Mauricio Kagel: Zwei Mann Orchester
The U.S. premiere of Mauricio Kagel’s kinetic sound sculpture for two performers, designed and built in Philadelphia and installed at Drexel’s Pearlstein Gallery as part of Bowerbird’s Sound Machines.
On this page: About Programs Films Photos Press Credits Support
About
Mauricio Kagel’s Zwei Mann Orchester (1971–73) is a large-scale kinetic sound sculpture that uses orchestral instruments, household and found objects, connected through a network of levers and strings, to encourage the viewer to imagine their hidden sound potential. While Zwei Mann Orchester (Two Man Orchestra) is based on a notated score, complete with musical fragments, choreographic indications and even sketches of sound machines, the machine itself is designed and built by the performers and sculptors. Every version is unique and exists as both a sculpture and a performance object.
Zwei Mann Orchester premiered at the Donaueschingen Festival in 1973 and was recreated at Documenta IX (1992) in Kassel and at Basel’s Museum Tinguely in 2011. Bowerbird’s Philadelphia Edition, built by a team of local artists and shown at Drexel’s Pearlstein Gallery through May 2018, was the work’s U.S. premiere and only the fourth version ever created.
Sound Machines also included a free screening of Kagel’s 1970 film Ludwig van at The Rotunda in April.
Programs
Fri, Apr 20, 2018 · 8pmMauricio Kagel’s “Ludwig van”Screening of Kagel’s 1970 filmThe Rotunda
May 3 to 31, 2018Sound Machines: Kagel’s Zwei Mann OrchesterExhibition and seven performancesPearlstein GalleryFilms
Trailer
Full performance
Photos
Tap any photo to see it larger.
Press
- Inside Bowerbird: a Q&A with Dustin Hurt (May 21, 2018)
- WRTI talks with Dustin Hurt about Zwei Mann Orchester (May 17, 2018)
- Recreating Kagel’s 1973 orchestra, on WHYY (May 10, 2018)
- Billy Penn on our Rube Goldberg-like orchestra (May 8, 2018)
- Sound Machines in Broad Street Review (May 8, 2018)
- Zwei Mann Orchester is a hot ticket, in The Inquirer (May 7, 2018)
- Sound Machines at the Pearlstein Gallery, in The Triangle
- Sound Machines on FOX 29
Credits
Zwei Mann Orchester: Philadelphia Edition was designed and built by Neil Feather, Scott Kip, Yona Davidson, Andy Thierauf, Ashley Tini and Dustin Hurt, and performed by Andy Thierauf and Ashley Tini. The exhibition was presented at Drexel University’s Pearlstein Gallery. Header drawing of the machine by Mick Ricereto.
Support
Major support for Zwei Mann Orchester was provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, with additional support from the William Penn Foundation.
