A First-Ever Worldwide, Tech-Enabled Collaboration Between Young Dancers with ABT Studio Company and Young Musicians with the Collective Conservatory

Scene from Amy Hall Garner’s Visceral Harmonies.

A unique collaboration between ABT Studio Company and the Collective Conservatory, an immersive online music-making initiative, will premiere on Wednesday, December 16 at 6 P.M. ET on American Ballet Theatre’s YouTube channel and @ABTStudioCo IGTV.

Visceral Harmonies was choreographed remotely by Amy Hall Garner in August 2020, as she created movement for 13 dancers of ABT Studio Company.  The work is set to music composed by Steven Hackman and students from the Collective Conservatory.  The composition was performed and recorded remotely by 100 students from the Peabody Institute’s “Tuned In” program and Harmony Project of Los Angeles, Tulsa, and Phoenix.  A preview of Visceral Harmonies is available on Vimeo.

Visceral Harmonies is Garner’s second work for ABT Studio Company following Escapades, commissioned and created in 2019.  The new work was created and rehearsed over Zoom with Studio Company dancers filming the movements from their home studios or outdoor locations.  Visceral Harmonies was edited and synced by ABT Studio Company alumna Hanna Bass.

ABT Studio Company dancers appearing in Visceral Harmonies participated from their home locations in the United States, South Korea, and the Philippines.  Student musicians performing with the Collective Conservatory, under founder and artistic director Daniel Trahey, were recruited from across the country.

“Visceral Harmonies is a work celebrating the future of the arts,” said Amy Hall Garner.  “ABT Studio Company and the Collective Conservatory came together during an extraordinary moment in time to further the kinship of music and dance.  The entire creative vocabulary was built directly from descriptive dialogue.  It was an honor to be involved in this relationship and interpret both languages developed exclusively through the gift of technology.  Blending together these young artists in this way, and especially at this time, is something I am definitely proud of.”

“We were overjoyed when ABT was interested in our progressive idea of students composing music for Studio Company,” said Daniel Trahey, founder and artistic director of the Collective Conservatory.  “The music we composed is themed around movement and dance.  To partner with ABT Studio Company to help lift, elevate, and accentuate the importance of youth’s voices has been a dream come true for the students.”

“What I valued most about participating in Visceral Harmonies was the uniqueness and vision of the collaborative process, as laid out by Dan Trahey and the Collective Conservatory, Amy Hall Garner, and ABT Studio Company,” said Steven Hackman, composer and cultural ambassador for the Collective Conservatory.  “It was a process which kept at its core, the mission of exploring the creative voice of the many young musicians involved.  Assisting in bringing those students’ musical ideas to life, seeing how those ideas inspired Amy’s choreography, and finally, witnessing the exquisite dancing of ABT Studio Company, was a wonderful journey.”

Under the artistic direction of Sascha Radetsky, ABT Studio Company is a classical ensemble of 15 dancers, aged 17-21, with outstanding potential.  ABT Studio Company seeks to develop the next generation of ballet dancers, choreographers, and audiences and serves as a crucial transition from ballet student to professional performer.  80% of current American Ballet Theatre dancers are alumni of ABT Studio Company.

The Collective Conservatory is an online initiative to facilitate meaningful, active, and immersive music-making experiences for communities, inspired by the philosophy of nurturing and inspiring the whole person.  The Collective Conservatory works with students from across the world, specifically from underrepresented and underserved communities.  Experienced teaching artists work alongside professional musicians and other cultural ambassadors to curate dynamic offerings, addressing community needs for social connectivity, wellness, creative expression, and independent learning.

For more information on ABT Studio Company and American Ballet Theatre, please visit www.abt.org.  For more information on the Collective Conservatory, please visit www.collectiveconservatory.com.

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