Julian Kirshner
Photograph: Shannon Marks

Zerang/Shead/Harris/Walter
Photographs: Iztak Zupan, Mike Shanley, Ricardo Adame, Peter Gannushkin

Julian Kirshner assembles a first-time outing alongside saxophonist Nick Anaya and bassist Christopher Dammann.

The Zerang/Shead/Harris/Walter ensemble brings together four singular percussionists—Michael Zerang, Adam Shead, Bill Harris, and Weasel Walter—who collectively represent nearly forty years of evolution within Chicago’s experimental music ecosystem. United by a strict principle that rejects traditional drumming in favor of purely extended techniques, the group approaches percussion as an open field of possibility. Their work focuses on the subtle, tactile, and often unpredictable interactions between surface, material, and gesture, revealing sound as a sculptural and physical process rather than a rhythmic function.

The project sits within a living lineage of extended percussion practice that began with Zerang’s early investigations in the late 1970's and continues through the distinct contributions of Walter, Harris, and Shead. Each artist approaches the instrument differently—through tension, friction, resonance, texture—yet their convergence forms a multi-generational dialogue that traces the development of this radical approach to percussion. The ensemble’s performances illuminate the adaptability and expressive range of modern percussionists while underscoring the historical and ongoing significance of this work within Chicago’s broader experimental tradition.

8:30 pm: Anaya/Dammann/Kirshner
9:30 pm: Zerang/Shead/Harris/Walter Percussion Quartet

$15 / $10 w/ Student ID - Tickets Available at the Door