The Crossing Presents Gene Coleman's Ensemble N_JP: An Ancillary Event of the Month of Moderns 2013

An ancillary event of The Crossing's Month of Moderns 2013: The Gulf (between you and me)

The Crossing offers a look into the expansive, creative mind of Philadelphia composer Gene Coleman (whose new work for The Crossing will premiere on June 15), in a performance of Coleman's brainchild, Ensemble NJP. The performance will feature Japanese musicians on traditional instruments, focused around the unique art of internationally acclaimed Toshimaru Nakamura, whose engaging soundscapes are created through a no-input mixing board. From Berlin to Tokyo to Chicago and now in Philadelphia, convention meets experiment as Ensemble NJP explores connections between contemporary and traditional forms of art.

Gene Coleman is a composer, musician and director. Winner of the 2013 Berlin Prize for Music, he has created over 70 works for various instrumentation and media. Innovative use of sound, image, space, and time allows Coleman to create work that expands our understanding of the world. Since 2001 his work has focused on the global transformation of culture and music’s relationship with other media, such as architecture, video, and dance. Coleman formed Ensemble N_JP in 2001 as a vehicle for his ongoing work with musicians from Japan. Through concert programs, multimedia works, and educational projects, the group explores connections between contemporary and traditional forms of art.

NJP is made up of musicians who work with Coleman on a project-by-project basis. It unites outstanding Japanese musicians from the traditional, experimental, and contemporary classical music communities, along with artists from Europe and the United States. Ensemble NJP has performed in a number of important festivals and venues since it’s inception, including the I-House of Tokyo, Pitt Inn Shinjuku, Kidailack Art House (Tokyo), the House of World Cultures Berlin, the Dresden Society Theater, the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art, Lake Forest College, the Chicago World Music Festival, the Blurred Edges Festival in Hamburg, the Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago, the Japan Society (New York), the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

The group’s members include:

Gene Coleman (composer, founder and artistic director)
Rei Hotoda (conductor and assistant artistic director)
Ko Ishikawa (sho *[bamboo mouth organ])
Naomi Sato (sho)
Aya Motohashi (hichiriki [bamboo oboe])
Sasamoto Takeshi (ryuteki [bamboo flute])
Yumiko Tanaka (shamisen *[Japanese banjo])
Yoko Nishi (koto [Japanese zither])
Toshimaru Nakamura (no input mixing board)
Kazuhisa Uchihashi (guitar and daxophone)

General Admission: $10
Buy tickets here.

International House Philadelphia
3701 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104