06.16.10 - 8:00pm

Music for Winds, Brass and Electronics: Tabor Wind Quintet + Batteries Duo

TABOR is a multi-dimensional ensemble bringing new and imaginative works to the foreground of contemporary music. The members of TABOR combine their unique doubling skills, versatility and artistic verve to create something far beyond a traditional wind quintet. Refusing to be confined to a single genre, TABOR explores a diverse range of musical and multi-media landscapes, including electronics, interactive film, jazz and art installations. They have performed in a wide array of venues; concert halls, museums, galleries, schools, libraries, trains, boats and outdoor parks. Emerging from some of the top music schools in the nation, the members of TABOR hold degrees from Yale University, the Eastman School of Music, Mannes College-the New School for Music, Stony Brook University and the Aaron Copland School of Music-Queens College.

The Batteries duo (Gareth Flowers and Joshua Frank trumpets) is the first and only electro-acoustic trumpet duo of it’s kind in New York’s creative music scene. Using primarily trumpets and samplers, the Batteries duo creates a unique breed of sound art. Drawing on inspiration from Medeski, Martin and Wood to DJ Spooky to Beirut, the Batteries duo combines found sounds and samples which they mashup with their virtuosic and vibrational trumpet playing to create a special variety of nu jazz/indie/post-classicism. The Batteries Duo has performed on the Ignite a Noise Series at Ibeam music studio, The Rose Studio of Lincoln Center, Interchurch, and the Gershwin Hotel and hopes to release their self-titled debut EP late spring 2010.

Mikael Karlsson moved to New York from Sweden in 2000. He graduated summa cum laude with a master degree from the Aaron Copland School of music in 2005.His music has been performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, MoMA, Galapagos Art Space, and many other venues in New York, and is rapidly gaining ground in concert halls and museums in Europe. Mikael has written a dozen soundtracks to date, including two for Bruce LaBruce, and two for the enormous Battlefield Bad Company video game franchise. He often collaborates with pop artists (Lykke Li, Kleerup, Taken By Trees…) and artists from other fields (Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, Francois Rousseau, Rob Stephenson…). Box is the latest in a long series of projects for which he has had the pleasure to work with Christopher McDonald.  Mikael has released 7 albums and 2 EPs to date.  www.mikaelk.com

After leaving Brooklyn two years ago, Christopher McDonald launched a retreat-style recording studio at a farm in Killingworth, Connecticut which now features approximately 13 chickens, four goats (with two more soon to be born), one Steinway, many sweet microphones, great vintage gear and an SSL console. In addition to recording and producing albums for artists in a wide range of genres, he was the engineer and music producer for video work selected for this past year’s Venice Biennale and Sundance Film Festival. He frequently collaborates with composers, bands and video artists and is very excited about this new venture with the Tabor Quintet and longtime collaborator Mikael. Christopher’s visual art involving machines and photography has been selected for festivals and exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad.