ensemble nu:n
“Radices Musicae” - Improvisation on liturgical music of the Middle Ages
Gert Anklam (Germany) - saxophones
Rebecca Bain (Canada) - voice
Katherine Hill (Canada) - voice
Falk Zenker (Germany) - guitar, live electronics
Press
“A fabulous medieval creature from sandstone comes to life, snarls, and whips its tail dangerously. The creature softens as sweet
singing is heard. Rather than a fabulous creature, the saxophonist Gert Anklam appears on stage. The musical presentation is
supported by guitarist Falk Zenker, who moments later enters into dialogue with the sax and singers Rebecca Bain and Katherine
Hill. Musical worlds, separated by centuries, come together.
Helga Heilig, Naumburger Tagblatt, 07.11.03
“`Nun´ (the now) is timeless; in other words, time becomes transcendental, at once beyond time and time abundant… (ensemble
nu;n’s) music actually `grasps´ this `now´. In connecting the `old´ with the `new´, it explores the boundaries of time and brings
them closer together.”
Sister Hannah, St. Erentraud/ Berg
"It was deeply moving music, filled with longing, intelligent but light-hearted, sprinkled with humour, and the audience enjoyed it
thoroughly. Transfixed and transported to another world, at times it felt as though one was floating..." G. Meyer, OTZ, 10.11.03
“The concert was delightfully made up of continuous live experiments, bringing together ancient ritual music and modern
performance practice.”
Thüringer Allgemeine, 02.08.05
“Sound coming from all corners, it almost seems as if the old walls are vibrating…past and present unite in the moment… The
applause is never ending. “Wonderful” is whispered through the audience. The musicians must bow repeatedly: another moment
in the here and now…”
Freies Wort, 01.08.05
Ensemble nu:n’s music is a synthesis of medieval song and modern improvisation, bridging the gap
between the roots of Western music and the here and now; the German term nun (“now”, pronounced
[nu:n]) here evokes the singular moment of improvisation. The ethereal voices of Canadian singers
Rebecca Bain and Katherine Hill fuse together with the energetic and virtuoso saxophone playing of
Gert Anklam and the atmospheric and stirring sounds of guitarist and ensemble founder Falk Zenker.
Timeless music - at once full of meditative calm and excitement, subtle friction and playful lightness which resounds throughout the space in which it is heard.
One of the special qualities of ensemble nu:n is its use of a concert venue’s entire space, bringing to life
its full acoustic range. The singers and saxophonist move at times around and amongst the audience,
while the guitar sends its sound around the entire room via loud-speakers, in a fusing of sound as
“transient space” and architecture as “frozen sound”. This can be equally compelling in a Romanesque
or Gothic church, the contemporary architecture of a modern church, a former industrial hall or factory,
or any other appropriate concert venue, as long as it has a church-like acoustic.
Acclaimed interpreters of early music Rebecca Bain and Katherine Hill can look back on international
careers with a long list of CD productions and tours with numerous ensembles, including the renowned
Ensemble Sequentia. The Berliner Gert Anklam (on saxophones) and Falk Zenker (guitars and
sampling) of Weimar, have made celebrated names for themselves on the international jazz, world and
experimental music scene with diverse solo and multi-media projects, as well as many CD productions.
nu:n past:
Ensemble nu:n had its premiere concert at the Predigerkirche in Erfurt, home of the great mystic
Meister Eckhart (1260-1328), whose works inspired Falk Zenker to found the ensemble in 2003. Since
then, nu:n has toured Germany numerous times, performing in both renowned medieval churches and
modern spaces such as the Expo 2000 Christus pavilion, nu:n’s CD “Salutare” (RAUMKLANG/ RK
2407) was released in the spring of 2006.
Contact: Falk Zenker, Am Bäckerberg 6, 99510 Kapellendorf, Germany / tel: +49.36425.50982, +49.171.7562460
music@falk-zenker.de www.ensemblenun.com
Biographies
Rebecca Bain
- born in Montréal, Canada
- played trumpet and violin and sang in various ensembles for folk, jazz and early music in Canada, 1980-1988
- studied at the renowned Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel, Switzerland from 1992 to 1996, receiving a
diploma in medieval music performance in voice and medieval fiddle
- has worked since 1991 with several ensembles for early music, touring throughout North America, Europe and
Australia, and singing on many cd recordings; these groups include the renowned German Ensembles Sequentia
and Sarband, the vocal ensemble Mora Vocis (France), and the Scivias Chor (Germany)
- co-founded the vocal trio Zorgina (USA, Austria) in 1993, and Ensemble Belladonna (Germany, Denmark) in
1997; toured extensively with these groups and recorded several CDs (including "Triplicité", Zorgina, 2000
Raumklang and “Melodious Melancholie", Ensemble Belladonna, 2006 Raumklang)
- founded Canada’s first ensemble for medieval polyphony les fumeux with help from a Canada Council for the Arts
grant in 2004
- given numerous workshops on medieval music for students of all levels in France, Germany and North America
Katherine Hill
- born in Toronto, Canada, and presently lives in Amsterdam
- has worked as a freelance musician since finishing her graduate studies in music at the University of Toronto in
1996
- studied early music in Europe with Max von Egmond and with ensembles Sequentia and Diphona, and has sung
as soloist in various ensembles such as Elyma (France), Super Librum (Netherlands), and Grotest Maru (Germany)
- records and gives concerts regularly with the Canadian ensembles Aradia Ensemble, The Toronto Consort, and
Sine Nomine
- plays the medieval fiddle and has helped realise many projects which combine early music with such forms as
Arabic music, electronic music, and experimental theatre
Gert Anklam
- born in 1969 in Berlin, and has worked there as a freelance saxophonist and composer since 1988
- from 1989 played with various ensembles including the Manfred Schulze Wind Quintet
- received much acclaim for his solo concerts on the baritone saxophone
- has worked closely with the artist Beate Gatscha since 1997 on multi-media projects, combining such things as
dance, slide projections and water instruments
- has toured and studied in India, Africa and the USA
- has worked often in the theatre and with radio and recorded and produced 2 cd recordings (solo CD "konzert für
b", 1997; "Musik aus Luft und Wasser" 2003)
Falk Zenker
- born in 1967 in Mittweida, (Germany) and lives presently in Thuringia
- studied classical guitar at the conservatory in Weimar from 1987 to 1992 and has worked as a freelance musician
ever since
- performed for many years on international stages with the Spanish flamenco group Trio Romero and with the
prominent Chilean singer Oscar Andrade
- apart from his various solo projects, has realised many experimental and multi-media projects with artists of all
kinds (theatre, dance, slide projections, readings, audio sound installations, television...)
- 2 CDs to his name ("Landschaften"‚ 2000, and "Cinema"‚ 2002) under the label Acoustic Music/Zomba