John Zorn at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, September 28, 2013. Photo: Alan Nahlgian.
On September 9, the Walker Art Center will present an all-day festival with renowned, genre-defying composer and instrumentalist John Zorn. Titled Zorn @ 70, the festival celebrates the artist’s 70th birthday (Sept. 2) and his multi-decade relationship with the Walker through an array of musical events, performed by Zorn as well as an international cadre of more than 20 acclaimed musicians, including guitarists Bill Frisell and Julian Lage, the JACK Quartet, keyboardist John Medeski, and percussionist Sae Hashimoto. The day features nine compositions carefully chosen by Zorn as reflections on works by visual artists in the Walker’s collection that he also hand-selected, including Bruce Conner, Helen Frankenthaler, Jasper Johns, Agnes Martin, Joan Mitchell, Georgia O’Keefe, Yoko Ono, Robert Rauschenberg, and James Turrell. The 30-minute compositions will be performed successively in the Walker’s galleries and Turrell Skyspace, creating a dynamic interplay between visual and aural experiences. These in-gallery concerts are offered to the public for free with general admission, bringing music and art lovers together for a series of one-of-a-kind moments across the Walker and highlighting the institution’s commitment to exploring interdisciplinary practice.
Zorn @ 70 continues with three concerts in the Walker’s state-of-the-art McGuire Theater, including Nove Cantici Per Francesco D’Assisi, an acoustic performance featuring three of the greatest living guitarists exploring Zorn works, and Chaos Magick, an experience of one of Zorn’s most extreme configurations influenced by metal, jazz, funk, and noise. The final concert will feature Zorn on saxophone with his New Radical Jewish music quartet, the New Masada Quartet, and draw from hundreds of compositions in Zorn’s extensive “Masada Songbook” developed over the course of more than 20 years. The trio of ticketed concerts offers a crash course through Zorn’s diverse musical experimentations, capturing the singular quality of his work and illuminating why he is among the most important musical forces of our time. Additional information, including ticketing details, for the concerts are available on the Walker website.
To complete the day-long Zorn immersion, the Walker has also collaborated with The Basilica of St. Mary’s in Minneapolis for a midnight performance by Zorn that will see him play the Basilica’s restored 1949 Wicks Opus 3047 organ. Titled The Hermetic Organ, this hour-long, improvised performance by Zorn will honor the power of the instrument and the environment of the Basilica. Participation in the concert is free and open to the public. Finally, the Walker has invited 70 artists, poets, musicians, and curators from across the globe to offer written tributes to Zorn that will live on the Walker’s website. Contributions include those from such renowned creatives as composer/conductor Osvaldo Golijov; jazz stars Christian McBride, William Parker, Henry Threadgill and Arturo O’Farrill; choreographers Ohad Naharin and Gil Roman; singers Petra Haden and Mike Patton; and literary/scholarly figures like Pierre Joris and Arnold Davidson.
A complete roster of events taking place on September 9, 2023 follows below.
“John Zorn has long been at the vanguard of musical composition and performance. His work is guided by a fearless curiosity that has resulted in an incredibly prolific career filled with creative breakthroughs that have enthralled audiences. He has consistently opened new musical frontiers, while also creating an ever-expanding community of artists he fiercely supports,” said Philip Bither, the Walker’s McGuire Director and Senior Curator, Performing Arts. “His adventurous spirit has long aligned with the Walker’s vision to embrace new artforms and support artists at the forefront of experimentation. We have had the pleasure of collaborating with John on numerous concerts and events at the Walker since the 1980s, so it is fitting that his 70th birthday be marked with an expansive, all-day festival at the Walker. We look forward to bringing our community together for a day of unique and joyous musical experiences.”
“We are particularly excited to present a range of acoustic John Zorn compositions in dialogue with works in our collection. This well reflects the Walker’s multidisciplinary approach and focus on creating different pathways to engage with our community. The in-gallery concerts offer a distinct opportunity to connect with artworks by some of the most celebrated modern and contemporary artists in our collection through the lens of one of today’s most groundbreaking composers,” added Mary Ceruti, the Walker’s Executive Director. “Cross-disciplinary and collaborative events like John Zorn @ 70 have allowed our performing arts program to re-emerge and thrive following the challenges of in-person performances during the pandemic. New and returning audiences are finding joy and inspiration in programs like this.”
About John Zorn
John Zorn is a composer, performer, artist, universalist, and aesthetic philosopher who has forged an independent path through stylistic domains that range from the classical avant-garde to virtually all popular idioms. Drawing upon his experience in classical, jazz, rock, hardcore punk, klezmer, film, cartoon, popular, world, and improvised music, Zorn has created a controversial and influential body of work that often defies academic categories. He has earned great respect within his own community and beyond by going his own way without compromise and developing a large network of supporters worldwide, often in unexpected places.
Born in 1953 and raised in New York City, Zorn has been a central figure in the downtown scene since 1975, incorporating a wide variety of creative musicians into various compositional formats. He is an indefatigable worker and highly prolific: he has composed over 120 works for classical ensembles, including eight string quartets, vocal music, chamber music, concerti, operas, symphonic and dance works, improvisational game pieces, studio-based compositions, and has released over 200 CDs under his own name, which are almost exclusively available on his own label, Tzadik. He has led and written music for dozens of bands, including Naked City, News for Lulu, Masada, Bar Kokhba, Electric Masada, Moonchild, Painkiller, Nova Express, the Dreamers, Simulacrum, Gnostic Trio, Insurrection, Incerto, Chaos Magick, and Awakening Ground; scored over 50 films; and written over 600 tunes (divided into three books) for his popular Masada project, as well as a book of 300 bagatelles which has been performed by over 30 different ensembles all over the world.
In addition to his composing, recording, and performing, Zorn is a firm believer in community and a tireless champion of experimental music, film, art, poetry, and theatre, organizing festivals, recordings, and concerts, and helping to establish venues and opportunities for performance. He founded the Tzadik label in 1995 (which has released over 800 recordings of new and adventurous music); runs the performance space the Stone (which has presented over 9,000 concerts and 100 musical workshops since 2005) and has edited and published nine volumes of musician’s writings under the title ARCANA.
Zorn @ 70 Schedule
Part 1: In-Gallery Concerts at the Walker Art Center, September 9, from 12:00 – 4:30 PM. A guide to navigating between gallery locations will be provided. Gallery space is limited.
12:00 PM: “SIGIL MAGICK,” JACK Quartet and Michael Nicolas on artist Bruce Conner’s Angel (1975)
12:30 PM: “00 0 00,” The Sapphites: Rachel Calloway, Kirsten Sollek, Elizabeth Bates, and Eliza Bagg on Agnes Martin’s Untitled #7 (1977)
1:00 PM: “NAKED LUNCH,” Sae Hashimoto, Jorge Roeder, and Ches Smith on Robert Rauschenberg’s Persimmon (1965)
1:30 PM: “MIDSUMMER MOONS,” Gyan Riley and Julian Lage on Georgia O’Keefe’s Lake George Barns (1926)
2:00 PM: “DUO IMPROVISATION,” John Zorn and Ches Smith on Joan Mitchell’s Posted (1977)
2:30 PM: “OUROBOROS,” Sae Hashimoto and JACK Quartet on Jasper Johns’ Green Angel (1990)
3:00 PM: “COLOMBINA,” The Sapphites: Rachel Calloway, Kirsten Sollek, Elizabeth Bates, and Eliza Bagg on Jame Turrell’s Sky Pesher (2015)
3:30 PM: “HOCKEY,” John Zorn, Michael Nicolas, and Sae Hashimoto on Yoko Ono’s Painting to Hammer a Nail In (1961/1966)
4:00 PM: “PROLEGOMENA TO ANY FUTURE METAPHYSICS THAT WILL BE ABLE TO PRESENT ITSELF AS A SCIENCE,” JACK Quartet, Yura Lee, and Michael Nicolas on Helen Frankenthaler’s Alloy (1967)
Part 2: Concerts in McGuire Theater, September 9, from 6:00 – 11:00 PM. Ticketing information is available on the Walker’s website.
6:00 – 7:00 PM: Nove Cantici Per Francesco D’Assisi, an acoustic performance of John Zorn works with guitarists Bill Frisell, Julian Lage, and Gyan Riley
8:00 – 9:00 PM: Chaos Magick, one of the most extreme John Zorn configurations influenced by metal, jazz, funk, and noise with John Medeski, Matt Hollenberg, Kenny Grohowski, and Brian Marsella
10:00 – 11:00 PM: New Masada Quartet, a new Radical Jewish Quartet that draws on Zorn’s extensive Masada Songbook, with John Zorn, Julian Lage, Jorge Roeder, and Kenny Wollesen
Part 3: The Basilica of St. Mary’s
12:00 – 1:00 AM: The Hermetic Organ Experience, with John Zorn playing the restored 1949 Wicks Opus 3047 organ at The Basilica of St. Mary’s in Minneapolis. The event is free and open to the public.