv in-Lainez-scaled.jpg?resize=446%2C298&ssl=1\;446\;298 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-molly-joyce/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71477@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Eighth Black bird’s Matthew Duvall is joined by soprano Jocelyn Zelasko for an evening devoted to the work of Matthew Burtner.
\n
Matth ew Burtner (http://www.ma tthewburtner.com) is an Alaskan-born composer\, sound artist and eco-a coustician whose music and research explores embodiment\, ecology\, polyte mporality and noise. First Prize Winner of the Musica Nova International E lectroacoustic Music Competition (Czech Republic)\, a 2011 IDEA Award Winn er\, and a recipient of the Howard Brown Foundation Fellowship\, Burtner’s music has also received honors and awards from Bourges (France)\, Gaudeam us (Netherlands)\, Darmstadt (Germany) and The Russolo (Italy) internation al competitions. He is the Eleanor Shea Chaired Professor of Music in Comp osition and Computer Technologies (CCT) at the University of Virginia wher e he Co-Directs the Coastal Futures Conservatory. He is also Director of t he Alaskan-based environmental arts non-profit organization\, EcoSono (www .ecosono.org).
\nBurtner’s works have been performed in festivals an d venues throughout the world\, and commissioned by ensembles such as NOIS E (USA)\, Integrales (Germany)\, Peak FreQuency (USA)\, MiN (Norway)\, Mus ikene (Spain)\, Spiza (Greece)\, CrossSound (Alaska)\, and others. His wor k has been supported by major grants from the National Endowment for the A rts and the National Science Foundation\, and he created ecoacoustic music for a number of organizations including President Obama’s US State Depart ment. His research in ecoacoustics has been featured by NASA’s Goddard Spa ce Center\, the American Geophysical Union\, The Atlantic\, Earther and th e Center for Energy Studies in the Humanities (CENHS) at Rice University.< /p>\n
He is the composer of three evening-length intermedia environmenta l opera/theater works — Ukiuq Tulugaq (Winter Raven)\, Kuik\, and Auksalaq \, the first climate change opera. A 2010/2011 Provost Fellow at the Cente r for 21st Century Studies at UWM\, Burtner has also conducted long-term r esidencies at the Banff Centre for the Arts (Canada)\, Phonos Foundation/P ompeu Fabra Universidad (Spain)\, Musikene (Spain)\, Cite des Arts (France )\, IRCAM/Centre Pompidou (France)\, and the University of Missouri Kansas City (USA). He studied composition\, computer music\, saxophone and philo sophy at St. Johns College\, Tulane University (BFA)\, Iannis Xenakis’s UP IC-Studios\, the Peabody Institute/Johns Hopkins (MM)\, and Stanford Unive rsity/CCRMA (DMA). Among published recordings for Parma/Ravello (US)\, DAC O (Germany)\, The WIRE (UK)\, Innova (US)\, Summit (US) Centaur (US)\, Eco Sono (US) and Euridice (Norway)\, his music is available on several solo a lbums: That which is bodiless is reflected in bodies\, The Ceiling Floats Away\, Glacier Music\, NOISE plays Burtner\, Auksalaq Live at the Philips Collection\, MICE World Tour\, Signal Ruins\, Metasaxophone Colossus and P ortals of Distortion.
\nBurtner’s creative musical work is closely i ntertwined with the sciences\, particularly environmental science and engi neering. He develops systems for human-computer-environment interaction fe atured in his music. He invented the NOMADS telematic system\, the MICE hu man-computer ensemble and orchestra\, the Metasaxophone augmented instrume nt\, and a number of ecoacoustic approaches.
\n\n
Detroit-based soprano\, J
ocelyn Zelasko\, is a versatile musician who is celebrated as an
insightful performer with a captivating stage presence. She has performed
chamber music\, opera\, and art song in festivals and concerts throughout
Europe\, the Caribbean\, and North America. She is the vocalist for Detroi
t’s premiere ensemble\, New Music Detroit\, and a founding member of ensem
bles Juxtatonal and Whoopknox. Her career began in the classical realm\, b
ut a passion for making complex vocal music accessible to audiences throug
h character development and authentic storytelling led her to pursue new m
usic.
She has performed with the GRAMMY award-winni ng ensemble Eighth Blackbird\, Eastman Broadband Ensemble\, Matt Ulery Tri o\, and the Windsor Symphony Orchestra. She has also sung with many outsta nding performers including Tony Arnold (International Contemporary Ensembl e)\, Vicky Chow (Bang on a Can All-Stars)\, and Miles Brown (Alarm Will So und)\, among many others. She has performed at the Great Lakes Chamber Mus ic Festival (GLCMF)\, held residencies at the Wholehearted Musician and th e Millay Colony for the Arts\, was a fellow at [R]evolution Resonant Bodie s and Eighth Blackbird’s Creative Lab\, and was a featured performer at so undSCAPE and the Summer Institute of Contemporary Performance Practice (SI CPP).
\nAs an advocate for the creation of new works\ , Zelasko has commissioned a vast number of composers including Michelle M cQuade Dewhirst\, Marti Epstein\, David Smooke\, Daniel Felsenfeld\, Leaha Maria Villarreal\, Danny Clay\, Griffin Candey\, Emily Millard\, and more . Her voice and cello duo\, Juxtatonal (JUX)\, embarked on a large-scale c ommissioning project asking 14 composers for new works addressing relevanc e. The compositions deal with issues of vulnerability\, self\, privilege\, gender\, age\, and culture\, and include elements ranging from co-composi tion with 5th graders\, new forms of musical notation\, and choreography i nspired by pop culture.
\nAdditionally\, she originat ed the title role of 100 year-old photographer\, Pat Sturn\, in the new-mi xed media chamber opera\, Pat & Emilia (Smallman/ Gervais/Sievers-Hunt) wh ich toured extensively in Canada and the Great Lakes region from 2015 – 20 18. Michigan Opera Theatre’s (MOT) principal cellist\, Nadine Deleury\, co mmissioned the opera and hand-selected the chamber ensemble utilizing tale nted colleagues of the MOT orchestra. Jeff Smallman composed the music spe cifically for Zelasko and Deleury’s chamber ensemble using lyrics by Winds or’s poet laureate\, Marty Gervais\, with Canadian-American writer\, Tara Sievers-Hunt. While being interviewed for the Canadian Arts Productions do cumentary\, Imagining Angels\, Zelasko discussed her inspirations to play Pat Sturn feeling connected to Pat’s fierce independence\, quest for perfe ction\, and unwavering passion for art.
\nZelasko’s scholarly pursuits focus on fostering musical identity and embodying empat hy through song. After her riveting lecture performance on Eleanor Smith’s social protest songs\, she was invited to contribute a book chapter on he r research\, development\, and embodiment of the social protestors in Smit h’s Hull House Songs. The book and accompanied recordings were published i n early 2019.
\nZelasko received bachelor’s degrees in vocal performance and economics from Oakland University where she was a lso a scholarship athlete. Furthering her education\, she received a maste r’s degree in music from the University of Iowa. She studied with acclaime d voice professors Dr. Edith Diggory and Dr. John Muriello\, and voice sci entist Dr. Ingo Titze. In addition to her work as a performer\, Zelasko is a grant-award panelist for New Music USA\, conducts master classes\, lect ures\, maintains a thriving private voice studio\, and enjoys paddle board ing\, surfing\, and golfing.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210617T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Matthew Burtner composer portrait\, ft. Jocelyn Zelasko\, soprano URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/matthew-burtner-composer-portrait -ft-jocelyn-zelasko-soprano/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/MatthewPlayingIceArctic_sm.jpeg?resize=425%2C283&ssl= 1\;425\;283\,medium\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/ uploads/2021/01/MatthewPlayingIceArctic_sm.jpeg?resize=425%2C283&ssl=1\;42 5\;283\,large\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/upload s/2021/01/MatthewPlayingIceArctic_sm.jpeg?resize=425%2C283&ssl=1\;425\;283 \,full\;https://i0.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/ 01/MatthewPlayingIceArctic_sm.jpeg?resize=425%2C283&ssl=1\;425\;283 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-matthew-burtner-composer-portrait-ft-jocelyn-zelasko-soprano-june-17/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71481@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:Special time – 2:00pm CT / 3:00pm ET / 12:00pm PT\n
—
\nSometimes it’s nice to lean on “How To” guides to trust we will learn necessary coping skills.
\nFor instance\,
\nHow To Know How Tall You Are:
\nOr
\nHow To Know What Kind of Fish You Are:< /p>\n
If we had a “How To” guide for this last year\, we may have learned how to capture\, how to acknowled ge\, how to process what’s been going on. We sometimes wish that was the c ase. We’ve come together as Chaos Hands\, guide-less\, to create a work t hat exposes our isolation so we can acknowledge where we are.
\nWe invite you to join our sharing of a new concept we are working on: a film driven by a long form poem\, writte n by Nicole Patrick. The film depicts our current separation and isolation . It is accompanied by music that recalls early synthesizer aesthetics of the late 80s and 90s.
\nThis is the world premiere of this exclusive preview.
\nhttps://www.xuanfilms.com/work#/chaoshands/
Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird .org/product/chicago-artists-workshop-chaos-hands-june-26/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210626T140000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Chaos Hands URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/chaos-hands/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/01/Chaos-Hands-CAW-pic.png?resize=425%2C425&ssl=1\;425\; 425\,medium\;https://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/ 2021/01/Chaos-Hands-CAW-pic.png?resize=425%2C425&ssl=1\;425\;425\,large\;h ttps://i2.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Chaos- Hands-CAW-pic.png?resize=425%2C425&ssl=1\;425\;425\,full\;https://i2.wp.co m/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Chaos-Hands-CAW-pic.p ng?resize=425%2C425&ssl=1\;425\;425 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-chaos-hands-june-26/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:ai1ec-71367@www.eighthblackbird.org DTSTAMP:20210612T234249Z CATEGORIES;LANGUAGE=en-US:CAW CONTACT: DESCRIPTION:
AYANNA WOODS is a composer\, performer and bandleader from Chicago. Her music exp
lores the spaces between acoustic and electronic\, traditional and esoteri
c\, wildly improvisational and mathematically rigorous. A collaborator acr
oss genres and forms\, her work spans new music\, theater\, film scoring\,
arranging\, songwriting\, and improvisation. She earned her B.A. in music
from Yale University.
Woo ds’ chamber works have been performed by Third Coast Percussion\, Wet Ink Ensemble\, Fifth House Ensemble\, among others. Her work has premiered at Fresh Inc. Festival\, Walden CMR\, the Loretto Project\, and Close to Ther e<>Perto de Lá\, a cross-cultural residency in Salvador\, Brazil.\n
She is a frequent collaborator wit
h the Chicago Children’s Choir\, of which she’s an alumna. Her arrangement
s for the choir have been performed all over Chicago\, notably at CCC’s Paint the Town Red
In 2018\, sh e originated her role as a vocalist in Place\,a new oratorio about gentrification and displacement co-conceived by Pulitzer finalist Te d Hearne\, director Patricia McGregor and poet/librettist Saul Williams.
\nHer music appears in a rang e of film and theater projects. Two of her songs are featured in the Emmy- nominated web series Brown Girl s. In 2017\, she composed the score for No Blue Memories: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks\, a live film created by writers Eve Ewing\, Nate Marshall\, and Emmy-winning performance collective Manual Cinema. She continues to tour the U.S. and C anada with Manual Cinema as a bass ist and music director.
\nAs a gigging musician\, she is a sought-after bassist and improvisor in Chic ago. As the bassist for TASHA\, she toured the west coast and performed at Pitchfork Music Festival in 2019. Woods is currently recording a debut so lo album with her own band\, Yadda Yadda.
\nWoods is a recipient of Third Coast Percussion’s 2017 Emer ging Composers Partnership\, a 2017 3Arts Make A Wave grant\, and a 2020 D CASE Individual Artist Program grant
Tickets: https://www.eighthblackbird.org /product/chicago-artists-workshop-ayanna-woods-april-15/.
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20210630T190000 SEQUENCE:0 SUMMARY:Ayanna Woods URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/event/ayanna-woods/ X-COST-TYPE:external X-WP-IMAGES-URL:thumbnail\;https://i1.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-con tent/uploads/2021/03/yy-2020-10.jpg?resize=414%2C518&ssl=1\;414\;518\,medi um\;https://i1.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/y y-2020-10.jpg?resize=414%2C518&ssl=1\;414\;518\,large\;https://i1.wp.com/w ww.eighthblackbird.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/yy-2020-10.jpg?resize=41 4%2C518&ssl=1\;414\;518\,full\;https://i1.wp.com/www.eighthblackbird.org/w p-content/uploads/2021/03/yy-2020-10.jpg?resize=414%2C518&ssl=1\;414\;518 X-TICKETS-URL:https://www.eighthblackbird.org/product/chicago-artists-works hop-ayanna-woods-april-15/ X-INSTANT-EVENT:1 END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR