Whispering low, then sweeping up into her chest voice, Sun Ra Arkestra vocalist Tara Middleton unspools scenes of “lunar silhouette” and “children of stardust” over a deep trombone drone. “Rain down mercy and grace! Rain!” she cries as Dan Blacksberg's horn mimics a monsoon, sliding and twirling like only a trombone can.
While the chaos washes over the audience at Studio 34, a yoga studio in West Philadelphia, listeners in armchairs lie back and close their eyes. That freewheeling energy, on this recent Sunday evening, is standard for Encounters, a series that Blacksberg conceived in the fall of 2023 as an incubator for first meetings between diverse local musicians working in different genres — from jazz and classical to spoken word, electronic, punk and metal music.
“I like putting myself in a new challenge every time, which is what’s great about free improvisation,” says Blacksberg, who embarked on his duet with Middleton without rehearsal, to heighten the spirit of spontaneity. Their extended improv juxtaposed drones and field recordings with Middleton’s poetry — spoken or sung, and often accentuated with dark delay effects on the microphone.
Blacksberg is a versatile trombonist, bandleader and educator who also runs a monthly night of klezmer music at Abyssinia Ethiopian Restaurant, and has taught classical and klezmer at Temple University and Settlement Music School (where I work part-time). Last spring, he became a new father, which underscored the need for “something regular, hyperlocal, and easy to put together.” After encouragement from Studio 34 arts director Morgan Fitzpatrick, he started hosting Encounters in October to keep his “tools honed,” and create space for other local improvisers.
Blacksberg had run a previous series, also called Encounters, at The Mothership in 2019, as well as a series at Studio 34 more than a decade ago, called Archer Spade. Since paid opportunities for experimental improvisation in Philly are limited, he hopes curating inclusive events like these can help “create the path” to greater visibility for locals who mostly engage with this music in private, or for free: Studio 34 guests can pay a suggested $10 to $20, while no one gets turned away. In the Encounters series, he gives other players no guidelines, so his “only controls” lie in choosing who plays. Each edition takes place on a Sunday night and features an opening set followed by a spontaneous collaboration between Blacksberg and a friend or two.
Middleton, who says she has “known Dan forever,” planned her improvisation around a poem she wrote for an upcoming solo album. He heard it for the first time on stage; “I wanted a true response,” she explains, “not a rehearsed response.” A magnetic spirit in any space, Middleton also teaches third grade in Philly schools while singing in the Arkestra and the duo Jupiter Blue with her husband, guitarist DM Hotep.
She joined the Arkestra in 2012 as a violinist, then began studying vocal improv one-on-one with director Marshall Allen at his Germantown home before stepping into the role of lead vocalist, extending the legacy of June Tyson. She describes these experiences as clarifying her “right” to act autonomously, to step away from conductors and sheet music, like at Studio 34: “The right to express that sound, to communicate that thought, to share that moment with the audience. But you have to be willing to be free.”
Middleton and Blacksberg’s duet was preceded by composer-trombonist RJ McGhee a.k.a. PurePly, whose solo set combined trombone melodies with digital soundscapes generated on an iPad. McGhee studied classical trombone at Temple University, where they first tried computer-assisted composition and performance in the Boyer Electroacoustic Ensemble Project (BEEP). They later took improvisation lessons with Blacksberg, seeking an exit from the “classical box,” to get “more expressive” on trombone.
Now they deploy all these skills as PurePly, incorporating spontaneous trombone pieces with ambient electronic elements, citing influences like Nobukazu Takemura. At Studio 34, rocking a titanium butterfly mask fashioned by facecrafter Qil Jones (Black Marzian), they started with the constant drone of a sample loop or synthesizer, then used iPad controls to reshape that sound over time — from smooth to jagged, or narrow to spacious — repeating the process with trombone or vocal input recorded through a lavalier microphone.
Most of McGhee’s music making now takes place on digital devices. But when Blacksberg, their old teacher, invited them into the series, they made sure to prepare a trombone performance to honor what he taught them. (In addition to his private teaching schedule, Blacksberg will lead a series of group improvisation workshops at Equilibrium Dance Academy throughout June, for musicians of all levels.)
Blacksberg takes pride in the diversity of players that Encounters has supported so far, from old students to new inspirations. February’s edition of the series brought Leah Basarab on electric bass, Ravish Momin on electronic drums, and Alex Smith on poetry and field recordings, while March’s edition at The Rotunda presented Sonali Singh on bassoon and Mikel Patrick Avery on percussion. The next Encounters — with Blacksberg, drummer Joey Sullivan, saxophonist Michael Foster, and trumpeter Tessa Ellis — will bring more friendly surprises to Studio 34 on June 9.
