FUZE, the New Brunswick Summer Music Festival’s festival-within-a-festival, returns August 11 and 12.
FUZE returns as part of the New Brunswick Summer Music Festival, injecting a heavy dose of experimentation into this annual celebration of classical music.
Now entering its fourth year as part of the festival’s regular programming, FUZE is a festival within a festival that seeks to reveal the parallels that exist between contrasting musical genres. The event is curated in part by Toronto-based percussionist Greg Harrison.
“It’s crazy to reflect on the growth and development we’ve had in that short time,” said Harrison. “Every year we strive to make this bigger, better, crazier, and as unique as possible. I get excited and inspired brainstorming ideas of how to bridge the classical/ contemporary world to urban audiences. I believe this year will best represent this and what we’re all about!”
Events under the FUZE banner will take place in Fredericton August 11 and 12. Following the success of last year’s improvised pairing that brought the electro-indie sounds of Ottawa’s Pony Girl together with the FUZE Orchestra made up of a broad mix of classical and contemporary musicians from across the country, Harrison invited Fredericton’s avant-whatchamarockers Motherhood to join the 2017 lineup performing in a similar fashion.
“This year Motherhood is headlining, which I think it equally exciting and daunting,” said Harrison. “I wanted to challenge the FUZE Orchestra a bit more this year. How often do we get a hybrid of classical and post-punk rock? Symphony Metallica doesn’t count.
“This year the FUZE Orchestra will be centred around a percussion trio with the addition of strings. This will cater to the intensity that Motherhood brings.”
The second (and equally experimental) night of festival programming takes place at The Capital Complex. Now a FUZE tradition, Constructions is an event that challenges contemporary performers to deliver their own interpretations of music based on the NBSMF’s overarching theme. This year, that theme is Spanish Composers.
“The second night is all about bringing experimental music to the bar scene,” said Harrison. “It’s really a hodgepodge of different music. It’s always exciting because you never know what you’re going to get.”
This year’s Constructions performers are Cam Corey, Chris Giles, Indigo Poirier and Eric Hill, who will kick the evening off with loops, bleeps, bloops and theme inspired sound collages.
Following these four performances, Jaguar Knight introduces the second half of the evening which includes homecoming performances by several former Frederictonians. Percussionist Christopher Eagles returns to the festival to perform a couple heavy multi-percussion compositions as well as Fredericton favorites LAPS, now based in Montreal. Harrison, who also performs inder the name grej will also be performing music from his new album i/Variations, available via Backward Music.
Passes for FUZE 2017 are just $20 and on sale now.
Check out the New Brunswick Summer Music Festival complete lineup by visiting: https://nbsummermusicfestival.ca/
FUZE – Night One w/ Motherhood & the FUZE Orchestra | Memorial Hall, UNB | Friday August 11 | 7:30 p.m. | View Event
FUZE – Night Two w/ LAPS, Jaguar Knight, grej, Chris Eagles, and Constructions (4 world premieres feat. Cam Corey, Chris Giles, Indigo Poirier, Eric Hill) | Saturday August 12 | 7:30 p.m. | View Event
