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Composer Bjorn Berkhout and I began working together in Chicago in 2003.
The Bar Music Project began in 2006 and was performed for about 2.5 years. From 2009-2022, we continued to collaborate on music that spawned from this project: e.g., “Torque” (dulcimer solo), “Running Towards Empty” (percussion sextet), “Forward” (a mixed quartet, quintet, or sextet), and “Catch Your Breath” (marimba duo or keyboard percussion sextet). I resurrected the full project in 2022 with clarinetist Sarah Manasreh. Sarah, Bjorn, and I set out to form the quintet again and get what had become the first two albums recorded in the next two years. Through our networks, we brought on Jeremy Brunk on vibraphone, Katherine Peterson on piano, and Chris Wild on cello. In 2023, we had a launch summit at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, where Sarah taught, and a gig at Millikin University, where Jeremy taught. In 2024, everyone came to the Center for Mallet Percussion Research in Kutztown, PA, where I worked, and we recorded the two albums in 9 tracks: “The Way Out” and “Along for the Ride.”
THE HISTORY GOING WAY BACK TO 2006:
Bjorn and I have collaborated on something like 20 new works of music over the years, including a two-movement marimba concerto and a short chamber ballet. The largest collection of music through what has always felt like a serendipitous collaborative friendship is what was originally called The Bar Music Project. Initially, it consisted of a single work that was roughly one hour long; it ebbed and flowed in a way that was fitting for a bar or restaurant with high-energy moments and sustained, calm, and resting moments, so guests could get swept away by the music and intermittently have moments where they could converse with their party.
We wanted to change the scene for classical chamber music by offering a smorgasbord of styles that we called cross-over or fusion, something with an easier access point for the general public, but also something that music-school-trained professionals could sink their teeth into. I didn’t originally want a ton of percussion, like a 5-octave marimba, to move around. Bjorn is a cellist; his husband was a clarinetist; we were already working with a pianist and other percussionists in other collaborations, so we settled on hammered dulcimer, cello, clarinet, piano, and vibraphone for the “SI5” group. We had already formed the Sonic Inertia Performance Group, a multi-media, cross-disciplinary contemporary ensemble, so the SI5 name for the Bar Music Project cohort seemed natural.
Through a trial period in 2006 and 2007, for better accessibility with the players and audience, we decided to start breaking up the epic one-hour piece. First, it became “Along for the Ride” parts 1 and 2, then other movements were added, like “Catch Your Breath,” “Hey, Listen to Me,” and “Sit Back and Relax.” Other small percussion instruments were starting to creep in, such as a cymbal, a hand drum, and a melodica. For several years, I had been working on methods to amplify the dulcimer to better compete with acoustic chamber ensembles. And, in the 2023 resurrection, we felt that a broadening of the zither sound would add another beneficial layer, so we split the dulcimer part between cimbalom and hammered dulcimer.
Here we are today with an 80-minute album showcasing this fantastic 19-year project and a 23-year collaboration and friendship! These are the best kinds of projects to do in our world.
We hope you will give the album a listen and please leave a comment about it below. We feel there is a new direction for classical chamber music here and a new space for audience building.
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