Theremin and violin, an uncommon duo, will take the stage at the new Williamsburg music venue National Sawdust on Thursday, November 5th! Composer and “hacked” theremin performer Jakub Ciupinski has collaborated with Metropolis concertmaster, violinist Kristin Lee (and recent winner of the 2015 Avery Fisher Career grant!), to bring a dynamic live collaboration and fresh approach to electronic music.
Both Ciupinski and Lee first started getting involved with Metropolis about seven years ago when the two were featured in a Metropolis concert at (le) Poisson Rouge. After the concert, Ciupinski spoke to her about his new violin piece with theremin/electronics, and the rest is history!
Ciupinski’s use of the theremin, an analogue electronic instrument that has been around for about a century, is completely reinvented from its original purpose. Jakub, also a computer software writer and inventor, “hacked” his theremins to function as a proper controller and “a device capable of capturing musical intention of a human performer, expressed with wide variety of gestures.”
The real challenge, however, was to build an effective musical engine to respond to these captured gestures and finding a natural connection between gesture and sound. “This technology and developing a technique around it is something I’ve been working on for the past eight years.”
For this concert at The National Sawdust, the violin and theremin will have very organic interplay – Kristin mentions, “We are going to break preconceived notions about electronic music and bring human warmth and vulnerability to the sounds of the theremin.”
In 2014, Kristin Lee was featured in Resident Artist Series concert presented by Metropolis Ensemble, featuring a new work for violin and theremin: “The reactions to Jakub’s piece at my concert with Metropolis were so overwhelmingly positive that when I got a call from National Sawdust, I knew I wanted to explore in doing a full show with him!”
The concert is November 5 @ 7PM National Sawdust (80 North 6th St, Brooklyn at National Sawdust. Check out this video of Glitch (2014) performed at Le Poisson Rouge from Metropolis Ensemble’s concert: Double Helix.
Describe your process and collaboration in preparation for this concert.
Jakub: We worked together before on numerous occasions, incorporating various types of collaboration as we developed new work together. Some compositions are precisely notated, other rely more on improvisation. We brainstormed a lot about structure of the musical narrative but when it came to rehearsing, we are allowed ourselves to depart from these initial ideas and continue developing the material in a more organic way and almost improvisatory way.
Kristin: Having been long time collaborators, Jakub were very aware of each others’ stylistic languages and strengths so first and foremost, we spent a lot of time putting our brains together to find the concept and explore new ground. Creating something that would be out of our comfort zone and different from what we have done and bringing something new to our audience was first and foremost in our minds.
Talk about the growth and evolution of your work with both theremins and electronics.
Jakub: Incorporating electronic sounds into my music and composing in a controlled studio environment was always something I was deeply enthusiastic about. However, I am keenly aware of the potential problems with performing this same music on stage with live musicians. While exploring possibilities of so called ‘live electronics’, I knew that the key would be to find a proper controller, a device capable of capturing musical intention of a human performer, expressed with wide variety of gestures. Initially I experimented with different types of sensors until I realized that almost a century old instrument called Theremin could be ‘hacked’ and used as a wonderful controller. The real challenge, however, was to build an effective musical engine to respond to these captured gestures. Finding a natural connection between gesture and sound is something I’ve been working on for the past eight years.
Theremin and violin isn’t a typical duo, Kristin how did you get involved with this project, Metropolis, and working with Jakub?
Kristin: I first met Jakub through leading one of the Metropolis concerts where we played Jakub’s music. We got to talking after the performance and I found out that Jakub was working on a piece for a violinist in which he was manipulating the sound of the violin into electronics. I found this concept to be fascinating, decided to help him out with the process, and the rest is history! Discovering his “hacked” theremin was like the cherry on top. I have heard him play this instrument at his solo show and dreamt of doing something together. Years later, when Andrew Cyr and Metropolis offered me a “Resident Artist Series” platform to curate and commission new works for a solo recital of my, I immediately reached out to Jakub to do a collaboration. The reaction to Jakub’s piece and his theremin was so positive and successful that when I got a call from National Sawdust, I knew I wanted to explore doing a full show with him! I find Jakub to be the quintessential composer and the true visionary to the 21st century. The “hacked” theremin, which he designed and created, is the perfect example of his vision and execution.
How does the theremin and violin interact?
Jakub: Initially I approached this collaboration with a mentality of a classical composer. I tried to compose another piece for two instruments but when we stared rehearsing, Kristin deeply inspired me with her amazing improvisatory skills, adding so much to the music that we decided to completely revise our process. Now it’s a hybrid between composition and improvisation. It’s fluid, organic and interactive without losing a sense of structure. This was a truly refreshing approach and I believe that through this very specific way of working together we found something musically meaningful.
Kristin: We will explore in how these two instruments would interact. The obvious way to think is for the theremin to be two-dimensional and the violin to be more flexible, since the theremin is an electronic instrument. We are going to break this preconceived notion and bring the human vulnerability to the sound of the theremin. There will be dialogues, harmonized duets, and highlighted solos like any other piece that we would think of as chamber music.
How did you both get involved with Metropolis? How has this body of work taken life outside of Metropolis?
Jakub: I started working with Metropolis Ensemble about seven years ago. From the very beginning of this collaboration I was incorporating electronics into live acoustic concerts. Metropolis Ensemble, known for its out-of-the-box approach, became an ideal incubator for developing ideas related to blending acoustic and electronic music. It was also during that time that I demonstrated the first prototypes of my ‘Hacked Theremin’ to the Andrew Cyr, who helped me develop this innovation into artistic tool and created wonderful opportunities to share it with others. Also, our collaboration with Kristin Lee stems directly from Metropolis Ensemble so I can honestly say that without Metropolis I wouldn’t have the privilege to work with such a brilliant performer and in all likelihood, my instrument would still be in early stages of prototyping. I think our upcoming show is a good example of how much this unique and remarkable institution is contributing to our artistic community and contemporary music in general, allowing us to take risks, grow, and deepen relationships with inspiring collaborators.
Kristin: I first met Andrew about 6 years ago when he had attended one of my recitals. I’ve been taking the role as a concertmaster for Metropolis ever since then, and Andrew has really changed my perspective on music dramatically. Jakub and I really owe it to Andrew for bringing us together as well! This is officially Jakub and my first time taking our collaboration outside of Metropolis (by popular demand!) and we are really excited to see where this journey will take us!
post by: Sequoia Sellinger