Sacramento-based free-improv banjoist Mike Marlin returns to Seattle to team up with co-
conspirators in a series of duets, trios, and ensemble with music to set a backfire against the raging inferno of ridiculosophy and abandonment of reason.

Mike Marlin approaches the banjo as a melodic, atonal, and percussive instrument to be shaken, stirred, beaten, plucked, and even strummed. With an ear toward sonic exploration and a nod to his grandfather Ted Marlin, who played tenor banjo in swing bands in the 1920s and 30s, Mike has adopted the banjo and focused primarily on free improvisation, including Dubious Duo, a 35 year collaboration with Boston trumpeter Eric Dahlman.

In Seattle from 1990 to 2005 Mike played solo and in a variety of settings and groups such as Plutopolis (with Angelina Baldoz, Jeph Jerman, and the recently departed Paul Hoskin) and Pulp Ensemble (with Jim Knodle, Troy Grugett, Jesse Canterbury, Mark Collins, and Bob Rees). In 1997 Mike co-founded The Tentacle magazine and with his cohorts provided a free, journalistic outlet for the Pacific Northwest creative music scene for many years. Mike has also performed with his wife Debra Scott as folk duo Haggis’ Revenge and as free improv duo Sympathetic Toe.

This evening will feature duets, trios, and an ensemble piece to round out the set of loosely
constructed and completely free improvisations. The theme will be a sonic purge to exorcise demons ideally leading to a positive, temporal shifting of civic space. The lineup includes Mike on banjo and prepared objects, Eric Dahlman and Jim Knodle on trumpets, Tari Nelson-Zagar on violin, Keith Eisenbrey on piano, Debra Scott on voice, Carl Juarez on guitar and miscellaneous percussion.

The Sound Ensemble is committing itself to bringing new and vibrant music to you. In the orchestral world, only about 300 pieces are regularly performed, compared to the thousands that have been composed, not to mention the abundance of sumptuous and engaging pieces being written as we speak. We have committed ourselves to include music from underrepresented composers, such as women and people of color, in all of our programs. As a celebration of this, we are presenting an entire program of music by women of our region – Angelique Poteat’s Morning at the Sound, Kaley Lane Eaton’s Sacred Geometry, Carly Ann Worden’s San Juan Sinfonietta, and a world premiere by our very own Sarah Bassingthwaighte!

Reviled for his “shapeless sonic tinkering” by the Los Angeles Times, Matt Ingalls is a composer, clarinetist, concert producer, and computer music programmer based in Oakland. Often incorporating elements of improvisation, his music is heavily influenced by his long involvement in computer music. His composerly solo improvisations explore extended clarinet techniques that interact with the acoustic space, often as combination tones. Matt is the founder and co-director of sfSound, a new music series, ensemble, and internet radio station devoted to new ideas and traditions of experimental music, performance art, live electronic music, Bay Area composition, and the various facets of contemporary improvisation.

Greg Kelley has performed throughout North America, Europe, Japan, Argentina & Mexico at numerous festivals, in clubs, outdoors, in living rooms, in a bank, and at least once on a vibrating floor. He has collaborated with a number of musicians across the globe performing experimental music, free jazz and noise, appearing on over 100 recordings in the process. He constantly seeks to push the boundaries of the trumpet and of “music.”

FHTAGN is an experimental chamber ensemble started by Blake DeGraw in 2015. Since its inception, the group’s amorphous lineup has been joined by over 70 musicians from a wide variety of musical backgrounds. Primarily employing non-traditional means of scoring and conduction, FHTAGN has performed as a string orchestra, surround-sound choir, saxophone quartet, and many other formats.

“The combined sound of [FHTAGN] could be described as if Charles Ives had access to psychedelic mind-altering substances.” – Icareifyoulisten.com

FHTAGN will present two original works for electric guitar ensemble: Study I for Strings & Low Frequency, and The Eternal for Ten Guitars.

Driftwood Orchestra is a collective of artists who create improvised music using modified & amplified pieces of driftwood gathered from the Cascade Mountains. Driftwood Orchestra is not concerned with perfection or standards of artistic success. Driftwood Orchestra is interested in creating a way to communicate with the forest with the intent to somehow, someday, apologize.

Live visuals by Citrus Sheila.

re•create percussion was founded by Rebekah Ko and Storm Benjamin. Rebekah is a virtuosic marimbist originating from LA. Her artistic vision is highlighted by a steadfast commitment to high quality, artful music. Storm Benjamin is a native of Washington who’s commitments lie in using percussion music to enrich the culture of the Northwest. This performance is an exercise within the collective’s artistic sensibilities and ideas, using prepared piano, marimba, vibraphone, and triangle. Storm and Rebekah will be collaborating with Ben Marx and Kevin Blanquies. The musics of Ben Marx are simple rhythmic improvisations on percussion instruments that will mingle with pre-determined electronic sample-base sounds (mostly from symphony orchestra source material) to create unique and varied soundscapes. Also featured is Toccata, a virtuosic piece written for vibraphone and marimba by Anders Koppel.

ONLINE SALES HAVE ENDED BUT A LIMITED AMOUNT OF TICKETS WILL BE AVAILABLE AT THE DOOR. DOORS OPEN AT 7:30pm. TICKET SALES START AT 7:15.

Seattle-based pianist Jesse Myers performs Philip Glass’ monumental Etudes for Solo Piano in a visually immersive concert which will be synchronized with colorful, moving light projections on the ceiling and walls of the beautiful Chapel Performance Space. Myers will perform half of Glass’ twenty complete etudes, which will span a wide range of textures, tempi, and piano techniques. The audience is encouraged to get comfortable, bring a mat or pillow to lie on the floor to enjoy this audio-visual, immersive experience. Chairs will also be provided.

Seattle-based pianist Jesse Myers is an adventurous explorer of music that expands the possibilities of the piano. With a strong interest in performance that pushes piano music into new realms, Myers frequently performs music for prepared piano, new music for piano and electronics, as well as traditional classical literature. He is a performer, educator, and composer with a goal of giving the audience a fresh perspective of the piano and an imaginative understanding of the music. His solo concerts have been featured in City Arts Magazine, KingFM, Second Inversion, Seattle Weekly, The Live Music Project, and were a part of The Strangers Best Concerts of 2017 for three seasons. His recent work with the prepared piano and electroacoustic music has led to tours across the country including artist residencies and guest performances at Cornish College of the Arts, Capital University Conservatory of Music, Bowling Green State University, Lewis University.

Jesse Myers has a Master of Music degree from the University of Washington in piano performance. He also attended Bowling Green State University, where he earned his Bachelor of Music in piano performance. His important teachers have been Robin McCabe, Virginia Marks, Valrie Kantorski, Frances Burnett, and Marylin Shrude.

Photo: Lee Goldman

Stranger Genius Award winner Ahamefule J. Oluo, a trumpet player, composer, and writer with deep roots in the Seattle music scene, will join original music string orchestra Scrape for a very special sneak-peek performance of the score for his new film, Thin Skin. An adaptation of Oluo’s stage musical, Now I’m Fine, Thin Skin (directed by Charles Mudede) is an autobiographical dark comedy starring Oluo as himself. Scrape’s Jim Knapp and Brianna Atwell have written arrangements for the Thin Skin score, and Oluo, in turn, will perform live on several original Scrape compositions. This innovative collaboration showcases true Seattle luminaries at the peak of their game.

Part music concert, part neo-dance jam, part sociocultural lab test, these evenings are designed as a hybrid experience for you to explore what The Antenna Project‘s music inspires you to do. Bring a book, bring a sketchpad, bring a pillow, bring a yoga mat, bring a camera, bring a movement idea, bring a friend… The Nyxology Sessions are all about building a bridge to that next authentic level.

Christopher Hydinger’s The Antenna Project provides instrumental live-scores (improvised, context-specific audio compositions) for all variety of experiences including extended duration performance, yoga, meditation and other movement-based classes, events, performances and happenings, films, fashion shows, ceremonies and gatherings of all kinds. He employs amplified electric guitar, an effects pedal and various methods of interfacing to create full-registered music ranging from subdued waves of droning minimalism to exuberantly celebratory maximalism. Christopher’s held the artist-in-residence position at Punk Rock Yoga, creative directed and performed in the award-winning art-theater group PB_TMOG, curated and produced the quarterly Dance and Music improvisation-based performance series HERE/NOW, performed in graphic novelist Dame Darcy’s band Death By Doll and performed at venues such as Benaroya Hall, Neumos, The Crocodile, Chop Suey, On The Boards, the Henry Art Gallery, Northwest Film Forum and the Triple Door sharing the stage with such acts as Low, Woven Hand, David Bazan (Pedro the Lion), The Gossip, Sun City Girls, The Makers, Tara Jane O’Neil, Kinski, The Dead Science, and Climax Golden Twins. He currently owns/operates WCS Art and Design.

New Series One is Simon Henneman on guitar, Troy Schefelbein on unamplified acoustic bass, and Mike Gebhart on hand drums and hand percussion. The play songs in an uninterrupted flow, weaving in and out of melodies, rhythms, and chord changes, taking it back to the roots of jazz as a very intimate folk music with all of us interacting on a shared platform. Deeply interacting and listening to each other to find new places to explore. As the world becomes larger and larger and distractions are more and more common place it’s a “close” music meant for a small audience and small spaces.

Taking its name from the Japanese word for “the space between two structural parts,” Matrio is an improvising collective featuring Greg Campbell on percussion and horns, Ha-Yang Kim on cello, James Falzone on clarinet and piano, and Tom Baker on guitar, theremin, and electronics. With influences ranging from Olivier Messiaen to The Art Ensemble of Chicago, Matrio creates set-long experiences that explore the space between sound, noise, music, and silence

This is an experimental electronic music showcase, featuring PNW sound and visual artists. We will christen the winter solstice with borscht soup, auditory hallucinations, planetary chasms, warm drones, glitch portals, distant raves.

7:15 – If Burial and Autechre had a baby, maybe it would sound like Marcus Price‘s latest record, Brain Job. Invoking “compositional origami”, Marcus Price’s sonic textures are simultaneously bleak and comforting.

8:00 – Nordra is the solo project of Zen Mother’s singer and guitarist Monika Khot, on Mamiffer-SUMAC-ISIS affiliated label SIGE Records. Cinematic in nature, Nordra has utilized the trumpet to evoke an uncommon feeling of dread, along with sequenced beats, vocals, and guitar loops.

8:45 – AVOLA, reigning from PDX, creates a journey enthralling and washed in layers of ritualistic drone and noise. She has collaborated with artists like Daniel Menche, System Lords, House of Low Culture, and Caustic Touch.

9:30 – Renowned DJ and Further Records founder Chloe Harris performs as Raica, creating mesmerizing portals of sound, invoking Kraftwerk-ian landscapes.

Kevin Blanquies is an artist, musician, and inventor–his work focuses on removing the boundary between sight and sound to create a single vivid experience. His visuals will be projected in this beautiful venue.