MIXOLOGY: Child of the Church presents 'Spirit & Soul Become Confused,' directed by Lucia della Paolera & Gobby
$25 advance, $30 doors ($20 student/senior 65+ w/ ID)
- Francesca Amadée Caruso, violin
- Matt Aronoff, double bass
- Ludovica Burtone, violin
- Lucia della Paolera, mezzo-soprano
- Jake Dester, alto saxophone
- Gobby, trumpet
- Juan José Jiménez, drums
- Brian Krock, clarinet & piccolo
- Alex LoRe, soprano saxophone
- Justine Lugli, viola
- Rianne Mision, guitar
- Timothy Rusterholz, cello
- Esther Sibiude, harp
- Thomas Hobson Williams, synthesizer
Child of the Church (COTC) Productions, co-founded by director and vocalist Lucia della Paolera and composer Gobby, presents Spirit and Soul Become Confused. Drawing its title from J.S. Bach's 1726 sacred cantata Geist und Seele wird verwirret for contralto, BWV 35, this staged music performance in two parts for fourteen musicians weaves together radically rearranged baroque, classical, folk, pop, and electronic music into a cohesive tapestry. The performance features original costumes, set, choreography, and laser projections inspired by the cantata’s libretto.
In Part 1, the cantata is reorchestrated by della Paolera, Gobby, and cellist Timothy Rusterholz to include synthesizers, saxophones, clarinet, drums, string quartet, bass, trumpet, and mezzo-soprano. Using the miracles described in the cantata as a catalyst, COTC injects new music and choreography directly into Bach’s composition, stretching open the piece to give space to new sounds and connotations. In Part 2, the performers, now joined by harp and guitar, navigate through a maze of sorrows in many shades—from somber to clownish, personal to communal. Original compositions by COTC musicians Gobby (trumpet), Timothy Rusterholz (cello), and Jake Dester (alto saxophone) are interwoven with reorchestrated renditions of works by George Frederic Handel, Georg Philipp Telemann, Luciano Berio, Juaquín Rodrigo, Sérgio Assad, and Raphael. Fusing a wide range of music, old and new, Spirit and Soul Become Confused is a trance-like, continually mutating, and expansive work.
A livestream will be available free of charge at 8pm Eastern on the day of each performance and archived for future viewing.
About Child of the Church Productions
Child of the Church (COTC) Productions creates site-specific music performances in NYC. Past venues include Saint Peter's Church, The Kitchen, Queens Museum, and Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church. Co-founded by vocalist and director Lucia della Paolera and composer Gobby.
http://childofthechurchproductions.com/About Francesca Amadée Caruso, violin
Francesca Amadée Caruso is a classically trained violinist and multi-instrumentalist, performing and recording with a range of ensembles and composers including the Infinity Ring (violin, vocals), Ordinary Affects (violin), JPA Falzone (violin), Dougie Poole Band (bass, vocals, fiddle), Eve Essex (violin), Mike Etten (vocals, violin), Paul Collins of Beirut (violin, vocals), Lucia Della Paolera of Child of the Church productions (violin), and various other experimental groups.
About Matt Aronoff, double bass
About Ludovica Burtone, violin
About Lucia della Paolera, mezzo-soprano
https://www.bronxarts.org/grants/bronx-recognizes-its-own/lucia-della-paolera.html