Presented by International Contemporary Ensemble and The New School’s College of Performing Arts
From New York City and points around the world, the International Contemporary Ensemble has assembled its annual summer festival of collective creativity: Ensemble Evolution. Please join us for a series of public digital events featuring Ensemble Evolution participants, faculty, and guest presenters.
Events Summary
Leadership, Advocacy, and Allyship in the Arts through a Racial Justice Lens
Thursday, June 25, 2020 at 1:00pm ET
https://event.newschool.edu/evo1/
Panelists: Donna Walker-Kuhne, President of Walker International Communications Group; Sharnita Johnson, Director of Arts at Dodge Foundation; and Dr. Tobie Stein, Professor Emeritus Brooklyn College.
Moderator: Durell Cooper, Founder & CEO of Cultural Innovation Group, LLC.
Our nation is experiencing a converging of two pandemics. One being the pandemic of COVID-19 and the Other being the pandemic of Systemic Racism & Structural Oppression. This critical discussion will investigate the intersection of the two pandemics and reimagine the role of arts and culture in shaping the world into a more just place. It will also explore some practical steps participants can take to get more involved in the movement for racial justice as a leader, advocate, and/or ally.
The Quarantine Concerts Hosted by Experimental Sound Studio
Thursday, June 25, 2020 at 8:00pm ET and Friday, June 26, 2020 at 8:00pm ET
Watch on Twitch: https://ess.org/the-quarantine-concerts
Quarantine Concerts are a collaborative endeavor meant to provide artists a space to share their work and continue to earn a living during this time when most live performance opportunities have been cancelled due to COVID-19. On June 25th and 26th, the Ensemble will feature artists such as Matana Roberts, Levy Lorenzo, and David Byrd-Marrow performing self-composed works from their quarantined spaces in NYC and Berlin as well as guest contributions from 5 continents.
Branding and Digital Marketing for Musicians with Ceylon Mitchell II
Friday, June 26, 2020 at 11:00am ET
https://event.newschool.edu/evo3/
This workshop is designed to teach best practices and innovative approaches for individual artists to enhance their authentic digital presence, grow their audiences, and succeed in a 21st-century landscape. Takeaways include the essential elements of an artist statement, composing a visual identity for owned media, building community, diving into the nuts of bolts of a social media strategy, and exploring other digital strategies.
A Small Act of Curation with George Lewis
Friday, June 26, 2020 at 1:00pm ET
https://event.newschool.edu/evo4/
George Lewis joins Ensemble Evolution to discuss composition and curation. Lewis is Professor of American Music at Columbia University. A Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy, a MacArthur Fellow and a Guggenheim Fellow, Lewis also holds honorary doctorates from the University of Edinburgh, New College of Florida, and Harvard University. Lewis is the author of A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music (University of Chicago Press) and co-editor of the two-volume Oxford Handbook of Critical Improvisation Studies (2016). A 2019 recipient of the Doris Duke Artist Award, his compositions, published by Edition Peters, are performed worldwide.
An Intro into Creative Placemaking with Chris Hope, Founder and Executive Director of LOOP LAB
Wednesday, July 1, 2020 at 1:00pm ET
https://event.newschool.edu/evo6/
This workshop is designed for artists, by artists, as a primer into the practice of creative placemaking. Together, we will explore the values of creative placemaking, it's best practices, and what it means to take your art into the context of community.
Braxton75: The Music of Anthony Braxton – Navigation Through Form
Talk by James Fei / Tri-Centric Foundation
Thursday, July 2, 2020 at 1:00pm ET
https://event.newschool.edu/evo7/
In celebration of Anthony Braxton’s 75th birthday year, International Contemporary Ensemble and Braxton’s Tri-Centric Foundation are collaborating to present the very first online Braxton75 event accessible to the public. In this talk, Tri-Centric president James Fei, who has been working closely with Braxton for over two decades, will offer a rare glimpse into the inner workings of Braxton compositions. Specifically, using scores and audiovisual material, Fei will examine the intersection of improvisation and notation, the changing role of the performer, and the fluid notions of “composition” in Braxton’s works.
Performances and commissioning activities during the 2019-20 concert season are made possible by the generous support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Howard Gilman Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, A.N. and Pearl G. Barnett Family Foundation, Jerome Foundation, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Aaron Copland Fund for Music Inc., Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, Amphion Foundation, Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung, The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Pacific Harmony Foundation, Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation, Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, mediaThe foundation inc., The Casement Fund, BMI Foundation, as well as public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and the New York State Council for the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. The International Contemporary Ensemble is the Ensemble in Residence of the Nokia Bell Labs Experiments in Art and Technology. Yamaha Artist Services New York is the exclusive piano provider for ICE.
This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.