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Press Releases
Wet Ink Ensemble Announces 2019-2020 Season Concerts
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katy Salomon | Morahan Arts and Media
katy@morahanartsandmedia.com | 863.660.2214
Wet Ink Ensemble, The New York Times’
“Best Ensemble Of 2018,” Announces 2019-2020 Concerts
Seattle Symphony Presents Kate Soper in Recital (Seattle), November 3
Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (UK), November 19-20
Columbia University Undergraduate Composers (NYC), December 7
Wet Ink Collaborations: Huddersfield Composers with Charmaine Lee (NYC), December 13
Constellation Frequency Series: Peter Ablinger Sam Pluta (Chicago), January 19
Collaborative Premieres: Wubbels/Lee Duo Wet Ink (NYC), February 13
Kate Soper’s The Romance of the Rose, Co-Produced by Peak Performances (NJ), April 2-5
Alex Mincek/Sam Pluta Album Release, April 2020
Wet Ink Large Ensemble Concert (NYC), May 1
Harvard Group for New Music Residency (MA), May 11-16
New Music on the Point Residency (VT), June 1-11
Plus, Appointment of Cellist Mariel Roberts to Wet Ink Ensemble
New York, NY (October 22, 2019) — The "sublimely exploratory” (The Chicago Reader) Wet Ink Ensemble opens its 21st season in 2019-2020 with two performances at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival followed by a performance of the works of Columbia University undergraduate composers in NYC and a collaboration with vocalist Charmaine Lee and UK-based composers Kristina Wolfe, Bryn Harrison, and Pierre Alexandre Tremblay. The Wet Ink Ensemble is also thrilled to announce the official appointment of frequent collaborator, cellist Mariel Roberts, to the group beginning in the 2019-2020 season.
Of her appointment, Mariel Roberts says, “I'm incredibly thrilled and honored to be joining Wet Ink Ensemble, a group which has inspired me and shaped my musical life for many years now. The members of this ensemble are some of my most valued and trusted collaborators, and it is truly a privilege to make music with such exceptionally virtuosic and like-minded artists. I can't wait for the exciting work we will be creating together in the coming seasons!”
Of the 21st season, Wet Ink Executive Director Josh Modney writes, “The 2019-2020 season features the debut of several ambitious projects by Wet Ink band members that celebrate the group’s unique performance practice, including the world premiere of a duo for voice and piano by Eric Wubbels, written for voice phenom Charmaine Lee; the world premiere of Kate Soper’s opera The Romance of the Rose, co-produced by Peak Performances @ Montclair State (NJ); and the April 2020 release of a new album on Carrier Records of large-scale works for septet by Sam Pluta and Alex Mincek. We are also delighted to welcome our trusted collaborator Mariel Roberts as a co-director and member of the Wet Ink band. We have been fortunate to work with Mariel on solo, chamber, and large ensemble projects for nearly a decade, and are tremendously excited at the ways in which her phenomenal cello playing and extraordinary artistry will inform Wet Ink’s next chapter as an octet.”
Seattle Symphony presents Dialogues: Kate Soper In Recital on Sunday, November 3, 2019 at 6:00 P.M. at Octave 9. The evening includes Soper’s vocal and electronic works that blur boundaries between live and taped voice, instruments and electronics, speaking and singing, performer and audience, and the real and metaphysical worlds featuring composer and electronics performer Sam Pluta. Works include Soper’s Dialogue, The Fragments of Parmenides, The Understanding of All Things, and Dialogue II.
On Tuesday, November 19, 2019 at 2:00 P.M. at the 2019 Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Wet Ink premieres new works by Huddersfield-based composers Pierre Alexandre Tremblay and Kristina Wolfe, alongside Wet Ink member Sam Pluta. The concert is co-produced by the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival and CeReNeM. The program features two world premieres, Pierre Alexandre Tremblay’s (un)weave (2019) and Kristina Wolfe’s A Mere Echo of Astitoxenus (2019), as well as the UK premiere of Sam Pluta’s Lines on Black (2018).
Wet Ink’s second concert at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival on Wednesday, November 20, 2019 at 12:00 P.M. features three new works written specially for them. The program includes the world premiere of Smoke, Airs by vocalist and composer Charmaine Lee, a frequent guest collaborator of Wet Ink’s and rising star of the New York experimental scene. Lee’s exploration of the voice as a tool that can be altered through electronics – rendered differently in new media – has provided us with music like no other. The ensemble will also premiere Dead Time, a stunning new work by Huddersfield composer Bryn Harrison that maps moments in time that are ’neither eventful nor vital’ – a rare phenomenon, in our current climate. They complete their stay at the festival by playing a puzzle: the UK premiere of Eric Wubbels’ modules/relationships.
On Friday, December 13, 2019 at 8:00 P.M. at St. Peters Church in Chelsea, Wet Ink presents a concert of collaborations from the 2019 Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, featuring the US premieres of sextets written for Wet Ink by UK-based composers Kristina Wolfe, Bryn Harrison, and Pierre Alexandre Tremblay, plus a work by NYC-based voice phenom Charmaine Lee. Wet Ink debuted these works at hcmf// in November 2019 and recorded them for release on Huddersfield’s HCR label.
As part of a weeklong celebration of Austrian composer Peter Ablinger’s music, Constellation’s Frequency Series presents Wet Ink on Sunday, January 19, 2020 at 8:30 P.M. in two works by Ablinger, IEAOV “8 Vitrines, Pigment Dust for percussion and 4-channel electronics and Black Series, alongside a world premiere by Sam Pluta written for a sextet of Wet Ink members.
Wet Ink presents Collaborative Premieres: Wubbels/Lee Duo Wet Ink on Thursday, February 13, 2020 at 8:00 P.M. at Scholes Street Studio. Wet Ink presents the premiere of Eric Wubbels’s duo for voice and piano, written for Charmaine Lee, alongside new work developed collaboratively by Wet Ink.
From April 2-5, 2020, Wet Ink will give the world premiere performances of Kate Soper’s The Romance of the Rose, co-produced by Peak Performances at Montclair State University (NJ). Performed by seven singers and the Wet Ink Large Ensemble with live electronics, Soper’s The Romance of the Rose mixes medieval and contemporary allegory—along with shrieks, wails, and auto-tuned oration—to dramatize the ways in which love, sex, and music wreak havoc on our sense of self. The two act opera was inspired by Le Roman de la Rose by Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun.
On April 28, 2020, Wet Ink releases its newest album on Carrier Records featuring Alex Mincek's Glossolalia and Sam Pluta's Lines on Black, two long-form works written for the unique performance practice of the Wet Ink Septet, incorporating the band members’ affinity for improvisation, just intonation, electronic sound, and fiercely rigorous unison.
On Friday, May 1, 2020 at 8:00 P.M. at St. Peter's Church in Chelsea, Wet Ink will celebrate the release of the Mincek/Pluta Carrier Records album with a concert featuring performances by the Wet Ink Large Ensemble, with NYC premieres by Tonia Koh, Weston Olencki, Sam Pluta, and Alex Mincek.
Wet Ink is in residence with the Harvard Group for New Music Residency in Cambridge, Massachusetts from May 11–16, 2020. On Saturday, May 16, 2020 at Harvard University’s Paine Hall, the Wet Ink Large Ensemble performs a program of new works written by HGNM composers.
Wet Ink is the guest ensemble-in-residence for New Music on the Point in Leicester, VT from June 1–11, 2020. Residency activities include a concert featuring music by the Wet Ink composers, plus classes on improvisation and experimental theater.
Performance Details
Seattle Symphony Presents: Dialogues: Kate Soper In Recital
Sunday, November 3, 2019 at 6:00pm
Octave 9 | Raisbeck Music Center, Benaroya Hall | Seattle, WA
Tickets: $25
Link: https://seattlesymphony.org/
Repertoire:
Dialogue I (improvisation by Kate Soper and Sam Pluta, text by George Barkley and Soper)
The Fragments of Parmenides (by Kate Soper, text by Parmenides, Soper, and W.B. Yeats)
The Understanding of All Things (by Kate Soper, text by Franz Kafka)
Dialogue I (improvisation by Kate Soper and Sam Pluta)
Performers:
Kate Soper, voice
Sam Pluta, electronics
------------------------------
Wet Ink at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival
Tuesday, November 19, 2019 at 2:00 P.M.
Phipps Hall, Richard Steinitz Building, University of Huddersfield | West Yorkshire, UK
Tickets: £9-£12
Link: https://tickets.hcmf.co.uk/en-
Repertoire:
Pierre Alexandre Tremblay: (un)weave (2019), for Wet Ink septet [World Premiere]
Kristina Wolfe: A Mere Echo of Astitoxenus (2019), for Wet Ink septet [World Premiere]
Sam Pluta: Lines on Black (2018), for Wet Ink septet [UK Premiere]
Performers:
Wet Ink Ensemble
Alice Teyssier, flute
Alex Mincek, tenor saxophone
Ian Antonio, percussion
Eric Wubbels, piano
??????? Josh Modney, violin
??????? Sam Pluta, electronics
------------------------------
Wet Ink at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival
Wednesday, November 20, 2019 at 12:00 P.M.
Phipps Hall, Richard Steinitz Building, University of Huddersfield | West Yorkshire, UK
Tickets: £9-£12
Link: https://tickets.hcmf.co.uk/en-
Repertoire:
Charmaine Lee: Smoke, Airs (2017 rev. 2019), for Wet Ink septet [World Premiere]
Bryn Harrison: Dead Time (2019), for Wet Ink septet [World Premiere]
Eric Wubbels: modules/relationships (2019), for Wet Ink septet [UK Premiere]
Performers:
Wet Ink Ensemble
Alice Teyssier, flute
Alex Mincek, tenor saxophone
Ian Antonio, percussion
Eric Wubbels, piano
Josh Modney, violin
Sam Pluta, electronics
------------------------------
Columbia University Undergraduate Composers
Saturday, December 7, 2019 at 8:00 P.M.
Scholes Street Studio | 375 Lorimer St | Brooklyn, NY 11206
Tickets: Free Admission (no pre-order)
Repertoire:
Joseph Jordan: New Work (2019) [World Premiere]
Forrest Eimold: New Work (2019) [World Premiere]
Jason Vasiliou: New Work (2019) [World Premiere]
Mac Waters: New Work (2019) [World Premiere]
Dylan Del Giudice: New Work (2019) [World Premiere]
Performers:
Wet Ink Ensemble
Laura Wiener, horn
Weston Olencki, trombone
Ian Antonio, percussion
Laura Barger, piano
Josh Modney, violin
Mariel Roberts, cello
------------------------------
Wet Ink Collaborations: Huddersfield Composers and Charmaine Lee
Friday, December 13, 2019 at 8:00 P.M.
St. Peters Church, Chelsea | 346 W 20th Street | New York, NY
Tickets: $10 general admission, free for students (no pre-order, cash only at the door)
Repertoire:
Charmaine Lee: Smoke, Airs (2017 rev. 2019), for Wet Ink sextet [US Premiere]
Bryn Harrison: Dead Time (2019), for Wet Ink sextet [US Premiere]
Pierre Alexandre Tremblay: (un)weave (2019), for Wet Ink sextet [US Premiere]
Kristina Wolfe: A Mere Echo of Astitoxenus (2019), for Wet Ink sextet [US Premiere]
Performers:
Wet Ink Ensemble
Alice Teyssier, flute
Alex Mincek, tenor saxophone
Ian Antonio, percussion
Eric Wubbels, piano
Josh Modney, violin
Sam Pluta, electronics
Charmaine Lee, voice
------------------------------
Frequency Series Presents: Peter Ablinger Sam Pluta
Sunday, January 19, 2020 at 8:30 P.M.
Constellation | 3111 N Western Ave | Chicago, IL
Tickets: $15 general admission, $10 for students
Repertoire:
Peter Abliniger: IEAOV “8 Vitrines, Pigment Dust” for percussion and 4-channel electronics
Peter Ablinger: Black Series, for ensemble
Sam Pluta: New Work for Wet Ink sextet [World Premiere]
Performers:
Wet Ink Ensemble
Alex Mincek, saxophone
Ian Antonio, percussion
Eric Wubbels, piano
Josh Modney, violin
Mariel Roberts, cello
Sam Pluta, electronics
Weston Olencki, trombone
------------------------------
Collaborative Premieres: Wubbels/Lee Duo Wet Ink
Thursday, February 13, 2020 at 8:00 P.M.
Scholes Street Studio | 375 Lorimer Street | Brooklyn, NY
Tickets: $10, free for students
Repertoire:
Eric Wubbels: New Work for voice and piano [World Premiere]
Wet Ink Ensemble: Improvisations [World Premiere]
Performers:
Wet Ink Ensemble
Alex Mincek, saxophone
Ian Antonio, percussion
Eric Wubbels, piano
Josh Modney, violin
Mariel Roberts, cello
Sam Pluta, electronics
Charmaine Lee, voice
------------------------------
Kate Soper’s The Romance of the Rose, Co-produced by Peak Performances @ Montclair State
Thursday, April 2, 2020 at 7:30 P.M.
Friday, April 3, 2020 at 7:30 P.M.
Saturday, April 4, 2020 at 8:00 P.M.
Sunday, April 5, 2020 at 3:00 P.M.
Peak Performances | Alexander Kasser Theater | Montclair, NJ
Tickets: $30
Info Link: https://www.peakperfs.org/
Repertoire:
Kate Soper: The Romance of the Rose [World Premiere]
Opera in Two Acts and Two Epilogues
Book and Music by Kate Soper
With additional texts by multiple authors
Inspired by Le Roman de la Rose by Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun
Directed by Michael Rau
Conducted by Josh Modney
Music directed by Kate Soper
Performed by the Wet Ink Large Ensemble and seven singers
Creative Producer: Annie Holt
Scenic Design: Sara C. Walsh
Costume Design: Marissa Menezes
Lighting Design: Anshuman Bhatia
Projection Design: Brad Peterson
Production Stage Manager: Shannon Richey
Performers:
Wet Ink Large Ensemble
Rane Moore, clarinet
Erin Rogers, saxophone
Ian Antonio, percussion
James Moore, guitar
Nuiko Wadden, harp
Laura Barger, piano
Josh Modney, violin
Mariel Roberts, cello
Sam Pluta, electronics
Gelsey Bell, soprano
Ariadne Greif, soprano
Brett Umlauf, soprano
Devony Smith, mezzo-soprano
Lucas Steele, tenor
Phillip Bullock, baritone
Robert Wesley Mason, baritone
------------------------------
Mincek-Pluta Carrier Records Album Release / Wet Ink Large Ensemble in Concert
Friday, May 1, 2020 at 8:00 P.M.
St. Peter's Church | 346 W 20th Street | New York, NY
Tickets: $10, free for students
The Wet Ink Large Ensemble returns with a program of NYC premieres by Tonia Koh, Weston Olencki, Sam Pluta, and Alex Mincek, as Wet Ink celebrates the release of a new album on Carrier Records featuring works by Mincek and Pluta written for the unique performance practice of the Wet Ink band.
------------------------------
Harvard Group for New Music Residency
May 11–16, 2020
Concert: Saturday, May 16, 2019 at 8:00 P.M.
Harvard University, Paine hall | Cambridge, Massachusetts
The Wet Ink Large Ensemble performs a program of new works written by HGNM composers.
------------------------------
New Music on the Point Residency
June 1–11, 2020
Point CounterPoint | 1361 Hooker Road | Leicester, VT
Link: https://pointcp.com/new-music-
Wet Ink is the 2020 guest ensemble-in-residence for New Music on the Point. Activities will include concerts, classes on improvisation, experimental theater, and more!
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 octet 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).
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 three acclaimed solo albums (Wet Ink Ensemble, Relay, and Wet Ink: 20, which features the Wet Ink Large Ensemble), and will release another in April 2020 featuring large-scale works written for the Wet Ink band by Sam Pluta and Alex Mincek.
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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