It was a real honor to meet people I'd previously been acquainted with only online, and to perform with such talented folks.

photos : Kevin McLaughlin

[ kid - simple ]
A radio play in the flesh, directed by Sarah Gioia and produced by Emigrant Theater. I was the sound designer and also appeared as the Foley artist, performing live onstage with the actors for the entirety of the show.

"When Moll wins the science fair with a machine for hearing sounds that can't be heard, a shape-shifting Mercenary steals the invention (and her heart). She embarks on a quest to save noise, accompanied by the last boy-virgin in the eleventh grade. Kid-Simple is a quirky fable of innocence and experience featuring live sound effects, mutinous onomatopoeia and a host of woodsy temptations."

Some of the live sound effects required by the script:

sound of an ingrown toenail
sound of a slithering tentacle
sound of a hefty earthworm
sound of a hush
sound of a solitary jelly

This was a huge undertaking, made much easier by the fact that Emigrant is one of the most professionally run companies I've ever worked with.

Quoth City Pages: "One comes away with the sense that Harrison takes all of reality, as exceptional artists do, and sets it on fire to find out what it smells (or sounds) like when it burns. Here, a group of incendiary players have fanned the flames to good effect." Read full review

At Mixed Blood Theatre, Minneapolis
September 1-16, 2006

Hear some of the foley sfx at Emigrant Theater's web site.

[ headphone festival ]
Friday August 11th, 2006
Rochester Art Center, Rochester, MN

Live music experienced entirely through headphones, curated by Viv Corringham. Nine diverse musicians (including myself, Bryce Beverlin II, Abinadi Meza, and Corringham) performed original works including field recordings, DJ mixing, electro-acoustic work, lap-pop, free improvisation, and electronica. Listeners lounged throughout the atrium, grand lobby, and patio of the Art Center to participate in this unique sonic experience.

[ t r i o ]
Mike Hallenbeck, laptop
Candida Pagan, amplified cello
Edward Schneider, amplified saxophone
June 13th, 2006
Acadia Theater, Minneapolis

I explored some of the granular synthesis I came up with for the Music in Motion performance (see below). An enjoyable performance.

[ room service ]
June 6th, 2006
Acadia Theater, Minneapolis

A piece based on the acoustic peripheries of Acadia as a performance space. I'd edited together audio snippets of the "before and after" from previous performances I'd recorded in the space; people milling around, talking, opening and closing the door, packing up/ unpacking gear, warming up, etc. I played back this audio and improvised over it using dishware from Acadia's kitchen, recording the result and using it as a backdrop for further inmprovisation, manipulating the results of further recording, etc.

Immersed in it as I was (and unable to record the show because I was using my recording gear to perform), it was hard to tell how all this came out. I got some good comments though.

[ the control group ]
Mike Hallenbeck, Cordell Klier, Nathan Larson
May 23rd, 2006
Acadia Theater, Minneapolis

A trio of mad-scientist Mission Control setups. Further exploration of the sort of thing we started experimenting with in February: deeply layered, yet low-key and subtle, fairly quiet, gauzy surfaces with a lot going on underneath. Lots of fun.

mp3 of the Acadia performance

[ music in motion ]
studio performance
Thursday, May 18, 2006
St Paul Chamber Orchestra Center, Huss Room
St Paul, MN

A new pilot program of the American Composers Forum, Music in Motion allows composers and choreographers create collborative pieces. Three workshops culminate in a one-night-only performance of new works of dance and music. The American Composers Forum and James Sewell Ballet commissioned two composer-choreographer pairs to create new works of music and dance to be performed by James Sewell Ballet dancers at the SPCO Center's Huss Room.

I participated in a commissioned piece composed by Marc Jensen and choreographed by Morgan Thorson, entitled "No Feeling For Harmony". (Jensen named the piece after a quote from John Cage: "I certainly had no feeling for harmony, and Schoenberg thought that that would make it impossible for me to write music.")

Musicians included Zachary Crockett (flute), Bethany Lacktorin (violin, electronics), Owen Weaver (percussion), and yours truly granulating samples of wind chimes and clinking glasses on my laptop. The piece also opened and concluded with audio of a thunderstorm recorded from my bedroom window.

[ laptops unplugged iii ]
Tuesday April 25th, 2005
Acadia Cabaret Theater, Minneapolis MN

The third installment of the now-annual Laptops Unplugged juggernaut, featuring laptop performers positioned around the space and improvising using only the computer's self-contained speakers for amplification. No PA was used.

Performers included:
Datura 1.0
Mike Hallenbeck
Cordell Klier
Nathan Larson
Steve Nichols
Erik Schoster

[ q u a r t e t ]
Mike Hallenbeck (vocals, processing)
Cordell Klier (guitar, processing)
Edward Schneider (alto sax)
Samsa [Nathan Larson] (laptop)
February 28th, 2006
Acadia Theater, Minneapolis

The "Sustain" performance got us talking about presenting work in the same sustained vein, but of the more low-key, understated variety. This was a quiet, subdued performance the likes of which we're looking to develop further. Stay tuned.

[ s u s t a i n ]
collective drone improvisation
Tuesday February 7th, 2006, 8-11 pm
Acadia Theater, Minneapolis MN

A collaborative drone performance utilizing all manner of instrumentation, from brass and strings to found objects and electronics, for three continuous hours. Performers included Bryce Beverlin II, Jon Davis, Casey Deming, James Gaynor, Ben Glaros, Tim Glenn, Mike Hallenbeck, Cordell Klier, Bethany Lacktorin, Patrick Lien, Paul Metzger, Sam Morrison, Nathan Phillips, Samsa (Nathan Larson), Edward Schneider, Robert Skorro, Davu Seru, Mary Springer, and Patrick Voller. Original films by Bryce Beverlin II.

mp3 excerpt and images of the Sustain performance available as of 3/06.

Duration of mp3: 1 hour, 18 minutes, 41 seconds. Apologies to dialup users.

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[ p e r f o r m a n c e s ]

[ p e r f o r m a n c e s 2 0 0 7 ]

[ p e r f o r m a n c e s 2 0 0 5 ]

[ p e r f o r m a n c e s 2 0 0 4 ]

[ p e r f o r m a n c e s 2 0 0 3 ]

[ a b o u t ]

[ s o u n d ]

[ i n s t a l l a t i o n s ]

[ j o u r n a l ]

[ c o n t a c t ]