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Theo Bleckmann: 12 easy songs

Theo Bleckmann: 12 easy songs

February 9, 2025

In “12 easy songs” I wanted to use found texts from all over New York City: fragments of Graffiti, parts of advertisements, subway announcements, street signs, passenger instructions, sale signs, truisms, random flyers, overheard fragments of conversations, even syllables from scratched off scribblings somewhere…anything and everything could serve as an actual text or become the departure point for a more narrative lyric. I want these songs to celebrate the diversity, absurdity, and poetry embedded in New York’s urban landscape through a melancholic and playful approach. Inspired by composers Hanns Eisler and Ryuichi Sakamoto (whom I had the great fortune to perform with here at National Sawdust), I want the pedestrian and mundane to be a porthole into the soul of culture; much like a supermarket in a foreign country that can show you the simple truth of its people. There is a bit of Kurt Schwitters and John Cage's influence here too. The idea of collage and chance operation have always had a place in my music.

I am fortunate to bring this project to life through three extraordinary musicians: drummer and electronic musician Joe Branciforte, saxophonist Timo Vollbrecht and keyboardist Luke Marantz are the perfect musician/composer/improvisors who understand the delicate balance between honesty and absurdity, without irony.

Theo Bleckmann is a multi-GRAMMY® nominated vocalist, composer and ECM recording artist who has recorded over 17 albums and collaborated with artists such as Ambrose Akinmusire, Sheila Jordan, Kneebody, Ben Monder, John Hollenbeck, Phil Kline, David Lang, Ryichi Sakamoto, Ulysses Owens, Bang on a Can All-Stars, and, most prominently, with Meredith Monk since 1994.  Bleckmann has been interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air and appeared on the David Letterman show with Laurie Anderson. He has consistently appeared in top spots in DownBeat polls, and is a recipient of the prestigious JAZZ ECHO award from the Deutsche Phono-Akademie in his native Germany.  Most recently he released an album with the celebrated brass quartet ‘The Westerlies’, toured Finland with the Oulu Symphony Orchestra and UMO Jazz Big Band performing his repertoire and own compositions. Most notably, Pulitzer-Prize-winning composer David Lang wrote a monodrama for Theo Bleckmann which was commissioned by the Japan Society and directed by legendary actor/director Yoshi Oida. The entire production was taken to Tokyo in Feb of 2023. A recording of it will be forthcoming.

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Photo Credit: Raoul Manuell Schnell

February 9, 2025

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SUN 02/09 6:00 PM