Performers:
Noraliz Ruiz holds a PhD in Ethnomusicology-Musicology from Kent State University. Her research focuses on the Puerto Rican lutes: cuatro, tiple and bordonúa; particularly in the continuity and change of the instruments’ tradition and performance practice. She has also conducted research about underground music scenes in Puerto Rico and the production of indie pop, electronic and new music on the island. She has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in the popular music program of the Inter American University of Puerto Rico. Noraliz is a member of the electronic indie band Balún and has performed in music festivals in the US, Mexico and Puerto Rico. She is also a co-founder of the children’s music group Acopladitos.
Puerto Rican-born composer and multi-instrumentalist Angélica Negrón writes music for accordions, robotic instruments, toys and electronics as well as for chamber ensembles, orchestras and choir. Her music has been described as “wistfully idiosyncratic and contemplative” (WQXR/Q2) while The New York Times noted her “capacity to surprise.” Negrón has been commissioned by the Bang on a Can All-Stars, A Far Cry, MATA Festival, loadbang, Brooklyn Youth Chorus, Sō Percussion and the American Composers Orchestra, among others. As the first composer-in-residence at the New York Botanical Garden, she composed an immersive work for electronic soundscape and 100 voice chorus performed in the Thain Family Forest. Upcoming premieres include works for Los Angeles Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic (Project 19), Dallas Symphony Orchestra and National Symphony Orchestra (co-commissioned work for orchestra and organ), and San Francisco Girls Chorus. Negrón continues to perform and compose for film.
José Olivares is a musician, visual artist, and educator with over ten years of experience in composing/recording/working for film, TV, web, interactive installations, and physical media. As a visual artist and performer with his musical projects, dreambow ensemble Balún (co-founder along with wife and composer Angélica Negrón) and tropiglitch solo act Amigos Poderosos, José Olivares has presented his work internationally at venues such as Issue Project Room, Rough Trade NYC, Hermoso Ruido (Colombia), SXSW (music & education), Pop Montreal (Canada), Nuevo Fest, Santurce es Ley (Puerto Rico), among others. He holds a BA in film from the University of Puerto Rico and an MPS from the Interactive Telecommunications Program at New York University, where he specialized in interactive cinema and sound. As an educator, Olivares has taught classes and workshops in creative computing, digital literacy and music production for various organizations such as DreamYard Arts Center, El Museo del Barrio, and New York Philharmonic. Currently Jose works as a Director of High School Computer Science Academics with the NYCDOE Computer Science for All initiative developing curriculum, coaching and training public school teachers on various computer science topics
Born and raised in San Juan, PR, Raúl Reymundi trained from an early age at the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music and went on to obtain a BA in popular music with a concentration in guitar performance from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. During this time, he was active in the island’s independent music scene, performing with many acts across a variety of genres including Cellar Door, Odradek, and Ardillas. Upon moving stateside in 2011, he completed a degree in audio engineering from SAE Institute and has since toured across Mexico, Europe, and the United States. He currently works with the community team at Kickstarter, in Brooklyn, NY.
Shayna Dunkelman is a musician and percussionist based in Brooklyn, NY. She is known for her versatile and unique techniques, and use of electronics to access a sonic pallet not found in acoustic percussion. Born and raised in Tokyo, Japan to an Indonesian mother and an American father, Dunkelman became a multi-instrumentalist performing alongside her mother, a musician and composer active in Asia and the Middle East. Dunkelman graduated with honors in both music and mathematics from Mills College in Oakland, CA in 2007, where she studied percussion with William Winant.
Dunkelman was recently a soloist in the latest orchestral piece by Pulitzer Award-Winning and Grammy nominated composer Du Yun, titled Where We Lost Our Shadows (2019) along with Ali Sethi and vocalist Helga Davis. The piece premiered at Ultima Festival (Oslo), Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and Southbank Centre (London). It is also scheduled to tour worldwide and to be recorded with the Peabody Orchestra and conductor Marin Alsop in 2020.
In addition to solo performances, Dunkelman tours with the Puerto Rican band Balún, multi-instrumentalist Emily Wells, electro-acoustic duo Peptalk, Pakistani singer and author Ali Sethi, and her percussion duo Nomon with her sister Nava Dunkelman.
Dunkelman became increasingly active in the alternative music scene as a member of the band Xiu Xiu, touring the world for 6 years. As part of Xiu Xiu, Dunkelman premiered a multimedia performance art piece at the International Summer Festival in Hamburg, Germany (2013) and Donaufestival in Krems, Austria (2014). Dunkelman was key to the creation of the album Xiu Xiu plays the music of Twin Peaks in 2016, made possible by the cooperation of the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane Australia. They were invited by David Lynch himself to share the stage with Angelo Badalamenti, the composer of the soundtrack for the TV show Twin Peaks, at the Festival Disruption curated by Mr. Lynch to benefit transcendental meditation. They also collaborated with conceptual artist Danh Vo on a month-long performative gallery exhibition at the Kitchen in New York City in October of 2014 with support from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and other generous contributions. As part of Xiu Xiu, Dunkelman shared stages with Genesis P-Orridge (Psychic TV), Blonde Redhead, Sun Ra Arkestra, Alessandro Cortini (Nine Inch Nails), St. Vincent and Deerhoof to name a few. Dunkelman has recorded and performed with pioneers of avant-garde experimental musicians such as Yuka C. Honda, John Zorn, Yoko Ono, Thurston Moore, and Zeena Parkins.
As a composer, Dunkelman collaborated with choreographer Amanda Piña to present work at the Presidential Palace of Austria as part of the opening ceremony of ImpulsTanz with the presence of President Heinz Fischer. For this performance, she was awarded a grant from Foundation of Contemporary Arts in NYC. Since then, Dunkelman and Ms. Pina collaborated on several pieces and toured them internationally.
Dunkelman is currently working on the piece Answer to (XX), a performance and documentary film exploring relationships and power dynamics between “band leaders” and “band members”. This is made possible by the generous support of Franklin Furnace and it is planned to premiere in 2020.
Residency Curator:
Wayne Marshall is an assistant professor of music history at Berklee College of Music. An ethnomusicologist by training and an Americanist in the broadest sense, his research focuses on histories of sound media, popular dance music, and cultural politics. Marshall has published extensively in academic and journalistic venues, from Small Axe to Pitchfork to New York Magazine, as well as on his acclaimed blog, Wayne & Wax. He co-edited Reggaeton (Duke 2009), the first book on the genre, and complements his written work with online mixes, mashups, and other audible "technomusicological" objects.
