The Westerlies, the School of Jazz and Contemporary Music’s Ensemble in Residence, Presents Taking Shape
The Westerlies, a self-described “accidental brass quartet,” present Taking Shape their first concert as the ensemble-in-residence at The New School’s School of Jazz and Contemporary Music on November 9th at 7:30pm at Ernst C. Stiefel Hall.
The group have long been fascinated by the rich tradition of American shape-note music, a body of work written with a notation system designed to facilitate congregational and social singing. This performance will present traditional shape-note hymns alongside original compositions inspired by the musical properties of shape-note singing. With concert hall precision and folklike approachability, The Westerlies invite the listener into their musical world, cutting new trails across the vast expanse of the American musical landscape.
“We have long dreamt of finding an institution that aligns with our values of genre-bending, interdisciplinary collaboration, and progressive thinking,” says ensemble member Riley Mulherkar. “The New School embodies all of these things, and we are so inspired by the way they are taking that mission and building a curriculum around it. It’s also a bonus that our trumpeter Chloe Rowlands is a New School alum!”
“The Westerlies are doing such incredible work here at the school, and everywhere they find themselves performing,” says Keller Coker, Dean of the School of Jazz. “The group is groundbreaking in their commissioning of new works, and in their collaborations with an array of amazing artists. They model the kind of excellence in musical artistry and entrepreneurial thinking that our students aspire to, and do so with a sense of joy and chance taking that inspires everyone who has the opportunity to interact with them.”
In 2021, The Westerlies were named the inaugural small ensemble-in-residence at the School of Jazz and Contemporary Music. Education and community engagement are core elements of The Westerlies’ mission and they also produce an annual music festival in Seattle called Westerlies Fest, which combines evening performances featuring numerous guest artists, an all-day open-to-the-public creative music jamboree, and workshops in local public schools.
“We’re so excited to present our first recital as ensemble-in-residence at The New School, and we’re sharing a program that we call “Taking Shape,” which draws inspiration from Shape Note traditions and melodies. We fell in love with Shape Note music years ago and have adapted a couple of Shape Note songs on recent releases of ours — “Weeping Mary” and “Louisiana,” to name a couple. Last year, the Baryshnikov Arts Center commissioned us to compose new works inspired by those pieces, so in this concert we’ll be putting it all together — songs that are nearly 200 years old and songs that are just a year old! This concert will also be the first recital concert with our newest member, Addison Maye-Saxon — we can’t wait to introduce him to our New School family!”
The Westerlies: Taking Shape
Thursday, November 9, 2023
7:30-10:00PM EST
Stiefel Hall, 55 W 13th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY
PROGRAM:
Three Shape Note Hymns
Louisiana — William Walker
Weeping Mary — Traditional
Parting Friends — Traditional
Three Original Compositions by The Westerlies
Kerhonkson — Chloe Rowlands
The Evening Trumpet — Riley Mulherkar
The 5:10 to Ronkonkoma — Andy Clausen
Entr’acte — Caroline Shaw, Arr. The Westerlies