Ingrid Laubrock & Ikue Mori To Perform At New England Conservatory This Spring
The concert takes place at 8 pm at NEC's Plimpton Shattuck Black Box Theatre.
By: A.A. Cristi Apr. 21, 2025
Internationally acclaimed saxophonist/composer Ingrid Laubrock and laptop artist Ikue Mori will be featured in two New England Conservatory concerts during their residency at the school.
On Wednesday, April 30, they'll play with Ted Reichman and Lautaro Mantilla as part of Chirp: NEC's Music Technology Showcase. Their performance will follow masterclass pieces by selected composition students involving electronics/improvisation. The concert takes place at 8 pm at NEC's Plimpton Shattuck Black Box Theatre. Free admission. Information at www.necmusic.edu.
On Thursday, May 1 performers for the Malcolm Peyton Residency Concert include Mori, Laubrock, vocalist Sara Serpa with pianist Kris Davis; violinist Lilit Hartunian, cellist Steve Marotto, and pianist Yukiko Takagi. The program includes selections from Peyton's “Suite Nocturnale” for solo viola performed by NEC student Philip Rawlinson, a solo laptop performance by Mori and a duo improvisation featuring Laubrock and Mori, as well as Laubrock's “Fight, Flight, Freeze” and “Koans” from Laubrock's new double album Purposing the Air, a collection of 60 miniatures setting the words of poet Erica Hunt's “Mood Librarian – a poem in koan.” The concert takes place at 7:30 p.m. at NEC's Jordan Hall, 30 Gainsborough St., Boston. Admission is free but tickets are required. Information at necmusic.edu.
Ingrid Laubrock is an experimental saxophonist and composer interested in exploring the borders between musical realms and creating multi-layered, dense and often evocative sound worlds. She has worked with such luminaries as Anthony Braxton, Muhal Richard Abrams, Jason Moran, Myra Melford, William Parker, Tom Rainey, Mary Halvorson, Kris Davis, Tyshawn Sorey, Craig Taborn, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Yarn + Wire, Wet Ink Ensemble and many others. Her new double album Purposing The Air, just out via Pyroclastic Records, features an expansive collection of 60 miniatures setting the words of poet Erica Hunt and her emotionally incisive piece “Mood Librarian – a poem in koan.”
Ikue Mori was born in 1953, raised in Tokyo and moved to New York in 1977. Soon after, she started playing drums and formed the experimental no wave band called DNA with Arto Lindsay. In the mid-80s John Zorn introduced her to the New York downtown-improvising scene, and she began performing using drum-machines. Since then, she has collaborated with numerous musicians in diverse genres and styles throughout the US, Europe, and Asia, while continuing to produce and record her own compositions. She received the award for Prix Ars Electronics Digital Music in 1999, and shortly after started using a laptop computer to expand her vocabulary. She received the Instant Award in improvised music for 2019 and a MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant in 2022.
About New England Conservatory (NEC)
Founded by Eben Tourjée in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1867, New England Conservatory (NEC) represents a new model of music school that combines the best of European tradition with American innovation. The school stands at the center of Boston's rich cultural history and musical life, presenting concerts at the renowned Jordan Hall. Propelled by profound artistry, bold creativity, and deep compassion, NEC seeks to amplify musicians' impact on advancing our shared humanity and empowers students to meet today's changing world head-on, equipped with the tools and confidence to forge multidimensional lives of artistic depth and relevance.
The Conservatory's roster of alumni includes hundreds of music's most influential artists. That list includes Coretta Scott King, Florence Price, Tessa Lark, George Li, Inmo Yang, Yura Lee, Stefan Jackiw, Anthony Leon, Erica Petrocelli, Minsoo Sohn, Cecil Taylor, and Denyce Graves.
As an independent, not-for-profit institution that educates and trains musicians of all ages from around the world, NEC is recognized internationally as a leader among music schools. It cultivates a diverse, dynamic community, providing music students of more than 40 countries with performance opportunities and high-caliber training from 225 internationally esteemed artist-teachers and scholars. NEC pushes the boundaries of music-making and teaching through college-level training in classical, jazz, and contemporary musical arts. The newly launched Institute for Concert Artists propels such young artists as Yunchan Lim and Joshua Brown to the heights of their potential. Through unique interdisciplinary programs such as Entrepreneurial Musicianship and Community Performances & Partnerships, the Conservatory empowers students to create their own musical opportunities. As part of NEC's mission to make lifelong music education available to everyone, NEC's Expanded Education programs deliver training and performance opportunities for children, pre-college students, and adults.
Videos