Sonata for Clarinet & Piano: A Geomorphological Afro-Sonic Score of the Works of Ruth Duckworth

Angel Bat Dawid performs an original Afro-sonic sonata for clarinet and piano, responding to the works of sculptor Ruth Duckworth.

In this continuation of the Smart Museum of Art’s Moon Songs series, internationally renowned composer and multitalented artistic genius Angel Bat Dawid presents an interstellar musical tribute to sculptor Ruth Duckworth though her expert command of various instruments and original compositions, orchestrated under the inspiration of Duckworth’s philosophical leanings toward the interconnectivity of life.

Accompanied by pianist Paige Brown.

FREE, but space is limited. Please register in advance. 

MOON SONGS SERIES

Inspired by an anecdote about Ruth Duckworth and a friend climbing to the roof of her studio in a former pickle factory to sing a song to the full moon, the Smart Museum of Art has invited Chicago-based musicians and poets to reflect on the interconnectivity of life through performances around the time of the full moon.

Black Moon Trio – Sow the Seeds
Friday, September 29, 6 pm
The Study at University of Chicago

Angel Bat Dawid – A Geomorphological Afro-Sonic Score of the Works of Ruth Duckworth
Saturday, October 28, 6 pm
Smart Museum of Art

Kevin Coval – The natural world: Reflections on Halsted
Sunday, November 26, 3 pm
Smart Museum of Art

About Angel Bat Dawid

Angel Bat Dawid is a Black American Composer, Improviser, Clarinetist, Pianist, Vocalist, Educator and DJ. In 2019 she released her debut album The Oracle with Chicago label International Anthem Recording Co.. Recorded using only her cell phone in various locations, the album received wide-spread critical-acclaim with Pitchfork declaring it, “a vibrant, spiritual, free-jazz document of black life as it stands today.” Known for her prowess as a bandleader and performer, Angel has composed and performed several live pieces including her latest release “Requiem for Jazz" which was originally performed at the Hyde Park Jazz Festival in 2019, and “Peace: A Suite for Skylanding,” commissioned by the Art Institute of Chicago for Yoko Ono’s outdoor Skylanding installation. She tours globally with her ensemble "Tha Brothahood," with whom she released the album LIVE in October 2020, which received numerous accolades, including making NPR Music’s “Best Albums of 2020” list and Pitchfork’s ‘Best New Music’. Angel also leads the all-woman ensemble Sistazz of the Nitty Gritty. As an educator, Angel teaches her “Great Black Music'' course at Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center through Old Town School of Folk. She is clarinetist in Damon Locks’ Black Monument Ensemble, and she hosts a monthly music show on NTS Radio. All of this and more is why Pitchfork recently highlighted Angel‘s work in their recent “Pitchfork 25 Next'' cover story and included her on the “Pitchfork 25 Next “list, which identifies a select group of artist’s shaping the future of music. Named Winter JazzFest 2022 ‘Artist-in-Residence,’ where she debuted her “fearless expedition to ‘Afro Town’” (WBGO). In 2021 she was named The Chicago Tribune’s “Chicagoan of the Year” shortly following the Juneteenth release of her “Hush Harbor Mixtape Vol. 1 Doxology" which toured internationally. As Co-Founder and member of the performance research group Autophysiopsychic Millennium Angel performed at Carnegie Hall’s Afrofuturism Festival in 2022. As a composer Angel also scored original music for season 2 of the critically acclaimed HBO series ‘Random Acts of Flyness’ created by Terence Nance with whom she’s expressed an ode of veneration to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in their latest co-release titled “Re-Birthday”.