POLICA and s t a r g a z e to Continue Liquid Music Series in Saint Paul

On Friday, November 18, 2016 at 8:00pm at The Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra's Liquid Music Series and The Current present POLIÇA and s t a r g a z e: Music for the Long Emergency, the culmination of Liquid Music's first Virtual Residency.

Throughout the 2015.16 season Liquid Music tracked the artistic collision of two innovative ensembles: Berlin's vibrant and forward-thinking s t a r g a z e and hometown favorites POLIÇA, internationally renowned for their "dark conviction" (Pitchfork) and "beautifully melancholic" (The Guardian) sound.

Dubbed a "renegade new classical ensemble" (Boiler Room), s t a r g a z e was founded by prominent European conductor André de Ridder and has become known for its focus on collaboration, specifically with artists and ensembles who work with dissimilar musical language and materials. This unparalleled transatlantic partnership culminates with a world premiere performance at the historic Fitzgerald Theater, copresented by The Current, marking s t a r g a z e's U.S. debut.

Liquid Music Curator, Kate Nordstrum speaks to the excitement and risk of bringing together two ensembles from across the world: "I feel privileged to have played matchmaker to these two incredible groups, who are creatively and spiritually so compatible. As collaborators, POLIÇA and s t a r g a z e have found a common musical language that allows them both to share equally in the process of creating new work together. My job was of course the easy part. The terrific challenge for the musicians has been collaborating primarily virtually, with a few visits between now and fall 2016. The inherent risk lit a fire under us all."

Rising to the challenge of crafting music from across continents, POLIÇA and s t a r g a z e have created a vital new collaborative work. Drew Christopherson, one of POLIÇA's drummers speaks of the special creative spark between the two disparate groups, reflecting that working with s t a r g a z e "might have been the most thrilling experience I've had making music." Named Music for the Long Emergency, this world premiere collaboration plays on themes from James Howard Kunstler's book, The Long Emergency, which investigates the long-term social consequences of oil scarcity and climate change.

Both groups are excited to reveal Music for the Long Emergency as part of The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra's Liquid Music Series at the Fitzgerald Theater. "Liquid Music has become synonymous with presenting the avant-garde of contemporary music's collaborative practices evolving in the 21st century," says conductor André de Ridder of s t a r g a z e. "I've been following their pioneering programming from Europe, long before I got involved personally. What's so special about the series though is that it's not just about concerts but about initiating new projects, fostering relationships and facilitating the process of creating new music that wouldn't otherwise have been made and heard. It's the breeding ground of a new scene, as well as its showcase!"

IF YOU GO:

POLIÇA & s t a r g a z e

Friday, Nov 18, 2016 at 8:00pm
At Fitzgerald Theater, 10 E Exchange St, St Paul, MN 55101

Tickets: $30 ($25 for Liquid Music subscribers)

liquidmusicseries.org | 651.291.1144

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra's Liquid Music Series develops innovative new projects with iconoclastic artists in unique presentation formats. Liquid Music performances invite adventurous audiences to discover the new and the fascinating within the flourishing landscape of contemporary chamber music.

The Current from Minnesota Public Radio brings listeners the best authentic new music alongside the music that inspired it, from local to legendary, indie to influential, new to nostalgic. A non-commercial, listener-supported radio station, The Current® has helped launch and support more than 600 Minnesota artists during its eleven-year history. The Current Sessions®, live performances of emerging and well-established artists recorded in MPR's Maud Moon Weyerhauser Studio, have garnered national attention from music lovers, industry leaders and media outlets like Pitchfork Media, Stereogum and Prefix Magazine. The Current® can be heard at 89.3 in the Twin Cities, 88.7 in Rochester, 90.9 in Duluth and across Minnesota-check thecurrent.org for a complete list of stations. The Current® is available for streaming at thecurrent.org, along with other streams: Local Current (all-Minnesota music); Radio Heartland (acoustic, Americana and roots music) and Rock the Cradle (music for kids and their grownups).

POLIÇA is an internationally-recognized band who released their debut album, Give You The Ghost, in 2011, and since have released a follow up EP, Raw Exit, and LP, Shulamith, to international acclaim. As a result, the band has performed at some of the Twin Cities finest venues (First Ave, Mill City Nights), some of the world's most prestigious festivals (Lollapalooza, Coachella, Glastonbury), and appeared on national TV in the US and Europe (Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (NBC), Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC), Later with Jools Holland(BBC), all while consistently touring America, Canada, Europe and Australia from 2011-2015. Their latest album, United Crushers, was released by Mom + Pop Records on March 4, 2016 after which they embarked on an extensive worldwide tour. Founded by Ryan Olson (production) and Channy Leaneagh (vocals), the group also includes Chris Bierden (bass/vocals), Drew Christopherson (drums), and Ben Ivascu (drums).

s t a r g a z e is a network of multi-talented and classically-trained European musicians founded by the highly regarded Berlin-based conductor André de Ridder. In addition to operating as an orchestral collective since 2013, stargaze is also a group of curators initiating and commissioning collaborations and projects in the field of contemporary pop-, electronic and classical music, as well as programming concerts with compositions introducing different facets of today's music to new audiences.

s t a r g a z e has worked with Sonic Youth's Lee Ranaldo, The Magnetic North, Jherek Bischoff, Shara Nova, Owen Pallett, Villagers, The Dodos, Grant Hart, Julia Holter, Nils Frahm, Matthew Herbert, Koreless, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, Iceage, Loney Dear, Holy Other, These New Puritans and many more; and has appeared at the Holland Festival, Barbican Centre London, Acht-Brücken-Festival at Cologne Philharmonie, Kilkenny Arts Festival, Into The Great Wide Open, Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, Crossing Borders Festival, Wonderfeel Festival, Kaltern Pop Festival, Berlin Pop-Kultur, Ruhrtriennale, Sacrum Profanum Krakow, Rewire Festival (NL), Motel Mozaique (NL) and is ensemble in residence at Haldern Pop Festival (Germany).

Future projects will lead to Barbican London for a Nils Frahm curated weekender, the Philharmonie de Paris with Matmos and first concerts in the United States with the US band POLIÇA.

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