A Dozen Acts We Wish Were Playing in Winterfest
By all accounts, the lineup for this year’s Winterfest series of concerts on the North Fork promises to be an entertaining one.
We would like to propose that entertainment is not the only purpose of music. If music is a language, it should say something.
Art is meant to inspire. Sometimes it fosters innovation. At its best, it encourages spiritual growth.When we experience art together, we feel like better human beings.
When we experience entertainment, we go home and we’re done. When we experience art, it is just the beginning.
With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite music being performed on Long Island and in the New York area by musicians who have devoted their lives to a calling in the face of an industry obsessed with the cult of personality.
We hope you’ll enjoy listening to them too.
1. All Boy/All Girl
These are my friends.
2. Ornette Coleman
The king of free improvisation.
3. Efterklang
This gang of serious players from all over will awe you. They explore the relationship between lyric and sound in new ways, creating signposts on the post-minimalist landscape.
4. Daniel Carter & Federico Ughi
This New York jazz duo is not easy listening for tourists. Search these guys out on your next trip to the city. You’ll be glad you did.
5. Jay Sorce
My idea of local guitar talent.
6. Matthew Shipp
This pianist is an amazing treasure who has been redefining jazz in New York for years.
7. JP Jofre & Ashley Bathgate
My idea of New York roots music.
8. Antonio Murga
This is what Tom Waits meant when he said “What’s He Building in There?”
9. Polygraph Lounge
You’d be hard-pressed to find this much musical talent employed anywhere else in the service of comedy.
10. Mivos Quartet
A string quartet? The redefinition of classical music. Watch it until the end.
11. Triptoc Perf
Whet your whistle with this trio of creative geniuses who may give you an idea of what the future of music is.
12. Rob Schwimmer
With an unusual box of toys that range from the first electric instrument, the theremin, to the latest, the haken, this Long Island-based performer/composer is always interesting.
