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Ben Grossman

Electro-Acoustic Vielle à Roue (Hurdy Gurdy)

About Me

Ben Grossman is a vielle à roue (Drehleier, hurdy gurdy, or zanfoña) player, percussionist, composer and improviser living in Toronto Ontario. He grew up playing electric guitar, listening to Bartok, T Rex, Satie, Partch, Pink Floyd, Varesse, Eno, and Reich, and building homemade synthesizers, effects and tape loops in his parent’s suburban basement and through his teens, worked extensively with composer/instrument creator/educator Barry Prophet, building new acoustic instruments and composing and improvising in experimental percussion projects. Through percussion and his interest in non-equal tuning systems, Ben became involved at various times in traditional Turkish, Arabic, Irish, Balkan, and French music. In 1997 he studied Turkish music in Istanbul and, since taking up the vielle, he has done workshops and lessons with Valentin Clastrier, Matthias Loibner, Maxou Heintzan and Simon Wascher as well as working on Deep Listening and improvisation with Anne Bourne.

Ben has over 70 CD credits, and has performed and recorded with many ensembles over the years including La Nef, the Toronto Consort, GaPa, Ensemble Polaris, The Altan Yildiz Orkestar, Ima Ensemble, Duo O’Connor-Grossman. BT, James Keelaghan, Bobby Watt, Basic Elements, Aradia, Loreena McKennitt, Fools Dance, Oliver Schroer and the Stewed Tomatoes, Laurel MacDonald, Brandon Scott-Beshara, Anne Lederman, Pilgrim’s Trail Mix, Pat O’Gorman, Laridenn, Kitty’s Kitchen, Ensemble Ben Trobar, Doula, Rhea’s Obsession, Loretto Ried and Brian Taheny, and Joyce’s Folly. His work can also be heard in TV and film soundtracks, including the Patty Jenkins film, Monster. Ben will be touring this winter with electronic music pioneer BT and is currently engaged in Spinning Wheel, an international collective compositional, recording and performance project bringing six cutting-edge hurdy gurdy players from around the world together.
Ben plays a modern electo-acoustic Alto vielle (often with a live-loopiing and effects rig), and a copy of a French Baroque instrument (Jean Louvet, 1763), both by the incredible builder Wolfgang Weichselbaumer .
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My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 2/1/2006
Band Website: macrophone.org/
Band Members: Ben Grossman: hurdy gurdy/vielle a roue/Drehleier/zanfona, electronics, percussion
Influences: John Cage, Marcel Duchamp, Harry Partch, Sun Ra, Olivier Messiaen, Erik Satie, Sex Pistols, Steve Reich, Nino Rota, T Rex, DADA, Valentin Clastrier, Matthias Loibner, Talking Heads, coffee...
Sounds Like:

Type of Label: None

My Blog

Improvised music at Casa del Popolo

Hosted By: Ben Grossman When: Apr 3, 2008 9:00 PMWhere: Casa del Popolo4873 boul.St-LaurentMontreal, Quebec|62 CanadaDescription:Ben Grossman Click Here To View Event...
Posted by Ben Grossman on Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:10:00 PST

Macrophone is now available at Soundscapes in Toronto

572 College St, Toronto. One of my favorite stores in Toronto now carries Macrophone! More updates soon, sorry for the long delay.ben
Posted by Ben Grossman on Wed, 04 Jul 2007 08:52:00 PST

Ben's CD is out!

Macrophone: Aleatoric Solo Duets for Electro-Acoustic Hurdy Gurdy is now available.This double CD is the result of many years of research and development. Its structure and form are (I think) unique ...
Posted by Ben Grossman on Tue, 27 Mar 2007 09:18:00 PST

H8000FW

The Eventide H8000FW is eating my brain and taking over my body. Everything I see now has a big knob on the front....H8000FW
Posted by Ben Grossman on Tue, 07 Nov 2006 09:20:00 PST

On tour with BT in November and December

On tour with BT in November and December:Nov,28th-Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues 29th-San Diego, CA @ Belly Up 30th-Tucson, AZ @ Rialto TheatreDec,1st-Albuquerque, NM @ El Ray Theatre 2nd-Aspen, CO @ Be...
Posted by Ben Grossman on Tue, 07 Nov 2006 09:17:00 PST