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	_____________________________ Genre -bending, -skipping and -skirting, vocalist/composer Theo Bleckmann has been a steady force in the New York downtown music scene for over 15 years. Recognized as both a performer and composer, his work spans concerts, installations, theater, cabaret and performance art. He has sung worldwide on some of the great stages including Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall and the Sydney Opera House. The New Yorker called him a “local cult favorite”, the New York Times “excellent” and according to OUT Magazine Bleckmann is “a singer who's only recently fallen to earth” and indeed Bleckmann's style has something otherworldly and ethereal. In 1989 Bleckmann moved from his native Germany to New York City after meeting legendary jazz vocalist Sheila Jordan at a workshop in Graz, Austria, who remains an influential mentor and supportive colleague to this day. Together they can be heard on Sheila Jordan's "Jazzchild" (High Note). Since his move to Manhattan (and ultimately taking on US citizenship in 2005) he has worked with such artists as Laurie Anderson, Anthony Braxton, Steve Coleman, Dave Douglas, Philip Glass, Meredith Monk, Michael Tilson Thomas, John Zorn and the Bang On A Can All-stars and was a featured soloist with the Albany Symphony, San Francisco Symphony Chorus, Estonian Radio Choir, Merce Cunningham Dance Company and Mark Morris Dance. _____________________________ A Winter & Winter recording artist, Bleckmann's whimsical collection of showtunes, "Las Vegas Rhapsody" with the chamber orchestra Basel has been described as "the most transcendent vocal album in many a moon", by Francis Davis in the Village Voice. His 2001 release, “Origami” (Songlines) received four and a half stars (out of five) from Downbeat Magazine making it one of 2001 best releases, as well as declaring him a "rising star" in their recent critic's polls. His great range, vocally, emotionally and physically (Bleckmann was once a junior ice dancing champion in his native Germany), inspired some of today's great composers such as Mark Dresser, Moritz Eggert, John Hollenbeck, Phil Kline, Ben Monder, Denman Maroney, Meredith Monk, Ikue Mori, Kirk Nurock, Bob Ostertag, Neil Rollnick, and Bang on a Can's David Lang, Michael Gordon and Julia Wolfe, to create pieces especially for and with him; prominently, composer and multi media artist, Meredith Monk, whose core ensemble Bleckmann has been a member of since 1994. _____________________________ Bleckmann particularly enjoys performing in duo. He and percussionist/composer John Hollenbeck forge an ethereal bond born of a long track record of working together including their duo, which is captured on "static still" (gpe records) and Hollenbeck's "quartet Lucy" (CRI). Bleckmann is also a featured vocalist in Hollenbeck's two Large Ensemble recordings ("a blessing", Omnitone and "joys and desires", Intuition). A Blessing was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2006. Bleckmann has also collaborated extensively with composer/pianist Kirk Nurock; “Theo & Kirk” and “Looking Glass River” (both Traumton) His ongoing collaborations with guitarist Ben Monder can be heard on Monder's "Excavation" and "Oceana" (Sunnyside) and their two duo releases: “No Boat" and, their most recent, "At Night" (both Songlines). _____________________________ Bleckmann's multidisciplinary works include a commission by the Whitney Museum of American Art at Philip Morris to compose and create a music performance piece from Kenneth Goldsmith's text “Fidget”, which Bleckmann scored for voice, piano, percussion, bass, video and three sewing machines. In real time, four seamstresses sewed a paper suit out of the hundreds of sheets of paper that were Bleckmann's libretto. In collaboration with performance artist Lynn Book, he created “Mercuria” (produced by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago), incorporating visual and vocal elements of dream and subconscious into an evening-length performance piece. Playing the gangster Dutch Schultz, Bleckmann co-created “The True Last Words of Dutch Schultz,” a new music opera in collaboration with director Valeria Vasilevski and composer Eric Salzman. In 2005, Bleckmann was commissioned to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the German encyclopedia Brockhaus at the International book fair in Frankfurt, which he orchestrated for 31 voices in a surround-sound performance. As a sound improviser, he has performed, created and developed movie, television and theater scores, among them space Alien language for “Men in Black” by Steven Spielberg, “Star Trek: Envoy” (Meredith Monk), "Kundun" (Philip Glass). Theo Bleckmann sang in John Moran's “Book of the Dead” at the Public Theater in NY, performed a lead in Band on a Can's Obie Award-winning opera “Carbon Copy Building,” and frequently appears as a soloist with the Bang on a Can All-stars. In collaboration with director Laurie McCants and set designer Elaine F. Williams, he wrote the music and performed "The Alexandria Carry On", which has been traveling the US and was performed at the new library in Alexandria, Egypt. _____________________________ Theo Bleckmann's work has been recognized with several awards including a Bessie Award, Presser Award for Outstanding Talent and the ASCAP/Gershwin Award for his composition “Chorale #1 for Eight Voices” as well as grants from Arts International, the Franklin Furnace Fund for Performance Art, New York Foundation for the Arts, Meet The Composer and the Council on Humanities, PA. He was also voted "Cultural Elite" by New York Magazine in 2005 and 2006. _____________________________ Bleckmann teaches on the jazz faculty of New York's Manhattan School of Music. He has also been an adjunct at New York University, The New School and Queens College. He also teaches voice privately and in workshops and masterclasses worldwide. _____________________________ His latest recording recording projects include Moss, comprised of some of New York's most diverse (jazz) singers (Theo Bleckmann, Peter Eldridge, Kate McGarry, Lauren Kinhan and Luciana Souza), which just released their first CD for Sunnyside Records. Two new recordings have been finished for Winter & Winter: a collection of Charles Ives songs with L.A. based jazz/rock group Kneebody is scheduled for release in the fall of 2008, and refuge trio's first recording (w/John Hollenbeck and Gary Versace) is to be available in early fall on 2008 as well.


	medium bio: _____________________________ Genre -bending, -skipping and -skirting vocalist and composer, Theo Bleckmann has been a steady force in the music scene in New York for over 15 years. Unusually versatile , Bleckmann has performed worldwide on some of the great stages including Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall, the Sydney Opera House, L.A.'s Disney Hall, The Whitney Museum and the new Library Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt. The New Yorker called him a “local cult favorite”, The New York Times “excellent” and according to OUT Magazine, Bleckmann is “a singer who has only recently fallen to earth.“ For the past two years, Bleckmann has been voted into the small group of artists called "Cultural Elite" by New York Magazine. A Winter & Winter recording artist, Bleckmann's whimsical collection of showtunes, "Las Vegas Rhapsody" has been described as "the most transcendent vocal album in many a moon", by Francis Davis in the Village Voice. His great range, vocally and emotionally, inspired some of today's great composers such as Mark Dresser, John Hollenbeck, Phil Kline, Ben Monder, Kirk Nurock, and Bang on a Can's David Lang, Michael Gordon and Julia Wolfe, to create pieces especially for him and with him; prominently, composer and multi media artist, Meredith Monk, whose core ensemble Bleckmann has been a member of since 1994. His long track record of collaborating with composer John Hollenbeck in small and large ensembles, including their duo, is documented in recordings and tours world-wide, as well as his duo with guitarist Ben Monder. In 2005, Bleckmann was commissioned to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the German encyclopedia Brockhaus at the International book fair in Frankfurt, which he orchestrated for 31 voices in a surround-sound performance. His setting of Kenneth Goldsmith's text "fidget" for voice, piano, percussion, bass, video and three sewing machines was premiered at the Whitney Museum in 1998. Two new recordings have been finished for Winter & Winter: a collection of Charles Ives songs with L.A. based jazz/rock group Kneebody is scheduled for release in the fall of 2008, and refuge trio's first recording (w/John Hollenbeck and Gary Versace) is to be available in early fall on 2008 as well. www.TheoBleckmann.com shorter: _____________________________ Genre -bending, -skipping and -skirting, German –born vocalist/composer Theo Bleckmann, has performed worldwide from Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall to the Sydney Opera House with artists like Laurie Anderson, Anthony Braxton, Steve Coleman, Dave Douglas, John Hollenbeck, Sheila Jordan, Ben Monder, Meredith Monk, Michael Tilson Thomas, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, John Zorn, Bang On A Can All-stars and lent his voice to Bobby McFerrin's new recording project . The New Yorker called him a “local cult favorite”, the New York Times “excellent” and according to OUT Magazine Bleckmann is “a singer who has only recently fallen to earth. “ Bleckmann's latest recording “origami” garnered great critical praise including 4 +1/2 stars (out of 5) from Downbeat Magazine. His voice can be heard on over 40 recordings found on ECM, CRI, Label Bleu, Polygram, Songlines, Traumton and Winter&Winter. www.TheoBleckmann.com OK, you wanted short, I'll give you short: _____________________________ Genre -bending, -skipping and -skirting, vocalist/composer Theo Bleckmann, has performed worldwide as a leader as well as with artists like Laurie Anderson, Anthony Braxton, Steve Coleman, Dave Douglas, John Hollenbeck, Sheila Jordan, Ben Monder, Meredith Monk, Michael Tilson Thomas, Bang On A Can All-stars and John Zorn. The New Yorker called him a “local cult favorite”, The New York Times “excellent” and according to OUT Magazine, Bleckmann is “a singer who has only recently fallen to earth.“Bleckmann's recordings as a leader include “origami” (Songlines), “anteroom” (Traumton), “Las Vegas Rhapsody” and "Berlin" (Winter&Winter). www.TheoBleckmann.com And you thought that was short... _____________________________ Vocalist/composer Theo Bleckmann has performed worldwide as a leader as well as with artists like Laurie Anderson, Anthony Braxton, Steve Coleman, Meredith Monk, Michael Tilson Thomas, Bang On A Can and John Zorn. Bleckmann's recordings as a leader include “origami” (Songlines), “anteroom” (Traumton), “Las Vegas Rhapsody” and "Berlin" (Winter&Winter). www.TheoBleckmann.com This minuscule one narry a bio makes: _____________________________ www.TheoBleckmann.com