The Gatherings Presents: Modular Church

	Modular Church: with Datadrift Huron Sandy James Jerry Kaba Powserati Snoozer 5ToK3 Live at The Gatherings Concert Series Saturday 19 October 2019 8:00PM St. Mary's Hamilton Village 3916 Locust Walk in Philadelphia, PA
The Gatherings Concert Series presented Modular Church with seven performances of live Electronic Music within the remarkable setting of St Mary's Hamilton Village on Saturday 19 October 2019.
Modular Synthesizers were the first commercial synthesizers. Eventually supplanted by portable, internally hardwired models, and digital devices, in recent times they have made a big come-back. The basic feature of Modular Synthesizers is that the artist decides everything. Each module is a discrete part chosen and arranged according to the taste and direction of the individual. Filters, oscillators, mixers, ring modulators, envelopes, and other even more esoteric pieces provide an unprecedented flexibility in sound design and music making. Modular Synthesizers are systems that are not fixed in the way conventional instruments are, and attract an interesting mix of musicians and engineers. Curated and hosted by local Electronic Musician Chaka Benson, Modular Church will feature seven innovative musicians (each performing a 15 minute set) from out of our burgeoning Modular Synthesizer community. Please make plans to attend this unique presentation of Electronic Music within the reverential sanctuary space of St Mary's Hamilton Village on Saturday 19 October 2019 at 8:00PM.
Performance Order for Modular Church at The Gatherings Concert Series:
Sandy James Sandy James teaches music technology and is in charge of labs, smart classrooms and computers at the Boyer College of Music and Dance and Temple University. Previously she worked in the commercial software industry as a developer and analyst. Sandy has a Masters in Sonic Arts from University of Rome, Tor Vergata, a Bachelor degree in Computer Science from Temple University, and a Certificate in painting from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. She studied Latin Percussion at Philadelphia's Latin American Music Association, and has studied privately in Cuba and Panama. Sandy uses a combination of analog sound synthesis and computer AV synthesis for her installations, fixed media pieces and performances. She has built some of her own synthesizers and modules, and has presented pieces created in Csound, Flash, pd, POVRay, Blender and Max / MSP, and is a regular performer at local Modular on the Spot events. www.sandrajamesart.com Jerry Kaba Jerry Kaba makes experimental music with modular synthesizers and perform regularly. For the past few years he has hosted Modular on the Spot (MotS) events in Philadelphia - a monthly modular synthesizer outdoor free picnic series. Currently MotS is held in 15 cities and 5 countries and is continually growing. The goal of his music is to make the listener question the things they have heard and reflect on them, or at the very least enjoy the experience. Every project is approached with different instruments and techniques - as Kaba likes to challenge himself with learning new things constantly. He finds being a lifelong learner to be important to both his art practice and his teaching. www.jerrykaba.com Datadrift Datadrift is the Electronic Music project from Philadelphia-based innovative musician Guinevere Molly Campbell. Creating soundscapes since 1996, she uses an East-Coast, hardware-focused approach. Her principal sound is texture-driven. Creating synthesizer patches that resonate with a mood or idea, Datadrift generates a sonic palette - and works to create a soundscape that combines improvisation with aspects of sequenced pre-sets. www.soundcloud.com/datadrift datadrift.bandcamp.com Powserati Christopher Sean Powell (aka Powserati)is a self-taught rhythm scholar, producer, and electronic music-maker living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a main contributor in the Philadelphia art and sound collective Need New Body, which fused improvisation with popular song structures, Powell began a career of international recording and performance, creating music at the nexus of art and entertainment. Since 1999, he has collaborated, recorded, and toured worldwide with a diverse spectrum of artists and musicians, including the Sun Ra Arkestra, Yoko Ono, and the Boredoms. His latest music projects include Modular On The Spot, a worldwide synth collective which performs improvised musical sets on modular synthesizers in various outdoor locations. Powell's body of work has most recently expanded to creating instruments for NYC/Philly based synthesizer company Critter & Guitari's Organelle keyboard. www.christopherseanpowell.com 5ToK3 5ToK3 is a British musician and artist working in Brooklyn NY. Renowned for his unique programming technique using only analogue synths as well as his extensive vintage synth collection, his is essentially an analogue man in a digital world. Otherwise mysterious, choosing for his identity to remain unknown his roots in punk and industrial sound fuse with his obsession for electronics, machines and the synth. His work is both hypnotic and captivating, dark and experimental. Inherently reflective of the current climate both in the UK & the USA but also inherently beautiful. www.5tok3.com Snoozer Snoozer creates modular ambience influenced by the woods and gravestones that inhabit the Cobb's Creek neighborhood of West Philadelphia. He promotes electronic shows in the Philly area, and is well known for the Wallpaper Music Series. Huron Johnny Lancia has been releasing blissed out ambient recordings under the Huron moniker for many years. His releases are filled with heady drones and idiosyncratic rhythms that reflect the natural world filtered through a variety of analog electronics and tape manipulation processes. soundcloud.com/jlancia huron.bandcamp.com
Chaka Benson: Curator & Host of Modular Church Chaka Benson plays with an ear for color, motion and texture, forsaking conventional narrative clarity. It is an experience by way of the senses, rather than through pure mental interpretation. Our focus expands beyond sound, to the sources of that sound, to its imminent fragility, and a state of un-being. An avid performer of Electronic Music, here at our Modular Church he works as Curator and Host - both arranging for the appearance of the seven artists listed above, and introducing them to The Gatherings Concert Series' audience. Blogger Website Neil Cippon with Television Sky: Video Art and Projections for Modular Church Neil Cippon earned his BA in Film and Media Arts with a minor in Music and Technologies from Temple University. He has worked professionally as a sound technician and video artist for performances in the Philadelphia region, and has been contributing his talents to The Gatherings Concert Series for several years. Gralin Hughes Jr (aka Television Sky) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Philadelphia, and works at the intersection of sound and visual. He merges visual art, and sound design through projection mapping, audio/visual live performances and installation art. When not experimenting in his art studio Gralin teaches creative technology and new media courses.
CIMA of PA - The Corporation for Innovative Music and Arts of Pennsylvania Modular Church at The Gatherings Concert Series on 19 October 2019 was funded by CIMA of PA (The Corporation for Innovative Music and Arts of Pennsylvania), the all-volunteer, non-profit organization responsible for organizing and producing The Gatherings Concert Series. The basic mission of CIMA of PA is to bring innovative music concerts to the public and further the advancement of this form of art. For more about CIMA of PA, please access the Mission Statement
For more about random picnics of Modular Synthesis arrangements, please access: www.modularonthespot.com

The Gatherings Concert Series is presented by the all-volunteer staff of The Corporation for Innovative Music and Arts of Pennsylvania

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