KMFA Classical Unveils February 2025 Offbeat Series Programming | 40 Years of Music with Chaski

KMFA Classical 89.5 will present the February 2025 Offbeat Series performance of Oceans of Space: Celebrating 40 Years of Music with Chaski featuring Adrienne Inglis, Shana Norton with guest mezzo-soprano Cayla Cardiff. This Chaski 40th Anniversary event will play one-night only on February 7, 2025 in the Draylen Mason Music Studio at KMFA, 41 Navasota Street, Austin, 78702. Tickets go on sale Thursday, December 19 at 10AM and will be available at ChaskiOffbeat.

Hailing from Austin, Chaski is a musical duo comprised of Adrienne Inglis and Shana Norton. Their music has spanned multiple generations reinventing the sound of a classical flute/harp duo with otherworldly compositions and performances since 1985.

Known for adapting compositions traditionally written for other instruments, Chaski creates original arrangements for the flute and harp while honoring the original work. Foundational to their 40-year history, Oceans of Space will incorporate works that reflect the natural world, women composers, spoken word, new music, and drawing from and blending different musical traditions.

The program will feature instruments many audiences have never heard before in live performance: instruments to include a wide array of panpipes, flutes, and whistles; an unusual harp; folkloric percussion instruments. The instruments, the narrative, along with the video and still imagery invite the audience into an appreciation of other cultures and the natural world.

“Our goal is to immerse the audience in an unexpected and mesmerizing soundscape,” said Chaski. “To offer a mix of sounds and stories that invite listeners to suspend time and engage in the moment.”

Highlights of the upcoming Offbeat concert include "Nana’isanishinaam", an evocative piece by composer Adrienne Inglis that draws from her Ojibway heritage. The title, which means "Bring us Peace" in Ojibway, reflects a heartfelt call for healing and reconciliation. Composed in 2020 amidst the George Floyd uprising, the work emerged from an improvisation on Native American flute, blending the spirit of healing with a profound response to the tension between the Black Lives Matter movement and law enforcement. With its poignant melodies and deep cultural resonance, "Nana’isanishinaam" stands as both a musical and social statement, embodying the hope for unity and understanding.

The concert will also showcase a performance of "Yellow Birds," an original composition by Maeve Gilchrist from her suite The Ostinato Project. This enchanting piece, which alternates between a lively 6/8 and 9/8 meter, evokes the imagery of "starlings in the sky." Chaski’s arrangement of the piece offers an intricate interplay of multiple flutes, including bass and concert flutes, alongside the traditional Scottish clarsach, or lever harp. Shana will perform on a custom-made clarsach, crafted specifically for her following a visit to the Edinburgh Harp Festival, adding a personal touch to this vibrant and evocative work.

The performance series by KMFA highlights ensembles contributing to Austin’s vibrant contemporary classical music scene using KMFA’s beautiful Draylen Mason Music Studio. Through the Offbeat Series, KMFA hopes to reach not only existing fans, but also cultivate a new audience for these exciting contemporary works. Additional program details for the Offbeat Series concerts will be released at a later date.

“Offbeat leans into new works, new classical music that is accessible,” said Stacey Hoyt, KMFA Director of Events. “I was intrigued by how long Shana and Adrienne have been doing this kind of work; combining different genres, creating their own arrangements, and developing original compositions focused on women, culture and heritage. Continuing to be inspired by their surroundings, Oceans of Space is not Chaski’s swan song but rather a celebration of where they have been and how culture and heritage have shaped their repertoire.”

KMFA “Offbeat Series” | CHASKI presents Oceans of Space
Friday, February 7, 2025 | 7:00 PM Performance
Draylen Mason Music Studio at KMFA | 41 Navasota Street | Austin, TX 78702
Information and tickets: kmfa.org/offbeat

Oceans of Space: Celebrating 40 Years of Music with Chaski
Adrienne Inglis: flute, bass flute, quena, sikus, D whistle, low whistle, flauto traverso, Native American flute
Shana Norton: clàrsach (lever harp), accordion
with guest mezzo-soprano Cayla Cardiff

To post a comment, you must register and login.