ArtPower! is committed to the creative development of the arts through commissioning new work with artists who matter. We are thrilled to team up with the Carlsbad Music Festival to co-commission bad black bottom kind, a new work for the Calder Quartet by American composer Jacob Cooper. Says the composer:
When it came time to write a piece for the Calder, two pieces that I had been enthralled with for quite some time bubbled to the surface of my mind and approached the point of obsession: Sheets of Easter by the band Oneida, and The Mercy Seat by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Each work pounds through hundreds of repetitions of the same lines, yet manages to hold—or even build—the tension throughout, in a manner that is ecstatically harrowing. bad black bottom kind draws its initial inspiration from these works, as well as its title.
The Calder Quartet defies boundaries through performing a broad range of repertoire at an exceptional level, always striving to channel the true intention of the work’s creator. Already the choice of many leading composers to perform their works–including Christopher Rouse, Terry Riley and Thomas Adès–the group’s distinctive approach is exemplified by a musical curiosity brought to everything they perform, whether it’s Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, or sold-out rock shows with bands like The National or The Airborne Toxic Event.
Jacob Cooper's bold compositions and multimedia works have garnered recognition throughout the continent, with performances by the JACK Quartet, the Calder Quartet, the NOW Ensemble, and the Minnesota Orchestra. His work has appeared at the Wordless Music concert series at the Miller Theater (New York), the International Festival of Arts and Ideas (New Haven), the Harold Golen Gallery (Miami), the NewTown Arts Pop-up Films Festival (Pasadena), and on the popular videoblog Rocketboom.
ArtTalks!
Intermission conversation
with the artists and composer, Jacob Cooper. Moderated
by
ArtPower!
Artistic
Director,
Martin
Wollesen.
