Elliott Sharp presents his new book Feedback: Translations From The IrRational with discussion of Current Strategies in Composition and Performance.
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BACK STAGE: Elliott Sharp | Guest Artist Presentation
Wednesday, April 8, 2026 | 12:00 pm 1:00 pm
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ELLIOTT SHARP is an American composer, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and performer. A central figure in the avant-garde and experimental music scene in New York City for over forty years, Sharp has released over one hundred and sixty recordings, ranging from orchestral music to blues, jazz, noise, no wave rock, and techno music. Sharp leads SysOrk, Orchestra Carbon, Terraplane, and Tectonics and has pioneered the use of fractal geometry, chaos theory, and genetics in musical composition and interaction. Sharp was awarded the Berlin Prize for Music Composition for 2015 and a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2014. His composition, Storm of the Eye, appears on violinist Hilary Hahn’s Grammy-winning album In 27 Pieces. Sharp has been featured on National Public Radio and at such festivals as the Venice Biennale, New Music Stockholm, Donaueschingen, and Au Printemps–Paris. He is the subject of the documentary film, Doing the Don’t. His first book was IrRational Music (Terra Nova Books/MIT Press, 2019).
Back Stage Series
Step inside the creative process and see how a performance takes shape. You’ll watch as artists exchange ideas, experiment with interpretation, and make the choices that bring music to life. These intimate gatherings offer you a rare opportunity to connect with both the music and the musicians in a way that transforms how you experience a concert.
Longy’s performances are free and open to the public, but please register in advance.
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Thanks to our partnership with the Massachusetts Cultural Council and their “Card to Culture” program, Longy School of Music of Bard College can offer free tickets to many of our diverse and innovative performance offerings. See the full list of participating “Card to Culture” organizations offering EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare discounts.