Edit

http://www.fendingmatis.com

location: Squeaky Wheel, Buffalo, NY ($5)

 Fri, 4 Aug 2006, 8:30pm

LATE ADDITION: Multi-instrumentalist Tim Mroz will be joining Fending/Matis (in place of Jon Matis for one show only!) for this show. It promises to be exceptional!

The Fending/Matis duo explores the fertile territory between composition and improvisation. Their work ranges from precomposed sound sculpture to free improvisation allowing for the live electronic manipulation of improvised materials. Fending and Matis are both accomplished musicians and performed together for years as members of the DC-based improv ensemble, Gray Code. Their first release _Shiny+Round_ (Metatron Press, 2001) will be followed by the darker _Three Rocks_ (Sockets, 2006) due out this year.

Brian Fending (http://brianfending.com) is a freelance percussionist and multimedia artist based in Buffalo, NY, specializing in improvised, world and contemporary musics. His undergraduate (Performers Certificate, BM, 1996) work was completed at SUNY College at Fredonia under Theodore Frazeur, D. Thomas Toner, and Kay Stonefelt. Graduate study found him at Miami University (MM, 1999) with William R. Albin. In the improv world beyond Fending/Matis, Brian has performed with the electroacoustic improvisation group Gray Code, the Tom Keil quartet, and various other groups and chamber ensembles. He is also a programmer, and his latest work, Subversations (http://subversations.com), is premiering at this same festival. Mr. Fending uses Regal Tip (http://regaltip.com) drumsticks, brushes, and implements.

Jonathan Matis (http://morrismatis.blogspot.com) is a composer and performer whose work actively combines the practices of composition and improvisation. He has performed and recorded with a variety of ensembles, and is a co-founder of the DC Improvisers Collective (DCIC) (http://dcic.alkem.org), a quartet exploring the intersection of jazz, contemporary composition and experimental music. Matis has composed music for dance, incidental music for theater, and a variety of concert works. Performing with electric guitar, a small collection of low-tech preparations, and live signal processing, Matis coaxes textures from the instrument - in addition to the occasional tried-and-true plucked string approach. Currently, he serves as the Director of the Washington DC Chapter of the American Composers Forum (http://www.composersforum.org/dc). He is also Co-Director of Improv Arts, Inc. His last name is also Morris. It's kind of a funny story.