Ciphony by Gelsey Bell/John King

Gelsey Bell – vocals, microkorg vocoder, metallophone
John King – electronics, viola, ngoni

The music for Ciphony were first developed for Compagnie CNDC-Angers’s performance of Merce Cunningham’s EVENT, directed by Robert Swinston, which was performed at the Joyce Theatre from March 10-15, 2015. In the aesthetic spirit of John Cage and Merce Cunningham’s collaboration, Gelsey and John composed the music they performed separately.

Gelsey Bell is a composer, vocalist, and scholar. Described by the New York Times as the “future of experimental vocalism,” she has released multiple albums and her work has been presented internationally. She is a recipient of the 2017 Foundation for Contemporary Arts Award for Sound/Music and she had a year-long residency at Roulette in 2015/2016. She is a core member of thingNY and Varispeed and is currently performing on Broadway as Princess Mary in Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812. gelseybell.com

John King is a composer, guitarist, and violist who has worked collaboratively with many ensembles, string quartets, choreographers, and directors. He has written six operas and in May 2015 he premiered 8 new works along with compositions from the past 20 years at his weeklong residency at the Stone in NYC. He was Co-Director of the Music Committee for the Merce Cunningham Dance Company from 2003 until the end of 2011. He is the recipient of the 2009 Alpert Award in the Arts for Music, the 2014 Foundation for Contemporary Arts Award for Sound/Music and in 2016 King was also awarded a Rockefeller Foundation/Bellagio Residency. johnkingmusic.com