When you open yourself up to the community something unique happens— the community opens itself back up to you. Sam Woldenberg and Ben Cohen, the duo behind Heavy Color, see this exchange every time they perform.
Known for their sonic collages and electro-acoustic soundscapes, mixing future beat and psychedelic jazz, the two-piece frequently collaborates with local creatives through visual projections or sonic additions. In November 2015, the band took over the Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion with an installation and performance, which incorporated pigmented lighting, animations by YAAW (Young Artists At Work) artist Will Laasch, and other visual stimuli.
On Thursday, April 6, Heavy Color will return to the Glass Pavilin— this time, they’re bringing even more friends.
During “Interconnected: Rhythm and Reflection,” Heavy Color will illuminate Toledo’s language arts by setting the stage for local poets, storytellers and members of the community to step into the spotlight.
TCP: When I try to describe Heavy Color, I always say you’re a band, but I feel like the word “band” comes with air quotes for you guys. You make music, but the music seems like less of the end goal and more like the necessary conclusion to your concept. Is this accurate, or am I getting too weird about it?
Ben Cohen (BC): I think it’s worth exploring— the word “band” seems pretty restrictive. Heavy Color is the evolution of mine and Sam’s 16 years of experimenting, deconstructing and communicating about our relationship to music and art. It is primarily a music/sound based project but has taken form in physical installations, video and animation and as a production team for other projects.
When you are creating soundscapes to highlight the work of others, like you will during Interconnected, how do you create an atmosphere that complements the other artist, instead of literally “setting the tone” for them to match? Is there a difference?
Sam Woldenberg (SW): Good question. I think we all share experiences but the individual experience is usually rather insulated. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth sharing. We want to nurture an environment that encourages that transmission and brings to the light that shared territory. Many windows. One room. As far as who is complementing who….. Is there a difference? I don’t know.
When you make work outside of Heavy Color, do you have similar creative values? Why or why not?
SW: Yes I think so. Different situations/art forms bring different elements into focus but the substance is ultimately the same probably.
Opening yourself up to the community to show your work is scary. How do you encourage others to do that, and how to you remind yourself that it’s worth it?
BC: Someone reminded me recently “A work of art can’t be completed until it is put into the public forum for it to gain its context. The feedback loop must be finished.
The act of letting go is so powerful and inspiring. The minute you release something whether it be physical work or a performance, it is no longer yours to own and in that transfer, new inspiration and new energy is created.
Collaborative projects that involve the community really show the power of sharing space. As artists who have facilitated these unique moments, what have you learned?
BC: To open a performance or a collaboration up as a conversation with the audience is always extremely humbling. When an audience becomes multi-directional as both receivers and broadcasters, there is an electricity there that can build back on itself and can create opportunities for empathetic and powerful exchanges of points of view that can’t be planned for.
Who have you invited to perform? Why?
BC:
Imani Lateef – a powerful spoken word artist with a deep history in the local poetry community.
David Kevin Adam, part of the hip hop and art collective BlackmarketRX – Talented dude and passionate.
Estar Cohen – A Deep Improviser and Musician – but also a really thoughtful and sensitive writer.
Leah Williams – Singer and Poet. We recently collaborated at a project at TSA and heard some of her work. Very excited to have her on board.
Huntor Prey – Just a powerful force as a spoken word and hip hop artist. We have partnered on multiple projects in the past bringing poetry and music education to youth centers throughout Toledo.
Zachary Dempster – Zach is a treasure of historical context and worldly curiosities. When describing the project to him, he was instrumental in pushing some of the dreamier and surreal elements that are a big part of the performance.
Collaboration is so key to your Heavy Color. Have you always been natural collaborators, or did it take some time to work well with others?
SW: I’m not so sure we have. Ben and I have pretty strong wills that always need reconciling. Bringing others into the fold just opens us up to more possibilities and perspectives. I think we are getting better at listening and sharing. If there is a goal in our collaboration efforts it’s been to expand our ideas, others’ ideas and just to be in more and more situations that encourage growth. Music is a communal experience.
Interconnected: Rhythm and Reflection will incorporate poets and storytellers. What was the inspiration for this project?
BC: Sam and myself have both been drawn to longer and patiently paced music this past year. A re-occurring inspiration on our most recent recordings have been guided meditations. And not just “Breathe deeply” but more guided descriptive journeys to accompany the sonic landscapes. The architecture found in Science-Fiction and reoccurring dreams. Poetry and storytelling can be so powerful, and they seemed like a perfect fit for longer electronic improvisations.
Do you expect certain themes to come up during Interconnected? Do you even try to think about it?
BC: We actually are trying work with a few themes: Reoccurring dreams, memory, highly descriptive impossible landscapes…
What keeps you inspired?
SW: Life. Inspiration is constant. It’s everywhere. Maintaining a healthy relationship with information/inspiration requires attention. Reflecting on my feelings and being accountable for them leads to discovery. Inspiration without reflection, discipline and precision is perhaps too emotional to be constructive. At least that’s been my experience.
What do you think about when you’re stopped at a red light, alone in your car?
SW: Traffic = zen opportunity.
When do you feel best as an artist?
Describe that feeling.
SW: When I don’t care anymore and I can finally play. Also just being there with my friends, creating something. I’ll always appreciate that.
For a reader who wants to grab the mic during Interconnected, but doesn’t know where to start—
give them the first sentence of their poem.
BC: We approached the obelisk from the west. An impossible fortress just above the horizon.
Share the space from 6-8:30pm on Thursday, April 6.
Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion
2445 Monroe St., 419-255-8000.
toledomuseum.org Free
