John Cage News

It is with both heavy hearts and deep gratitude that the staff, board, and community of artists of Symphony Space honor the memory of Founding Artistic Director Isaiah Sheffer, who died on Thursday evening of last week from complications after a stroke. He was 76 years old.

Following her recent, critically acclaimed New York Carnegie Hall debut, pianist Jenny Q Chai has been selected to appear at New York's Le Poisson Rouge. The concert will take place tonight, November 4 at 7:30pm (doors at 6:30pm). Ms. Chai will perform works by Satie, Schoenberg, Stockhausen, Scarlatti, Stroppa, and more. Watch the video below for a preview of Chai's performance!

To mark John Cage's centennial year, Symphony Space is proud to present the composer's rarely-heard 1989 conceptual work 'How to Get Started' in a series of three performances by pairs of noted musicians and writers who know each other well. Author Oscar Hijuelos and bandleader Arturo O'Farrill take the stage tonight, November 1; playwright Wallace Shawn and his composer sibling Allen Shawn perform today, November 15; and poet Robert Pinsky joins singer-songwriter John Wesley Harding today, December 13.

Featuring a concert version of King's Bessie-nominated piece Astral Epitaphs that was commissioned by the Merce Cunningham Dance Company for its final shows at the Park Avenue Armory in Dec. 2011, the music of New York composer John King (www.johnkingmusic.com) will be presented at Brooklyn's Roulette on Friday, December 7 at 8pm.

Violinist and artistic director Gil Morgenstern's acclaimed Reflections Series continues the 2012-2013 season on Monday, November 19 at 7:30pm with Nacht und Traume, "Night and Dreams." Celebrating five years of innovative programming in its intimate home at WMP Concert Hall (31 East 28th Street, NYC), Morgenstern will be joined by Tony Award Winner Maryann Plunkett and pianist Donald Berman.

Roulette is set to host a 60th birthday celebration for highly acclaimed composer and musician Bunita Marcus. This event will also be the US premiere release of the recording cooperative Testklang's debut CD/DVD/Art object, all based on the music of Bunita Marcus.

TheatreWorks and Goethe-Institut will present Eszter Salamon performing at 72-13 on 23 and 24 November. In Dance for Nothing, Salamon will be performing choreography to John Cage's music, Lecture on Nothing (1949), followed by a discussion.

Canadian Opera Company has announced its upcoming productions in February 2013. Full details below!

In conjunction with the centennial of John Cage's birth, artistic director Petr Kotik and S.E.M. Ensemble, Inc present "BEYOND CAGE - John Cage at 100 / Music at 2012", a festival highlighting some of Cage's most significant works and his legacy in the music of our time.

Following her recent, critically acclaimed New York Carnegie Hall debut, pianist Jenny Q Chai has been selected to appear at New York's Le Poisson Rouge. The concert will take place on Sunday, November 4 at 7:30pm (doors at 6:30pm). Ms. Chai will perform works by Satie, Schoenberg, Stockhausen, Scarlatti, Stroppa, and more. Watch the video below for a preview of Chai's performance!

Visual artist, dancer, actor and downtown cabaret artist John Kelly will make his solo debut at Joe's Pub at The Public this fall, performing songs by Kurt Weill, Charles Aznavour, The Incredible String Band, Holcombe Waller and Carol Lipnik tonight, October 14, October 28 at 7 PM and November 4 at 9:30 PM.

The 2012-2013 Concerts from the Library of Congress season offers a packed lineup of 40 concerts, lectures, film screenings, master classes and workshops, all celebrating the rich tapestry of the nation's musical heritage. Concerts kick off tonight, Oct. 6 at 8 p.m., with a performance by the Moscow Sretensky Monastery Choir.

Following her recent, critically acclaimed New York Carnegie Hall debut, pianist Jenny Q Chai (www.JennyChai.com) has been selected to appear at New York's Le Poisson Rouge. The concert will take place on Sunday, November 4 at 7:30pm (doors at 6:30pm). Ms. Chai will perform works by Satie, Schoenberg, Stockhausen, Scarlatti, Stroppa, and more. Le Poisson Rouge is located at 158 Bleecker Street in New York City. For more information or tickets ($15/$20), visit www.LePoissonRouge.com.

The music community is buzzing with excitement about the debut CD release by guitarist Dennis Haklar titled 'Lizard's Tale', featuring guest performances by music legends Jon Anderson (YES) and Larry Coryell. Also featuring Mark Egan on bass (known for his work with Pat Metheny) and Thierry Arpino (known for his work with Jean-luc Ponty) on drums, 'Lizard's Tale' is an enchanting, dynamic jazz-inspired album filled with emotional virtuosic performances.

Roulette is set to host a 60th birthday celebration for highly acclaimed composer and musician Bunita Marcus. This event will also be the US premiere release of the recording cooperative Testklang's debut CD/DVD/Art object, all based on the music of Bunita Marcus.

To mark John Cage's centennial year, Symphony Space is proud to present the composer's rarely-heard 1989 conceptual work 'How to Get Started' in a series of three performances by pairs of noted musicians and writers who know each other well. Author Oscar Hijuelos and bandleader Arturo O'Farrill take the stage on Thursday, November 1; playwright Wallace Shawn and his composer sibling Allen Shawn perform on Thursday, November 15; and poet Robert Pinsky joins singer-songwriter John Wesley Harding on Thursday, December 13.

Visual artist, dancer, actor and downtown cabaret artist John Kelly will make his solo debut at Joe's Pub at The Public this fall, performing songs by Kurt Weill, Charles Aznavour, The Incredible String Band, Holcombe Waller and Carol Lipnik on October 14, October 28 at 7 PM and November 4 at 9:30 PM.

Miller Theatre at Columbia University School of the Arts opens the 2012-13 season of its Composer Portraits series with a 100th birthday celebration of the influential composer John Cage, starring International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Jessica Aszodi, mezzo-soprano, and Steven Schick, conductor. The event will take place tonight, September 20, 2012, at 8:00 PM at the Miller Theatre (2960 Broadway at 116th street). Tickets are $25-30, or $15-$18 for students with valid ID.

Bang on a Can's 2012-2013 season takes the new music collective throughout the United States and around the world featuring an extensive selection of brand new musical adventures alongside a recommitment to acclaimed projects from past years. Bang on a Can performs regularly this season in its hometown of New York, and travels worldwide to cities including Los Angeles, Sydney, Melbourne, London, Krakow, Toronto, and in many other places throughout the U.S. and internationally.

INTERsection 2012, the 6th annual showcase of ground breaking, adventurous musical artists, returns today, August 31 - September 2 expanding to a three-day integrated music and arts festival that includes a Gala Opening today, August 31; a free twelve-hour New Music Marathon at Yonge-Dundas Square on Saturday, September 1, headlined by world renowned new music leaders Bang on a Can All-Stars from New York City; and a killer double-bill multi-media concert, Ambient2 - The Music of Brian Eno at the Panasonic Theatre on Sunday, September 2 featuring Bang on a Can All-Stars performing their groundbreaking arrangement of Brian Eno's classic ambient record Music For Airports, with film by Frank Scheffer and Contact performing their arrangement of Eno's Discreet Music with film by New York artist Suzanne Bocanegra.