Jonathan Bepler

Last updated

Jonathan Bepler is an American composer of experimental music perhaps best known for his collaborative work with artists and choreographers, including many years of work with visual artist Matthew Barney. He is also multi-instrumentalist, singer, installation artist, and teacher.

Contents

Early life and education

Bepler was born in Media, Pennsylvania. He was self-taught on many instruments by the time he finished high school. His early interests included folk dance music, ancient and world music, jazz, and improvisation. In 1993 he received and M.F.A from Bennington College in Vermont, where he studied composition with Louis Calabro, Joel Chadabe and Vivian Fine, singing with Frank Baker and Theodor Uppman as well as musical performance with Milford Graves, Bill Dixon und Min Tanaka. In the later period of his studies he directed and sang in productions of Baroque opera such as Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice . He currently resides in Berlin.

Career

From 1985 to 1996, Bepler was guitarist with the Glenn Branca Ensemble, touring with them through Europe, the United States and Asia. Starting in 1987, his first operas were composed. From 1993, Bepler also dedicated himself to sound installations, as well as to music for drama and dance. He is the composer for The Cremaster Cycle, a series of films created from 1996 to 2002 by Matthew Barney. In 1997, Bepler was baritone soloist at the world premiere of the opera Der Venusmond by Burkhard Stangl at the Empire State Building. He received a Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists award in 1999. [1]

In 2000, Bepler worked as a composer at the Berlin Schaubühne am Lehniner Platz with Sasha Waltz and dancers. In 2003, together with John Jasperse he created the piece California for the Festival International de Danse a Cannes. In 2006, the Ensemble Modern premiered his piece Fascia at the Schauspielhaus Frankfurt. Bepler collaborated again with Matthew Barney on the six-hour film ' River of Fundament, was created over 7 years (2006 to 2014), and premiered at the Bavarian State Opera, and at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. [2]

He has taught as professor and artist in residence at such places as the Munich Academy of Fine Arts, Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design, and the University of Arts and Design Offenbach.

Installations

Compositions

Discography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Nyman</span> English composer of minimalist music, pianist, librettist and musicologist

Michael Laurence Nyman, CBE is an English composer, pianist, librettist, musicologist, and filmmaker. He is known for numerous film scores, and his multi-platinum soundtrack album to Jane Campion's The Piano. He has written a number of operas, including The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat; Letters, Riddles and Writs; Noises, Sounds & Sweet Airs; Facing Goya; Man and Boy: Dada; Love Counts; and Sparkie: Cage and Beyond. He has written six concerti, five string quartets, and many other chamber works, many for his Michael Nyman Band. He is also a performing pianist. Nyman prefers to write opera over other forms of music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School</span> Specialized high school in New York City

Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, often referred to simply as LaGuardia, is a public high school specializing in teaching visual arts and performing arts, located near Lincoln Center in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of the Upper West Side in Manhattan, New York City. Located at 100 Amsterdam Avenue between West 64th and 65th Streets, the school is operated by the New York City Department of Education, and resulted from the merger of the High School of Music & Art and the School of Performing Arts. The school has a dual mission of arts and academics, preparing students for a career in the arts or conservatory study as well as a pursuit of higher education.

<i>The Cremaster Cycle</i> 1994–2002 American film series

The Cremaster Cycle is a series of five feature-length films, together with related sculptures, photographs, drawings, and artist's books, created by American visual artist and filmmaker Matthew Barney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew Barney</span> American contemporary artist

Matthew Barney is an American contemporary artist and film director who works in the fields of sculpture, film, photography and drawing. His works explore connections among geography, biology, geology and mythology as well as themes of conflict and failure. His early pieces were sculptural installations combined with performance and video. Between 1994 and 2002, he created The Cremaster Cycle, a series of five films described by Jonathan Jones in The Guardian as "one of the most imaginative and brilliant achievements in the history of avant-garde cinema." He is also known for his projects Drawing Restraint 9 (2005), River of Fundament (2014) and Redoubt (2018).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mira Calix</span> British-based artist (1969–2022)

Chantal Francesca Passamonte, known professionally as Mira Calix, was a South African-born, British-based audio and visual artist and musician signed to Warp Records.

The FLUX Quartet is an American string quartet dedicated to the performance of contemporary classical music. It was founded in 1998 and is based in New York City. The group is renowned for its performances of Morton Feldman's String Quartet No. 2, which lasts for more than six hours. It has performed to rave reviews in venues of all sorts, from Carnegie's Zankel Hall and Kennedy Center, to influential art institutions such as EMPAC, The Kitchen, and the Walker Art Center, to international music festivals in Australia, Europe, and the Americas. It has also premiered new works on numerous experimental series, including Roulette, Bowerbird, and the Music Gallery. FLUX's radio credits include NPR's All Things Considered, WNYC's New Sounds and Soundcheck, and WFMU's Stochastic Hit Parade. The group's discography includes recordings on the Cantaloupe, Innova, Tzadik, and Cold Blue Music labels, in addition to two critically acclaimed releases on Mode Records that encompass the full catalogue of string quartet works by Morton Feldman.

Andrew Ford is an English-born Australian composer, writer and radio presenter, known for The Music Show on Radio National.

John R. Jasperse is an American choreographer and dancer. Since 1990 he has been artistic director and choreographer of the New York City-based John Jasperse Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernhard Lang</span> Austrian composer (born 1957)

Bernhard Lang is an Austrian composer, improviser and programmer of musical patches and applications. His work can be described as contemporary classical, with roots, however, in various genres such as 20th-century avant-garde, European classical music, jazz, free jazz, rock, punk, techno, EDM, electronica, electronic music, and computer-generated music. His works range from solo pieces and chamber music to large ensemble pieces and works for orchestra and musical theatre. Besides music for concert halls, Lang designs sound and music for theatre, dance, film and sound installations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sasha Waltz</span> German Choreographer and Dancer

Sasha Alexandra Waltz is a German choreographer, dancer and leader of the dance company Sasha Waltz and Guests.

Ann-Sofi Sidén is a contemporary Swedish artist. She had a traditional education and started out as a painter. She expanded into other mediums, including video, film, performance and sculpture. Sidén's styles and themes do not fit easy categorization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thollem McDonas</span> American singer-songwriter

Thollem McDonas is an American pianist, improviser, composer, singer-songwriter, touring performer, musical educator, and social critic. His musical compositions and performances have ranged from classical, and free jazz, to experimental and punk rock. He has toured North America and Europe since 2006, performing solo works and collaborating with an array of musicians, dancers, dance companies and filmmakers.

<i>River of Fundament</i> 2014 American film

River of Fundament is a 2014 operatic experimental film written and directed by American contemporary artist and filmmaker Matthew Barney, and co-directed by longtime collaborator Jonathan Bepler. It was produced by Barney and the Laurenz Foundation, and is loosely based on American author Norman Mailer's 1983 novel Ancient Evenings. The film features Barney, Dave Bald Eagle, Milford Graves, John Buffalo Mailer, Ellen Burstyn, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Madyn Greer Coakley, Paul Giamatti, Shara Nova, Joan La Barbara, Elaine Stritch, Debbie Harry and Aimee Mullins.

<i>This Is My Hand</i> 2014 studio album by My Brightest Diamond

This Is My Hand is the fourth studio album from the American rock group My Brightest Diamond.

Frank Porretta Jr. was an American tenor who had an active career performing in operas, musicals, and concerts from 1952 through 1971. He had a particularly fruitful relationship with the New York City Opera from 1956 to 1970 where he sang a highly diverse repertoire; including roles in new operas by composers Norman Dello Joio, Carlisle Floyd, Vittorio Giannini, and Robert Ward. For the NBC Opera Theatre he portrayed The Astronaut in the world premiere of Gian Carlo Menotti's Labyrinth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yuval Avital</span> Musical artist

Yuval Avital is a composer, multimedia artist and guitarist known for his creations for large-scale compositions for numerous performers, multimedia contemporary operas involving indigenous cultures and collaborations with scientific institute such as NASA. In 2016 his icon-sonic opera Fuga Perpetua received the sponsorship of the UNHCR.

Gelsey Bell is an American singer, songwriter, and actress, best known for her experimental music and her portrayal of Mary in the 2016 Broadway musical Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812.

Matthew Whiteside is a composer based in Scotland. His work includes opera, chamber music, sound installations and soundtracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amir Shpilman</span> Israeli composer (born 1980)

Amir Shpilman is an Israeli composer.

Soundwalk Collective is an international experimental sound art collective founded in 2001 by Stephan Crasneanscki, who was joined by Simone Merli in 2008. The group is based in Berlin and New York. They have engaged in collaborations with other musicians such as the American singer Patti Smith on the Perfect Vision Trilogy.

References

  1. "Jonathan Bepler :: Foundation for Contemporary Arts". foundationforcontemporaryarts.org. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
  2. Adrian Searle: Jonathan Bepler: 'The music comes from within the film' , Interview with The Guardian (London) on River of Fundament, June 18, 2014
  3. Rees, Sue (November 24, 2012), Object and Sound: Automation of Accidental Gestures , retrieved October 28, 2019
  4. "Double Quartet Jonathan Bepler Installation". jonathanbepler.net. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  5. "Invisible Dances for Broken Ensemble Installation Project Jonathan Bepler". jonathanbepler.net. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  6. "Ann-Sofi Sidén & Jonathan Bepler – Curtain Callers – Announcements – e-flux". e-flux.com. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  7. "Cremaster Jonathan Bepler Matthew Barney". jonathanbepler.net. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  8. Kimmelman, Michael (October 10, 1999). "The Importance of Matthew Barney". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  9. Sasha Waltz – The Trilogy "Körper" / "S" / "noBody" on DVD , retrieved October 28, 2019
  10. "Ren Master". Interview. November 30, 2008. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  11. "Matthew Barney and Jonathan Bepler". Interview. November 19, 2010. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  12. Seibert, Brian (September 23, 2011). "'Tool Is Loot,' With Jennifer Lacey and Wally Cardona". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  13. "Within between (2014) | John Jasperse Projects" . Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  14. RIVER OF FUNDAMENT Official Theatrical Trailer (2015) , retrieved October 28, 2019
  15. "Ça va ! Poèmes d'Octobre – Bepler". maisondelaradio.fr (in French). Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  16. Press, Clayton. "Matthew Barney, Redoubt, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT". Forbes. Retrieved October 28, 2019.