News: Black String, straight outta Seoul, mixes traditional Korean music, edgy improvisation and electronics

San Diego Tribune
By George Varga
February 22, 2020

Yoon Jeong Heo is so active that it’s almost surprising she doesn’t single-handedly generate combustible energy during the course of one of her average working days.

But there is nothing remotely average about this visionary master of the 1,300-year-old geomungo, an intricate, Korean string instrument whose legacy Heo simultaneously salutes and extends with singular skill, reverence and daring. That she has done so in such a conservative, patriarchal country as Korea — and had an international impact — makes her trailblazing achievements all the more impressive.

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Review: A.I.M Offers a Bonus: A Performance by Kyle Abraham

San Diego Story
By Janice Steinberg
February 6, 2020

Kyle Abraham took us in his arms and invited us in with three intimate pieces danced by his superb A.I.M (Abraham.In.Motion) company at the Balboa Theatre on Thursday. Then, before anyone could get too comfortable, he ignited the stage with the propulsive, hip hop-flavored “Drive.”

The program, presented by UCSD ArtPower didn’t just showcase the New York dance maker’s range, it offered a rare treat: Abraham himself, filling in—in “The Quiet Dance”—for a company member who couldn’t perform that night.

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News: Choreographer Kyle Abraham: Making connections through dance

San Diego Tribune
By Marcia Manna
January 23, 2020

Choreographer and artistic director Kyle Abraham wants the dancers of his company A.I.M (Abraham in Motion) to develop an important skill — and it’s more about the mind than the body.

The New York-based troupe is already visually captivating, technically skilled in what Abraham defines as a gumbo of movement styles, seamlessly linking classical ballet and contemporary dance techniques with hip-hop swagger.

It’s not enough. Abraham asks that his dancers be “emotionally present,” a quality that summons a sense of shared humanity.

“I think the goal is to be connected with each other,” says Abraham, a MacArthur Fellow (2013) and a Doris Duke Artist Award-winner (2016) who describes himself as an “outspoken, black, gay, American man.”

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News: The Haden Triplets achieve unique musical harmony, as only sisters can

San Diego Tribune
By George Varga
January 22, 2020

Listening to the Haden Triplets converse during an interview is almost as enjoyable as hearing them sing together in luminous harmony.

The three sisters — Petra, Rachel and Tanya — spur each other on in conversation, listening thoughtfully, then punctuating each other’s comments with thoughtful interjections, sly asides and hearty laughter.

One would expect no less from these gifted singing siblings, who between them have worked with a dizzying assortment of other musicians and perform Thursday night at UC San Diego’s Price Center East Ballroom.

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News: ‘Magnetic Dancers’ of A.I.M (Abraham.In.Motion) on Jan. 30 at Balboa Theatre

Times of San Diego
By Debbie L. Sklar
January 13, 2020

The repertory includes The Quiet Dance, a quintet set to Bill Evans’s sentimental rendition of the Bernstein classic Some Other TimeShow Pony, an energetic new piece performed by Princess Grace Award winner Marcella Lewis; Meditation: A Silent Prayer, a group work featuring voice-over recording by Carrie Mae Weems, MFA ‘84 and visual artwork by Titus Kaphar; Drive, a high energy, propulsive work set to thumping club beats; and a duet excerpt from Dearest Home, Kyle Abraham’s 2017 evening-length work that explores the concepts of love, longing, and loss.

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Review: Luminous Dance from Aakash Odedra; Sometimes Too Luminous

San Diego Story
By Janice Steinberg
December 6, 2019

Spinning on his heels, arms slashing, Aakash Odedra electrified the stage at the David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre on Tuesday. Odedra, a British dance artist making his San Diego debut, opened his program of four solos with his own “Nritta.” The performance—billed as Aakash Odedra Company, although Odedra was the sole dancer—was presented by UCSD ArtPower in partnership with the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture.

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News: UC San Diego’s ArtPower exerts creative force across campus, across borders with concerts and special events

La Jolla Light
By Jeanne Rawdin
November 21, 2019

ArtPower has been spreading its creative energy across the campus of UC San Diego — and San Diego in general — for more than 16 years. The program’s mission? To present performing and media arts that engage, energize and transform the campus’ diverse cultural life. Each season offers a different experience for the students, performers and community members who witness it. But as always, students come first.

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News: Escher Quartet returns to ArtPower

SD News
October 15, 2019

Escher Quartet returns to ArtPower with Grammy-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux at 8 p.m., Oct.18, at the Department of Music’s Conrad Prebys Concert Hall at UC San Diego. A pre-performance ArtTalk will be held at 7 p.m. at The Loft. Carrying out a duo program, the performance will be led by Escher Quartet with the works of Haydn and Enescu and classical guitarist Jason Vieaux. Tickets range from $45 to $59. Call to purchase tickets at (858) 534-8497 or visit boxoffice.ucsd.edu to purchase online. For more information, visit artpower.ucsd.edu.

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