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BoorBaar would be a contemporary percussion ensemble if such a thing is possible. It was formed in 2005 by some, to borrow a phrase, Jedi Rhythm Freaks, who are called Cory Beers, John Wash IV, and Mike Robbins. BoorBaar is primarily a musical ensemble, performing and composing weirdness for drums and other objects, meant for striking, or struck anyways.
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About the instruments:
Currently, there are toms and tom-like drums, tiny toms cranked to their structural limits (spockers), some Chinese cymbals and bells (very thick ones), and the instruments included in "the entrail strainer" or Strank for short: 1 very large propane tank, upon which is mounted the interior of a machine clothes-drier, upon which are mounted 6 magnesium plates of distinct pitches and several pieces of sheet metal mounted atop one another (crasher). Often, the Strank is played by several people at once.
About the music:
The original impetus was a desire to create percussion music that was not boring to us. Each piece of music is very nearly thoroughly composed by one member and scrutinized steadily by the ensemble (there is some improvisation, but not in the usual ways). We are primarily concerned with weird rhythmic relationships, vagaries of perception, putting things on top of other things, and fast interlocking rhythmic grids.
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We have found that rhythmic relationships are more important to us than exact notes. We often engage in altering the tempo of one phrase, be it by phasing ahead or behind, or by abruptly shifting its relationship to another phrase, which does not change.
This can lead to some bizarre metric modulations, and morphing between similar rhythms across sometimes vastly disparate rhythmic feels. We are in the habit of implying multiple rhythmic feels simultaneously, with many options for which feel a listener is in (is hearing) at any given moment, and when they switch feels if they do at all. We invite ambiguity in this regard.
"The effect is to vary the perception of that which is in fact unchanging".
-Steve Reich (about his own music, of course)
We owe quite a lot to the music of Steve Reich, which we have all spent a great happy deal of time performing.
Undoubtedly, traditional musics (western classical music, north and south Indian classical and folk music, Romanian folk music, west African folk music, Indonesian gamelan music, particularly that of Bali and Java, Brazilian music, drum and bugle corps...) have also provided numerous compositional and technical devices to our music. We tend to be performers of western instruments in some non-western ways, as opposed to the other way around, which seems more common.
BoorBaar's audiences are extremely diverse. We are available for hire to perform to any audience.
Contact us.
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