Wet Ink Ensemble Releases Wet Ink Archive: 05 'Artists in Residence'

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katy Salomon | Morahan Arts and Media
katy@morahanartsandmedia.com | 863.660.2214

Wet Ink Ensemble Releases 
Wet Ink Archive: 05 “Artists in Residence”

Featuring Cymbals by Ian Antonio; Drilling by Ingrid Laubrock; and New Recordings 
by Wet Ink’s 2021-22 Artists-in-Residence, Katherine Young and Nick Dunston

archive.wetink.org

New York, NY (October 13, 2021) — Wet Ink Ensemble has released the fifth edition of its online journal of adventurous music and conversation, the Wet Ink Archive: 05 "Artists in Residence." The issue includes Cymbals by Wet Ink percussionist Ian Antonio; Drilling by composer and saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock; and four new recordings by Wet Ink’s 2021-22 Artists-in-Residence, bassoonist Katherine Young and bassist Nick Dunston, with an introduction by Wet Ink Co-director Eric Wubbels. Josh Modney, violinist and Co-director of Wet Ink, serves as Editor for Archive 05.

In Cymbals, Wet Ink percussionist Ian Antonio shares his experience and passion for contemporary cymbal playing in the context of the instrument's history. In addition to his over two decades of work with Wet Ink, he is a member of the percussion ensemble Talujon and a former founding member of the piano percussion quartet Yarn/Wire. Antonio explains that his cymbals survey is by no means complete, but that its purpose makes him feel connected to several thousand years of cymbal history. He says, “The specific setting in which cymbals are used has changed dramatically over the millennia – from sacred temples to the fields of battle, opera houses, dance halls, concert stages, and beyond. Cymbals are important features in all of these settings, though. They can mark important moments and keep time, but perhaps most importantly, whatever the setting or function, people use these mysterious vibrating metal discs known as cymbals for their ability to magically transform sound.”

In Drilling, Ingrid Laubrock ruminates on the compositional and collaborative processes that went into her double album Dreamt Twice, Twice Dreamt (Intakt Records 2020). Laubrock, an experimental saxophonist and composer, is interested in exploring the borders between musical realms and creating multi-layered, dense and often evocative sound worlds. She was named “one of the most distinctive rising compositional voices” by Point Of Departure and a “fully committed saxophonist and visionary” by The New Yorker. In Drilling, she says, “What has perhaps become the most important part of making music with other people is a shared sense of passion, truth-seeking, friendship and mutual respect. If we want to live in a better world, we have to strive to become better people ourselves.”

Wet Ink’s inaugural Artists-in-Residence Katherine Young (composition/bassoon/improvisation) and Nick Dunston (composition/bass/improvisation) also shared four new recordings for Archive 05. The new Artist-in-Residence program provides an open platform for invited guest artists to work closely with the ensemble over the course of an entire season – creating new work for and with Wet Ink, performing with the ensemble, presenting their own solo projects and bands, and engaging with Wet Ink’s open, collaborative model in any way they find meaningful. Members of Wet Ink have worked together with Young and Dunston over the years in various ensembles and projects, and Wet Ink is thrilled both have the chance to spend some more focused time with their musical worlds this year, and to introduce their work to those members of our audience who may not have encountered it yet. Wet Ink also presents two 2021-22 AIR concerts at Scholes St. Studio in Brooklyn. AIR Concert 01: Katherine Young takes place on Wednesday, November 17, 2021 at 7:30pm and AIR Concert 02: Nick Dunston takes place on Thursday, November 18, 2021 at 7:30pm.

The mission of Wet Ink Archive parallels that of the Ensemble: sharing the body of work generated within the group, celebrating the music of longtime collaborators, and providing a platform for emerging and underrepresented artists. Each issue includes three articles ranging from personal reflection to in-depth musical analysis, accompanied by newly released music and archival documentation.

Sign Up to Receive the Wet Ink Archive Here.

About Wet Ink Ensemble
The Wet Ink Ensemble is a collective of composers, performers, and improvisers dedicated to adventurous music-making. Named “The Best Classical Music Ensemble of 2018” by The New York Times, Wet Ink’s work is rooted in an ethos of innovation through collaboration, extending from the music and the unique performance practice developed in the “band” atmosphere of Wet Ink’s core ensemble of composer-performers, to projects with a broad range of renowned creators, from Evan Parker to George Lewis to Peter Ablinger, and committed performances of music by young and underrepresented composers, from today’s most promising emerging voices to the next generation of artists.

Hailed for “sublimely exploratory” (The Chicago Reader) and “dense, wild, yet artfully controlled” (The New York Times) performances and “uncompromisingly original music by its members, and unflagging belief in the power of collaboration” (The New Yorker), Wet Ink has been presenting concerts of new music at the highest level in New York City and around the world for over 20 years. Wet Ink’s programming celebrates the nexus of composition, improvisation and interpretation, from early collaborations with Christian Wolff and ZS to pioneering portrait concerts of Peter Ablinger, Mathias Spahlinger, Anthony Braxton, and the AACM composers, work with renowned creative musicians such as Ingrid Laubrock, Peter Evans, Darius Jones, and Katherine Young, and long-term collaborative projects with Wet Ink’s four acclaimed composer-members (Alex Mincek, Sam Pluta, Kate Soper, and Eric Wubbels). In May 2020, the ensemble launched Wet Ink Archive, an online journal of adventurous music featuring writings and recordings by a wide range of artists (please visit at archive.wetink.org).

Wet Ink has been in residence at institutions including Duke University, EMPAC (Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center), Columbia University, the Royal Academy of Music (UK), and The Walden School, among many others, and has been featured on numerous recordings. Highlights include Katharina Rosenberger’s TEXTUREN, which was awarded a German Record Critics Prize, and solo records by Alex Mincek (Torrent), Kate Soper (IPSA DIXIT), Sam Pluta (Broken Symmetries), Eric Wubbels (Duos with Piano, Book 1), and Josh Modney (Engage), all of which were celebrated on various “Best of” lists by The New York Times, The New Yorker, Bandcamp Daily, Sequenza 21, and The Nation. Wet Ink has released four acclaimed solo albums (Wet Ink Ensemble; Relay; Wet Ink: 20, which features the Wet Ink Large Ensemble; and Glossolalia/Lines on Black).

Wet Ink is co-directed by an octet of world class composers, improvisers, and interpreters that collaborate in band-like fashion, writing, improvising, preparing, and touring pieces together over long stretches of time. These directors are Erin Lesser (flutes), Alex Mincek (saxophone), Ian Antonio (percussion), Eric Wubbels (piano), Josh Modney (violin), Mariel Roberts (cello), Kate Soper (voice), and Sam Pluta (electronics). The Wet Ink Large Ensemble is a group of extraordinary New York City musicians that come together to play the world's most exciting and innovative music. Learn more at www.wetink.org.

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