John Driscoll

JOHN DRISCOLL, composer/sound artist who is a founding member of Composers Inside Electronics (CIE) and collaborated on David Tudor’s Rainforest IV project since its inception in 1973. He tours extensively in the US and Europe with robotic instruments, compositions and sound installations for unique architectural spaces, and music for dance. He recently had a one-man show of his instruments at the Fridman Gallery in NYC, and has works in the collections of MoMA (NY), Museum der Moderne (Salzburg), MAC (Lyon), and Arter Museum (Istanbul) John has created works for Merce Cunningham, Douglas Dunn, and has been the musical director for Maida Withers Dance Construction Company, 1974-1980, and composer/musician for, perhaps, fifteen to twenty projects with the Company.

JOHN DRISCOLL: In his early years, John was a sculptor. His works feature electronic music but often involve physical objects as instruments. In 2014, he was artist-in-residence at Harvestworks Inc. developing a work for robotic-driven highly focused speakers, and has recently completed new works for an array of ultrasonic instruments. In 2015, Driscoll co-created a Rainforest V installation version with Phil Edelstein which has been acquired by Museum der Moderne in Salzburg Austria for their collection, and was recently on exhibit in Warsaw Poland. His recent album “Fishing for Sound (Berlin)” is available on iTunes. He is working on the revival of David Tudor’s Pavilion works in conjunction with CIE, E.A.T. and the David Tudor Project. He was recently the David Tudor Composer-In-Residence at Mills College and is currently performing Tudor’s original Rainforest work as part of a reconstruction of Merce Cunningham’s RainForest by the Stephen Petronio Company.

This paragraph may be inappropriate in this location. Live, original music has always been part of Maida Withers practice. This stemmed from her home background, a musical family, her church, and especially the influence of Geraldine Glover, her dance professor at BYU who encouraged live music for all productions (BYU Orchestra playing for annual dance concerts choreography by students and faculty, and, if possible, original music). Maide wrote and produced her own music, 5″ blue disc, for a senior-year solo project at BYU. Development of electronic music in the 1970s was an important factor related to original music performed live.

John has been a major influence, and his influence continues, on the work of Maida Withers and the Dance Construction Company since the founding of the Company in 1974. Maida and John were deeply engaged with new dance and new music in the early 1970s through today. In the 1970’s, early performances, events involving audience participation, took place in GW’s “Tin Tabernacle” (converted World War I gymnasium) and many performances in Washington Project for the Arts converted spaces. Working in museums has been a deeply shared interest of Maida and John. Experimentation and interdisciplinary vision has been part of the developing practice of John and Maida – substantive development of post modern dance and new electronic music.

John Driscoll’s Rainforest Installation at MOMA, 2019, NYC

List of a selection of dance works, selection from a Maida Withers Dance BIO listing:
1973 Dance/Sound Events: GW Tin Tabernacle (Text, Objects, Audience Participation)
1974 Changing the System (Christian Wolff) Columbus Gallery of Art
1974 Yesterday’s Garlands and Yesterday’s Kisses: GW Marvin Betts Theatre
1975 Bog Works – Homemade speaker installation: Washington Project for the Arts
? others ?
1980 Charmed Particles: WPA Concert by JD that related do music for Stall.)
1981 Stall. (Rotating Loudspeakers): Washington Performing Arts Society Event
(Many excellent photos to be brought here – Jamille will make them smaller in size )
1984 Time Dance: Music for Miniature Objects; Cowboy Plays
2013 Electronic Bodies: John Driscoll and Steve Hilmy, GWU Marvin Betts Theatre
2013 Yesterday’s Garlands and Yesterday’s Kisses (part 3, GW Students, John original music)
2014 Masquerade: Blind Whino MWDCCo anniversary celebration
2015 Chain of Events: Kennedy Center Lab (Collision Course & MindFluctuations)
2015 MindFlutuations: Lisner Auditorium, John Driscoll & Steve Hilmy
2014-15 MindFluctuations: Brazil residency, helmet technology (recording)
2022 LEGACY: 50 Years of Dance on the Edge: GALA, Robotic Sound Sculptures

Please review the listing at the following location (final information based on the automatic “collaborators” listing. We need, maybe to reconcile the titles..
Your help is appreciated.
http://maidadance.com/collaborators/John-Driscoll (right side when looking at the public page)

Additions by MRWithers from MaidaDance (these are probably duplicates by now)
Wesleyan Univesity Residency
WPA
TUK
Dick Higgins Poem / TIME DANCE
Gertrude Stein Poems / TIME DANCE
MASS -5^th Generation Radiator Brought to us on the Sabath!
THIN HOLES – BYU 3 week residency 1976
There were many events, did all involve MRW & or DCCo?
Thank you for your help. We can leave everything in or not.
Any photos you would like to add is great, or delete photos….anything at the Columbus Museum?

photo with sculptures John Driscoll with Robotic Sound Sculptures: LEGACY: 50 Years of Dance on the Edge, ; Live performance “Gala Celebration” October 7, 2022

Maida Withers and John Driscoll, Rainforest installation, MOMA, NYC

Contact: j.driscoll@composers-inside-electronics.net

More information:
http://composers-inside-electronics.net/jdriscoll/home/BIO.html
http://composers-inside-electronics.net/cie/cie/cie_home.html

Historic Photographs Yesterday’s Garlands & Yesterday’s Kisses, 1974

Maida Withers Dance Construction Company

Life is best lived through dance

John Driscoll

Collaborations