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Program Notes
The Dots and the Lines
by: James Fei
I first heard the Bang On a Can All-Stars live by chance 5 or 6 years ago, when they were promoting the then just-released CD Industry at a record store in New York. Besides their tight and energetic performance, I was also struck by how well the music worked outside of the concert hall. My work, The Dots and the Lines, doesn't remain loud, but rather is made up of pointillistic bursts with lots of rests. There is no constant pulse, and time is fragmentary. Like the sculptor Jean Tinguely said in his manifesto For Statics: 'Static! Static! Static! Be static! Be Static! Movement is static! Movement is static! Get used to seeing things, ideas and works in their state of ceaseless change. You will live longer.'
-- James Fei