Bang on a Can

aleba gartner associates
648 broadway • suite 607 • new york, ny 10012
tel: 212/206-1450 • fax: 646/536-2730 • e-mail: aleba@aol.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Press Contacts: Aleba, 212/206-1450
Philippa Thompson, 718/852-7755

BANG ON A CAN SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL ("Banglewood") celebrates FIVE YEARS at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA

July 11 - 30, 2006

2006 faculty includes special guest artist/composer MEREDITH MONK plus Michael Gordon • David Lang • Julia Wolfe • Bang on a Can All-Stars

FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS: July 22: Bang on a Can All-Stars in concert July 29: 6-hour Bang on a Can Marathon with Meredith Monk July 13-28: Daily recitals in the galleries

PLUS COACHING • MASTER CLASSES • SEMINARS

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:
As part of a unique new exchange program between Bang on a Can & Central Asia, Bang on a Can welcomes for the second summer musicians from UZBEKISTAN

"If the sold-out Marathon was an indication of the level of work and the audience's interest in cutting-edge, experimental composition, then the future of music may well be found not at any of the nation's top summer music festivals, but at the nation's largest, most innovative museum of contemporary art." - Seth Rogovoy, The Berkshire Eagle

The famed boundary-breaking music collective Bang on a Can announces the fifth anniversary season of its BANG ON A CAN SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL (affectionately known as "Banglewood"), an unprecedented educational summer program for composers and performers that takes place July 11-30, 2006. The Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival revitalizes the traditional summer music festival by dedicating its activities entirely to adventurous contemporary music. It is the only residency of its kind.

The Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival is a partnership between Bang on a Can and MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art) in North Adams, which houses the institute on its extraordinary 13-acre campus of renovated 19th-century factory buildings.

Residents at the Summer Festival (36 students, 11 faculty) come to the Berkshires from around the world to immerse themselves in contemporary music via performance and composition. The students represent eight countries and four continents (Uzbekistan, Lithuania, France, Malaysia, Norway, Australia, Canada, US) and range in age from 20 to 35. Available studies include Balinese music workshops and improvisation, as well as coaching, master classes, music business and technology seminars, and more. Student composers hear their works performed by fellow residents and faculty; in turn, performers rehearse and perform in ensembles alongside their teachers during daily afternoon recitals that are free and open to the public. These concerts take place throughout the MASS MoCA campus, from the museum galleries and lobbies to outdoor spaces. The residency concludes with a six-hour Marathon Concert featuring performances by the student/faculty ensembles.

The 2006 Summer Festival faculty includes some of the most innovative musicians of our time: Gregg August, bass; David Cossin, percussion; Stephen Gosling, piano; Michael Gordon, composition; David Lang, composition; Brad Lubman, conductor; Patti Monson, flute; Todd Reynolds, violin; Wendy Sutter, cello; Julia Wolfe, composition; Evan Ziporyn, clarinets, composition, and Balinese music workshops; and guest composers and performers, including revolutionary composer/performer MEREDITH MONK. These musicians have dedicated their lives to commissioning, rehearsing, recording, and performing music beyond the cutting edge.

The 2006 Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA will continue its Arts Partnership with Central Asia, featuring exchanges with young Central Asian musicians. These students will perform on traditional instruments, and in a rare opportunity will collaborate with Western musicians through improvisation and performance.

CONCERT DETAILS
Tickets/info: call the MASS MoCA box office at 413/662-2111 or visit www.massmoca.org

Saturday, July 22 at 8:00 pm Bang on a Can All-Stars in concert The Bang on a Can All-Stars perform the premiere of legendary British composer Michael Nyman's "Manhatta" as accompaniment to a vintage 1920s film by photographer Paul Strand; plus works by Don Byron (to celebrate the new Bang on a Can/Don Byron CD "A Ballad For Many"), David Lang (a world premiere), Annie Gosfield, and Edward Ruchalski. Location: Hunter Center • Tickets: $22

Saturday, July 29, 4:00–10:00 pm Bang on a Can Marathon with special guest Meredith Monk Bang on a Can concludes its 2006 Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA with its fifth annual Summer Marathon concert. Listeners come and go as they like or stay all day. This summer, Bang on a Can has gathered composers and instrumentalists from the mid-Atlantic to the mid-West to mid-Asia, and welcomes composer Meredith Monk for six solid hours of music and endless influences: minimalism, ambient, classical, jazz, and much more. Location: Hunter Center • Tickets: $22

July 13-28, 1:30 and 4:30 pm Daily Gallery Recitals (except Sundays) All gallery concerts are free with museum admission. Various spaces throughout the gallery will be used. For more info on the recitals, see www.bangonacan.org/summerinstperform2006.html

MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art), the largest center for contemporary visual and performing arts in the U.S., is one of the most cutting-edge arts spaces in the nation. The process of creativity is explored at MASS MoCA: it presents exhibitions and performances by renowned artists and cultural institutions: and rehearsals, art fabrication shops, and production studios are open to public view. MASS MoCA and Bang on a Can - two towering icons of contemporary culture - are thrilled to come together for the fifth annual Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival.

a final bit about BANG ON A CAN
Composers Michael Gordon, David Lang, and Julia Wolfe created Bang on a Can in 1987 as a way to present concerts of music they loved. The enterprise has since grown into one of the most vital, enduring, and beloved forces in America's new music scene. Dedicated to a wide spectrum of composers, Bang on a Can has carved a home for musical misfits and pioneers. The multi-faceted organizaton now features a resident ensemble, The Bang on a Can All-Stars, who tour major festivals and concert venues around the world; The People's Commissioning Fund, a commissioning program that creates unprecedented opportunities for emerging composers; an annual mammoth Marathon concert; touring productions such as the staged oratorio Lost Objects directed by François Girard with Concerto Köln, and its OBIE-award winning opera The Carbon Copy Building based on the work of comic book artist Ben Katchor; the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA; and more....

"The Institute came to a roaring climax in a sprawling concert of contemporary music that was consistently challenging and nearly always richly rewarding." - Greg Haymes, Albany Times Union

"At Banglewood, Bang on a Can pursues its year-round agenda of exploring the unfamiliar, presenting the new, and creating the future in a special educational forum." - Richard Dyer, Boston Globe

What students are saying about "Banglewood"...

"I have been attending summer music festivals every summer since I was 12 years old. This is the only festival to which I will reapply. I felt blessed to be in such a supportive, stimulating, creative environment, surrounded by fantastic musicians. I didn't want it to end. Being at this festival this summer helped me answer a lot of questions about which path within the music world I want to pursue. Thanks a lot to everyone who made this festival happen - and for having the idea of a new music festival in the first place. This festival is doing wonders for creating a cohesive new music community for our generation."

• cellist Jody Redhage, Masters student, Manhattan School of Music

"Thank you so much for a wonderful experience at the Bang on a Can Summer Festival this year. I have been a fan of Bang on a Can for many years, so the chance to meet and work with David, Julie, Michael, and the All-Stars was a huge thrill for me. Just as exciting was meeting all the fellow performers and composers from all over the world, many of whom are now my good friends and collaborators."

• percussionist Ian Ding, Detroit Symphony Orchestra

"I had one of the most enjoyable musical experiences of recent memory; I left feeling energized, encouraged, and inspired. Thank you for providing us with the opportunity to do something we passionately love for almost 3 weeks straight."

• pianist Laura Barger, SUNY Stonybrook

"The Bang on a Can Summer Festival was a truly inspirational experience, and everyone involved with it was wonderful. From the Mass MoCA staff, to the faculty and fellows, it seemed that everyone was excited to be creating music together, and there was a very strong sense of family."

• saxophonist and composer Colin MacDonald, Vancouver, Canada

For more testimonials, visit http://www.bangonacan.org/summerinsttestimonials.html

For further information and to arrange interviews, please contact Aleba Gartner Associates at 212/206-1450

or visit www.bangonacan.org and www.massmoca.org