Even from the outside of 4014 Walnut St., you can hear the sound of beautiful music emitting from the Rotunda. With free admission and a small crowd of about 50 people, various forms of music were played throughout the night.
The opening act titled, The Color is Luxury, featured Philadelphia-based composer Charles Cohen. Cohen is one of a handful of musicians to master the Buchla Music Easel, which makes electronic music. The Color is Luxury is an improvisational set which uses beats, pulses and electronic sounds to gauge the mood at the time and atmosphere of the venue.
Another composer in attendance, Christie Schultz, said she viewed Cohen’s work as moving and inspirational.
“Being that only a handful of musicians can do what we just saw by Charles Cohen perform tonight is incredible,” said Schultz. “This is an extraordinary piece played on such a rare instrument (Buchla Music Easel) and I’m so privileged to be here for this.”
The main performance on this night was by a band, BLEW 4-tet, with Marshall Allen, Elliott Levin, Marc Edwards and Weasel Walter. The band BLEW 4-tet made music through a mix of drums, reeds, poetry (words) and saxophone.
Other more casual concertgoers, like Robert D’Imperio, enjoy the array of musical composition the Rotunda offers.
“There’s always something different playing here as the sound bounces off the walls and really affects the audience,” D’Imperio said. “There’s only about 60 people here on a given night, so the audience is able to appreciate the sounds they hear, be it jazz, contemporary or blues music.”
For more information about the Rotunda and future events, click here.
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