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We’re proud to now be booking Arthur Russell’s Instrumentals Directed by Peter Gordon

Posted 09/17/2015

Instrumentals is unequivocally one of Arthur Russell’s most important and influential works. Drawing inspiration from the nature photography of Yuko Nonomura, it was only ever performed 5 times during Arthur Russell’s prolific life. Yet 2015 saw the piece’s first ever European performances, including 2 sold-out London shows, a sold-out Cologne show, performances in Oslo, Helsinki, Dublin, Liverpool, Paris and in the Auditorium at Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona.

Comprising the ensemble are original members and Russell’s frequent collaborators, Rhys Chatham, Peter Zummo, Ernie Brooks & Bill Ruyle and former LCD Soundsystem member Gavin Russom, who have performed Instrumentals under Peter Gordon’s (DFA Records) direction. The debut live premiere of Instrumentals took place in Berkeley, California in January 1975. As a composition it continued to live and breathe as Russell and his ensemble performed it four more times in New York City over the next four years, with Russell playing cello on some performances and keys on others. Considered to be part of the minimalist movement of the time, it featured one of the first pairings of pop and concert hall aesthetics, and was the first exploration of its kind in NYC’s vibrant downtown scene. A large amount of material was written and performed over the five years, with only a small amount of it being recorded, seeing release on Another Side in 1984 and Audika Records in 2006, respectively. The extract of the 1975 New York recording on Audika Records has been described by Pitchfork as ‘‘a masterpiece…up there with World Of Echo as Arthur Russell’s greatest achievement.’’

It is with great pleasure that we announce we’ll be bringing Arthur Russell’s live performances of Instrumentals to North America, directed by his longtime collaborator Peter Gordon. Keep an eye on the project’s artist page for forthcoming dates.