Nick Verstand’s light art is world-renowned. Dezeen selected his project AURA as one of the top 10 art installations of 2017, alongside Olafur Eliasson, Ai Weiwei, and Anish Kapoor. This time, he is in the Netherlands with a live installation featuring the New European Ensemble and Salvador Breed. The performance will take place in Haarlem (March 8), Utrecht (April 4), Rotterdam (April 5), Den Bosch (April 6), and The Hague on April 19, 2024.

This project combines music, visual arts, and advanced technology to create an immersive sensory experience that appeals to both established enthusiasts and a younger audience. At its core is Dutch light artist Nick Verstand, who bridges music and visual art through his autonomous installations and live performances. These explore how emotional experiences can be materialized through collaborative design processes that break social boundaries, resulting in intuitive experiences that create a mesmerizing environment for the subconscious. His work, hailed as “stunning and inventive” by Theaterkrant, offers an escape from the bleak reality.

Verstand develops his own hardware and software for his light installations, allowing them to seamlessly respond to live music. His works, such as ‘Anima’ and ‘Within Without’, exhibit a magnetic attraction that perfectly complements the ritual essence of minimal music. In collaboration with the New European Ensemble, he has created visual experiences around compositions like Steve Reich’s ‘Double Sextet’.

Salvador Breed, an innovative Dutch composer and sound artist, adds an extra dimension to the project. His collaboration with Verstand and his role as the creative mind behind the music and soundscapes at events like Todays Art and Dutch Design Week, highlight his ability to unite even the most dissonant sounds. For this project, he collaborates with the NEuE to create an experience that harmonizes with the enchanting light installations.

Breed’s new work ‘Twiske’ is inspired by the nature reserve of the same name & Reich’s ‘Double Sextet’, where sounds, rhythmic patterns, and harmonies evoke a trance-like state in the visitor. The project emphasizes the ritual aspects of minimal music, featuring works by Steve Reich and Terry Riley, including Riley’s groundbreaking ‘In C’, a piece that makes each performance unique through the freedom it offers musicians. Riley’s composition will be performed in Den Bosch and Rotterdam. Reich’s ‘Double Sextet’, awarded the Pulitzer Prize For Music in 2009, is another highlight, written for two sextets and performed with one live sextet and one on tape.

Performers New European Ensemble
Felicia van den End – flute
James Meldrum – clarinet
Pepe Garcia – vibraphone
Malgorzata Walentynowicz – piano
Rada Ovcharova – violin
Willem Stam – cello

Performances:
FR March 8, 2024, Phil Haarlem
TH April 4, 2024, TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht
FR April 5, 2024, De Doelen, Rotterdam
SA April 6, 2024, Theater aan de Parade, Den Bosch
FR April 19, Korzo, The Hague

This project is generously supported by Kersjesfonds, Cultuurfonds, Fonds Podiumkunsten and Gemeente Den Haag.

(Photo: Stijn te Hennepe)