"FESTIVAL M.A.R.S. WAS BORN FROM A DREAM." As a composer, I have participated in many new music festivals globally, but was always disappointed by the total absence of other arts. After years of experiencing the same sterile environment in different places, I decided that I would create a festival that thrived on the spirit of interdisciplinary cooperation between all arts. When I moved to Los Angeles, I realized that it was the ideal city to begin my efforts. It is filled with boundary shattering contemporary artists, fueled by the the optimism and curiosity of young art students, and an international hub of culture and creativity. I am pleased to say that in the past year, I have succeeded in turning my dream into a reality, and am excited to share with you all that M.A.R.S. has accomplished, and the possibilities for its growth in the future. Wen Liu, Founder & Artistic Director
OUR PURPOSE The aim of the festival is to offer a networking platform and I would like to see the further collaborations between M.A.R.S. featured musicians and artists to go beyond the festival, and do something great for our humanity.
LOOKING TOWARDS THE FUTURE All the M.A.R.S. concerts program have been created by the idea of featuring younger generation emerged composers. A great diversity makes Festival M.A.R.S. a highlight. Moving to M.A.R.S. Festival 2018, it will take over Berlin and Los Angeles at the same time, connecting the musicians, artists, and audiences through the means of Virtual Reality – merging and blurring the geographical realities of the two cities.
THE FUTURE OF GLOBAL MUSIC & ARTS EXPLORATION THOUGHTS ON M.A.R.S. "“I love when it’s a cross-disciplinary showcase, when you have visual, spoken word and musical art for one common theme and one common goal, It allows you to partake in art in so many different forms.”" ▬ Cheyanne Sauter, Executive Director of Art Share L.A.
"“It’s really on a human scale, and that’s what I love about it, It’s a little bit homemade in unusual spaces." ▬ Shana Nys Dambrot, Art Critic
"[An] extensive and immersive experience." ▬ Genie Davis, Art and Cake LA
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M.A.R.S. BY THE NUMBERS
83 ARTISTS Curated by Shana Nys Dambrot, our arts weeks was home to fantastic works by local artists ranging from videography and visual art, to performance pieces and commissioned installations.
MUSICIANS Joining us for the festival were many local and world renowned ensembles, including Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra and the International Contemporary Ensemble. Â This year also saw the genesis of the M.A.R.S. Collective, which will continue to be an integral ensemble in the fest.
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ATTENDEES Our events were hosted by two spectacular venues in the DTLA Art's District: Art Share L.A. and Angel City Brewery.Â
WORLD, US & WEST COAST PREMIERES
Each main concert saw the premiere of at least two new works from both US and internationally based composers.
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TEAM M.A.R.S & BEYOND
COLLABORATORS Venues Angel City Brewery Art Share L.A.
Media Downtown ArtWalk World Art Day Cartwheel Art LA Art Party
Production Produced by Bear Endangered Creations Adam Borecki
Wen Liu Founder & Artist Director Kristen Klehr Producer Virginia Pettis Festival Manager Shana Nys Dambrot Artistic Curator Josema Roig Director of Visual Immersion Sylvia Hinz Co-Artistic Director of M.A.R.S. Berlin
Ensembles Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra M.A.R.S. Collective Ensemble Inverspace International Contemporary Ensemble Ensemble Pamplemousse Thumpasaurs Korduroy Composers Jorge Sånchez Chiong Katharina Rosenberger Saad Haddad Charles Peck Alyssa Weinberg Clemens Gadenstätter Chaya Czernowin Wen Liu Ashley Fure Stefan Prins Alexander Schubert Natacha Diels David Broome Andrew Greenwald Jessie Marino Performance/Visual Artists Tiffany Trenda Victor Wilde Jay Mark Johnson Amy Kaps Daniel Leighton Dosshaus Jennifer Vanderpool Jesse Gilbert Joe Rubinstein Kio Griffith Kristine Schomaker Ned&Shiva Productions Osceola Refetoff Pearl C. Hsiung Bryan Jacobs Thomas Sturm
M.A.R.S. ELECTRIC April 14, 2017
Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra & JSX Festival M.A.R.S.2017 opened via lighting design, videos, electronic sounds and performance arts, explored the boundaries. LA natives Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra – an orchestra senza conductor, created a soundscapes of new music. A silver lining of electronica through 5 pieces was designed by special guest composer & turntablist Jorge Sanchez-Chiong. And world renowned new media performance artist Tiffany Trenda’s performance show explored the relationship of the human body to technology, and how our identity is influenced by our devices.
Saad Haddad - “Takht” JSX - “Muchachito León | Nariz” Alyssa Weinberg - “Parallels” (West Coast Premiere) JSX - “Overclockers” Charles Peck - “Mosaic” JSX - “Biological Agents of Vinyl Degradation” Katharina Rossenberger - “Spuren” (US Premiere) Jorge Sánchez-Chiong & TE -R - “Salt Water” & “Jupiter Analogues” (World Premiere of the New Versions)
M.A.R.S. Genesis April 15, 2017
M.A.R.S. Collective & Ensemble Inverspace Through the latest technologies of interactive video mapping, immersive video and lighting design, Genesis created an unique walk-through experience around the Art Share Gallery that explored the new art form of sound and light from nothingness to life.
Movement 1: Ashley Fure – Soma Movement 2: Jorge Sanchez-Chiong – Ciudad dormitorio for saxophone and live-electronics (Performed by Ensemble Inverspace) Movement 3: Stefan Prins – Fremdkörper #1 Movement 4: Alexander Schubert – Sensate Focus (Performed by M.A.R.S. Collective)
M.A.R.S. Test Site Salons April 15 - 23, 2017
Angel City Brewery & Art Share L.A. The M.A.R.S. Test Site Salons were part of the 10-day festival's Arts Week program, featuring daily installations and activities curated by art critic Shana Nys Dambrot. Says Dambrot, “The visual art programming reflects an aesthetic approach, in corollary to the musical spirit of the festival -- one that is expressive of fast-paced and futuristic realities, while remaining tethered to shared, direct experience and place-making attentions. We’re calling it ‘analog science fiction,’ and ‘handmade futurism.’ A curated group of multimedia, video, installation and performance artists, as well as artists using new technologies within the bounds of conventional art-making, will create exhibitions, happenings and site-specific sculptural installations for the duration of the festival, activating both the Angel City Brewery and Art Share-LA spaces (and sometimes the sidewalks in-between) in a series of performative, cross-platform events throughout the week.”
M.A.R.S. ICE April 21, 2017
International Contemporary Ensemble M.A.R.S. ICE began with a performance art piece by Amy Kaps “Unraveling.” Beginning in her room at Art Share, enacting her wildly popular slow-motion unfurling in a siren-song manner, leaving a trail of tape behind her as she moves through the neighborhood and arrived at Angel City, slowly coming apart in real time. Then, there was ICE…
Jorge Sánchez-Chiong: Wrestling Samoa Video by TE -R (World Premiere of the New Version) Chaya Czernowin: Sahaf Wen Liu: Infinite Configuration (World Premiere) Clemens Gadenstaetter: Iconosonics III/Pictures of an Exhibition (US Premiere)
M.A.R.S. Super Sonic April 23, 2017
Ensemble Pamplemousse Ensemble Pamplemousse presented a selection of scrumptious sounds,with a concert comprising recent works written by its constituent members, Pamplemousse concocted their signature mixture of experimental theater, ordinary bodily gestures, intense instrumental complexity, and electronic interventions of all varieties. The result is guaranteed to pit zany hyperactivity against the blandest of the mundane, handmade objects alongside traditional classical instruments, and as always, the absurd dancing with the sublime.
Natacha Diels : Child of Chimera (West Coast Premiere) Andrew Greenwald : A Thing is a Hole in a Thing it is Not (IV) (West Coast Premiere)
Jessie Marino : Throw Me To You And Back Again
David Broome :�������� [Moai Bow-tie Caterpillar Shout] (US Premiere)
Bryan Jacobs : Organic Synthesis Vol.1 (West Coast Premiere)
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