New European Ensemble X Nick Verstand, premiere on Friday 8 March

The light art of Nick Verstand is world-renowned. Dezeen selected his project AURA as one of the top 10 art installations of 2017, alongside Olafur Eliasson, Ai Weiwei and Anish Kapoor. This time, he can be seen in the Netherlands with a live installation featuring the New European Ensemble and Salvador Breed. The performance will take place in Haarlem (8 March), Utrecht (4 April), Rotterdam (5 April), Den Bosch (6 April) and The Hague on 19 April 2024.

This project combines music, visual art, and advanced technology to create an immersive sensory experience that appeals both to established art lovers and to younger audiences. At its center is Dutch light artist Nick Verstand, who connects music and visual art through his autonomous installations and live performances. These explore how emotional experiences can be materialized through collaborative design processes that transcend social boundaries, resulting in intuitive experiences that create a hypnotic environment for the subconscious. His work, praised as “stunning and inventive” by Theaterkrant, offers an escape from bleak reality.

Verstand develops his own hardware and software for his light installations, allowing them to respond seamlessly to live music. Works such as Anima and Within Without reveal a magnetic pull that aligns perfectly with the ritual essence of minimal music. In collaboration with the New European Ensemble, he has created visual experiences around compositions such as Steve Reich’s Double Sextet.

Salvador Breed, an innovative Dutch composer and sound artist, adds an extra dimension to the project. His collaboration with Verstand and his role as the creative mind behind the music and soundscapes at events such as Todays Art and Dutch Design Week underline his skill in uniting even the most dissonant sounds. For this project, he works together with the NEuE to create an experience in harmony with the enchanting light installations.

Breed’s new work Twiske is inspired by the nature reserve of the same name, as well as Reich’s Double Sextet, where sounds, rhythmic patterns, and harmonies evoke a trance-like state in the audience. The project highlights the ritual aspects of minimal music, with works by Steve Reich and Terry Riley, including Riley’s groundbreaking In C, a piece that makes every performance unique due to the freedom it gives the musicians. Riley’s composition will be performed in Den Bosch and Rotterdam. Reich’s Double Sextet, awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2009, is another highlight, written for two sextets and performed with one live sextet and one on tape.

Performers – New European Ensemble

• Felicia van den End – flute
• James Meldrum – clarinet
• Pepe Garcia – vibraphone
• Malgorzata Walentynowicz – piano
• Rada Ovcharova – violin
• Willem Stam – cello

Performances:

• Fri 8 March 2024, Phil Haarlem
• Thu 4 April 2024, TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht
• Fri 5 April 2024, De Doelen, Rotterdam
• Sat 6 April 2024, Theater aan de Parade, Den Bosch
• Fri 19 April 2024, Korzo, The Hague

This project is made possible with the support of the Kersjesfonds, Cultuurfonds, Fonds Podiumkunsten, and the Municipality of The Hague.

(Photo: Stijn te Hennepe)