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• “Luna Park” by Georges Aperghis, now streaming

  July 21, 2011

  

  One of our favorite composers, Georges Aperghis, has made the video of his incredible new composition Luna Park available for streaming online. After seeing this, we couldn't be more excited to perform the new piece he's writing for ICE this season!

• [Preview] ICElab at Atlas Performing Arts

  May 16, 2012

  

  Just imagine 11 Claire Chase’s playing simultaneously in a complex network of shifting loops…

• Rebekah Heller | Bassoon [Part-2]

  May 14, 2012

  

  The bassoon is one GIANT extended technique. Really, it's an ungainly, primitive 8 ft. tube that performers have been trying to tame for the last few centuries.

• [Preview] Music of Michel van der Aa at the Phillips Collection

  May 9, 2012

  

  Van der Aa's music challenges the boundaries between traditional acoustic instruments and new technology. His scores often include gestural directions not directly related to the production of sound, which adds a theatrical dimension to their performance.

• Composer in Review: John Cage

  April 29, 2012

  

  “The purpose of music is to sober and quiet the mind, thus making it susceptible to divine influences” --John Cage

• Preview: ICE at EIGHT BRIDGES | Music for Cologne

  May 3, 2012

  

  This will be a weekend to see composer as performer, performer as sound agent, silence as music, and music as language.

• Preview: A Perfect Cube of ICE at Gardner Museum, Boston

  April 26, 2012

  

  On May 3rd ICE will play the music of Kaija Saariaho in the perfect cube that is Calderwood Hall. The arts, architecture, and music worlds are all abuzz about this new music performance space at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston.

• ICE(cubed)—Music of Kaija Saariaho at Calderwood Hall

  May 10, 2012

  

  The musicians arrayed themselves in a circle in the middle of the stage, affording every audience member a good view of their movements and interactions. The cubic dimensions of the hall provide a rare combination of intimacy and spaciousness.

• Saariaho in Brooklyn and Boston

  April 25, 2012

  

  What is it about Saariaho’s music that keeps ICE coming back again and again? Here are a few blurbs from some ICEicles on her work...

• Preview: Changing Light

  May 1, 2012

  

  "Everything is permissible as long as it's done in good taste” - Kaija Saariaho

• Nathan Davis | Percussion

  April 30, 2012

  

  "Metaphorically, I use organic structures to organize the sounds, often suggested in some way by the sounds themselves." - Nathan Davis

• Rebekah Heller | Bassoon

  April 18, 2012

  

  As a performer, one of the most exciting parts of playing new music is being involved in the creation process.

• Rebekah Heller: Carving a Path for Contemporary Bassoonists Everywhere

  July 28, 2011

  

  ICE’s esteemed and totally fabulous bassoonist, Rebekah Heller, is on a mission on behalf of bassoonists everywhere. DigitICE sits down with Rebekah to talk about her exciting new project.

• One Hundred Names [Preview]

  April 19, 2012

  

  Rebekah Heller's “fearlessness fits right in with ICE’s garage band mentality”

• ICE Chicago Benefit: Musicians Gone Wild!

  April 4, 2012

  

  A sardine-packed crowd of young hipsters, lightly salted and peppered with enough gray-hairs to keep it well-seasoned, reveled in the festivities of music, food, and drink at Longman & Eagle in Logan Square.

• Post ICE-Lab Workshop: Carla Kihlstedt

  May 6, 2012

  

  Remember Carla Kihlstedt’s really cool song series based on dreams? Carla explains the evolutionary process this piece undertook while being workshopped with ICE…

• Photos from the Scene: ICElab Workshop | Patricia Alessandrini, Carla Kihlstedt

  April 1, 2012

  

  We had a great time yesterday at the Baryshnikov Arts Center! Many thanks to everyone who came out to support the making of contemporary music!

• Meet Carla Kihlstedt

  July 27, 2011

  

  Everyone, meet violinist, singer, composer, improviser, experimentalist, and creative mastermind, Carla Kihlstedt. I, Liz Bennett, a member of ICE’s summer intern staff, couldn’t be more excited about her upcoming work with ICE as one of the 2012 ICElab collaborators, and this is why!

• InFormation: Patricia Alessandrini and Carla Kihlstedt [Preview]

  March 30, 2012

  

  This free workshop at the Baryshnikov Arts Center will be a showcase of the new works being created with ICE by Patricia Alessandrini and Carla Kihlstedt.

• ICELab Intro: Carla Kihlstedt

  March 27, 2012

  

  Carla describes the way she composes as “messy”. She fills notebooks with ideas (she has one notebook for lyrics, one for concepts/lists, and one for actual notes), discovering which ideas evolve easily and letting those connect.

• An Interview with Patricia Alessandrini

  September 7, 2011

  

  Continuing our series profiling ICElab's 2012 collaborators, digitICE is excited to introduce Patricia Alessandrini, whose abundant musical imagination has us counting down the days until she joins us in the ICElab.

• ICE Solo (I) at Corbett vs. Dempsey: Artist meets Artist

  March 22, 2012

  

  This auditory illusion was aided by the fact that the iconic melody is so familiar that the listener’s brain is able to fill in the missing pieces...

• ICE at the ACF | Music of Klaus Lang [Preview]

  March 6, 2012

  

  Klaus Lang's music invites us to an expansive and meditative sonic world influenced by American Experimentalism, most prominently Cage, Feldman, and Alvin Lucier.

• Photos from the Scene: ICElab at the CSUF New Music Festival

  March 10, 2012

  

  We had a great time last weekend at the CSUF New Music Festival! Many thanks to the CSUF Department of Music and everyone who came out to support contemporary music!

• ICELab at the CSUF New Music Festival [Preview]

  March 1, 2012

  

  Heads up, West coasters! ICE comes to California State University Fullerton this Friday and Saturday with an impressive line-up of groundbreaking composers.

• Today: Lisa Coons, The Troupe, BAC, 3pm

  February 18, 2012

  

  Today ICE will be showing off the progress we've made this week collaborating with 2012 ICElab composer Lisa Coons and The Troupe at the Baryshnikov Arts Center.

• Photos from the Scene: ICElab Workshop with Lisa Coons and the Troupe

  February 19, 2012

  

  We had a great time collaborating with Lisa Coons and The Troupe last week at the Baryshnikov Arts Center! Many thanks to everyone who came out.

• Lisa Coons Update [post ICElab workshop]

  March 8, 2012

  

  “It was the most enjoyable, most inspiring rehearsal process that I’ve ever experienced. The piece is challenging, but everyone was completely engaged, mentally, musically and physically.” - ICElab composer Lisa Coons

• ICElab Intro: Lisa Coons

  February 16, 2012

  

  “. . . that level of trying new things and feeling like the only failure would be to not take advantage and take chances. . . it's thrilling!”

• Eric Lamb | Flute

  February 15, 2012

  

  "If I won the lottery ... I'd buy industrial ear plugs for Josh Rubin and Erik Carlson. I'm the loudest piccolo player this side of the Mississippi."

• Photos from the Scene: ICElab Workshop with Juan Pablo Carreño and Carlos Iturralde

  February 12, 2012

  

  We had a great time collaborating with Carlos and Juan Pablo last week at the Baryshnikov Arts Center! Many thanks to everyone who came out.

• Juan Pablo Carreño [post ICElab workshop]

  April 7, 2012

  

  Juan Pablo Carreño took a few moments with us to reflect on his workshop experience with ICE back in February and what he is up to now.

• Juan Pablo Carreño [post ICElab workshop]

  February 25, 2012

  

  "I have a more clear idea about what I'm looking for in that piece, that idea of a disjunctive music, a disjunctive relation between different sonorous planes." - Juan Pablo Carreño following his ICElab workshop.

• ICElab introduces Carlos Iturralde

  January 24, 2012

  

  "It is just starting, but so far it is very promising above all because I've found nothing but openness to explore ideas and to give continuity to my work in every member of the ensemble that I've gotten in touch with." - Carlos Iturralde

• Carlos Iturralde [post ICElab workshop]

  March 18, 2012

  

  A few weeks ago, Carlos Iturralde took the first step in his ICElab collaboration, workshopping his piece “Cupid’s Deeds” with members of ICE.

• “Self-fiction, ¿a disjunctive music?”: An Interview with Juan Pablo Carreño

  November 21, 2011

  

  Colombian composer and 2012 ICElab collaborator Juan Pablo Carreño is quickly emerging as a prodigious and dynamic voice from a region rich in cultural traditions. His varied work explores the intersections between art, politics, latin-american identity, and different cultural heritages, drawing on both the violence and the cultural vivacity of his home country. He has studied composition at Javeriana University in Bogotá and at the Paris Conservatoire, where he was recently awarded first prize in composition. His work has been performed by several leading European ensembles, and featured at the Festival Musique sur Ciel. Check out this interview with Juan Pablo, in which he discusses, among other things, the concept of “disjunctive music”, how the places in which he has lived and worked have inspired his music, and what it means to be a composer in today's world:

• ICElab introduces Tyshawn Sorey

  January 18, 2012

  

  Both on the bandstand and at the writing desk, Sorey is that rare kind of musical being who not only wears his influences on his sleeve, but shapes them into something wholly other. If that spirit of originality carries through to his time at ICElab – it will – it’s going to make for some very exciting results.

• ICE at MCA: Composers, Composers, and More Composers

  February 20, 2012

  

  Imagine the tingling rush we felt at MCA on February 5 when ICE with “George Lewis and Friends” presented two World Premiers and three Chicago Premiers.

• George Lewis & Friends on the MCA Stage [Preview]

  February 2, 2012

  

  The work's chronically unstable sonic environment, mesmerizing as it builds through the rise and fall of polyrhythms and dissonances, will shake the air and eardrums of Chicago for the first time on Sunday.

• Gaudeamus Muziekweek NYC [Preview]

  January 22, 2012

  

  The Gaudeamus Muziekweek -- a four-day contemporary music festival featuring new music by emerging composers from around the world -- will make its New York debut at ISSUE Project Room’s new home in Downtown Brooklyn. On Friday January 27th, ICE joins Ensemble MAE to perform works by three leading Dutch composers: Yannis Kyriakides, Peter Adriaansz, and Michel Van der Aa.

• Return from Parnassus [Preview]

  January 23, 2012

  

  From Takemitsu’s elegiac “Toward the Sea,” to Xenakis’ menacing “Dmaathen” (with guest percussionist Svet Stoyanov, who will step into the spotlight for Steve Reich’s “Electric Counterpoint”), Claire has handpicked a program that shows versatility as well as virtuosity. She also has the honor of unveiling a new piece, Marcos Balter’s “Descent From Parnassus.”

• Claire Chase | Flute

  January 25, 2012

  

  "Working with Marcos is kind of like doing a high-wire act - he is always imagining impossible things, and yet he has this joyful, irrepressible optimism about the prospects of executing these impossible things. This combination of audacity and curiosity is a thrilling collaborative space."

• Claire Chase @ AIC: Return from Parnassus [Review]

  February 4, 2012

  

  Postscript: We really struggled to articulate our experience of Return to Parnassus. We ruminated, talked, took notes, ruminated, talked, took notes . . . Before long, we looked at our notes and realized we’d “gone all Twombly on ourselves.” 

• A posthumous homage

  January 16, 2012

  

  "Sadly, what was meant to be a three-way collaboration suddenly became a posthumous homage. I didn't get to meet my hero. But, the sheer poetry and genius of Twombly’s works are an immortal legacy, and they continue to inspire me in spite of the ephemeral inadequacy of his human body to his eternal quest toward flawed perfections." - Marcos Balter

• ICE at Oberlin | Music of Xenakis and Lang [Review]

  February 7, 2012

  

  Once all the elements were in the mix, a quiet passage ensued . . . break time . . . and then suddenly the fury returned, driving to full mayhem and a sudden conclusion as Steve’s instruments started to shake loose from their substantial moorings.

• ICE at Oberlin | Music of Xenakis and Lang [Preview]

  January 14, 2012

  

  The concert isn’t just a Xenakis revue though – as its title would suggest, David Lang’s work also figures prominently. Steve Schick will take on a piece written specifically for him, Anvil Chorus, a spasmodic and danceable solo percussion piece that fits nicely with the Xenakis work on the program. Oberlin concertgoers are in for a special treat, as if they weren’t already: ICE will premiere Lang’s new (still untitled) work, it's currently appropriately called "New Work."

• Cory Smythe | Piano

  January 19, 2012

  

  "I can only hope that people on their way home from the show will be talking about how much beauty and invention existed in this ultra-conservative music that didn't include even one naked performer nor exploding piano."

• Æsopica Sold Out Tonight! + Critic’s Pick

  December 16, 2011

  

  The world premiere of ICElab composer Marcos Balter's Æsopica is sold out tonight! We hope to see you there. The New York Times selected this show as a Critics' Pick! They write: The restless young virtuosos known as ICE are worth hearing no matter what they undertake. Here, continuing their innovative ICElab series, they perform “Aesopica,” a brash, whimsical song cycle by Marcos Balter based on Aesop’s fables; Peter Tantsits, a tenor both skillful and brave, serves as the narrator and soloist. At 7:30 p.m., Baryshnikov Arts Center, 450 West 37th Street, Manhattan, (866) 811-4111, bacnyc.org; free, with reservations required. (Smith)

• Æsopica: Bringing Fables to the BAC

  December 6, 2011

  

  We're excited to be performing ICElab composer Marcos Balter's Æsopica during a FREE show at the BAC on December 16th! Check out the video excerpt from the piece below: The Chicago Tribune praised Æsopica's "minutely crafted whimsy" after we presented the piece in Chicago on June 4th: Arnold returned for the world premiere (at least in its present form) of Marcos Balter's Aesopica (2011), another suite-like piece for singer-narrator and 10-member ensemble, this one drawn from various Aesop fables. The Brazilian-born Balter, who directs the music composition program at Columbia College Chicago, has a wickedly original sense of humor and a fiercely imaginative palette of instrumental and vocal sounds rare in today's dour, post-classical new music.

• Marcos Balter: Composing Aesopica (via Meet The Composer)

  December 13, 2011

  

  As we gear up to present Marcos Balter's Æsopica on Friday at the BAC, we wanted to share this video and article (originally published here) from our good friends at Meet The Composer, who supported the creation of the piece:

• Guest Post: Marcos Balter on Aesop’s Fables

  December 15, 2011

  

  In preparation for our two night run of ICElab composer Marcos Balter's Æsopica (including a FREE special children's performance tonight), we have a special guest post from the composer! Marcos discusses the selection process for the fables, and muses on the moral significance of a few of the ones he chose:

• “I Want To Be Just Like You When I Grow Up”: Notes from Elementary Schoolers

  December 13, 2011

  

  Last month, ICE did one of our Listening Room workshops at Swift Elementary School in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago, programmed by Tricia Von Eck of The Happiness Project. Eric Lamb, Claire Chase, Josh Rubin, and Jacob Greenberg, our Education Director, worked with students for two hours to create a graphic score, which was then rehearsed by our musicians and performed for the students' parents. Check out these adorable thank you notes from students at Swift Elementary:

• Three Beats: InFormation Featured in Chicago Reader

  December 2, 2011

  

  For those of you in the Chicago area: don't miss ICElab InFormation, a FREE event tomorrow on the MCA stage. The event will include a discussion with ICE and composers George Lewis and Steve Lehman alongside live music and video in advance of their MCA premiere concert on February 5. Don't take our word for it - read the feature by Peter Margasak in the Chicago Reader:

• Pasts and Futures: George Lewis, Chicago, and A Power Stronger Than Itself

  December 1, 2011

  

  Chicago native, composer, instrumentalist, scholar, programmer, historian, MacArthur "Genius", and all-around musical pioneer George Lewis will be returning to his hometown this Saturday for ICElab InFormation, a FREE event at the MCA. Reserve your seat - right on the MCA stage - by clicking here Dr. Lewis was kind enough to compile this excerpt from his highly acclaimed book, A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music (which we highly recommend). The selections include a story from his early and formative encounters with the AACM in Chicago, a profile of the state of the Association at the ten year mark, and finally, a "futures" section: "An unstable polyphony of quoted voices, what follows is a section from a kind of virtual AACM meeting, sampled from the many self-critical musings that I heard in my interviews with my colleagues and friends in the collective."

• InFormation // Introducing Matt Orenstein

  December 5, 2011

  

  We're pleased to introduce Matt Orenstein, one of our new ICE interns, who you'll be hearing from periodically starting in January. He brings tidings from Chitown; read below for his account of ICElab InFormation, which took place on the MCA stage on Saturday:

• George Lewis x Jeff Parker x BOMB Mag

  November 29, 2011

  

  Chicago native and musical visionary George Lewis interviewed by Chicago-based musical visionary Jeff Parker in 2005, courtesy of BOMB Magazine. Chicagoans: if you find this interesting, don't miss InFormation, a FREE event on the MCA stage on December 3rd featuring Dr. Lewis, Steve Lehman, and ICE.

• Meditations on Memory: Phyllis Chen x Crime Unseen

  November 15, 2011

  

  We're packing up our toy pianos and metal bowls for a FREE encore presentation of 2011 ICElab composer Phyllis Chen's amazing Chimers in Chicago at the MoCP on Wednesday night. The New York Times has praised Phyllis for her “delightful quirkiness matched with interpretive sensitivity,” which you can hear in this evening-length cycle. Wednesdays free performance of Chimers at the MoCP will coincide with the exhibition Crime Unseen, which also concerns memory and "reactivat[ing] historical material".

• FREE ICElab: Chimers @ MoCP Tonight!

  November 16, 2011

  

  Attention all Chicagoans: we're playing another FREE ICElab show tonight! Come hear us perform Phyllis Chen's Chimers (2011) at the MoCP at 7:30pm. Although this is a free performance, the reservations list is filling up rapidly; please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with your name and the number in your party if you plan to attend. Watch a video of the piece, read an interview with the composer, and delve into the intersections between tonight's performance and the current photography exhibit, Crime Unseen.

• “Chimers”: Photos from the Scene

  November 17, 2011

  

  We had a great time playing the music of Phyllis Chen last night at the MoCP in Chicago! Many thanks to everyone who came out. Click the image above to view a few more photos from our pre-show run through.

• Steven Schick on George Lewis’s “North Star Boogaloo”

  September 20, 2011

  

  Steven Schick has been performing often with ICE recently—perhaps you caught him last week, conducting & playing in Nine Rivers at Miller Theatre—and we're looking forward to further collaborations with the master percussionist in the season ahead. It's always a treat to work with Steve, but we're especially anticipating his solo performance of George Lewis's North Star Boogaloo in November, also at Miller Theatre. digitICE is pleased to present an excerpt from Schick's book, The Percussionist's Art, about the genesis and performance of this incredible piece written for him by Lewis.

• Preview: George Lewis at Miller Theatre

  November 7, 2011

  

  MacArthur “genius” George Lewis is, simply put, one of the most important and influential figures in American music today. He has performed alongside luminaries such as Anthony Braxton and Roscoe Mitchell, and helped to shape both the future of music (as a pioneer of computer music) and the understanding of its practitioners (as a professor and scholar at Columbia University, and author of A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music). We are truly honored to be presenting his work this Saturday, November 12th as a part of Miller Theatre at Columbia University's Composer Portraits series. Check out this video preview video, courtesy of our good friends at Miller Theatre:

• ImprovICEing: Words from The New York City Jazz Record

  November 28, 2011

  

  A review of our recent Composer Portrait of George Lewis by Kurt Gottschalk appears in this month's edition of The New York City Jazz Record. On the subject of our performance of Lewis' improv-incorporating work, Artificial Life: "'Artificial Life' (2007) was a structured improvisation with perimeters given to the players. Peter Evans seized the situation, finding a five-note phrase and repeating it to exhaustion on pocket trumpet, but the performance was about group communication...'Artificial Life' was a wonderful setting for improvisers but this was Lewis’ achievement as a composer" On Lewis' new work for ICE, Will To Adorn: "Bold orchestral sections and percussive passages were interspersed with soft, exquisite refrains in an easy flow of disparate elements."

• Icicles On George Lewis

  November 10, 2011

  

  We're now into our third continuous day of rehearsals at Miller Theatre for the George Lewis Composer Portrait on Saturday. Icicles Ross Karre (percussion) and Cory Smythe (piano) share their experiences, thoughts, and questions about the music:

• Guest Post: Lewis on Lewis

  November 11, 2011

  

  We are thrilled to be presenting a Composer Portrait of the brilliant composer, improviser, performer, historian, and scholar George Lewis tomorrow night at Miller Theatre. Below, read about each of the pieces we'll be performing in the composers' own words: (If you are dying for more, here's a preview, an interview, an entry on these works from the perspective of two Icicles, and a tour of an installation featuring giant, green, pyramidal, sound producing, movement sensitive structures. Or, just buy your ticket here.)

• Experiencing “Ikons”

  November 9, 2011

  

  We're excited to perform George Lewis' Ikons for octet (2010) this Saturday night at Miller Theatre at Columbia Univeristy. Here is footage from a different version of the piece, which was experienced by visitors at last year's Cultural Olympiad in Vancouver:

• “The Story’s Being Told”: George Lewis Interview with NewMusicBox

  November 8, 2011

  

  As we gear up to present a Composer Portrait of George Lewis this Saturday at Miller Theatre, we thought we'd share this insightful interview from the good people at NewMusicBox: In the arts, you’ll come across a lot of multi-talented people, but not many who can boast the depth of accomplishment in as many areas as George E. Lewis. Since the beginning of his involvement with the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) at the young age of 19, Lewis has engaged in a dizzying number of projects with an impressive array of collaborators. As an improvising trombonist, he has worked with not only AACM luminaries Anthony Braxton, Muhal Richard Abrams, and Roscoe Mitchell, to name just a few, but also with the likes of John Zorn, Derek Bailey, Evan Parker, and Miya Masaoka (who is also Lewis’s wife). And that’s only a very small sampling... Read the full interview with NewMusicBox here.

• “Prodigious Imagination and Persuasive Skill”: The NYTimes Reviews GL Portrait

  November 14, 2011

  

  We had a blast performing the music of George Lewis with special guests Steven Schick and Quincy Troupe at Miller Theatre on Saturday night! Click here to read an insightful review from Steve Smith of The New York Times.

• Tonight: Glass Clouds and Fallen Warriors

  November 4, 2011

  

  We're pumped for our FREE ICElab show tonight at The Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC)! Featuring music by ICElab composers Phyllis Chen and Du Yun, this will be, in the words of ICE bassoonist Rebekah Heller, "an incredible night of toy pianos, metal bowls, oboe solos, video projections, and free beer lovingly provided by Brooklyn Brewery". Click the photo below to view a few snapshots from the setup (our three most recent wall photos): The show starts at 7:30pm and, although tickets are free, the reservations list is currently full. Please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to add your name to the waitlist.

• Streaming Glass Clouds

  October 31, 2011

  

  Earlier this year, we were deeply saddened to find that a performance of ours at The Southern Theater was canceled due to severe financial difficulties at the venue. We had commissioned several works that we were planning to play during that concert, including two world premieres by ICElab composer Phyllis Chen. We decided that the show needed to happen regardless: we partnered with our friends at Meerkat Media, who filmed us performing the pieces in our rehearsal space, and broadcast them to the world via WQXR.

• Snapshots from BAC Load In

  October 28, 2011

  

  Here are a few snapshots from ICE's load in at the Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) on Friday, October 28th:

• Phyllis Chen on “Chimers”

  October 27, 2011

  

  In anticipation of our upcoming performance of Phyllis Chen's Chimers during our FREE show on November 4th at The Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC), we thought we'd bring back this recent interview that we conducted with the composer regarding this work. While you're at it, check out this video from the premiere of the piece. Enjoy!

• Phyllis Chen - “Chimers” Video

  October 25, 2011

  

  Check out this video of ICE presenting the world premiere of ICElab composer Phyllis Chen's piece Chimers (2011) at the 2011 Mostly Mozart Festival. We're looking forward to performing it again as a part of our FREE show at the Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) on November 4th!

• Evading Authority, Russian Solfege, and the Downfall of Genres/Binaries: an Interview with Du Yun

  November 3, 2011

  

  Composer Du Yun has been a fixture on the ICE scene since our inception; in fact, she was one of the founders of the ensemble. Since then, she's gone on to garner international performances and praise for her highly original work. The New York Times has hailed her as "cutting-edge…to whom the term ‘young composer’ could hardly do justice,” and Time Out New York has classified her as “...an indie pop diva with an avant-garde edge," and mused that "[Du Yun] re-invents herself daily…so does her music”. We're excited to be playing a new work by Du Yun tomorrow night at our FREE ICElab show at The Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC). Check out this interview with the composer, conducted by Brianne Galli:

• Du Yun x Shahzia Sikander @ Mass College of Art

  November 1, 2011

  

  Watch ICElab composer Du Yun perform original music to accompany animations by visual artist Shahzia Sikander. The footage comes from a recent performance at Mass College of Art on October 3, 2011, which was part of an exhibition entitled The Exploding Company Man and Other Abstractions. ICE presents a brand new work by Du Yun on Friday, November 4th as part of our FREE ICElab show at The Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC). We hope to see you there!

• Du Yun Interviewed by HuffPost

  October 26, 2011

  

  We're gearing up for Glass Clouds and Fallen Warriors, a FREE concert featuring the music of ICElab composers Du Yun and Phyllis Chen at the Baryshnikov Arts Center on November 4th. Check out this great recent interview with Du Yun by Daniel J. Kushner of The Huffington Post (view the original published version here):

• Varèse, Charlie Parker, and the New York Improv Sessions

  October 14, 2011

  

  Throughout his career, Charlie Parker publicly acknowledged his admiration for Varese, who was his Greenwich Village neighbor. “I had the pleasure of meeting Edgar Varese,” he once said on Boston radio, “The French composer. He was very nice to me. He’s willing to teach me. He wants to compose something for me.” Of these encounters, Varese remarked, “He stopped by my place a number of times. He was like a child, with the shrewdness of a child. He possessed a tremendous enthusiasm. He’d come in and exclaim, ‘take me in as you would a baby and teach me music. I only write one voice. I want to have structure. I want to write orchestral scores.’ I promised myself I would try to find some time to show him some of the things he wanted to know.”

• Tonight: Jam Sessions at The Kitchen + Peter Evans on “Agents of Mechanization” + 30 Second Solo!

  October 21, 2011

  

  Jam Sessions at The Kitchen is tonight! There are still 20% discount tickets available: use the code word ICICLE when you purchase online or by calling 212.255.5793 x11 -- I visited experimental trumpet virtuoso, composer extraordinaire, and ICE member Peter Evans at his home in Queens recently to talk about his piece, Agents of Mechanization, which we'll be performing tonight at The Kitchen. The title of the work was taken from the name of a chapter from Lewis Mumford's book Technics and Civilization. Peter had the following words to say about the Mumford's book and how it provided the inspiration for his piece:

• Guest Post: Jason Eckardt

  October 17, 2011

  

  We've had the great pleasure of working with composer Jason Eckardt quite a bit in recent years, including our work on his recent Mode Records release, Undersong. Below, Jason discusses his work in the context of the current political climate, as well as the role of the artist in inspiring social change:

• Dan Peck, Joshua Rubin, and Cory Smythe on Alvin Lucier’s “ICEicles”

  October 12, 2011

  

  We are thrilled to be working with the genius composer Alvin Lucier, who has written a mind-bending piece especially for us! ICE performers Dan Peck, Joshua Rubin, and Cory Smythe discuss ICEicles, Lucier's piece for ICE:

• Steve Lehman: Lenwood & Other Saints Who Roam the Earth (2011)

  October 11, 2011

  

  Watch this video from the world premiere of ICElab composer Steve Lehman's Lenwood & Other Saints Who Roam the Earth (2011), taken from one of our Mostly Mozart performances at Lincoln Center this past August. While you are at it, read this thorough guest post from Steve about the piece. We'll be performing Lenwood again during our SONiC Festival show at The Kitchen on Thursday, October 20th - get your tickets today!

• Reviews from The Kitchen

  October 24, 2011

  

  Many thanks to all who came out to The Kitchen last Thursday and Friday! We had a great time. Check out these reviews from Consequence of Sound and Thomas Deneuville: "It’s not often that I leave a show speechless, feeling a deep desire to merely contemplate what I’ve just heard. The best live music experiences have certainly done this for me, as I walk out wide-eyed into the cool night air and think, What the hell just happened?..." -Consequence of Sound

• Rehearsal Shots from The Kitchen

  October 19, 2011

  

  We're getting ready for our Kitchen shows tomorrow and Friday...hope to see you there!

• Mario Diaz de León: Portals Before Dawn Video

  October 6, 2011

  

  ICElab composer Mario Diaz de León doesn't ever seem to slow down. A few short months ago, we featured an evening of his music as the program for our inagural ICElab concert at LPR, including a staggering new ICElab-commissioned work, Portals Before Dawn. Now, we are told that MDdL plans to release an album of his electronic music in late January on Shinkoyo, the label he co-runs. The release show will be held at The Stone during the last two weeks of the month, which Mario curated for Shinkoyo. Here is some footage from that night, shot by our friends at Meerkat Media. Portals Before Dawn, the incredible ICElab-commissioned work that received it's world premiere that night, begins about 38 minutes into the video.

• Kitchen Run Begins Tonight! + 20% Discount Tickets + More Rehearsal Shots

  October 20, 2011

  

  Our two night residency at The Kitchen starts tonight! Join us for an evening of the music of ICElab composers, presented as part of the 2011 SONiC Festival. A 20% discount is available for tickets for BOTH tonight and tomorrow night! Visit http://www.thekitchen.org/event/275/0/1/ to purchase and use the coupon code "icicle". See below for tonight's program details, and for more shots from the rehearsals:

• Guest Post: Nathan Davis on “Dowser”

  October 7, 2011

  

  Nathan Davis's music brilliantly reflects and expands upon the peculiarities and essential characteristics of instruments and the nature of acoustic phenomena. Here, the composer and ICE percussionist speaks about his piece, Dowser, for bass clarinet and electronics. ICE performs Dowser, along with works by several other ICElab composers, on Friday, October 20th at The Kitchen as a part of the 2011 SONiC (Sounds of a New Century) Festival.

• Guest Post: Marcos Balter on Instability, Variation, and the Beauty of it All

  October 10, 2011

  

  Here's another ICElab guest post, this one from the phenomenal composer Marcos Balter, on instability, variation, and the beauty of it all:

• Tonight: ICE plays the 2011 MATA Benefit at the Chelsea Art Museum

  October 18, 2011

  

  Don't miss the 2011 MATA Benefit tonight! The event will be in honor of Ara Guzelimian and Steven Schick, and will feature sounds from ICE and downtown legend Joan La Barbara. We're performing music by by MATA co-founder Philip Glass!

• Xenakis: Thallein

  September 12, 2011

  

  Greek composer and iconic noise pioneer Iannis Xenakis was a composer, a mathematician, an architect, a mystic, and a radical music theorist. We are really looking forward to performing one of his mind-bending ensemble works, Thallien, as a part of our Chance Encounters program at the MCA on October 5th. Comissioned in 1984 by the London Sinfonietta, Thallien means “budding”, "to sprout", or "to shoot forth". Listen to an excerpt of ICE's rendition of Thallein below. Also, check out the video below, featuring ICE rehearsing another Xenakis piece, Échange, at Miller Theater with the singular Steven Schick at the baton.

• Webern - Concerto for Nine Instruments, Op. 24 (Rehearsal Excerpt)

  September 16, 2011

  

  In anticipation of our upcoming Chance Encounters program at the MCA in Chicago, we are breaking out Anton Webern's Concerto for Nine Instruments, Op. 24. This is an impressive piece of music filled with astonishing symmetries, patterns, and revolutions, all generated from a small amount of material. We'll spare you the details, but all of you curious aficionados can get the scoop from Kathryn Bailey's paper "Symmetry as Nemesis: Webern and the First Movement of the Concerto, Op. 24". Listen to a recording of ICE rehearsing the piece below. For those of you in the Chicago area, don't miss ICE's performance of this piece during our Chance Encounters performance at the MCA on October 5th!

• Share your “Chance Encounters” Stories with us on Facebook; we’ll give you a Morton Feldman button!

  September 21, 2011

  

  One evening in 1950, Morton Feldman and John Cage ran into each other on the way out after a performance of a piece by Anton Webern. This chance encounter led to a long and artistically fruitful friendship between two of the most powerful voices of the century. We think this is a truly incredible story, and we've decided to build an evening of music around it (Chance Encounters on the MCA Stage hits Chicago October 5th!), but we also recognize that chance encounters happen everywhere, every day. To this end, we'll be sharing stories of chance encounters from ICE members and Chicago friends on this blog and on our Facebook page periodically between now and October 5th, and we encourage you to join in. Please post your "chance encounters" stories on our Facebook page; we'll give you one of these excellent Morton Feldman buttons!

• Rehearsal Photos from John Cage’s “Imaginary Landscape #4” for 12 radios and 24 players (1951)

  September 8, 2011

  

  Even in the world of contemporary music, it's not every day you come across a piece written for 12 radios. John Cage's Imaginary Landscape #4 for 12 radios and 24 players (1951) is a startling display, both visually and aurally. The resulting sounds are an excellent example of the musical potential of carefully controlled indeterminacy. Chicagoans—don't miss Chance Encounters at the MCA on October 5th, which will include this piece alongside works by Morton Feldman, Anton Webern, Pauline Oliveros, and Iannis Xenakis! We'll be the first to tell you that it's quite a sight, but you don't have to take our word for it: rehearsal photos provide a sneak peak below:

• Pauline Oliveros and Deep Listening

  September 22, 2011

  

  Visionary composer, performer, theorist, and educator Pauline Oliveros has been a major force in contemproary music for decades. Her early forays into electronic music have inspired several important developments in the area, and her practice and research in the area of Deep Listening (a term which Oliveros herself coined) has led her to perform and record in "resonant spaces such as caves, cathedrals and huge underground cisterns" with her ensembles. Watch a video of Oliveros performing and answering questions below (courtesy of our friends at Roulette TV). We'll be presenting Oliveros' Double X for 8 players (which was originally written for the Webern ensemble) as a part of Chance Encounters on the MCA Stage in Chicago on October 5th. Don't miss it!

• John Cage - 8’10” Explained

  September 29, 2011

  

  According to ICE flutist and Executive Director Claire Chase, 8'10" is "an ICE-style mash-up of several different Cage pieces". The pieces stand alone, but can also be performed in succession or even interwoven, with parts of different pieces performed simultaneously, or different parts of the same piece performed simultaneously. The list includes: 45' for a Speaker 27' 10.554" for a percussionist (1956) 34' 46.776'' for a pianist (1954) 26' 1.1499'' for a string player (1955) In each of these works, the minute is the adjustment mechanism: the performers are given one minute to interpret each page of music, and, at the end of each minute, are required to move on to the next page. Claire notes, "Some pages are dense, others are sparse; some involve actions such as blowing one's nose, snoring, or waving a fist in the air. As in all Cage works, marvelous happenings, both wonderfully synchronous and enchantingly discordant, take place that could never be rehearsed, and never be repeated."

• Claire Chase on “Chance Encounters”

  September 19, 2011

  

  ICE flutist, Executive Director, and all-around baller Claire Chase discusses Chance Encounters. Chicagoans: please join us for the experience on October 5th at the MCA!

• Chance Encounters with Torkwase Dyson and Tristan Hummel

  September 28, 2011

  

  Torkwase Dyson is an artist that defies simple categorization. In her own words (via Slo-Mo): "As a multi-media artist I create colorful hyper-real composites to magnify relationships between urban quotidian objects, global material economies, fashion and pollution. My work is a combination of popular culture apparel and recycled materials up-cycled into satirical allegories. I re-circulate materials associated with race, ethnicity, hip-hop, spirituality, capitalism and the global economy to address black cultural production as an ecological concern." Tristan Hummel is a creative artist working across a number of areas. He is the mastermind of Art on Track. In his own words: "I'm always looking for creative projects to work on. The more difficult, intense, bizarre or specialized a project is the more it holds my interest. It’s because I want to be the first one in a new territory. There is an intense calm to being in that kind of space, like an astronaut, alone but with the freedom of absolute movement and direction."

• Chance Encounters with Thomas Robertello

  September 29, 2011

  

  Thomas Robertello runs the Thomas Robertello Gallery, which exhibits contemporary artwork in all media. Q: What are you working on these days? A: I am working with Brooklyn-based artist Jason Robert Bell (pictured in the photo I sent) on a year-long project in my gallery. Jason is very prolific and works in many different media; drawing, painting, sculpture, video, performance. His work slowly reveals a complicated mysticism and a richly varied account of the state of mankind. He is showing work in the project space of my West Loop gallery for a year.

• Chance Encounters with Steven Schick

  September 30, 2011

  

  Simply put, Steven Schick is one of the most brilliant musical minds we've ever encountered. Also simply put, he's one of our favorite people. We asked Steve a couple of questions about fortuitous events past and present, in addition to exciting plans for the future.

• Chance Encounters with Pauline Oliveros

  October 3, 2011

  

  Our Chance Encounters series continues with the incredible Pauline Oliveros - here is a bit about what she's been up to and who she's met lately: Chicagoans: ICE will perform Pauline Oliveros' Double X for 8 players on Wednesday during Chance Encounters on the MCA Stage. Tickets are still available - reserve yours today!

• Chance Encounters with Nicolas Hodges

  September 23, 2011

  

  For those of you who haven't seen our call for "chance encounters" stories, we're asking you all to submit short stories describing any chance meeting that you've had that in some way altered the course of your life. Just post them on your Facebook wall and tag us in the post, or (alternatively) post them on our wall, and we'll give you a Morton Feldman button! One of the early responses we've received is from the unparalleled pianistNicolas Hodges (by the way, you should really buy all of his albums)...and it's a story about a chance encounter Morton Feldman himself!

• Chance Encounters with Marc Geelhoed

  September 26, 2011

  

  In the days leading up to our upcoming Chance Encounters program at the MCA Chicago, we'll been posting a series of "chance encounters" spotlighting a few of the many Chicagoans who we feel are doing interesting and exciting things in the arts. Here is the first encounter, featuring our good friend Marc Geelhoed!

• Chance Encounters with Esther Grimm

  September 27, 2011

  

  This next chance encounter features Esther Grimm, Executive Director of 3Arts, a vital arts non-profit in Chicago. Q: What are you working on these days? A: Phew! So many things. But at the top of the pile is the upcoming 3Arts Awards, which takes place at the MCA on October 3. This is my favorite night of the year. I mean, how great is it to honor and give back to Chicago artists—and hand out 12 $15,000 unrestricted grants to the new awardees? In my opinion, it is more than great; it is sublime. This year, in addition to featuring a bunch of fabulous musical performances, we will unveil a two new programs at the event, so I am literally dancing (not exceptionally well) around the office with excitement.

• Chance Encounters with Dominic Johnson and Julia Rhoads

  October 4, 2011

  

  Julia Rhoads is a choreographer who has been described as "Chicago's resident surrealist" in the Chicago Sun Times, and "adept at both provocative and humorous material" in PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art. Since founding Lucky Plush Productions in 1999, she has created over 30 original works with the company including performance installations, 2 dance films and 8 evening-length interdisciplinary productions. Julia currently teaches in the theater department at Columbia College Chicago and the dance department at Northwestern University. Violist Dominic Johnson is currently the Executive Director and principal violist of the New Millennium Orchestra of Chicago, an ensemble he co-founded in 2005. He has performed with artists as diverse as Brian Wilson, Josh Groban, Transiberian Orchestra, International Contemporary Ensemble, and Ray Lamontagne, and has led the NMOC ensemble in performances with members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Dj Spooky, Michael Kang from String Cheese Incident, eighth blackbird, and rapper Lupe Fiasco.

• Chance Encounters on the MCA Stage TONIGHT!

  October 4, 2011

  

  Chance Encounters on the MCA Stage is tonight! A limited number of tickets are still available - please call 312.397.4010 or place your order online. Don't forget to check out the "chance encounters" gallery above (simply click on any part of the image above to read a "chance encounter" with the person pictured). Thanks, and we hope to see you tonight!

• Steven Schick on “Nine Rivers”

  September 8, 2011

  

  In this video, the one-and-only Steven Schick talks with Miller Theatre about next week's epic Nine Rivers project. And he says some pretty nice stuff about ICE. Have we mentioned lately we love this guy?

• Steven Schick in the NYTimes

  September 6, 2011

  

  Master percussionist, conductor extraordinaire, and one of ICE's favorite people Steven Schick was featured this weekend in the New York Times.

• James Dillon / Nine Rivers Begins Tomorrow Night!

  September 13, 2011

  

  The time has finally come: James Dillon's Nine Rivers - an epic nine-movement work that uses the river as an archetypal metaphor for time - begins tomorrow night at Miller Theater! We're excited to be working with The Crossing choir and the percussion ensemble red fish blue fish. We are also always grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with one of our favorite people in the world, the incredible Steven Schick, who will be featured on solo percussion and will conduct us all through three evenings of music inspired by ancient and modern poetry, quantum physics, and Celtic knot patterns, among other things.

• Dress Rehearsal | “Nine Rivers”

  September 14, 2011

  

  Tonight, we join our friends in red fish blue fish and The Crossing to present Part I of James Dillon's Nine Rivers at Miller Theatre. While offstage, a few of us got to playing with the photo apps on our phones during this afternoon's dress rehearsal; take a look at the results!

• Behind the Scenes | “La Coupure”

  September 15, 2011

  

  After an intense opening night, which had Twitter all abuzz last night and this morning, Miller Theatre is transforming for tomorrow's performance of La Coupure by Steven Schick. Take a peek behind the scenes...

• Interview: Phyllis Chen

  July 25, 2011

  

  Today on digitICE: an interview with 2011 ICElab composer Phyllis Chen, who shares her thoughts about the toy piano, some of her musical philosophy, and the upcoming premiere of her new piece Chimers at the Mostly Mozart Festival. Also, give a listen to Phyllis's piece Munin Raven.

• Guest Post: Steve Lehman on “Lenwood & Other Saints Who Roam The Earth”

  July 29, 2011

  

  Today, we feature a guest post from composer Steve Lehman on his new piece Lenwood & Other Saints Who Roam the Earth, a new ICElab commission to be premiered at our late-night Mostly Mozart show on August 11 at the Kaplan Penthouse.

• Guest Post: Dennis James on the Glass Armonica

  July 22, 2011

  

  Leading glass armonica player Dennis James talks to us about the history and nomenclature of the glass instrument family. Dennis will perform with ICE at the Mostly Mozart festival on August 11th.

• Tonight’s Mostly Mozart Concert — LIVE on WQXR!

  August 11, 2011

  

  Can't get out to our Mostly Mozart concert with conductor Matthias Pintscher tonight? We'll miss seeing you in person, but thanks to our friends at WQXR, we can still share the music with you — the concert will be broadcast LIVE from Alice Tully Hall!

• Snapshots: Mostly Mozart

  August 3, 2011

  

  Rehearsals began in earnest this past Sunday for ICE's four concerts at Mostly Mozart beginning next Monday, August 8. We've been taking a few snapshots along the way — take a peek inside the ICEhaus.

• Rehearsal: Matthias Pintscher Conducts Mozart’s Gran Partita

  June 9, 2011

  

  Matthias Pintscher and ICE rehearse Mozart's Gran Partita for a performance on August 11th at the Mostly Mozart Festival. The program also features music by Pintscher, Arnold Schoenberg and Salvatore Sciarrino. Be sure to check out all four of our awesome events at Mostly Mozart on the 8th and the 11th.

• On the Shelves: ICE/Pintscher in Berlin

  July 8, 2011

  

  ICE's recent recording for Kairos of new music by Matthias Pintscher, recently spotted on the featured recordings rack at Dussman in Berlin. Check it out!

• Mostly Mozart pictures!

  August 16, 2011

  

  Our friend (and amazing photographer) Armen Elliott was once again on hand during ICE's rehearsal period for this year's Mostly Mozart concerts; take a look at a few of her excellent shots!

• ICE-fan Paul Hecht on ICE @ Mostly Mozart

  August 19, 2011

  

  Chicago ICE-fan Paul Hecht was in NYC for our Mostly Mozart concerts last week, and sent us a thoughtful reaction to what he heard. He's graciously allowed us to post it on the blog; take a look!

• In Memoriam Igor Stravinsky

  August 9, 2011

  

  Last night, we kicked off our Mostly Mozart residency with two Stravinsky-filled concerts at Alice Tully Hall and the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse. Our Kaplan performance also featured several rarely performed homages to Stravinsky — and since you heard ICE play these last night, today on digitICE we share a little background information about these remarkable works.

• In memoriam, by Stravinsky

  July 18, 2011

  

  On our late-night program on August 8 at Mostly Mozart, ICE will perform several works written in memoriam of the great Igor Stravinsky. Today on digitICE, we take a look at several works composed by Stravinsky, in memoriam of three of his friends / influences: writers T. S. Eliot, Dylan Thomas, and Aldous Huxley.

• ICE brings Bach/Stravinsky to WQXR’s Café Concerts

  August 10, 2011

  

  Did you miss ICE's A Little Night Music concert Monday night at Mostly Mozart? Well, you're in luck! ICE's intrepid string quartet of David Bowlin, Erik Carlson, Maiya Papach, and Katinka Kleijn were at WQXR's Café Concerts series last week performing selections from that concert — and WQXR has posted it on YouTube for the world.

• Stravinsky Conducts

  July 14, 2011

  

  We're back with another post in anticipation of our two Stravinsky-themed programs at Mostly Mozart. This time, we have three videos of Stravinsky in person, conducting and talking about his life and music.

• Stravinsky and the Player Piano

  July 12, 2011

  

  Stravinsky was among the first composers who took interest in the possibilities of writing music especially for the player-piano. Read this magazine article from 1925, in which the composer explains his interest in the instrument, and watch a video of Étude pour Pianola (1921), which opens up ICE's all-Stravinsky program at the Mostly Mozart Festival on August 8th.

• Claire Chase & Joshua Rubin, live on Q2!

  August 1, 2011

  

  Chat live with Claire Chase & Joshua Rubin today at 4pm on Q2!

• Love for lovely Mount Tremper Arts!

  August 2, 2011

  

  ICE had the pleasure of visiting the fabulous artist retreat of Mount Tremper Arts in upstate New York last week; take a look at some photos from our time in the Catskills, out of cell phone range but immersed in a beautiful landscape and equally beautiful music.

• Photos: The annual roof party at the Delancey!

  July 5, 2011

  

  If you were at SummerICE, or missed the party but want to live the night vicariously via photo documentation, this is the blog post for you! Check out these fabulous photos from ICE's annual summer roof party last Tuesday, June 28th at Manhattan's legendary Delancey nightclub. It was quite the fiesta. Photos by Joanne Bouknight.

• ICEcast: James Delancey, Du Yun, and empanadas

  June 23, 2011

  

  As ICE gears up for its exciting roof party at the Delancey on Tuesday, let us take this opportunity to study an important moment in New York history involving James Delancey, namesake of Delancey Street and our host venue.

• Photos: ICE @ Greenwich Music Festival

  June 20, 2011

  

  Last week, ICE was once again in Greenwich, CT for the Greenwich Music Festival, performing music from Poulenc, Milhaud, Honegger, Auric, Durey, Tailleferre, known as Les Six. Considered some of the greatest French composers of their time, Les Six were part of a scene around novelist/poet/playwright/Reanaissance-man Jean Cocteau, who was something of a musical tastemaker in Paris due to his criticism and the salons he organized. Our friend Joanne Bouknight took some amazing photos of the dress rehearsal & concert; take a look.

• Tomorrow Night: ICElab @ MCA Chicago!

  June 3, 2011

  

  We are really looking forward to our ICElab concert tomorrow night at the MCA! We'll be featuring world and Chicago premieres of music by ICElab composers Marcos Balter, Du Yun, and Nathan Davis.

• Shahzia Sikander in Conversation with MoMa Director Glenn Lowry

  May 5, 2011

  

  We are very excited to for the upcoming world premiere of ICElab composer Du Yun's new work, The Last Post, on June 4th at the MCA in Chicago. The Last Post will be music for film by internationally renowned artist Shahzia Sikander. Watch this illuminating conversation between Ms. Sikander and MoMa director Glenn Lowry:

• Nathan Davis: “Bells” Explained

  May 10, 2011

  

  Nathan Davis' "Bells" is one of the most interesting and fun pieces we've had the opportunity to perform recently, and we can't wait to bring it to the MCA in Chicago on June 4th! The piece, which is site-specific and involves the audience as co-composers (make sure you bring your cell phones), was premiered at the opening of the 2011 Tullyscope Festival recently to great effect. In characteristic digitICE fashion, we bring you words directly from the composer. Here are Nathan Davis' notes on the piece.

• Marcos Balter on Musical Identity and Sensibilities

  May 16, 2011

  

  Happy Monday, everyone! Take a peek at these videos from ICElab composer Marcos Balter, originally posted by our friends at Meet The Composer, in which Marcos discusses his musical identity and sensibilities.

• Marcos Balter, Du Yun, Nathan Davis - ICElab Concert Preview @ the MCA

  April 21, 2011

  

  For those of you in the Chicago area, come through the Museum of Contemporary Art this Saturday, April 23 at 3pm. We'll bring you onto the MCA stage, where you can meet and listen to works by ICElab composers Marcos Balter and Nathan Davis, as ICE musicians play some some of their works and discuss the ICElab composition process. We'll also screen video from the premiere of Davis's Bells, as well as a clip from visual artist Shahzia Sikander's animation The Last Post scored by ICElab composer Du Yun.

• Interview: Marcos Balter (by Elly Fishman)

  May 26, 2011

  

  by Elly Fishman I recently sat down with Marcos Balter in his Uptown apartment where I was enthusiastically greeted by both Marcos and his dog, Colin. It was a beautiful day in Chicago and spring fever seemed to have finally settled into the air. Marcos, an ebullient spirit, took time from his 3-deadline week (!), to discuss everything from his favorite Chicago spots to his enduring philosophies of music.

• Guest Post: Shahzia Sikander on “The Last Post”

  May 23, 2011

  

  We are kicking off this week with a guest post from the amazing artist Shahzia Sikander. In the paragraphs below, Sikander discusses her collaboration with ICElab composer Du Yun, The Last Post, which will receive its Chicago premiere during our ICElab concert at the MCA on June 4th. Don't sleep!

• Guest Post: Marcos Balter Discusses “Æsopica”

  May 11, 2011

  

  We have a very special guest post from Chicago-based ICElab composer Marcos Balter. In the video below, Marcos discusses his new song cycle “Æsopica”, which will receive its Chicago premiere during our June 4th ICElab concert at the MCA ($10 student tickets are available, make your reservations today!). He also talks about the challenges of making work accessible, in the tradition of Aesop, to audiences of all ages while still making contemporary and boundary-pushing music. Enjoy!

• Guest Post: Du Yun _ Music Crushes of the past year

  June 1, 2011

  

  When I was asked to write this blog, I realized there are enough posts about me covering my influences of other composers and other influences in my life… So I decide to share with you my music crushes of last year. We all have certain snippets of music that make us cry and laugh. This is how I define my musical crushes: the tracks on my iPod whenever they are on, no matter where I am, they would send me in tears repeatedly, or triggered my adrenaline, in tears, with no fails. Every Single Time. (Sometimes every other time.) At any rate, you know that feeling: the moment something grabs you, you are the happy prey while at the same time, the willing victim.

• Du Yun: “Air Glow” for 5 Trumpets + Laptop

  May 18, 2011

  

  ICElab composer Du Yun's piece "Air Glow" was recently posted in the fifth issue of the Art & Culture Magazine Glasschord. Commissioned by the 2006 Festival of New Trumpet Music (FONT), this composition for 5 trumpets + laptop is a must listen.

• Du Yun + Phil Moffa + Gareth Flowers

  May 13, 2011

  

  In less than a month, we'll be presenting an amazing concert at the MCA in Chicago featuring music by ICElab composers Marcos Balter, Nathan Davis, and Du Yun. We have a long working history with Du Yun and are thrilled to premiere her latest piece, The Last Post, which will accompany video by artist Shahzia Sikander. Du Yun is a woman of many hats - those of you who have heard her latest release under her pop diva alter ego, duYun, know exactly what we mean. Those of you who haven't...well, you absolutely should; Shark In You is out now on the New Focus Recordings imprint. We urge you to check out these great vids from recent rehearsals and performances by Du Yun, DJ Phil Moffa, and trumpeter Gareth Flowers - their current collaboration is laying the groundwork for the upcoming world premiere of Angel's Bone (featuring ICE) at the Mann Center this September.

• Tonight: ICElab presents “Hollow Skies: Music Of Nathan Davis”, a FREE Show/CD Release @ LPR!

  May 31, 2011

  

  Please join us for the final FREE concert of our three-month LPR residency tonight! We'll be featuring world and NYC premieres of music by ICElab composer Nathan Davis, and celebrating the release of his new album, "The Bright And Hollow Sky" via our good friends at New Focus Recordings. We're really excited for this show, and can't wait to share this music with you. Simply scroll down to read a guest post from Nathan, listen to a podcast/interview, and check out a full-lenth mp3 and clips from the forthcoming album!

• Nathan Davis: “The Mechanics of Escapement”

  May 27, 2011

  

  We are very excited for the forthcoming release of ICElab composer and ICE percussionist Nathan Davis' new album, "The Bright And Hollow Sky", which will be brought to you by our good friends at New Focus Recordings starting this Tuesday, May 31st. We'll be celebrating the release with an evening of Nathan's music, including world and NYC premieres of new pieces, at our final FREE ICElab show next Tuesday evening at LPR. In anticipation of the release, we bring you a full length mp3 of "The Mechanics of Escapement". See below for Nathan's description of the piece, and for streaming audio:

• Nathan Davis: “The Bright And Hollow Sky” - Streaming Clips via New Focus Recordings

  May 19, 2011

  

  This blog has been abuzz about ICElab composer Nathan Davis for days - we are anxiously anticipating his May 31st New York show (the final concert of our three-month residency at LPR) on and his contributions to our June 4th show at the MCA in Chicago. We're pleased to report today that New Focus Recordings has posted clips from Nathan's upcoming album, The Bright And Hollow Sky, which will be released on May 31st (same day as the LPR show, which is FREE)! The piece "Like Sweet Bells Jangled" is included as a part of the larger work Bells, which will receive its Chi-town premiere at the upcoming MCA show.

• ICElab: Hollow Skies now streaming on Q2!

  July 6, 2011

  

  The third in our series of free ICElab concerts at (le) Poisson Rouge from May 31st is now streaming on Q2, featuring world and NYC premieres from ICElab composer Nathan Davis.

• ICEcast: Nathan Davis

  May 25, 2011

  

  We recently sat down with ICElab composer Nathan Davis to discuss his writing process, on the eve of the release of his new album on New Focus Recordings, The Bright and Hollow Sky. In this episode of the ICEcast, Nathan tells us about composing for his friends in ICE, pulling inspiration from author Italo Calvino, dadaist Hugo Ball, and Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert, in addition to what it's like for a professional percussionist & composer to try to make notes on a bassoon.

• Guest Post: Nathan Davis on “On Speaking a Hundred Names”

  May 12, 2011

  

  Below we have yet another illuminating guest post, this one from ICElab composer and ICE percussionist Nathan Davis, who we've been covering recently. We hope you enjoy this unique insight into the composer's process in preparing music for our upcoming Chicago and New York premieres, as well as his musings on the peculiarities and essential characteristics of instruments, the nature of acoustic phenomena, and the way in which he gets acquainted with it all.

• #chaseclaire on NPR

  June 24, 2011

  

  For a week NPR Music contributor Laura Pellegrinelli 'chased' ICE flutist & Executive Director Claire Chase. The endeavor culminated in a story which aired earlier this week on NPR's All Things Considered.

• Steve Lehman on some of his influences, from Allen Iverson to Betty Carter to Grisey (and more!)

  April 12, 2011

  

  We're pleased to bring you this amazing guest post from 2011 ICElab Collaborator Steve Lehman, discussing his thoughts on "some of the contemporary composers, performers, and athletes (!) whose ideas about rhythm and musical time" have had a major impact on his work. Lehman's new work Impossible Flow will see its world premiere on Tuesday, April 19th during a FREE ICElab show at (le) poisson rouge in New York City. Enjoy!

• Steve Lehman Octet – Live @ The 2010 Moers Festival

  April 5, 2011

  

  We're pumped for our next FREE ICElab show at (le) poisson rouge, which will feature a world premiere from composer and saxophonist Steve Lehman. Check out the video below for a glimpse at Steve's formidable musical vision.

• Steve Lehman ICElab Show Streaming on Q2!

  May 17, 2011

  

  Our April ICElab show featuring music by Steve Lehman (the second performance in our three concert ICElab Residency at LPR) is now streaming on Q2. Watch it in HD (or just listen via the audio player) now! If you think Steve's work is as amazing as we do, we highly suggest that you investigate this guest post and this podcast/interview. And, if you want more, Q2 is also still streaming our inaugural LPR residency concert, featuring music by Mario Diaz De León. Watch the concert in its entirety here. For those of you in the New York area (or anywhere close by, for that matter), don't miss the final concert of our ICElab residency: Hollow Skies: Music of Nathan Davis on Tuesday, May 31st!

• Steve Lehman - “Manifold” (from Cut/Paste)

  April 6, 2011

  

  More Steve Lehman footage ahead of our next FREE ICElab show at (le) poisson rouge, this time performing with us! The video below was shot by a fan during our Cut/Paste show last year at LPR. The piece is "Manifold"; crew is SL (alto saxophone, computer), Eric Lamb (flute), and Joshua Rubin (bass clarinet).

• Photographs: “Impossible Flow”

  March 24, 2011

  

  Here are some pictures of ICE rehearsing Impossible Flow, the new commissioned piece by composer/saxophonist Steve Lehman.

• IMPOSSIBLE FLOW tonight! + NYTimes Critic’s Pick

  April 19, 2011

  

  We're pumped to continue our #ICElab residency with the world premiere of IMPOSSIBLE FLOW by ICElab composer Steve Lehman, which you can hear at our FREE performance at (le) poisson rouge tonight. Again, don't take our word for it: The New York Times featured this show as a Critic's Pick! Steve Smith writes: “This innovative new-music group constantly seeks out both fresh repertory and novel situations in which to showcase it; ICELab, a new incubation program..."

• IMPOSSIBLE FLOW Tomorrow! + B-movie trailer

  April 18, 2011

  

  We can't wait to present the world premiere of Steve Lehman's new work IMPOSSIBLE FLOW (commissioned through our ICElab program) tomorrow night at (le) poisson rouge! It's a FREE show, so don't sleep on it! Check out our new b-movie-style trailer for the show.

• ICEcast: Steve Lehman’s “Impossible Flow”

  April 13, 2011

  

  Our friend, composer Rafiq Bhatia, recently interviewed saxophonist and ICElab composer Steve Lehman. On this episode of the ICEcast, we feature selections from their conversation about rhythm, time, playing what you write, and writing what you want to play. Be sure to catch ICE as we perform the world premiere of Steve's "Impossible Flow" at (le) Poisson Rouge on April 19, 2011.

• Fieldwork – “Rai”

  April 7, 2011

  

  Fieldwork is one of our favorite improvising ensembles active today. A collectively-led trio of composer-performers featuring ICElab collaborators Steve Lehman (alto saxophone, ICElab 2011) and Tyshawn Sorey (drums, ICElab 2012), as well as the venerable Vijay Iyer (piano), Fieldwork makes music to remember. Take a listen to their track "Rai," from the album Door.

• Marcos Balter: Portmanteaux

  April 11, 2011

  

  This Thursday, April 14, ICE performs the world premiere of the new piece Æsopica from ICElab composer Marcos Balter at the Morgan Library and Museum in New York. As you might guess from the title, Marcos takes inspiration from the timeless fables of Aesop, with the protagonist narrator portrayed by ICE's incredible tenor Peter Tantsits and an ensemble of ICE musicians playing the role of the Greek Chorus. Take a listen to ICE performing an earlier Balter work, Portmanteaux.

• TONIGHT!

  March 30, 2011

  

  Our three-month #ICElab residency begins tonight! We'll be featuring world and NYC premieres of music by ICElab composer Mario Diaz de León during this FREE performance at (le) poisson rouge tonight. Also, the good people at Time Out New York chose this one as a Critic's Pick, so you don't have to take our word for it!

• Thanks again! + ICElab Launch Video

  April 4, 2011

  

  We want to thank each and every one of you who came out last week to celebrate the launch of our ICElab Residency at (le) poisson rouge! We had a blast premiering/performing Mario Diaz De Leon's works, and we can't wait for the next one; we'll be presenting the world premiere of Steve Lehman's "Impossible Flow" during another FREE show on April 19th! In the meantime, check out this rad ICElab launch video.

• Reservations for MDdL this Wednesday + CD Giveaway!

  March 28, 2011

  

  There has been an overwhelming amount of interest in the FREE ICElab launch performance this Wednesday at LPR. For those of you who are just tuning in, we're going to be presenting the world and NYC premiers of pieces by Mario Diaz de León! In anticipation of Wednesday's performance, we're also happy to provide you with a chance to win a FREE copy of MDdL's debut album Enter Houses Of. All you have to do is submit a creative response to MDdL's music in 180 characters or less, and submit it to us via Facebook or Twitter!

• Portals Before Dawn

  March 29, 2011

  

  Check out this preview of tomorrow evening's FREE show at LPR, featuring rehearsal footage from Mario Diaz de León's brand new piece Portals Before Dawn. ICE will present the world premiere of Portals Before Dawn, along with NYC premieres of several of Mario's other pieces, during a FREE concert tomorrow night at (le) poisson rouge in New York, NY.

• MIRRORGATE

  March 15, 2011

  

  We've noticed that only a surprisingly small portion of the folks that rave about Mario Diaz de León's concert music have ever checked out his noise/metal band, MIRRORGATE, a duo outfit consisting of MDdL and sound/visual artist Doron Sadja. Take a listen!

• Mario Diaz de León on Wolf Eyes, Morbid Angel, and Musicians of Nechmaya, Algeria + MIRRORGATE Sneak

  March 21, 2011

  

  We're pleased to have Mario Diaz de León back in the house with another guest post, this time discussing three tracks that have inspired him as a composer and performer.

• Mario Diaz De León ICElab Show Streaming on Q2!

  May 9, 2011

  

  Our recent ICElab show featuring music by Mario Diaz De León (which was the inaugural performance in our ongoing ICElab Residency at LPR) was an amazing experience for everyone involved. Now, thanks to our good friends at Q2, you can watch the concert in its entirety via streaming HD video (audio-only also available). Check it out!

• Mario Diaz De León + ICE on SoundCloud

  March 11, 2011

  

  ICElab composer Mario Diaz De León has launched a SoundCloud page! Stay tuned for updates (read: more music and perhaps some unreleased tracks!) as we approach our first FREE ICElab show feat. world and NYC premiers of Mario's works at (le) poisson rouge on March 30th.

• ICElab: Prism Path | Music of Mario Diaz de León

  March 7, 2011

  

  We’re very excited for our upcoming ICElab residency at (le) Poisson Rouge, we’re presenting three FREE concerts over the next three months, starting with a tour de force program from composer & multi-instrumentalist Mario Diaz de León. Check out this unreleased footage of ICE’s Joshua Rubin premiering MDdL’s composition The Soul is the Arena at The Velvet Lounge in Chicago.

• ICEcast: Mario Diaz de León

  March 24, 2011

  

  ICElab composer, guitarist, and ICE-friend Mario Diaz de León sat down for an interview with composer, guitarist, and ICE-friend Rafiq Bhatia to discuss Diaz de León's most recent compositions for the band, to be performed next week at (le) poisson rouge.

• UnFold: ICE at MoCP

  March 25, 2011

  

  ICE presents a FREE concert on Friday, March 25 at the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago! The music responds to the current MoCP exhibition u-n-f-o-l-d.

• Davidovsky at C-PEMC

  March 2, 2011

  

  We’ll be at Miller Theatre this Friday to perform works from electro-acoustic music pioneer Mario Davidovsky. Check out this great picture from circa 1970 taken at Studio 317, one of four composition studios at the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center, located at Columbia’s Prentis Hall on West 125th Street.

• ICEcast: Jason Eckardt, “Undersong”

  July 26, 2011

  

  ICE's most recent recording is out now: the new song cycle Undersong by composer Jason Eckardt, released today on Mode Records. In this episode, the ICEcast interviews Eckardt about poet Laura Mullen's influence on Undersong, how one sets a poem without a strict structure to music, and why he continues to make music in trying times.

• Guest Post: Jason Eckardt

  July 15, 2011

  

  Jason Eckardt is an exciting composer with "a knack for defying expectations." (New York Times) His forthcoming album Undersong (Mode) features performances from ICE, and will be released on July 26th. While we will hear more about this recording soon, Eckardt offers this guest post today on digitICE as an introduction to his work as a composer.

• From the Archive: On & Off the Page | Peter Evans

  July 11, 2011

  

  Though the ICElab program is relatively new, ICE has long championed innovative new music, as with our On & Off the Page from last season, where we partnered with composer-performers who blur the line between written and improvised music. digitICE is proud to present a recording from the On & Off the Page show at (le) Poisson Rouge in March 2010 — Peter Evans's "Eat Your Dead." What's going on with that title? Watch the video to find out (SFW, we promise).