PRISM Quartet, a world-renowned all-saxophone ensemble, is joining forces with violinist and Pew Fellow Diane Monroe, poet/vocalist and Pew Fellow Ursula Rucker, and percussionist and Pulitzer Prize winner Tyshawn Sorey to present three concerts from their  residency at the Free Library of Philadelphia. The program will feature world premieres of music by participants in PRISM’s […]

PRISM Quartet, a world-renowned all-saxophone ensemble, is joining forces with violinist and Pew Fellow Diane Monroe, poet/vocalist and Pew Fellow Ursula Rucker, and percussionist and Pulitzer Prize winner Tyshawn Sorey to present three concerts from their  residency at the Free Library of Philadelphia. The program will feature world premieres of music by participants in PRISM’s […]

PRISM Quartet, a world-renowned all-saxophone ensemble, is joining forces with violinist and Pew Fellow Diane Monroe, poet/vocalist and Pew Fellow Ursula Rucker, and percussionist and Pulitzer Prize winner Tyshawn Sorey to present three concerts from their  residency at the Free Library of Philadelphia. The program will feature world premieres of music by participants in PRISM’s […]

Vinay Desai: Vinay Desai is a direct disciple of the world renowned Santoor Maestro Padma Vibhusan Pandit Shivkumar Sharmaji. After completing college, Vinay sought out to learn Santoor in India. Having had some background training in Indian Classical music, in 2011, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma guided him to begin his training under Takahiro Arai and Kunal Gunjal […]

  SCRAAATCH is a duo project making multimedia art and performances, experimental music, and hybrid DJ sets from their studio in Brooklyn, NY. Their releases have included Teardrops EP (2019), ‘DON’T TALK TO ME REMIXES’ (2022), Distortion Études (Bunny Jr. Tapes, 2024) and contributions to compilation albums by Parisian label ParkingStone’s “Virgō” (2021), artist Kevin […]

Friends & Neighbors are a powerhouse of the Scandinavian jazz avant-garde, known for their explosive energy, fearless improvisation, and deep-rooted reverence for the radical spirit of 1960s free jazz. Taking their name from a lesser-known Ornette Coleman classic, the quintet channels the uncompromising ethos of artists like Coltrane, Ayler, and Shepp, while forging their own […]

The Electronic Music Ensemble performs in Rock Hall Auditorium. This event is free and open to the public.

Called a “pianist of burrowing focus and an indispensable fixture of the contemporary vanguard” by Nate Chinen in The New York Times, Matt Mitchell is a pianist, composer, and electronic musician interested in the intersections of various strains of acoustic, electric, composed, and improvised new music. He has a longstanding association with Tim Berne, and […]

Saccata Quartet is a supergroup featuring guitar explorer Nels Cline (Wilco, CUP with Yuka C. Honda, his own Consentrik Quartet); percussionist Glenn Kotche (Wilco as well as myriad recordings by everyone from John Luther Adams to Taylor Swift); drummer Chris Corsano (a collaborator with countless free improvisers including Joe McPhee and Bill Orcutt); and bassist […]

Co-Presented with People’s Music Supply. Brandon Lopez/Chuck Roth/Dennis Sullivan Trio: Brandon López is a New York-based composer and bassist working at the fringes of jazz, free improvisation, noise and new music. His music has been praised as “brutal” (Chicago Reader) and “relentless” (The New York Times). From the New York Philharmonic’s David Geffen Hall to […]

We are pleased to present Sova in a solo set at University Lutheran Church. ABOUT THE ARTIST “Ghostly, delicate, elegant…” (Independent Clauses) For Sova – the stage name of New York-based pianist/composer Sophia Subbayya Vastek – the piano has always been home. A second generation pianist, she holds a deep reverence for her collective history, […]

3 sets of experimental music

Bowerbird is pleased to present the Blackbox Ensemble performing contemporary chamber works by Annie Nikunen, Ileana Perez-Velazquez, Baldwin Giang, Tania Leon, and James Diaz at University Lutheran Church. ABOUT THE ARTISTS The BlackBox Ensemble is a collective of contemporary music performers based in New York City dedicated to exploring the wide-ranging world of the music […]

For 20 years NYC-based, trumpeter, composer, bandleader and educator Peter Evans has been pushing the boundaries of creative music in formats as divergent as solo trumpet improvisation, symphony orchestras, jazz ensembles, noise/electronic music, and through-composed works. He’s been the recipient of awards and commissions worldwide including the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship in 2022. Evans has worked […]

For 20 years NYC-based, trumpeter, composer, bandleader and educator Peter Evans has been pushing the boundaries of creative music in formats as divergent as solo trumpet improvisation, symphony orchestras, jazz ensembles, noise/electronic music, and through-composed works. He’s been the recipient of awards and commissions worldwide including the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship in 2022. Evans has worked […]

A trio led by vibraphonist Victor Vieira-Branco featuring drummer Joey Sullivan and bassist John Moran. With over four years of immersive collaboration, the trio is known for their strong ensemble identity, high-energy live performances and extensive touring.

Weirs: Weirs is an experimental/traditional music collective from central North Carolina. Non-hierarchical in form, past Weirs performances have included anywhere from two to twelve people. This Weirs lineup—neither definitive nor precious—includes Oliver Child-Lanning; Justin Morris and Libby Rodenbough (his collaborators in Sluice); Evan Morgan, Courtney Werner, and Mike DeVito of Magic Tuber Stringband; and stalwarts […]

In their almost two-decade history, the Grammy-nominated band Kneebody has created a genre and style all its own. Their sound is an explosive blend of rock energy and high-level, nuanced chamber ensemble playing, set within the frames of highly wrought compositions that balance adventurous, no-holds-barred improvisation. Their music defies classification, drawing from influences that include […]

SML brings together a stunning cross-section of Los Angeles’s thriving jazz, improvised, and indie music scenes: bassist Anna Butterss (Jason Isbell, Phoebe Bridgers, Makaya McCraven, Daniel Villarreal), synthesist Jeremiah Chiu (Ariel Kalma, Marta Sofia Honer, Icy Demons), saxophonist Josh Johnson (Meshell Ndegeocello, Leon Bridges, Carlos Niño), percussionist Booker Stardrum (Amirtha Kidambi, Lisel, Lee Ranaldo, Patrick […]

An evening of alternating lowercase and punchy free improvisations. Curated by Max Glazier. Aaron Pond- Tuba, Voice, Flutes, Percussion, Melodica, Grass Max Glazier- Drums Bert Harris- Contrabass Mattie McDonnell- Accordion, Voice

FÖR is a new collaboration between percussionist Shakoor Hakeem and Swedish saxophonist Isak Ingvarsson. Rooted in the spirit of Don Cherry’s arrival in Sweden in the mid-1960s, the project bridges Swedish folk traditions with the rhythmic folklore of the Afro-Diaspora—fusing into a deep sonic eruption of energy and expression. Isak Ingvarsson – Saxophone, Clarinet, Flute A rising voice […]

The new album from Bitchin Bajas — the acclaimed trio of Cooper Crain, Rob Frye, and Daniel Quinlivan — arrives September 26, marking their first full-length since 2022’s Bajascillators. Composed primarily on the road and recorded at Chicago’s Electrical Audio, Inland See presents four expansive tracks that form a cohesive sonic statement: elemental, immersive, and deeply transportive. The […]

Thomas Buckner (Baritone Voice), James Ilgenfritz (Contrabass) Acclaimed Baritone Thomas Buckner is joined by James Illgenfritz for an incredible concert highlighting the unique acoustics of Christ Church. Each is skilled in the use of microtones, being able to definitely manipulate timbre and pitch in order to summon otherworldly emotion.

Trio Inflorescence performs in a generative way similar to how the fractals of plant structures are created, reach for the sky and bask in the sun. It considers plant life cycles, improvising growth and withering through time, adapting to the the natural, unnatural, and the imaginary implications of sonic moments. we three (Dan Blacksberg, trombone, Carlos Santiago, […]

 2 sets of experimental music

Shande: Shande (שאַנדע): A ‘shande’ is a damn shame. A Yiddish epithet whose frightful power is reserved for only the most disgraceful offenses under heaven, it is a devastating word to the Jewish ear. But for Jack Braunstein’s experimental 12-piece folk-rock ensemble from Philadelphia, it’s an oddly fitting name. With explosive politics and off-puttingly beautiful […]

A trio led by vibraphonist Victor Vieira-Branco featuring drummer Joey Sullivan and bassist John Moran. With over four years of immersive collaboration, the trio is known for their strong ensemble identity, high-energy live performances and extensive touring.

Bassist, composer, bandleader, and educator Dezron Douglas has established himself as a major force in contemporary creative music. Followers of contemporary jazz might recognize Douglas for his bass work behind Pharoah Sanders, Louis Hayes, or Ravi Coltrane. Others might know him as the newest full-time member of the Trey Anastasio Band. With Emilio Modeste on […]

Bassist, composer, bandleader, and educator Dezron Douglas has established himself as a major force in contemporary creative music. Followers of contemporary jazz might recognize Douglas for his bass work behind Pharoah Sanders, Louis Hayes, or Ravi Coltrane. Others might know him as the newest full-time member of the Trey Anastasio Band. With Emilio Modeste on […]

Alto saxophonist and composer Bobby Zankel has been one of the most treasured figures on the Philadelphia jazz scene for decades. As the leader of the Warriors of the Wonderful Sound in its variety of forms, Zankel has amassed a stunning repertoire of challenging and enthralling compositions, including commissioned works featuring such revered artists as […]

A trio led by vibraphonist Victor Vieira-Branco featuring drummer Joey Sullivan and bassist John Moran. With over four years of immersive collaboration, the trio is known for their strong ensemble identity, high-energy live performances and extensive touring.

A trio led by vibraphonist Victor Vieira-Branco featuring drummer Joey Sullivan and bassist John Moran. With over four years of immersive collaboration, the trio is known for their strong ensemble identity, high-energy live performances and extensive touring.

Ars Nova Workshop is thrilled to present UB-313, an exploratory new supergroup from Philly by way of the outer limits of the galaxy, at Solar Myth on Saturday, January 3, 2026. Out beyond Pluto can be found the dwarf planet Eris – also known in astronomical circles as 2003 UB-313. That alternate name has now […]

  After nearly a decade away from recording as a leader, saxophonist Jason Rigby made his triumphant return in August 2025 with Mayhem, a groundbreaking duo album featuring renowned drummer Mark Guiliana. The project expands to a trio as it arrives at Solar Myth, adding the eclectic bassist Chris Morrissey to the mix. Mayhem represents […]

ME (Mercedes Esparza) guitar loops & drones Nick Millevoi and Jason Carr guitar and electronics Ed Wilcox solo improvised percussion Pocket Dimensions series Upstairs at Abyssinia https://www.instagram.com/p/DSu-2yrjl0j/?hl=en

ME (Mercedes Esparza) guitar, loops, drones Nick Millevoi and Jason Carr guitar and electronics Ed Wilcox solo improvised percussion

Please join us for the Philadelphia debut of this remarkable trio, bringing together three musicians whose work is united by a commitment to artistry beyond category. Shahzad Ismaily (Arooj Aftab, Ceramic Dog), Greg Saunier (Deerhoof) and turntablist/sound artist Maria Chavez came together as a trio for the first time on stage in Williamsburg, Brooklyn in […]

Led by tri-centric orchestra concertmaster Erica Dicker, This workshop is dedicated to the exploration of the compositional/improvisational systems of NEA Jazz Master Anthony Braxton. As much as we are trying to faithfully approach the work of the maestro, we will use this music as a springboard to unlocking our own creativity and unique approaches.    […]

  Composition 76 by Anthony Braxton performed by Gabriel Meyer- Trombone, Alto Saxophone Andrew Gioanetti- Flute, Bb Clarinet, Alto and Soprano Sax Jonah Gelbart- Trumpet, Fluegal Horn, Shofar

Bex Burch is a composer, percussionist, producer and instrument maker that has carved out a unique sonic space for herself. Her restless creativity and desire to embrace new musical challenges across a range of percussive instruments have led to collaborations with a diverse range of artists such as Peter Zummo, Kuljit Bhamra, Tamar Osborn, Leafcutter […]

“This definitely ain’t your father’s guitar band,” writes no less an expert on six-string subversion than Marc Ribot in the liner notes to the self-titled debut by Ches Smith’s latest project, Clone Row. The adventurous new quartet features Smith with guitarists Mary Halvorson and Liberty Ellman and bassist Nick Dunston. As a composer, Smith finds […]

A View from Inside: David Tudor at 100 celebrates the life, work, and legacy of David Tudor (1926–1996), a Philadelphia-born pioneer of experimental music and sound art. Tudor transformed the possibilities of sound by merging audio technology, tone generators, signal processors, loudspeakers, and electric circuits into instruments of radical invention. Tudor first gained prominence in […]

Felix Mendelssohn was 21 when he toured Italy, an impressionable, impassioned young composer alive to musical inspiration. He was already developing an international reputation, and this trip stirred his imagination. He described his “Italian” Symphony, rich in imagery and melody, as “blue sky in A major.” John Williams’s jaunty Tuba Concerto is a delightful opportunity […]

  John Cage: Solo for Cymbal (1960) David Tudor: Coefficient: Frictional Percussion and Electronics (1991) This event is part of A VIEW FROM INSIDE: DAVID TUDOR AT 100, an exhibition at Drexel’s Pearlstein Gallery from January 15 to March 21, 2026.

Bowerbird is pleased to present a free screening of Bandoneon! (a combine), a documentary about David Tudor’s groundbreaking 1966 performance, followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Julie Martin. Bandoneon! was Tudor’s first full concert work as a composer, performed as part of 9 Evenings: Theatre & Engineering—a legendary collaboration between ten New York artists and […]

Bowerbird is pleased to present pianist Adam Tendler in a solo performance of works by Christian Wolff, Toshi Ichiyanagi, Henry Cowell, Morton Feldman, John Cage, and others. Before David Tudor became renowned for his pioneering electronic compositions, he was celebrated as one of the most fearless and virtuosic interpreters of experimental piano music. Throughout the […]

Passages Season 4 | Program 4 Live sets: Shahzad Ismaily | Merope w/ Shahzad Ismaily DJ set: Westov Temple Visual Projections: Klip Collective Beverages: Forin

Felix Mendelssohn was 21 when he toured Italy, an impressionable, impassioned young composer alive to musical inspiration. He was already developing an international reputation, and this trip stirred his imagination. He described his “Italian” Symphony, rich in imagery and melody, as “blue sky in A major.” John Williams’s jaunty Tuba Concerto is a delightful opportunity […]

sets @ 7:30 and 9:00 PM

FIRE MUSEUM PRESENTS 25TH ANNIVERSARY: IVA BITTOVÁ & ANTONIN FAJT DUO + THE OTHER SIDE OF A DREAM Free-Donations Appreciated!   Iva Bittová: Hailing from the present-day Czech Republic, Iva Bittová is one of Europe’s most innovative and celebrated artists. She began her career as an actor in the mid-1970s, appearing in several Czech and […]

AIRLFT 2026 – Thursday! JAN 22 at 7PMPhilly’s super collective of composers, improvisors and sonic healers are back in action in the new year. Help us celebrate the birthday of our own DM Hotep. Hotep, Philly’s guitarist, composer, and curator extraordinaire, will curate our 2 sets of musical and sonic excursions.We are AIRLFT- Diehl, Levin, […]

Fire Museum Presents 25th Anniversary: Dave Burrell Dave Burrell: Distinguished composer-pianist Dave Burrell is an African-American performing artist of singular stature on the international contemporary music scene. Standing out as a leading figure of the New York avant-garde scene in the second half of the ’60s, Burrell quickly established himself as one of the most […]

Join us for an extraordinary multimedia performance with drummer Jonathan Kane (La Monte Young, Swans), guitarist Reeves Gabrels (The Cure, David Bowie) and bassist Jair-Rohm Parker Wells (Machine Gun, Embryo) as they interpret the music of artists photographed by legendary photographer Art Kane, performed with projections of Kane’s iconic images of The Who, Jim Morrison, […]

Dancers: Curt Haworth Leigh Huster Loren Groenendaal Katherine Kiefer Stark Michele Tantoco   Musicians: A.J. Khaw (Piano) Connor Przybyszewski (Trombone) Flandrew Fleisenberg (Percussion) Morgan Evans-Weiler (Violin)  

John Vogel / Buffalo Stance / Ialive / Tidal Prism +    John Vogel – A Philadelphia multimedia artist formerly of the band +    Grandchildren. John will be performing an abridged version of his live +    performance documentary Weird Music. +    Buffalo Stance – Long-running solo project by Jamey Robinson, formerly +    of the bands Man […]

Each summer, musicians from around the world gather in the Green Mountains of Vermont to participate in a “fundamentally natural and unique” approach to music-making (New York Classical Review). In their second appearance this season, Musicians from Marlboro reintroduces Untitled—a 2023 PCMS commission by composer and MacArthur “Genius” Tyshawn Sorey—as well as a pair of […]

Embark on a musical odyssey with renowned Finnish conductor Osmo Vänskä. The evening begins with Missy Mazzoli’s Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres), a swirling, celestial work inspired by planetary motion and the roiling drone of the medieval stringed instrument, the hurdy-gurdy. Henry Dorn’s powerful Transitions follows, a deeply personal tone poem reflecting on loss, transformation, and resilience. The program features the world […]

JACOB Concerto for Horn and Strings, arr. for Horn and PianoMadelyn Urbine, horn Yoni Levyatov, piano Gary KULESHA SonataJackson Howard, trombone TBD, piano PENDERECKI DivertimentoLaura Navasardian, cello Intermission SHOSTAKOVICH Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major, Op. 107Kwanyun Loo, cello

Sets @ 7:30 and 9:00 PM

Sets at 7:30 and 9:00 PM

The People’s Music Supply Composers Orchestra is an ensemble dedicated to performing compositions written by its members.  It is a space for experimentation and expression.  Each member brings their own unique background and experience representing a wide variety of philosophies, techniques, and aesthetics.  It is an outlet for ideas, a workshop to test what is […]

Tashi Dorji is a Bhutanese-born, Asheville-based experimental guitarist whose fiercely intuitive improvisations have carved out a unique space in the contemporary avant-garde. His expansive discography includes deeply felt solo works like Stateless (2020) and We Will Be Wherever the Fires Are Lit (2024), and his forthcoming electric album Low Clouds Hang, This Land Is on […]

  Philadelphia visual artist Erik Ruin and his Ominous Cloud Ensemble will be trying out a slightly different format than usual, a new immersive long-form four-channel performance-installation with each musician tied to a channel of projections. Imagery will combine animation, shadow puppetry and experimental video. This time around the ensemble will be guitarist DM Hotep […]

John Shaw (Believers, Son of Earth, Shackamaxon, Magik Markers) solo bass Frances Cordie (Philly) offering up some ambient techno improvisation Doors at 7pm, Music at 8pm – $10-20, cash only. BYOB

Ravel Mother Goose Suite.   16 minutes Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 1.   21 minutes Stravinsky The Rite of Spring.   33 minutes

PROGRAM Earle Brown: Four Systems (1954) Earle Brown: December 1952 from Folio I (1952) Earle Brown: One Through Five from Folio II (1970) Morton Feldman: Only (1947) Morton Feldman: A Very Short Piece for Trumpet (1986) Morton Feldman: King of Denmark (1964) ABOUT THE ARTISTS Founded in 2015, the Arcana New Music Ensemble is a […]

Ravel Mother Goose Suite.   16 minutes Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 1    21 minutes Stravinsky The Rite of Spring    33 minutes

Sets at 7:30 and 9:00  

Bowerbird is pleased to present an online talk with Nancy Perloff and Ron Kuivila, hosted by exhibition co-curators You Nakai and Dustin Hurt. Nancy Perloff, curator at the Getty Research Institute, oversees the David Tudor Papers, one of the most significant archives of experimental music in the 20th century. Ron Kuivila, Professor of Music at […]

Sam Wenc + Friends: Sam Wenc pedal steel Sam Yulsman piano Joey Sullivan drums John Moran bass Victor Vieira Branco vibraphone Will Henriksen violin Matthew Lee bass clarinet/saxophone   From Language At An Angle liner notes, by Jack Braunstein: “Language At An Angle” is the latest offering from Sam Wenc (fka Post Moves); an eight-part […]

Tyshawn Sorey, MacArthur Fellow, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and professor of music at Penn, pays tribute to jazz pioneer Max Roach and his 1968 album, Members, Don’t Git Weary, a recording with context embedded in one of the most pivotal cultural periods of the 20th century. For this Philadelphia premiere, Sorey’s new arrangements wink at the […]

Taji Ra’oofNahll/TR7 electronics with Jamal Moore – reeds and electronics Nate Totushek – drums   Sharper than a Serpent’s Tooth Matt Engle/David Mcdonnell / Ryan Rogers  

Bowerbird is pleased to present an online talk with John Driscoll and Phil Edelstein, hosted by exhibition co-curators You Nakai and Dustin Hurt. John Driscoll and Phil Edelstein are founding members of Composers Inside Electronics (CIE), a collaborative group formed in 1973 that has been central to the evolution and continuation of David Tudor’s Rainforest […]

SHOSTAKOVICH Chamber Symphony, Op. 73a

Bowerbird is pleased to present Audra performing an evening of music for voice and saxophone, with repertoire including Meredith Monk’s Hocket for Two Voices, two moody folk-song arrangements by Karin Rehnqvist, and Cecilia McDowall’s dramatic White Fox Woman. Three pieces make up the center of this program: Thomas Kessler’s Is it?, Philippe Leroux Un lieu […]

The lineup is solo trumpeter Eyebee, a guitar and percussion duo called Earthen Jug, and the long-awaited debut of Angel Meat, which is @layer_meat on vocals and @mylesofdestruction on harp.   21+

Spectral Forces Alex ( @alexoteric ) -Synths, Language Julius ( @zooolius ) -Percussion, Mysteries Pete ( @searchfortheinfinitelight ) Basses, Flutes Alex Smith is your guide enmeshed in the parallel universes of Philadelphia. In The Light of The Universe is in Who worlds are brought to life and death by the rhythm section of Julius Masri […]

Miramar: Miramar reimagines the Latin bolero and carries the torch of bolero beat—a genre that rose to international fame in the 1960s by blending nostalgic ballads with psychedelic rock, bossa nova, funk, jazz, and more. An offshoot of the acclaimed indie-salsa band Bio Ritmo, Miramar was one of the first Latin bands to perform on […]

Bowerbird is pleased to present the Arcana New Music Ensemble performing Postal Pieces 2.0, the second iteration of “Postal Pieces,” a concert featuring living composers in Philadelphia and beyond composing postcard-sized works inspired by James Tenney’s unorthodox set of compositions. Tenney’s “Postal Pieces,” composed between 1954 and 1971, are a series of ten concise works […]

JeJaWeDa: The band features the great Dutch sound poet and improvisor Jaap Blonk, trombone virtuoso Jeb Bishop, and the versatile and powerful “rhythm section” of Damon Smith and Weasel Walter. Jaap Blonk is unique for his powerful stage presence and playful freedom in improvisation, combined with a keen grasp of structure. The frenetically prolific bandleader/composer/multiinstrumentalist […]

  Still traveling the spaceways after more than 100 years on the planet, the indefatigable Maestro Marshall Allen remains a brilliant imaginative force whose life has spanned nearly the entire history of jazz. A key member of the Sun Ra Arkestra for more than six decades and its dauntless leader for the last quarter century, […]

Nomad War Machine is an improvised metal duo consisting of guitarist James Reichard and drummer Julius Masri.  In 2023, both musicians entered Baltimore’s Tempo House Recording studio with pedal steel luminary Susan Alcorn Lobato. The release of the album Contra Madre (VG+ Records), on January 31 of 2026, marks the one year anniversary of her passing. The Fire Museum […]

David Tudor is largely remembered for his performances of mid-twentieth-century avant-garde piano music and his close association with John Cage, but much less is known about his personal life or the intentional artist’s community he co-founded in 1954. The Gate Hill Cooperative, established with Cage and others who had emerged from the experimental environment of […]

Ars Nova Workshop presents Polish guitarist Raphael Rogiński, performing his transformative interpretations of the music of John Coltrane and the words of Langston Hughes at Solar Myth on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. A guitarist, composer, improviser, culture animator and musicologist, Raphael Rogiński was educated in jazz and classical music while also studying musical theory and […]

~ Live Sets by David Moore & Discovery Zone ~ DJ Set by RVNG Intl. founder Matt Werth ~ Visual Projections by Klip Collective ~ Beverages by Forin

is the acclaimed quartet of Pat Thomas (piano), Joel Grip (double bass), Antonin Gerbal (drums) and Seymour Wright (alto saxophone). Together, the group re-arrange and re-imagine in real time the music of composer, bassist and oud player Ahmed Abdul-Malik (1927-1993). In a review of their 2024 release Giant Beauty, The Quietus calls , “one of […]

Bowerbird is pleased to present an online conversation with John D. S. Adams, John David Fullemann, David Meschter, and Robert E. Miller, hosted by exhibition co-curators You Nakai and Dustin Hurt. David Tudor’s work with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company required not only innovative compositional thinking but also the technical expertise of skilled audio engineers […]

Drum Major Instinct with Katherine Young: Drum Major Instinct is an experimental music duo from Asheville, North Carolina. Jeff Arnal plays (mostly) percussion and Curt Cloninger plays (mostly) modular synthesizer. The Wire describes Jeff’s drumming as a “highly original concept” having “a balletic sense of time and imaginative deployment of colour;” and Byron Coley says […]

Ars Nova Workshop hosts the record release party for I Want To Be Ready, the latest from Philly-based post-rock experimentalists The Early, at Solar Myth on Sunday, March 1, 2026. The Early began in northern New Jersey in 2004 as a band of high school buddies coming of age at the apex of indie rock […]

Join us for the Experimental Music Ensemble Winter Concert at the Leonard Pearlstein Gallery. This event is free and open to all, register for tickets here. Trough a grant from the Pew Center for Arts & Culture, The Leonard Pearlstein Gallery present exhibit Tudor (1926 – 1996) – A View from Inside: David Tudor will […]

After nearly a decade away from recording as a leader, saxophonist Jason Rigby made his triumphant return in August 2025 with Mayhem, a groundbreaking duo album featuring renowned drummer Mark Guiliana. The project expands to a trio as it arrives at Solar Myth, adding the eclectic bassist Chris Morrissey to the mix. Mayhem represents both […]

Amy Williams is a composer of music that is “simultaneously demanding, rewarding and fascinating” (Buffalo News), “fresh, daring and incisive” (Fanfare). Her compositions have been presented at renowned contemporary music venues on four continents by many of the leading contemporary music soloists and ensembles, including the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, JACK Quartet, Ensemble […]

Bowerbird is pleased to present pianist Amy Williams and a performance of David Tudor’s Forest Speech led by Phil Edelstein with additional performers to be announced. This concert celebrates David Tudor’s dual legacy as both a revolutionary pianist and electronic music pioneer. The first half features Amy Williams performing works by Morton Feldman, John Cage, […]

Drummer Brendan Canty and bassist Joe Lally were the rhythm section for the iconic D.C. punk band Fugazi from its inception in 1987 until its hiatus in 2002, reuniting for the first time to form The Messthetics with the eclectic guitar wizard Anthony Pirog. One half of the duo Janel & Anthony, Pirog has emerged […]

At once a bass-forward string quartet and at times a downtown band, Owls challenge the way that meaningful concert experiences are conceived. Weaving new works together with original arrangements of music from the 1600s to the present, their PCMS debut program covers a vast timeline that spans from Trollstilt to François Couperin. With their distinctive […]

Lia Kohl: Lia Kohl is a cellist, composer, and sound artist based in Chicago. Her wide-ranging practice includes composition and performance, installation, improvisation, and collaboration. She tours nationally and internationally, working in theater, jazz, rock, and experimental contexts. Her work centers curiosity and patience, an exploration of the mundane and profound possibilities of sound. Zachary […]

The Lepidopterans are a “supergroup” with Baltimore/Philadelphia long-time experimental scene players Toshi Makihara, Tom Borax, Jason Willett and John Dierker. Each member has decades of experience improvising and collaborating, having appeared in a dizzying list of projects, bands and records. They bring out virtuoso chops and strange and humorous theatricality to live sets that are like celebrations linking free jazz, […]

“One of the most vital and original ensembles on the American music scene,” (The New York Times) Alarm Will Sound performs American Stories, a collection of bold, contemporary works that reflect the vast, evolving landscape of our country’s identity. Celebrating 25 years of dynamic virtuosity, the ensemble, joined by composer and interdisciplinary artist Bora Yoon, […]

Bowerbird is pleased to present Composers Inside Electronics—Phil Edelstein, Ron Kuivila, and Michael Johnsen—performing works by David Tudor. Composers Inside Electronics (CIE), formed in 1973 with David Tudor, pioneered a collaborative approach to live electronic music that treated circuits and components as instruments in themselves rather than as tools. This closing concert of A View […]

Kresten Osgood is an extraordinary drummer and improviser who, with the fullest respect to tradition, challenges it at any given moment of his creative endeavors. He has performed and/or recorded with such legends as Roscoe Mitchell, Paul Bley, Lee Scratch Perry, William Parker, Masabumi Kikuchi, Derek Bailey, Wadada Leo Smith, Jason Moran, Oliver Lake, Kurt […]

Presented in collaboration with Philly Iranians Niloufar Shiri & Bahar Badieitabar: Kamancheh player and composer Niloufar Shiri began her musical journey at the Tehran Music Conservatory in Iran. She later immigrated to the USA and pursued her studies in composition at the University of California, San Diego, and Integrated Composition, Improvisation, and Technology (ICIT) at the University of […]

Drummer/composer John Hollenbeck is a composer of music uncategorizable beyond the fact of being always identifiably his: a conceptualist able to translate the traditions of jazz and new music into a fresh, eclectic, forward-looking language of his own invention, a drummer and percussionist possessed of a playful versatility and a virtuosic wit, and a musical […]

For over 25 years, the Miró Quartet has performed on the world’s most prestigious stages, showcasing their “collective intelligence uncanny precision” (Musical America). Their program includes excerpts from master works by Samuel Barber and Florence Price, as well as a PCMS co-commission for soprano and quartet by the genre-defying, Brooklyn-based composer Tamar-kali. The new work […]

Orcutt Shelley Miller is an avant-rock trio comprised of three highly celebrated figures of experimental music: Bill Orcutt (Harry Pussy), Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth) and Ethan Miller (Howlin Rain, Comets On Fire). Following in the footsteps of the high-firing free jazz and European outer-rock bands of the ‘60s and ‘70s and the Pacific Rim’s subterranean […]

  London-born Shabaka earned widespread renown as a saxophonist with his cosmically-oriented ensembles Shabaka and the Ancestors, Sons of Kemet and The Comet Is Coming before taking an indefinite hiatus from the instrument and dedicating himself to the flute. For his flute-forward album Perceive its Beauty, Acknowledge its Grace, Shabaka tapped into a remarkable cadre […]

  London-born Shabaka earned widespread renown as a saxophonist with his cosmically-oriented ensembles Shabaka and the Ancestors, Sons of Kemet and The Comet Is Coming before taking an indefinite hiatus from the instrument and dedicating himself to the flute. For his flute-forward album Perceive its Beauty, Acknowledge its Grace, Shabaka tapped into a remarkable cadre […]

Caroline Davis: Alive with nurturing visions of simple sonic offerings to morph our present situation, Caroline Davis’ main reason for playing music is to connect with others, beckoning new vistas among curious listeners. Her musical journey began in Singapore, in a humid climate, hearing sounds underwater that she would recreate by singing to her German […]

Irreversible Entanglements are a liberation-oriented free jazz collective formed in early 2015 by saxophonist Keir Neuringer, poet Camae Ayewa (a.k.a. Moor Mother) and bassist Luke Stewart, who came together to perform at a Musicians Against Police Brutality event organized after the slaying of Akai Gurley by the NYPD. Months later the group added trumpeter Aquiles […]

PROGRAM: Two Thoughts About the Piano Figment V for marimba Esprit Rude/Esprit Doux II Epigrams Enchanted Preludes Gra for clarinet Canon for 4 ARCANA NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE: Anna Lim – violin Tom Kraines – cello Nic Handahl – flute Jonathan Leeds – clarinet David Hughes – piano Andy Thierauf – marimba

In conjunction with The Living Temple, the ongoing exhibition celebrating the life and work of Swedish visual artist and designer Moki Cherry, Ars Nova Workshop presents the Philadelphia-born free jazz collective Irreversible Entanglements, exploring the ecstatic  music of Don Cherry’s groundbreaking Organic Music Society at Solar Myth on Saturday, March 28, 2026. Irreversible Entanglements are […]