Winter Luminaria with Tilted Axes: Music for Mobile Electric Guitars, December 21, 2022 presented by @nyufacultyhousing Happenings with Make Music Winter. Photos: Bob Krasner
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By Bob Krasner — “For some, the sight of a marching band of electric guitars was just another day in New York City, for others, it’s what makes the city special (you can add us to that group).
Composer Patrick Grant took Tilted Axes, his core group of nine musicians — including himself — with their Vox amplifiers (a longtime sponsor) on a walking tour of the East Village, stopping to play in various spots but never stopping the music.
The music, all composed by Grant, consisted of some pieces that were played as composed and others that followed strict rhythmic or harmonic rules but gave the players leeway to improvise. Sponsored by Make Music New York and grants from the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and The New York State Council on the Arts, the group can expand to 20 players…“
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Tilted Axes Begins Its 10th Anniversary Season With a Return to Astor Place as part of Make Music Autumn
On September 19th, between 1pm-4pm, Tilted Axes: Music for Mobile Electric Guitars returns to Astor Place and environs with a procession and performance as part of the inaugural Make Music Autumn. Tilted Axes is a group of guitarists and percussionists lead by classically trained post-rocker Patrick Grant. They perform original music untethered via mini-amps strapped over their shoulders. For this occassion they have partnered with the iconic Astor Place Hair Stylists who also serve as their base. The performance spectacle will begin at the plaza sculpture The Alamo (a.k.a. The Cube). From there they will perform in-procession around the neighborhoods that have been key to their origin: The East Village and Greenwich Village. They will stop along the way at various landmarks to perform special compositions significant to the location. Bringing the event full circle, they will return to Astor Place Plaza to complete their performance.
Meet the core members of Tilted Axes 2021:
Angela Babin — e. guitar
John Halo — e. guitar
Jeremy Nesse — chapman stick
jc (jon clancy) — percussion & composer
Elisa Corona Aguilar — e. guitar & composer
Howie Kenty — e. guitar, composer & asst. music director
Dan Cooper — 7-string e. bass
Patrick Grant — e. guitar, composer, & artistic director
Caitlin Cawley — percussion
Kevin Pfeiffer — axe alternate
Christopher Caines — movement director
Jocelyn Gonzales — media producer
Tilted Axes is powered by Vox Amplification & Blackstar Amps courtesy of KORG USA. Our Tilted@10 anniversary season is made possible in part by the New York State Council on the Arts, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, The ASCAP Plus+ Awards, the NYU Tisch Adjunct Development Fund, Alchemical Studios, but mostly through the generous support of people like you. Thank you for helping us keep our performances and events free to the public whenever and wherever possible. Join our Tilted Team at http://www.tiltedaxes.com.
A huge thanks to James Burke of Make Music New York, Rachel Brandon of The Village Alliance, but especially Big Mike Saviello of Astor Place Hair Stylists. For this event Big Mike will be curating artwork on the street in front of the shop. Check it out!
Sunday, December 20, 12 noon to 3pm EST: Tilted Axes: Music for Mobile Electric Guitars presents “A Tilt for Our Time”, a new music procession and socially distanced public action through Lower Manhattan. Post-rock composer Patrick Grant will lead the group in a “tilt” from Greenwich Village to the East Village and back again with a ceremonial stop at the Astor Place Cube (The Alamo). Tilted Axes will present a program of new pieces created for the event along with classics from their catalog. Procession route and performance details TBA. “A Tilt for Our Time” is made possible in part with public funds from Creative Engagement, supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. This event is part of Make Music Winter NYC. Tilted Axes is powered by Vox Amplification.
Originally printed in THE VILLAGER – December, 2018
Angela Babin and other members of the “Tilted Axes” performance group jammed on electric guitars on “Cold Moon Consort” in Sasaki Garden at N.Y.U.’s Washington Square Village, between Bleecker and W. Third Sts. and Mercer St. and LaGuardia Place, before making their way to “The Cube” at Astor Place. Photos by Bob Krasner (L to R: Sean Satin, Angela Babin, Chad Ossman)
BY BOB KRASNER | If you feel the need to simplify composer Patrick Grant’s long-running “Tilted Axes” project, you could call it a marching band for electric guitars. But given the complexity of the compositions and the dedication of the musicians, that description falls way short.
The latest performance of Grant’s “Music for Mobile Electric Guitars” was realized by 24 musicians, including Grant, on the winter solstice, in the Sasaki Garden at Washington Square Village, “The Alamo” at Astor Place a.k.a. “The Cube” and the streets between.
Tilted Axes: Music for Mobile Electric Guitars – Cold Moon Consort (Patrick Grant center with, L to R, Chad Ossman, Michael Fisher, Sam Weisberg, Sean Satin, Dan Cooper, Howie Kenty).
The event was commissioned by Faculty Housing Happenings at New York University — where Grant is a professor — as part of “Make Music New York.” The confab featured music evenly divided between older pieces, structured improvisations and premieres written specifically for Friday night.
Getting ready to move out from Sasaki Garden. (L to R: John Halo, Howie Kenty, Dylan Sparrow)
One of the new pieces, “Tiltinnabulation,” was written to include another Make Music group, “Bell By Bell.” According to Tom Peyton, the leader of that multigenerational group of bell ringers, they were notified that their path might cross with “Tilted Axes” and they were given the choice of avoiding each other or playing together.
“Tilted Axes” performers playing their “axes” (blues lingo for guitars) while crossing Broadway on their way to “The Alamo” at Astor Place. (L to R: Gene Ardor, John Lovaas, Aileen Bunch, Jason Napier, Angela Babin)
Happily, they chose to do two numbers together at “The Cube” and the result was a perfect combo of chiming guitars and bells. Guitarist Angela Babin, a “Tilted Axes” veteran, called the collaboration “fabulous!”
“It was like a ‘West Side Story’ gang meet-up, with music and camaraderie and solstice celebration love,” she said.
Composer Patrick Grant at “The Alamo” with his “Tilted Axes” performance group.
Carrying an electric guitar and an amp through the streets while playing somewhat complex music is a daunting task, but the participants found it more than worthwhile.
“The universal joy of the people we encountered on our parade route caused me to transcend the discomfort I felt at not being fully in command of the music, the weight on my back and shoulders,” David Demnitz said.
Tilted Axes: Music for Mobile Electric Guitars – Cold Moon Consort (front row seated L to R: Howie Kenty, Sarah Metivier Schadt, Jocelyn Gonzales, Jason Napier, Chad Ossman, Harry Scott, Sean Satin; middle row seated L to R: Sky Matthews, John Lovaas, Leslie Stevens, Patrick Grant, Robert Morton, Gene Ardor, Kevin Pfeiffer; back row standing L to R: Caitlin Cawley, Dan Cooper, Aileen Bunch, Sam Weisberg, Dylan Sparrow, Michael Fisher, John Halo, Angela Babin, David Demnitz, Reinaldo Perez, Jeremy Nesse, Jon Clancy)
Sam Weisberg voiced a similar sentiment, noting, “It’s a rush like no other. It was so worth the chronic right-shoulder pain!”
Grant made it through the balmy evening with a case of laryngitis that forced him to hoarsely whisper directions to bassist Sarah Metivier Schadt, who amply conveyed his instructions to the crew.
“Tilted Axes cuts musical pathways through the urban landscape, turning neighborhoods into their own sonic narratives. Since its inception, Grant has produced a number of Tilted Axes processions in various cities upon three continents.”
“There are many unforeseen elements that we could never have predicted,” Grant reflected. “We’re thinking on our feet, we’re performing live, we’re adjusting to the public in real time. Being there, mobile, right up against the public, brings out musical choices that we’d never come up with in rehearsal. There’s nothing like it.”
Onlookers concurred.
“The public went nuts, in a good way!” Grant enthused. “We couldn’t be happier.”
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