What People are Saying…

“A meeting place for some of the most creative performers and composers in Toronto and beyond.” – Eve Egoyan (Pianist)

“From under the ground and below the radar, neither/nor has blossomed into a collective musical creation unique to its time and place.  Boundaries between composers, performers, and musical genres are dissolved, yet the music remains unified and coherent—and beautiful too, a graceful and heartbreaking beauty, existing outside our usual experience of time.  neither/nor’s diverse and deeply talented musicians have created their own scene and are making truly original music for the love of it—a rare and brave feat.” – James Rolfe (Composer, Toronto)

“The collective spirit and collegial atmosphere give rise to serious, inventive, thoughtful works, all investigating the possibilities—the very edges—of what music can be.” – Linda Catlin Smith (Composer, Toronto)

“Veering off the beaten track, neither/nor brings together some of Toronto’s best experimental composers (including John Sherlock, who was featured as one of MacLean’s 100 Canadian Leaders and Dreamers in 2005) to engage in a radicalism shaped by ‘a complete commitment to one’s own uniqueness.’ … This one promises some very interesting listening, and possibly some visual surprises.” – Jason van Eyk (Wholenote Magazine, November/December 2005).

“Neither/Nor cuts right to the heart of art making.   No hype, no second guessing and audiences love them for that.” – Rick Sacks (Percussionist, Arraymusic, Toronto)

“All I ask from a composer is that he astonish me.” – K. Stockhausen.
“Neither/Nor is festival devoted to values and aesthetics that are an extension of the experimental tradition. The concert I attended March 29,2007 included the performance of a work by Eric km Clark for solo violin restrung with 4 E strings and tuned in microtones. The piece was astonishing: personal, visionary, ravishing, and accomplished with the most simple and inventive means. What I remember best is the shimmering of a multicoloured single pitch and wishing I had thought of it myself. The piece was well-played by the composer in the context of three other works written and performed with integrity. I must also praise Marc Couroux’s strange and sensual transcription of music by “The Carpenters”, performed by a live female voice [Juliana Pivato] whose resemblance to Karen Carpenter’s was nothing short of astonishing. Her eerie, unamplified voice floated above an amplified ensemble placed in front of her which played little whiffs of familiar music transformed by fragmentation, distortion and repetition. – Rodney Sharman (Composer, Vancouver)