Substrata 1.3: Day 1

Substrata Festival explores varying perspectives of scale though the use of sound, composition and visuals. Tonight we offer electronic structures and rhythms drawing on conceptual references ranging as far as the isolated landscapes of Iceland, the haunting woodlands of the Pacific Northwest, the celestial Music of the Spheres and imagined, encephalonic spaces between: Ethernet, The Sight Below, Yagya.

Jeph Jerman

For over twenty-five years, Jeph Jerman has been a seeker of sound. In 2010 he recorded a series of drone pieces using pot lids and metal bowls, played in the manner of Tibetan singing bowls. Titled arrastre, these were released as a three-part work on LP, CD-R, and cassette, and performed as a quartet in St. Paul, MN in 2012. Tonight it is performed by a septet of Jerman, Dave Knott, Doug Theriault, Mike Shannon, Esther Sugai, David Stanford, and Carl Lierman – a dense, shimmering wall of singing metal, rich in overtones and marked by gradual harmonic evolution.

Earshot: Syrinx Effect + Chemical Clock

Presented by Earshot Jazz. Jazz: The 2nd Century is Earshot's annual juried showcase featuring Seattle artists performing original, forward-looking music, in a concert setting.

Syrinx Effect is an experimental platform for trombonist Naomi Siegel and saxophonist Kate Olson. The duo plays contemporary, improvised music with electronics. Olson mixes jazz licks and space on soprano sax above a layer of laptop effects, Buddha Machine loops, and snaps, pops and analog electronic sounds from a Cracklebox. Siegel explores the range and booms of trombone and lays down a background of looped brass thwarted by guitar pedals, plus field recordings from her travels.

Chemical Clock is an aggressive and determined young band with a lot of good ideas and more than enough chops to pull them off. Led by keyboardist and composer Cameron Sharif, the quartet includes Ray Larsen (trumpet), Mark Hunter (bass), and Evan Woodle (drums). Their self-titled debut CD EP is a brief and refreshing blast of post-everything avant fusion, encompassing aspects of jazz, electronic dance music, prog-metal, contemporary classical music, and the indefinable electro-acoustic music currently being explored by edgy rock bands such as Lightning Bolt and Hella.

Stuart Dempster & Dennis Rea: Double Tanabata Birthdays!

Presented by Nonsequitur.

Seattle composers Stuart Dempster and Dennis Rea celebrate their shared birthday that falls on July 7, which is also the Japanese Tanabata festival. Dempster premieres Seventy Seven Sevens, featuring nine trombonists surrounding the audience, along with bass drummers Paul Kikuchi and Dean Moore. Rea's ASJ, premiered at the Chapel last January, this time incorporates the trombones along with John Seman, bass and Kate Olson, soprano sax.

Seattle Composers' Salon

The Seattle Composers’ Salonfosters the development, performance and appreciation of new music by regional composers and performers. At bi-monthly, informal presentations, the Salon features finished works, previews, and works in progress. Composers, performers, and audience members gather in a casual setting that allows for experimentation and discussion. Everyone is welcome! Composers for this month: Neal Kosaly-Meyer, Carson Farley, and Kam Morrill.

Tim Root: Pound Fifty Turns

Pianist, composer, and experimentalist Tim Root presents his new music/theater/performance work, Pound Fifty Turns, for amplified instruments, voices, electronics, movement and projection. The project combines absurdist theater, aleatoric composition, improvisation, and visual images in a celebration of the composer’s 50th birthday. With Beth Fleenor (amplified clarinet, voice, electronics), Queen Shmooquan (voice, performance), Kate Olson (soprano sax, electronics), Greg Sinibaldi (tenor sax), Sam Boshnack (trumpet), Naomi Siegel (trombone, electronics), Tom Peters (bass, electronics, projection), Steve Ball (guitar), Greg Campbell (percussion, horn, electronics) and Tim Root (inside/prepared piano, voice, electronics).

Tom Peters: Nosferatu

Director F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922) stands as one of the most important films to come out of pre-World War II Germany. After almost 90 years, it still delivers chills! Tom Peters’ live electronic score seamlessly weaves through Nosferatu’s dark alleys to create an experience like no other. Peters is a composer and bassist in Los Angeles who specializes in creating music for silent films, performing original scores through looping electronics and synchronized electronic soundscapes.