VISIONAIR-05 (Arnold Dreyblatt: Solo Concert)

Originally from New York, Arnold Dreyblatt has lived in Berlin since 1984. He is a polyhedric creator - musician, composer and visual artist - undertaking parallel careers in a range of artistic endeavors that only occasionally converge. Musically, Dreyblatt can most comfortably be situated in minimalism. He is an exponent belonging to the generation immediately following that of Terry Riley, Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and La Monte Young. Dreyblatt was a student of Young in the 70s (as well as of Alvin Lucier and Pauline Oliveros). His compositional and performative style is quite unique, and his investigations in the field of overtones conducted with string instruments (his own instrument is a 'modified' double bass, on which the strings have been replaced by piano strings) have led to dazzling results. Dreyblatt, while less well known than his predecessors and teachers, has gained considerable acclaim, both from among his colleagues and from among a small but enthusiastic group of fans. In order to better perform his music, he has even invented a series of stringed instruments, each requiring specific performative techniques and a particular tuning system. His Orchestra of Excited Strings, formed in 1979, and made up of stringed instruments designed and built by Dreyblatt himself, as well as the odd traditional instrument, such as sax and percussion, is considered one of the most important ensembles in the area of New Music at the end of the twentieth century. Musicians performing with The Orchestra of Excited Strings have included Werner Durand, Pierre Berthier, Evan Zyporin, Jim O'Rourke and David Grubbs.
Recently, Dreyblatt opened a new chapter in his musical journey with his solo concerts “for prepared amplified ‘excited strings’ bass and laptop”. After performances in Paris in January this year, and in Frankfurt this February, this work is now appearing in Turin, as the second event in the series VISIONAIR-05. There will be a single performance, Saturday 12th November at 11pm, and Dreyblatt will perform the pieces Nodal Excitation (1979) and Calculations (2005).