Contact: Evan Mazunik
emazunik@gmail.com 347-684-0688
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EVAN MAZUNIK PRESENTS THE HARLEM DEBUT OF ZAHA AT THE
SHRINE ON MAY 6, 2012
THIS CONCERT CELEBRATES THE RELEASE OF ZAHA'S NEW EP, "THE
SEDGE AND THE BEE" ON COLLECTIVE RECORDINGS
NEW YORK, NY April 24, 2012 — Evan Mazunik will perform with his group ZAHA
at the Shrine in Harlem on May 6, 2012 at 8:00pm. ZAHA will open for Eric Plaks’
Shrine Big Band. The Shrine is located at 2271 Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd, New
York, NY 10030. For more information, visit http://www.shrinenyc.com or call (212)
690-7807.
This show is the CD release party for ZAHA’s new EP, "The Sedge and the Bee," on
Collective Recordings. Recorded at Butler Recording Studios in Brooklyn before a live
studio audience, "The Sedge and the Bee" captures the energy and spontaneity of a
ZAHA performance. This sextet of horns, guitar, bass, and two drums evokes the
sounds of Art Ensemble of Chicago, Henry Threadgill, Butch Morris, and John Zorn. As
the bandleader, Mazunik sculpts colorful woodwinds, shimmering strings, and driving
percussion into an instrumental soundscape ranging from gentle ambience to bristling
experimentation. For the Shrine show, Evan will direct ZAHA using Soundpainting, a
sign language for live composition, as the group composes their program in realtime.
Audience members will receive an exclusive download code to preview the "The Sedge
and the Bee" as a digital souvenir of the evening.
"I'm thrilled to bring this ensemble of savvy improvisers to Harlem, a historic home to
some of the world's finest jazz and improvised music," said Evan Mazunik, director of
ZAHA. For more information about Evan Mazunik’s ZAHA, preview their electronic
press kit at http://www.gigmaven.com/zaha or visit their website at
http://zaha.blissstreetstudios.com.
ABOUT EVAN MAZUNIK
Evan Mazunik is a composer/performer raised on the prairies of Iowa and rooted in
Queens, NY. Fluent in Soundpainting, a sign language for live composition, Mazunik is
composer/director for ZAHA, his experimental Soundpainting ensemble. His
compositions include commissions for jazz band, chorus, theater, dance, and film, and his
work was featured in a documentary for the Finnish Broadcasting Company. Mazunik
has performed with Anthony Braxton, Walter Thompson, Carla Bley, Robin Eubanks,
Danielson, and Sufjan Stevens, and has played at creative music venues such as Roulette,
The Stone, Barbes, and Galapagos.
ABOUT ZAHA
ZAHA is a chamber ensemble devoted to composing music in real time.
Director/composer Evan Mazunik leads the group using Soundpainting, the universal
sign language for live composition. Based in New York City since 2006, ZAHA has
played in the New York International Fringe Festival, and Evan Mazunik has performed
with ZAHA at such diverse venues as Brooklyn Lyceum, Douglass Street Collective, and
the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art in Charleston, SC. Other past performances
have featured a live film score to The Hunchback of Notre Dame, a guerilla performance
in Times Square, and an installation based on human bowling. Members: Justin Wood
(tenor sax, flute), Nathan Koci (cornet), Sebastian Noelle (guitar), Ryan Kotler (bass),
Eric Eigner (drums), and John O'Brien (drums). For more information, visit their online
press kit at http://gigmaven.com/zaha.
ABOUT THE SHRINE
Shrine is a multimedia arts and culture venue, founded in 2007 by musicians and music
lovers in the music capital of Harlem, USA. The Shrine is dedicated to art and culture in
all mediums: film, theater, dance, and live music. Shrine World Music Venue’s mission
is to establish a positive creative atmosphere for both artists and audiences from all
backgrounds. Fore more information, visit http://www.shrinenyc.com.
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