Beats for Grown Folk

Like jazz, DJ-oriented music actively fosters the idea of the remix, artists stripping a song to its essence before building it into a new whole. The best remixes blend the characters of both the original producer and remixer, resulting in a track that's neither here nor there, but both at the same time. Tonight's ArRange performance at McCaw hall remixes the concept itself, with some of the most influential producers of the last 40 years reinterpreting one another's music, bringing old and new(er) school aesthetics together.

ArRange is one of the closing events of the Red Bull Music Academy. While most of the other events have taken place in a bar/club context, tonight's event is meant to be a more intellectual beast. Musical ancestry (with relevance intact) will be represented by Deodato, David Matthews, and Clare Fischer, whose collective contributions to jazz, funk, disco, and pop music extend far beyond their usage as sample material. The descendants are in various stages of creating their own legacies, with Oh No making his mark in the world of hip-hop, Todd Simon working all over the map, Kirk DeGiorgio exploring the techno-jazz intsersect, and Underground Resistance (!!!) having already cemented their spots in the electronic music pantheon. Tonight, the descendants will share their reinterpretations of their forebears, who will then return the favor.

Structured as a symphonic performance (with the addition of a jazz/funk rhythm section to the Northwest Sinfonia Orchestra) and with the legendary producer/engineer Bob Power (who worked on some of the best hip-hop records of all time) manning the mixing desk, tonight's performance should certainly provide a night to remember, both for the performers and for everyone lucky enough to be in attendance. You would do well to ensure that you fit into the latter category.

(Note: There was a rumor that this show was sold out. As of this posting, that isn't true. However, between the free tickets and the fact that $5 was donated to the Vera Project for every reservation, there's more than enough incentive to reserve tickets without plans to attend. Along those same lines, if this does sell out, chances are you'd still be able to get in if you play nice at the door.)

ArRange (tickets via Ticketmaster)
December 6, 2005
Doors open at 7pm, Music at 8pm
McCaw Hall, 318 Harrison Street
FREE!!!