Katinka Kleijn in Concert

Into the midsummer, Corbett vs. Dempsey is delighted to present a solo concert by Katinka Kleijn. The Dutch-born cellist has been hailed by the New York Times as "a player of formidable expressive gifts"—a monumental understatement to anyone who has heard her play. A virtuoso performer of contemporary composed music, Kleijn has concentrated in recent years on improvisation and a conceptual approach to collaboration. She remains a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and International Contemporary Ensemble, where she's a cherished interpreter of the most cutting-edge music for cello; in her adopted home base of Chicago, she frequently works in ad hoc and familiar free music settings, becoming a central figure in the city's creative music ecosystem. Kleijn often illuminates the cello’s anthropomorphic qualities, placing the instrument in thought-provoking new contexts (Water On the Bridge, The Body as a Variable Resistor, RESIDUUM). Her collaborations with composer Daniel Dehaan and the Chicago-based performance art duo Industry of the Ordinary resulted in the widely publicized Intelligence in the Human-Machine (2014): a duet between a cello and Kleijn's brain waves, which Time magazine called, “a balancing act for Kleijn’s whole body.” Kleijn presents many of her conceptual projects as co-constructions with the performer(s) or audience, as in her situation-based composition Forward Echo, for 11 improvisers (2019), performed at Big Ears Festival by Ensemble Dal Niente, and her silent video project Screenplay in 4 (2021). Kleijn's recordings include STIR with Bill MacKay, Momentum 5: Stammer (triptych) with Ken Vandermark, Two or Three with Mars Williams, and Sine Nomine with Mark Feldman. An avid collaborator and sensitive group improviser, Kleijn is also a spectacular soloist. You may have heard her as a soloist with the CSO or the Chicago Sinfonietta, but this intimate concert at CvsD offers a rare opportunity to catch her improvising alone with her instrument.

This event is free and open to the public.