Bang on a Can

Classical, Electronica, Jazz & Indie-Rock Stars From Around the World Will Converge at The World Financial Center for a 24+ Hour Music Festival June 2-3, 2007

"Bang on a Can's 'Marathon'--imagine Lollapalooza advised by the ghost of John Cage--is a free-wheeling parade of the strange, the raucous, and the beautiful...There are other places to hear contemporary music, but it is seldom offered with such a potent blend of intensity, authority, and abandon."--Vanity Fair

On Saturday, June 2, Bang on a Can will bring its legendary eclectic global music fest back to New York City for the first ever 24+ hour Marathon co-presented by the River to River Festival and World Financial Center Arts & Events, beginning at 8pm Saturday, June 2, and ending at 10pm Sunday, June 3.

Bring your sleeping bag! For more than 24 hours, the 2007 Marathon will take over the World Financial Center's Winter Garden with a collection of adventurous performers and composers from classical minimalism and Balinese gamelan to alt-jazz, fringe-rock, and techno. The Marathon is still FREE--listeners can come and go as they like or stay all night.

This year will be an even more impressive collection of the most innovative and experimental musicians from across the globe and musical spectrum. The Marathon kicks off at sunset with Julia Wolfe's new creation for Bagpipe Orchestra. Then you'll hear indie-phenoms, The Books, Argentine singer-songwriter Juana Molina, Burmese Drum Circle master Kyaw Kyaw Naing, high-octane quartet Ethel, and brilliant jazz pianist Vijay Iyer. At midnight, Bang on a Can All-Stars will give a rare live performance of Brian Eno's ambient classic "Music for Airports." Stay late to hear the music of Russian mystic Galina Ustvolskaya and Michael Gordon's orchestral New York tribute "Gotham," with film by decayed film stock pioneer Bill Morrison. Bring in the sunrise with Steve Reich's "Music for 18 Musicians" and morning ragas featuring Indian violinist Milind Raikar in his New York debut. Check out the sonic power of Lois V Vierk, the jaw-dropping virtuosity of Eighth Blackbird, JG Thirlwell's ambient post-classical band Manorexia, a lush world premiere by American master Alvin Lucier, Evan Ziporyn's newest orchestral tour de force, the Hartt Bass Band, and many more. The show will wrap-up on Sunday afternoon and evening with the tuneful and explosive World Saxophone Quartet, the haunting avant-Czech folk music of Iva Bittová and a stunning performance by trombone wizard Mike Svoboda of David Lang's MEN with the premiere of video by art world sensation Matt Mullican.

The original Bang on a Can Marathon was founded in 1987 by composers Michael Gordon, Julia Wolfe, and David Lang, as a 12-hour concert in a small SoHo art gallery. Bang on a Can has since grown into a multi-faceted institution becoming one of the most significant forces in the U.S.'s new music scene. All along, though, the annual Marathon has remained at the heart of what Bang on a Can is and does--presenting a vast array of genre-defying music from innovative composers and performed by dynamic players, to a curious and excitable audience. Over the course of 20 years, the Marathon has grown and moved from small Downtown art galleries to world-class performance venues, while still remaining as informal, accessible, and experimental as the day it began. Nearly 1,000 pieces, more than 500 performers, and over 200 composers later, the Bang on a Can Marathon is still the foremost concert of its kind, drawing thousands of concert-goers to each event.

Bang on a Can Marathon

Saturday, June 2, 8pm-Sunday, June 3, 10pm (yes, that's 26-Hours!) World Financial Center's Wintergarden FREE ** 26 Hours of electrifying music featuring the following artists:**

Music By: John Luther Adams, Louis Andriessen, Christopher Adler, Derek Bermel, Jeffrey Brooks, Don Byron, Mary Ellen Childs, Mark Dancigers, Franco Donatoni, Brian Eno, John Fitz Rogers, David R. Gordon, Michael Gordon, Judd Greenstein, John King, Phil Kline, David Lang, David Longstreth, Alvin Lucier, Missy Mazzoli, Thurston Moore, Steve Reich, James Tenney, Matt Tierney, JG Thirlwell, Galina Ustvolskaya, Edgar Varese, Lois V Vierk, Julia Wolfe, and Evan Ziporyn.

Performances By: Bang on a Can All-Stars, Iva Bittová, Bagpipe Orchestra, Robert Black, The Books, Don Byron, The Clogs, Dälek, David Cossin, Dirty Projectors, Eighth Blackbird, Ethel, Dominic Frasca, Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble, Michael Harrison, Hartt Bass Band, International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Vijay Iyer, Kyaw Kyaw Naing, Manorexia, Mashriq, Meehan/Perkins Duo, Juana Molina, Patti Monson, Now Ensemble, Odd Appetite, Milind Raikar, Real Quiet, red fish blue fish, Steven Schick, Mark Stewart, Mike Svoboda , TACTUS, Talujon Percussion Quartet, World Saxophone Quartet, the Young People's Chorus of NYC and more TBD.

Films By: Bill Morrison, Matt Mullican

Bang on a Can - Kids Can Too! Saturday, June 2, 2-3pm Esplanade Park, Battery Park City FREE

Bring your kids, hang out along the river and hear an awesome set of unusual music featuring Bang on a Can electric guitarist and instrument inventor Mark Stewart, the central Asian sound wizards Mashriq from Uzbekistan, Talujon Percussion Quartet and instruments you've never seen or heard before!

Stay tuned for updates and news about the 2007 Marathon lineup! Visit the Bang on a Can website for up-to-the-minute info about the Marathon and other Bang on a Can events: www.bangonacan.org.