Special Event with Jason Moran & Glenn Ligon March 23 at the Whitney

Special Event in Conjunction with Glenn Ligon: America On The Death of Tom: An Evening with Glenn Ligon and Jason Moran, moderated by Terrance McKnight, Wednesday, March 23 at 8 pm.

Glenn Ligon's most recent video, The Death of Tom, expands on the artist's career-long exploration of American history and literature, as well as his interest in the relationship between abstraction and representation. To make the piece, Ligon re-created the final scene of the Edison 1903 silent movie Uncle Tom's Cabin directed by Edwin S. Porter, casting himself in the titular role.

Upon developing the film, he discovered that the camera had been improperly loaded and that the footage was an abstract blur. Rather than abandoning his project, however, Ligon took this accident as a new point of departure. Borrowing from the tradition of silent film, he asked experimental jazz musician and composer Jason Moran to create a piano score for the work, playing to the shadows on the screen.

Join us tonight as Moran re-scores Ligon's film with a live improvisation. The film and performance will be followed by a conversation between Ligon and Moran, moderated by Terrance McKnight.

The Whitney Museum is located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street, New York City. Museum hours are: Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m., closed Monday and Tuesday. General admission: $18. Full-time students and visitors ages 19 to 25 and 62 & over: $12. Visitors 18 & under and Whitney members: FREE. Admission to the Kaufman Astoria Studios Film & Video Gallery only: $6. Admission is pay-what-you-wish on Fridays, 6ׯ p.m. For general information, please call (212) 570-3600 or visit whitney.org.

From: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/news.php?id=78002