Cal Poly Soundings: Music of the Spheres

Cal Poly Soundings will present “Music of the Spheres,” an immersive evening of new music and dance, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday, May 28–29, in the Pavilion of the Performing Arts Center. 

Soundings is an interdisciplinary program that brings together original compositions by Cal Poly music technology and composition students with contemporary choreography by students in the Theatre and Dance Department. Guided by music faculty director Julie Herndon, with choreography directed by dance Professor Emeritus Diana Stanton, the program highlights collaborative works that merge sound and movement into a unified performance experience. 

“Music of the Spheres” draws inspiration from one of the oldest cosmological theories, in which Pythagoras proposed that planetary motion follows mathematical ratios that create an inaudible harmony. While ancient traditions attributed distinct qualities to celestial bodies — such as Saturn’s association with time and structure or Venus with love and beauty — contemporary perspectives interpret the universe through astrophysics, data and frequency. 

The theme is especially resonant in light of NASA’s recent Artemis II mission to the moon, which included Cal Poly alum Victor Glover. “Rather than a fixed harmony, the cosmos is a dynamic and evolving network that we are still in the process of discovering,” said Herndon. “These works reflect that sense of motion and transformation, as composers and choreographers respond to the vastness of space through sound, technology and movement.” 

Student composers featured in the program include Neil Bedagkar, Catryna Benander, Noah Bettelheim, Matthew Blam, Jake Cook, Ro Cumber, Daria Delwig, Zoe Dovydaitis, Andre Duldulao, Helena Fuller, Kat Griswold, David Harris, Millicent Harrison, Michael Hong, Eli Ibay, Rayhanah Johnson, Gillian Kingery, Isabelle Koenig, Max Kwan, Frank Lang, Jared Lazo, Connor Lu, Jack Medina, Jacob Megaw, Ryan Nolan, Mandy Tran, Francis Truong, Amir Williams and Ethan Wood.

Original choreography will be performed by student dancers Senaiah Butcher, Jasmine Clark, Lucy Fossa, Aviv Kesar, Molly Koretz, Gracie Levine, Jaymie Louie, Eliot Mcdonald, Sophia Mcpherson, Melissa Nemec, Melaina Niazmand, Alex Pissoni, Joyce Shen, Camryn Vandezwaag, Masin Warme, Stella Weber and Sofi Zalatimo.

The performance will feature visiting artists T.J. Borden, cello, and Mari Kawamura, piano, of the [Switch~ Ensemble], a group dedicated to the creation and performance of new acoustic, electroacoustic and multimedia works. Known for integrating technology with live performance, the ensemble collaborates closely with composers to develop innovative approaches to contemporary music. 

Borden, a Brooklyn-based cellist originally from Western New York, is recognized for his exploratory approach to the instrument and his work as a performer, improviser and organizer. He performs with ensembles including [Switch~ Ensemble] and the Mivos Quartet, and is co-founder of High Desert Soundings, a festival for experimental music in Southern California. 

Kawamura is a concert pianist whose work spans traditional and experimental repertoire, with a focus on resonance, texture, and sonic color. She has performed internationally at venues and festivals including Piano Spheres, the Center for New Music in San Francisco, MONK Space in Los Angeles, Tanglewood, Darmstadt and the Spoleto Festival USA. Her recordings include the solo album “MA ~ space between ~,” and she holds degrees from the Aichi Prefectural University of Fine Arts and Music, the Royal Academy of Music and UC San Diego.