2016: Brett Carson’s Mysterious Descent

David Katz: voice, percussion
Brett Carson: piano, voice, percussion, compositions
Mia Bella D'Augelli: violin, voice, percussion
Nava Dunkelman: percussion, voice

Brett Carson will present the debut of Mysterious Descent, a mythodramatic song cycle based on the extant texts of the Idnat Ikh-ôhintsôsh. Structured in twelve movements, dynamic music intersects with poetry and theatre, narrating the volatile and absurd descent into the darkness of the Self. Improvisation and performative virtuosity energize tightly structured compositions in a series of quasi-mystical tableaux.

Brett Carson explores the dynamic intersection of materials and the excavation of myth through his compositions, at once volatile and highly structured. Using architectural elements borrowed from composers such as Braxton, Cage, and Messiaen, and deriving inspiration from such fields as mysticism, science, and archaeology, his work aims toward the deconstruction of a musical reality, to be reassembled in a way that is fragmented though still recognizable.

A native of Georgia, Brett became active in Atlanta's experimental music scene while working in more conventional contexts, particularly as a jazz pianist. In 2012, he released two independent recordings with his group Alembic Circle. He moved to Oakland the same year, and is currently involved with his project Quattuor Elephantis in addition to several Bay Area groups including the Medium-Sized Band and Noertker's Moxie. As a performer he has worked with a wide variety of musicians, including Bill Baird, Nicolas Collins, George Lewis, Rent Romus, Wolter Wierbos, and William Winant. He holds an MA in Composition from Mills College, where he studied with Roscoe Mitchell, Zeena Parkins, Fred Frith, Les Stuck, Joan Jeanrenaud, and Robert Schwartz.

Artist (photo by Photographer)