Original pieces for saxophone duo

Website(s) : http://www.laurentestoppey.com / http://www.stevestusek.com

Saxophone duet with Steve Stusek (USA) and Laurent Estoppey (CH). Original pieces composed for the duet by Wei Dai (China) and Nick Rich (USA) with digital media (CH) and live electronics.

Biography

Based in Greensboro (NC) STACKS duet presents concerts in several states in the USA since 2011. STACKS will tour from North Carolina to Florida, with ten shows in February 2015.
The repertoire is mostly made of pieces dedicated to the duo. One of the specificities of STACKS is to collaborate with video artists who creates films from the compositions. Also, willing to bring the spectators into a visual and sound trip, the concerts are mostly presented without interruption. STACKS is also part of COLLAPSS (Collective for Happy Sounds), a collective of musicians, composers, dancers and visual artists also based in Greensboro. A DVD of the duet will be released in February 2015, published in France by Thödol.

More information

In 26 minutes, STACKS presents five pieces dedicated to the duet, without interruption, with a video projection. Esthetics are varied, witnessing the diversity of American and Swiss sensitivities.
Program:
Andrew weathers ‘You May Bury Me in the East’ (vidéo by Vincent Capes – F )
Andrew Weathers music is based on experimental music as well as the roots of American music (folk, blues). In this piece, two sopranos dialogt (between Terry Riley and LaMonte Young) above a pre-recorded drone.
Nick Rich ‘On repeats’ (video by John Wall)
In a post-minimal way, ‘On repeats’ for two altos talks about repetition and non-repetition. Fixed sounds accompany a strict canon of the saxes, which sound like an electronic delay, in a kind of electro-jazz mood.
Laurent Estoppey ‘Zap no Zap’ (live video by Chris Cassidy)
For two saxophones and live electronics, ‘Zap no Zap’ remembers of the significations of the word zap: destroy, attack, skip over, use a remote control, but also of the onomatopoeias of the 60’s comics Batman.
Maurizio Guerandi ‘Ricochet’ (video by Samantha diRosa)
the hypnotic music of Swiss composer Maurizio Guerandi (for soprano and bari) finds a surprising counterpoint in the archival shootings of nuclear tests of the US army.
Wei Dai ‘If I’m lost – now’ (video by Samantha diRosa)
Chinese composer and singer Wei Dai writes a piece for two altos and fixed sounds, between Chinese pop and contemporary fluxes . Samantha diRosa establishes a dialog with samples of reframed Meg Ryan’s movies.