Jordan Glenn’s BEAK is a Bay Area based music ensemble of hand percussion, drum set, electric guitars, vibraphone, and bass that formed in 2014 as a vehicle to explore conducted improvisation and how it interacts with composed material. The music of BEAK ranges from through-composed pieces that draw on elements of Afro-beat, Indonesian Gamelan, experimental-classical music and funk, to freely improvised works using Glenn’s personal language of hand cues. For this concert Glenn’s ensemble is joining forces with instrument inventor, Sudhu Tewari. The result will be an evening of conducted improvisation, sonic exploration and new compositions for traditional and invented instruments.

BEAK is
Karl Evangelista- guitar
David James- guitar
Lisa Mezzacappa- bass
Mark Clifford- vibraphone/percussion
Robert Lopez- percussion
Jon Arkin- drums
Jordan Glenn- conductor/composer

Jordan Glenn is a drummer, percussionist, composer and improviser based in Oakland. He is best known for his work with the Fred Frith Trio, Roscoe Mitchell, Zeena Parkins, William Winant, Lisa Mezzacappa, Ben Goldberg and his trio Wiener Kids. He has performed with Rhys Chatham, Secret Chiefs 3, ROVA Sax Quartet and tUnE-yArDs. As a composer he has been commissioned to create scores for evening-length dance pieces by Sharp & Fine and Liss Fain Dance.

Sudhu Tewari has been described as a bricoleur, junkyard maven, and audio-gadgeteer. He invents and builds musical instruments, kinetic and sound sculptures, interactive installations, audio electronics, and wearable sound art. Tewari also composes electroacoustic works for concert halls and sound installations. Along with Fred Frith, Sudhu is one half of the home-made instrument improvising duo Normal, and has performed in this and other configurations in Europe, Japan, and the USA. His visual and interactive art has been exhibited in the US and Europe. Sudhu holds an MFA in Electronic Music from Mills College, and a PhD in Cultural Musicology from UC Santa Cruz.

photo by Lenny Gonzalez