BRYAN EUBANKS, XAVIER LOPEZ: NATURAL REALMS — MARK BALLYK, KAYLA ELROD: NAILS DRUMS

2 Duo Performances
Presented by Yellow Solo at R50
Ritterstrasse 50, 10969 Berlin
(Club room in the basement of the residential  building)

November 15, Saturday
Door opens: 8:00 pm
Starts: 8:30 pm
Donation-based admission: 10,-

Act 1: BRYAN EUBANKS & XAVIER LOPEZ – Natural Realms / approx. 30 min

Between 2014 and 2018 Bryan Eubanks and Xavier Lopez developed “Natural Realms“, an analog networked duo music based on the harmonics of random feedback, using this information to shape generative rhythms and other juxtapositions in real time. Adding soprano saxophone and percussion to the mix made what could be a stable machine system human again—a machine is not a thought—flaws and fluctuation giving life to momentary crystal time forms.

– break –

Act 2: MARK BALLYK & KAYLA ELROD – Nails Drums / approx. 30 min

In “Nails Drums,” one set of drums is shared between two performers using traditional percussive tools combined with custom-made electric nails. Mark Ballyk and Kayla Elrod improvise a mix of acoustic and amplified music, where the electric nails pick up subtle vibrations pulling delicate textures into an ASMR (Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response) nightmare. The drums establish rhythmic patterns which are distorted and interrupted by amplified noise and processing through self-made systems. It’s a mix of shrill distortion, scritch-scratch, and hypnotic rhythm. 

Bryan Eubanks (b. 1977, US) evolves his music through solo work and collaboration. Since 1999 he has participated in many short and long term projects, and regularly presents his work internationally. Continually active in a variety of contexts: improvisation; composing electronic and acoustic works for small ensembles, solo instruments, computers, and electronics; organizing and curating concerts for other artists; building electronic instruments. He currently lives in Berlin.

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTIST

Xavier Lopez is a synthesist and pianist working in the fields of improvisation and new music. His first contact with music occurred as a child, coming from a musical family. After studying classical and jazz music at Amsterdam’s conservatory, his interest shifted to experimental music, performing internationally since over a decade. He is currently based in Berlin.

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTIST

Mark Ballyk (b. 1992, CA) is a Berlin-based artist whose work thrives on risk, spontaneity, and discovery through failure. He brings raw energy and curiosity to themes of relationships, time, and technology, using his body as a dynamic medium. He studied Sound Art at UdK Berlin and Jazz Performance at The Manhattan School of Music. Mark has performed extensively across Canada, the USA, Europe, and China. He works with percussion, motors, sensors, and computers to create performances that make real-time relations between natural, urban and digital contexts.

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTIST

Kayla Elrod is an American-born, Berlin-based sound artist working with the body as an instrument for sonic inquiry. Through constructed props, wearable instruments, and performance-driven research, her work investigates how desire, labor, and waste circulate through acts of touch, movement, and listening. She holds an MA in Sound Studies and Sonic Arts from UdK Berlin and co-founded the Sonic Curiosities and LODE collectives supporting experimental FLINTA* artists. Her practice unfolds as durational performances, installations, and site-specific interventions where sound becomes a method of playful and political transformation.

FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE ARTIST

Special thanks to Maya Schweizer, Clemens von Wedemeyer and to the residents of Ritterstrasse 50.