EarRelevant Staff | 22 SEP 2025
ATLANTA, Georgia— Bent Frequency, one of the Southeast’s leading contemporary music ensembles, has announced a 2025-26 season that pairs avant-garde classics with world premieres, community engagement projects, and collaborations with some of Atlanta’s most adventurous arts organizations.
Founded in 2003 and in residence at Georgia State University, Bent Frequency has established a reputation for bold, socially conscious programming that amplifies the voices of underrepresented individuals in classical music. The group’s co-artistic directors, saxophonist Jan Berry Baker and percussionist Stuart Gerber, have cultivated a flexible roster of performers who thrive on cross-disciplinary work—from multimedia installations and theatrical collaborations to traditional chamber concerts.
The new season opens on October 15 at the historic Plaza Theatre with a live soundtrack to The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the 1920 German silent horror classic that helped define the Expressionist film era. The event seamlessly blends the immediacy of live performance with the ambiance of vintage cinema, providing audiences with an immersive Halloween-season experience.
On December 11, the ensemble presents We Found Each Other at Eyedrum, an evening devoted to music that explores connection and transformation. The program features works by Juraj Kjoš, Dorothy Hindman, Paul Elwood, Alvin Singleton, Yi-Ting Lu, and Helmut Lachenmann, representing a mix of established voices and rising talents in contemporary composition.
The following night, December 12, Bent Frequency leads its annual community performance of Phil Kline’s Unsilent Night—a participatory “boombox parade” and sound installation that winds through Candler Park. Participants are encouraged to bring smartphones or portable speakers to become part of the soundscape, creating what Gerber calls “a spontaneous, mobile concert under the stars.” The event is free and presented in partnership with the First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta.
The ensemble returns February 1, 2026, as part of Atlanta’s SoundNOW New Music Festival with an afternoon concert at Florence Kopleff Recital Hall. The program includes works by Georgia State University composition students and the world premiere of Grimoire II by Kyle Rivera, a past winner of the ensemble’s Underscore call-for-scores competition. Rivera also performs as an actor in the 30-minute theatrical piece, blurring the lines between concert and performance art.
Bent Frequency concludes its season May 3 with a large-scale collaboration celebrating the 50th anniversary of Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians and the composer’s 90th birthday. The minimalist landmark will be performed alongside works by the winners of the fifth annual Underscore competition. The finale, presented in collaboration with Atlanta Contemporary Music Collective, Chamber Cartel, ensemble vim, and smol ensemble, promises to be one of the city’s most ambitious new-music gatherings of the year.
All concerts are supported in part by Georgia State University’s College of the Arts and School of Music, the Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, the Fulton County Arts Council, the Georgia Council for the Arts, the Ditson Foundation, and the Amphion Foundation.
Additional details, including ticket links and participation instructions for Unsilent Night, are available at bentfrequency.com. ■
Bent Frequency 2025–26 Season at a Glance
- Wed, Oct. 15, 2025 @ 7 pm
Plaza Theatre, Atlanta
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (live soundtrack) - Thu, Dec. 11, 2025 @ 8 pm
Eyedrum, Atlanta
We Found Each Other – works by Juraj Kjoš, Dorothy Hindman, Paul Elwood, Alvin Singleton, Yi-Ting Lu & Helmut Lachenmann - Fri, Dec. 12, 2025 @ 6 pm
Candler Park / First Existentialist Congregation, Atlanta
Phil Kline’s Unsilent Night (community sound installation)
💲 Free - Sun, Feb. 1, 2026 @ 2 pm
Florence Kopleff Recital Hall, GSU
SoundNOW New Music Festival: GSU composers & world premiere of Kyle Rivera’s Grimoire II
💲 Free - Sun, May 3, 2026 @ 2 pm
Florence Kopleff Recital Hall, GSU
Season Finale: 5th Annual Underscore winners + Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians
💲 Free
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Bent Frequency: bentfrequency.com
Read more by EarRelevant Staff.
.png){kind=logo}