Live Music is something that goes in and out of style with hip hop, but its something that we try to keep as a premiere element with everything we do. Our latest project, 2012: The Hip Hop Experiment, is foremost about uplifting all people. From a cultural perspective, we are bringing people together through live music and through our words. That’s how we further hip hop. 2012: The Hip Hop Experiment is the first of many events in the Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage series; an ongoing experiment with hip hop, jazz, improvisation and technology that brings people together.
From a technical aspect, 2012 comprises live music, dance and technology. We are using the software program Max, which captures the movement of dancers by using color combinations that alter different effects like panning, tilting, and contrast — all in real time. For the music, we are using the Akai APC 40 with Abletone Live, controllers that will allow us to trigger pre-recorded sounds. Simultaneously we will record live sound, loop it, process it and play it back as a part of the performance. And of course…we’re using Apple computers.
We are excited to say that this is our first time working together with George E. Lewis. George has been one of our greatest influences for technology and music. He’s passed on knowledge to our generation through the books he has written. When we sat with George to figure out how to pull off the 2012 event, he explained how our work fits into a body of history that makes it comparable to the work of other musicians from over fifty years ago. George has also provided us technical support by allowing his students at Columbia University to generate codes and test them as homework assignments. In a sense, George has provided us with R&D (Research and Development) staff for our 2012 event at Harlem Stage. Working with George has made us feel like we are a part of something much larger.
So come on out this Saturday and hang with us, because we are going to have a ball with 2012: The Hip Hop Experiment.
-Marc Cary & Chance A Million
P.S. Here’s a teaser for you. Check out an experimental video we produced — an ode to Langston Hughes and Harlem.
This is a beautifully put-together piece. I can’t describe the way it made its message so clear to me. The pictures and words of the artists from that time, seeing and experiencing the total atrocity of racism and ignorance — and yet somehow being able to create, transcend hopelessness and anger. Your video should be seen by all Americans! Thank you for the experience.
This is a beautifully put-together piece. I can’t describe the way it made its message so clear to me. The pictures and words of the artists from that time, seeing and experiencing the total atrocity of racism and ignorance — and yet somehow being able to create, transcend hopelessness and anger. Your video should be seen by all Americans! Thank you for the experience.