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For information contact: Patrick Kowalczyk, patrick@pkpr.com Mark McArthur, mark@pkpr.com PKPR, 212.627.8098 Download photos here: http://imgur.com/a/8LQYl

What: 2015 Ecstatic Music Festival Opening Nights featuring Ian Williams, Mantra

Percussion, composers of Wet Ink, Deborah Lohse & the Shakedown Dance Collective

Where: Winter Garden at Brookfield Place, 230 Vesey Street When: January 15 & 16, 2015 Presenter: Arts Brookfield Website: http://brookfieldplaceny.com/Ian-Williams-with-Mantra-Percussion Cost: FREE

ECSTATIC MUSIC FESTIVAL OPENS WITH TWO FREE WORLD PREMIERE CONCERTS

FEATURING BATTLES GUITARIST IAN WILLIAMS, MANTRA PERCUSSION,

AND DEBORAH LOHSE & THE SHAKEDOWN DANCE COLLECTIVE

Arts Brookfield presents two nights of music & dance to kick off acclaimed series pairing artists from across music genres at the Winter Garden at Brookfield Place

New York, NY (December 17, 2014) –The Ecstatic Music Festival will kick off its fifth-anniversary season of inspired musical match-making with a pair of free concerts at Brookfield Place, starting with a world-premiere collaboration on January 15th between Mantra Percussion and Ian Williams of the indie rock band Battles. The following evening, January 16th, Mantra Percussion will return for another one-night-only performance, a collaboration with the composers of Wet Ink and choreographer Deborah Lohse and the Shakedown Dance Collective. The two free concerts, the only free shows of the Ecstatic Music Festival, are presented and produced by Arts Brookfield in association with Kaufman Music Center.

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On January 15th, guitarist, keyboardist, and composer Williams will team up with New York City's Mantra Percussion for an evening of intensely driving percussion, guitar, and electronic music. Noted for his virtuosic technique and innovative compositional voice, Williams has helped expand the rock-and-roll lexicon as a member of some of progressive rock's most influential groups, including ‘90s math-rock innovators Don Caballero, experimental rock trio Storm and Stress, and powerhouse pioneers Battles. Since forming in 2009, Mantra Percussion has been hailed for its “hypnotic intensity” by The New York Times and “superhuman” performances by Time Out New York. The ensemble has toured North America and Europe and collaborated with such renowned artists as David Gordon and the band Xiu Xiu. On January 16th, Mantra Percussion will perform once again for the premiere of three new works by Wet Ink's founding composers, Sam Pluta, Alex Mincek, and Eric Wubbels, paired with performances of new dance works by Deborah Lohse and the Shakedown Dance Collective. Launched in 2011, the Ecstatic Music Festival has been hailed as “a who’s who of the current music scene” (WQXR) and praised for “the most bracing combinations of adventurous, fulfilling music in recent memory” (NPR) at a moment when young, classically-trained artists are re-defining classical music. The Ecstatic Music Festival brings together artists from different genres or scenes who didn’t typically work together and gives them the opportunity to create something completely new, resulting in invigorating, often genuinely surprising concerts. Musical partnerships first forged at the EMF have flourished beyond the festival, leading to further collaboration, performances, and recordings. "Thanks to its daring and unexpected musical collaborations, The Ecstatic Music Festival has become one of New York City’s most exciting and thrilling musical events,” said Debra Simon, Vice President and Artistic Director of Arts Brookfield. "We are proud to give even more New Yorkers a chance to experience this extraordinary festival by presenting the opening two nights for free.” The 2015 Ecstatic Music Festival will continue with eight concerts at Kaufman Music Center’s Merkin Concert Hall through April 16, 2015, premiering collaborative works by a total of nearly 100 composers and performers. About Arts Brookfield: Arts Brookfield presents exciting, world-class cultural experiences to hundreds of thousands of people for free each year in both indoor and outdoor public spaces at Brookfield’s premier office properties in New York, Los Angeles, Denver, Houston, Toronto, Perth and Sydney. From concerts, theater and dance to film screenings and art exhibitions, Arts Brookfield brings public spaces to life through art. Visit www.ArtsBrookfield.com for a complete schedule of events.

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