"not so much a style as a way of life." - Alex Ross, The New Yorker.
"..everything sounded more acute, lively and present — qualities enhanced by the keen listening that the music enabled" -- Steve Smith, New York Times.
Photos by Beth O'Brien, Richard Howe, and Palma Fiacco.
Press photos for performance of Trumpet City: Park Avenue at Summer Streets, August 2nd, 2014 at 11:30am; Trumpet City: Brooklyn September 20, 2014, and the first Trumpet City: Zurich March 28, 2009.
Photo (c) Beth O’Brien
On Foot Productions is directed by Wandelweiser composer and trombonist Craig Shepard, who makes music related to stillness. Growing up in Connecticut, he would go for long walks in the middle of snowy nights, stopping to listen to the sheen of millions of snowflakes hitting the ground. Recent projects include On Foot: Brooklyn, a 91-day, 780-mile walking project in New York, and Trumpet City, a mass outdoor installation that has been realized in Seattle, New York City, Aubervilliers, France, and in Zurich and Bern, Switzerland.
Early experiences with the music of King Crimson, Bach, Lou Lazzerini's band, and trombone lessons with George Sanders led him to Northwestern University, where he studied trombone with Frank Crisafulli and composition with Bill Karlins, Amnon Wolman, Alan Stout, and Michael Pisaro. In 1998, Antoine Beuger invited him to join the Wandelweiser Group. In 2001, he bought a one-way ticket to Zurich, Switzerland, where he worked with Manfred Werder and Jürg Frey, and realized a 31-day, 250-mile walk on which he composed a new piece every day and performed it every evening. He also performed with New York School composer Christian Wolff in Switzerland and the US. He has performed at the Whitney Museum, the Guggenheim Museum, Experimental Intermedia, The Stone, Kunstraum Düsseldorf, and many others.
Shepard has been nominated for the Herb Alpert Award, and has been an artist in residence at Loghaven and Les Laboratoires d’Aubervilliers.
He is a director of Music for Contemplation. His music is available on Edition Wandelweiser Records, and Infrequent Seams. He lives in Berkshire County, Massachusetts.
Composer Mentoring
Craig Shepard (L) with mentee Jonathan Ackerley (R)
"Our time together was life-altering." -- Jonathan Ackerley
Craig Shepard offers 13-week courses in composition mentoring, focusing on developing and maintaining a long term composition practice and working through creative blocks. Integral to the course is an engagement with the rich music and art of New York. Especially welcome are young composers wishing to develop a practice without going into debt. Assistance available to obtain housing and visa. Shorter courses will be considered. Limited availability. To apply, please use the contact page to send an email describing who you are and why you want mentoring.