A NOW 40th Anniversary Presentation: Shadowgraph 5 Marathon

NOW proudly began our 40th year by presenting a performance of George Lewis’ composition Shadowgraph 5. Eleven stellar NOW ensembles with connections to NOW that span four decades presented a continuous four-hour stream of music.

• Tickets $20 general $10 musicians and students.
• NOW members get $5 off tickets.
• The evening will be a potluck community event.

40 artists! 11 bands! continuous music!

7:00 Sawdust Ensemble  James Meger, Cole Schmidt, Barbara Adler, Stephanie Cyr, Eden Solomon
7:20 Sandbox  Jeff Younger, Kristian Naso, Russel Sholberg, Bernie Arai
7:40 Nikki Carter Trio  Nikki Carter, Clyde Reed, Kenton Loewen
8:00 Now Ensemble   Lisa Cay Miller, James Meger, Skye Brooks, JP Carter
8:20 Paul Plimley Trio   Paul Plimley, Clyde Reed, Dylan van der Schyff
8:40 Unity   Roger Baird, Graham Ord, Paul Blaney, Bill Clark
9:00 break
9:20 NOW Workshop Ensemble Margot Leigh Butler, Sheila Jones, Dave Todd, Ian Migicovsky, Johanna Hauser, Don Chow, Kenneth Schroeder, Michael DuBelko, Gary Wildeman
9:40 MuseArt  Roger Baird, Ralph Eppel, Tony Wilson, Paul Blaney, François Houle
10:00 Merge Ensemble   Meredith Bates, Jeff Younger, Tom Wherret, Elisa Thorn
10:20 Bruce Freedman Quartet   Bruce Freedman, Dylan van der Schyff, Torsten Muller, Clyde Reed
10:40 Talking Pictures   Ron Samworth, Dylan van der Schyff, Peggy Lee, Bill Clark

Originally recorded by Muhal Richard Abrams with Anthony Davis, Douglas Ewart, Leroy Jenkins, George Lewis, Roscoe Mitchell and Abdul Wadud in 1978, Shadowgraph 5 was composed in 1977, the same year of the NOW Society’s beginnings. American composer George Lewis and his composition have a long standing history with NOW, the work was recorded in 1999 by George Lewis & The Now Orchestra and released as George Lewis and the NOW Orchestra: The Shadowgraph Series by spool records.

The NOW Society is dedicated to sharing improvised music with their community through the presentation of free improvisation workshops (since 1978) for adults, musicians and youth. As part of the Shadowgraph 5 project, NOW will present a three-week improvisation workshop series at Merge Vancouver on April 1, 8 and 15 from 2-4 pm, preparing participants to take part in the performance on April 29. The free workshops will be open to musicians of all levels of ability.

The NOW Society 40th Anniversary celebration events will continue at the Roundhouse Community Center, November 15-18, 2017 -- details coming soon!