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About Exhibitions | Current and Upcoming | Past | bowerbird@LANDMARKS

bowerbird@LANDMARKS is an
ongoing curatorial partnership that expands cultural offerings in Philadelphia by bringing experimental and improvisational music,
film, dance and other creative, genre-defying performing arts to historic sites
in the region.
Showcasing the newest
performing arts is nothing new for Landmarks' four historic, 18th century
houses---Grumblethorpe, Physick House, Powel House and Waynesborough. These houses would often have been
the locations for recitals of the most "fashionable" music of their
time. Events in the bowerbird@LANDMARKS series revive this
long-lost tradition of intimate concerts, and provide an intelligent
alternative for contemporary audiences.
What can you expect if you
attend a bowerbird@LANDMARKS performance? You can expect to hear some of the
most innovative, avant-garde music being produced by local, national and
international artists. You can expect to be challenged to expand your
definitions of music, and to leave behind your preconceptions. Each performance
will involve some risk-taking by both the performer and the audience member,
but if you come with an open mind, and we promise to provide you with a
uniquely stimulating experience. Please note:
- bowerbird@LANDMARKS events generally sell-out.
We HIGHLY recommend you purchase advance tickets by clicking on the
links by each event listing below. Available seats are occasionally
supplemented by standing-room
space.
- To protect collections, museum staff may require that bags be checked. Please avoid bringing large bags or expensive items. Landmarks is not responsible for loss or damage of items during concerts.
Please visit bowerbird to learn more.
Upcoming bowerbird@LANDMARKS
events
December 5th (friday)
Shot x Shot with special guest Charles Cohen @ Powel House Museum
244 S. Third Street
8pm; $10, $8 in advance
To purchase advance tickets, click here. Read about Shot x Shot in the Philadelphia CityPaper, here.
Shot x Shot is a Philadelphia quartet that has forged a distinctive
sound through five years of steady collaboration. Their work is based
in collective improvisational compositions that run the gamut from
delicate to ruthless. The band was formed in 2004 while the members
were students at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. They began
performing at local venues and gradually extended their range to
include New York, Boston, Chicago, Montreal and other major cities.
Shot × Shot has performed alongside Peter Br0tzmann, Jeb Bishop,
Chicago Luzern Exchange, Peter Evans, Jack Wright and Pete Robbins
among others. In 2007, the band showcased at South by Southwest. Shot ×
Shot's self-titled live debut (High Two, 2006) was heralded in the
pages of Downbeat, The Wire, Signal to Noise, All About Jazz-NY, and
other publications. The Village Voice and All About Jazz-NY listed the
album among the top debuts of 2006.
In
production: A special
site-specific recording project by HZL Duo
CD release
event early 2009

In August
2008, Philadelphia based duo HZL, which is Jesse Kudler and Tim Albro,
conducted a day-long recording session on the first floor and garden areas of the
historic Grumblethorpe mansion in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. HZL used a variety of acoustic and electronic
devices, many of which directly recorded the ambient noise of the house and
it's surrounding environment, to create an integrated and evolving sound
sculpture. HZL will spend the fall
working with these raw, site-specific recordings to create a CD project. The CD
launch party and live performance will occur at Grumblethorpe in early 2009.
Stay tuned for details!
Tim Albro
and Jesse Kudler have played together since becoming friends at Wesleyan University around the turn of the
century. They first worked together in the large electronic improvising
ensemble Phil Collins, playing synthesizer and guitar/electronics,
respectively. After graduating in 2002, the two didn't play together
again until Winter 2004-2005, after Jesse's move to Philadelphia. Their interest in a more
restrained and spacious form of improvisation was first realized in the guitar
trio G3 (with Ben Stanko). Where that group had them playing guitars in a
more or less conventional manner (Tim on electric 12-string and Jesse on
acoustic), HZL arose from a more intense investigation of the use of
electronics and electro-acoustic means. Fall 2005 found Jesse moving
again, to West
Philadelphia,
and he and Tim became close neighbors. A schedule of record-listening
sessions and concert attendance developed into a more focused musical
collaboration in Winter 2005-2006, when proximity and available practice space
allowed the two to work intensively on developing a duo language. Jesse
resumed use of his "regular" set-up of table-top guitar, synthesizer,
contact mic, various objects and devices, and sundry electronics. Tim
began working with a unique electronics rig that incorporated radio and an
archtop guitar prepared with surface-mounted speakers inside its body.
Small rooms and intensive listening led to the configuration of a
still-changing sound, making ample use of resonances, small sounds, and an
awareness of the spaces containing them. Live performances have focused
on subtle room-filling drones and textures, with speakers arrayed around the
audience, evoking installation art as much as musicians on a stage.
For more information, please contact: Robert Wuilfe, Curator of Contemporary Projects rwuilfe [at] philalandmarks.org
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