David Byrne of rock band Talking Heads is putting together a concert that will pair color guards with live music acts. Called Contemporary Color, the event is being presented by the Brooklyn (New York) Academy of Music (BAM) and Barclays Center arena, also in Brooklyn.
In 2008, Byrne lent a composition to a winter guard team though he knew very little about the activity. He watched the performance via DVD. “I was stunned at what I was seeing,” said Byrne in a press release. “Being a musician, I naturally wondered to myself: What if these performances had really great live music? Wouldn’t that lift it to another level?”
With the support of BAM and Toronto’s Luminato Festival, Byrne reached out to pop artists and guard teams. His goal, according to the press release, is to “produce a mind-blowing meld of original music and routine” that will be “the biggest glitter cannon show” of audience’s lives.
Ten guards, including WGI finalists Alter Ego, Emanon, Field of View, Mechanicsburg (Pennsylvania) High School and Les Eclipses, will perform with David Byrne, Nelly Furtado, How to Dress Well, Devonté Hynes, Kelis, Nico Muhly + Ira Glass, St. Vincent and tUnE-yArDs.
The performances will be on June 22 and 23 at the Air Canada Centre and on June 27 and 28 at Barclays Center.
