Theo Bleckmann

Theo Bleckmann (born Theodor Raoul Bleckmann May 28, 1966 in Dortmund, Germany) is a vocalist and composer.

Overview

Recognized as both a performer and composer, his work spans concerts, installations, theater, cabaret and performance art. He has sung worldwide on some of the great stages including Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall and the Sydney Opera House. The The New Yorker called him a “local cult favorite”, the The New York Times “excellent” and according to OUT Magazine Bleckmann is “a singer who's only recently fallen to earth” and indeed Bleckmann's style has something otherworldly and ethereal.

His great range, vocally, emotionally and physically, inspired some of today's great composers such as Mark Dresser, Moritz Eggert, John Hollenbeck, Phil Kline, Ben Monder, Denman Maroney, Ikue Mori, Kirk Nurock, Bob Ostertag, Eric Salzman, Randall Wong and Bang on a Can's David Lang, Michael Gordon and Julia Wolfe, to create pieces especially for and with him; prominently, composer and multi-media artist, Meredith Monk, whose core ensemble Bleckmann has been a member of since 1994.

Bleckmann has worked with such artists as Laurie Anderson, Anthony Braxton, Steve Coleman, Dave Douglas, Phillip Glass, Meredith Monk, Michael Tilson Thomas, John Zorn and The Bang on a Can All-Stars and was a guest vocalist with the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, Estonian Radio Choir, Merce Cunningham Dance Company and Mark Morris Dance.

Early Life and Career

Theo Bleckmann grew up appreciating both traditional music from his native Germany as well as American popular music and The Great American Songbook. He trained as an ice dancer in Germany, and was a junior champion before deciding to pursue a career in music. In 1989 Bleckmann moved from his native Germany to New York City (subsequently becoming an American citizen in 2005) after meeting legendary jazz vocalist Sheila Jordan at a workshop in Graz, Austria, who remains an influential mentor and colleague to this day. Together they can be heard on Sheila Jordan's "Jazzchild" (High Note 1999).

Projects

Bleckmann/Hollenbeck Duo

Bleckmann particularly enjoys performing in duo. He and percussionist and composer John Hollenbeck forge an ethereal bond born of a long track record of working together including their duo, which is captured on "Static Still" (GPE records 2002) and Hollenbeck's "Quartet Lucy" (CRI 2001). Bleckmann is also a featured vocalist in Hollenbeck's two Large Ensemble recordings "A Blessing" (Omnitone 2005) and "Joys and Desires" (Intuition 2006).

Bleckmann/Nurock Duo

Bleckmann has also collaborated extensively with composer and pianist Kirk Nurock; "Theo & Kirk" and "Looking Glass River" (both Traumton).

Bleckmann/Monder duo

His ongoing collaborations with guitarist Ben Monder can be heard on Monder's "Excavation" and "Oceana" (Sunnyside) and their two duo releases, "No Boat" and their most recent "At Night" (both Songlines).

Refuge Trio

Refuge Trio takes its name from the Joni Mitchell song "Refuge of the Roads". The collaborative trio was formed to play at the 2002 Wall-to-Wall Joni Mitchell Marathon Concert at Symphony Space in NYC. Since then, they have continued to explore delicate and playful music with mystery and exuberance. They fashion a transformative experience for the audience with their music and spirit.

With Fumio Yusada

Las Vegas Rhapsody

Bleckmann's whimsical collection of showtunes, "Las Vegas Rhapsody" with the Chamber Orchester Basel and pianist, arranger, Fumio Yusada has been described as "the most transcendent vocal album in many a moon", by Francis Davis in the The Village Voice.

Berlin: Songs of War, Love and Peace

Theo Bleckmann's second collaboration with Mr. Yusada is an extension of his love for music from his native country surrounding the themes of love, war and peace. The repertoire consists of works by composers Hans Eisler, Kurt Weill, Kristian Schultze with Bertolt Brecht providing much of the texts. The album will be released in October 2007 in Europe and in February 2008 in the US.

Moss

Moss is a vocal ensemble comprised of some of New York's most diverse and interesting (jazz) singers (Theo Bleckmann, Peter Eldridge, Kate McGarry, Lauren Kinhan and Luciana Souza). They just recorded their first CD for Sunnyside Records which will be released in 2008.

Recorded Works

His 2001 release, "Origami" (Songlines) received four and a half stars (out of five) from Down Beat Magazine making it one of the Best Releases of 2001, as well as declaring him a "Rising Star" in their recent Critic's Polls.

Performance Pieces

Fidget

Bleckmann's multidisciplinary works include a commission by the Whitney Museum of American Art at Philip Morris to compose and create a music performance piece out of Kenneth Goldsmith's text “Fidget”, which Bleckmann scored for voice, piano, percussion, bass, video and three sewing machines. In real time, four seamstresses sewed a paper suit out of the hundreds of sheets of paper that were Bleckmann's libretto.

Mercuria

In collaboration with performance artist Lynn Book, he created "Mercuria" (produced by the Whitney Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago), incorporating visual and vocal elements of dream and subconsciousness into an evening-length performance piece.

The True Last Words of Dutch Schultz

Playing the gangster Dutch Schultz, Bleckmann co-created "The True Last Words of Dutch Schultz" a new music opera in collaboration with director Valeria Vasilevski and composer Eric Salzman.

Film, Television and Theater

As a sound improviser, he has performed, created and developed movie, television and theater scores, among them space Alien language for Men In Black by Steven Spielberg, “Star Trek: Envoy” (Meredith Monk), "Kundun" (Phillip Glass). Theo Bleckmann sang in John Moran's "Book of the Dead" at the Public Theater in NY, performed a lead in Bang on a Can's Obie Award-winning opera "Carbon Copy Building" and frequently appears as a soloist with The Bang on a Can All-Stars. In collaboration with director Laurie McCants and set designer Elaine F. Williams, he wrote the music and performed "The Alexandria Carry On", which has been traveling the US and was performed at the actual library in Alexandria, Egypt.

Awards and Honors

Theo Bleckmann's work has been recognized with several awards including a Bessie Award, Presser Award for Outstanding Talent and the ASCAP/GershwinAward for his composition "Chorale #1 for Eight Voices" as well as grants from Arts International, the Franklin Furnace Fund for Performance Art, New York Foundation for the Arts, Meet The Composer and the Council on Humanities, PA. He was also voted "Cultural Elite" by New York Magazine in 2005 and 2006.