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2007-07-12 NEW MUSIC SERIES |
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NEW MUSIC SERIES Thursday, Jul 12 2007 8:00 PM 8pm Circular Dreaming, a new performance group formed by musician/animator Valerie Mih
9pm Steve Lacy's "Tips"
Bruce Ackley - soprano saxophone
Phillip Greenlief - alto saxophone
Aurora Josephson - voice
This
is a special performance of the extended work "Tips", a composition by
Steve Lacy for voice and two saxophones. The works uses text by the
founder of cubism, George Braque.
The evening will feature jazz and experimental compositions by Mih,
accompanied by projected animated visuals created by Mih and guest
artist Marco Salsiccia. Guitarist Alex Yeung and drummer Andre Custodio
(of the cantocore duo Say Bok Gwai) will join keyboardist Mih for this
evening of mind-expanding sonic explorations combining jazz, classical
and rock influences.
Mih began studying classical piano at the
age of 6 and jazz piano at age 15. She received a B.A. in American
Studies from Stanford University, where she co-founded the Stanford
Taiko Group with Ann Ishimaru (founder of Portland Taiko). She
subsequently discovered the field of animation, and earned an M.F.A. in
Film, Video and Computer Animation from the University of Southern
California. Her professional animation and media works have been
recognized with awards, distribution contracts and festival screenings,
including the Festival of Cinema and Technology's Best Animation Award
(for Einstein), Independent Television Service production funding (for
PBS interstitials Paper Peace and Harmonize), a CINE Eagle Award (for
The Pets Zone), and a Silicon Valley Arts Fellowship (for Voices of
Patriots).
While working professionally in the animation
field, she continued to develop musically and found an ideal music
mentor in trumpeter/composer Eddie Gale. She discovered Gale while
listening to jazz radio station KCSM on her way to work as an animator
at Lucas Learning in the year 2000. On the air, Gale was discussing his
open jazz workshops and jam sessions at the Black Dot in Oakland,
funded by a California Artist-in-Residence grant. Mih became a regular
at his jam sessions for three years, after which Gale asked her to join
his working band.
As a member of Gale's group, she has
performed at the Vision Festival, Sista’s Place, and Zebulon Concert
Cafe in New York; the San Jose Jazz Festival; and the Bach Dynamite
Society in Half Moon Bay, among other venues.
Jazz and free
improvisation led naturally to the development of her own compositional
voice, which Mih explores with fellow musicians and artists through
Circular Dreaming. Bringing together her two artistic loves - music and
animation - she crafts a magical sensory journey for the audience.
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