City Life Org - ChamberQUEER’s BaroQUEER at ShapeShifter Lab in Brooklyn

Monday, October 23

ChamberQUEER presents BaroQUEER at ShapeShifter Lab, BK

Performing Julius Eastman, Rufus Wainwright, Corelli, Charpentier, Piazzolla and more

Doors at 6:30 pm, Show at 7:00pm

$25 Suggested Ticket Price / $10 for Students and Arts Workers

Tickets / Website / Instagram / Facebook

From sarabandes to tangos (and everything in between), ChamberQUEER’s BaroQUEER program at ShapeShifter Lab explores the influence of dance forms on the canon of early western classical music in Europe and its colonies, as well as their legacy in the music of today. This program recontextualizes “historically informed performance” as a critically conscious conversation with the past, highlighting the co-opting of French and English country dances by the French court as ground zero for a trajectory of musical evolution that extended far enough into the present to include the disco-influenced Stay on It by Julius Eastman.

Additional featured repertoire in this recital will include works by Charpentier (Que je sens de plaisir from La Feste de Ruel), Cullen O’Neil (Suite in G Minor), Arcangelo Corelli (from the Trio Sonatas), Rufus Wainwright (Poses), Astor Piazzolla (Oblivion), and more surprises. Tickets are available now directly from ShapeShifter at a $25 price point. For artists, students or any audience member for whom that ticket price would present a hardship, please contact danielle@chamberqueer.org to purchase sliding scale tickets.

Accompanying ChamberQUEER’s core lineup of Jules Biber on baroque cello, Danielle Buonaiuto (soprano) and Brian Mummert (baritone), the evening will also feature special guest performers Rafa Prendergast (baroque violin), Keats Dieffenbach (baroque violin), Peter Lim (harpsichord and recorder), and Eli McCormack (male soprano). Musicologist and friend of ChamberQUEER Isaac Jean-François has provided research and curatorial support for this program.

About ChamberQUEER

ChamberQUEER (CQ) is a multifaceted organization with the mission of presenting and performing queer artists, highlighting historically underrepresented queer figures in classical music, and providing an intersectional and inclusive space within classical music for artists and audience. CQ questions existing norms of classical concerts: from repertoire and programming, to concert dress and audience etiquette, CQ “queers” the experience of classical music, making it an inclusive and inviting space for all.

Founded in 2018 by Jules Biber, Danielle Buonaiuto, Brian Mummert, and Andrew Yee, ChamberQUEER is anchored by its flagship concert series, held annually in Brooklyn in June during Pride. Highlighting local queer artists past and present, the festival was a 2019 New Yorker-recommended event and a 2022 New York Times Best of Pride event. In addition to the flagship concert series, ChamberQUEER hosts community events throughout the year, from reading parties to house concerts. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it transitioned to online and outdoor events, holding space for the community through Zoom happy hours, Instagram Live interviews with queer composers, educational webinars, and Zoom chamber music concerts in collaboration with other LGBTQ+ service organizations. Under the ChamberQUEER Presents banner, ChamberQUEER co-produces events both virtual and in-person, to amplify the work of queer artists who are producing art for their communities. These productions typically benefit a charitable organization aligned with their mission and values.

ChamberQUEER has been presented by National Sawdust, WQXR at the Greene Space, Death of Classical at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn Pride, The Boulanger Initiative, and with The Westerlies. Founding members have had appearances as ambassadors for ChamberQUEER at chamber music festivals, on podcasts and public radio broadcasts, and at residencies all over the country. CQ also works to promote queer musicians in the larger musical scene, helping to contract queer musicians for various events. For more information, visit ChamberQUEER.org.

Additional Upcoming ChamberQUEER Events

October 25: BaroQUEER at Boston College
October 26: BaroQUEER and Workshop at Early Music America Summit
October 28: BaroQUEER presented by Classical Uprising in Portland, ME
November 1: BaroQUEER in Provincetown (private event)
November 3: Coffee Hour and Choose-Your-Own-Adventure at the Portland Museum of Art
November 4-5: Messiah Multiplied with Classical Uprising at the Temple Beth-El in Portland, ME and the First Parish, Brunswick, ME