IF 2022, a 24-hour improvised arts festival, is set to begin on Aug. 26
NEWS RELEASE
IMPROVISATIONAL INSTITUTE
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The International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation (IICSI) at the University of Guelph is thrilled to announce the third annual edition of their 24-hour improvised arts festival: IF 2022. Running online from Aug. 26-27 (ET) and featuring select live performances at the University of Guelph, this free, multi-disciplinary festival will feature improvised works by 150+ artists from all around the world.
IF 2022 features an array of world-class artists, including jazz legends William Parker and Wadada Leo Smith; internationally renowned instrumentalists Evelyn Glennie and Susan Alcorn; acclaimed poets Lorna Crozier and George Elliott Clarke; a range of the most exciting composer-performers in Canada today, including Joyful Joyful, Markus Floats, Olivia Shortt, Gordon Grdina, Anh Phung, Matthew Cardinal, Pantayo, and Sarah Pagé; and dozens of amazing international performers from 15+ countries worldwide. Partner organizations sponsoring performances include Coastal Jazz and Blues (BC), Hillside Festival (ON), 17, Institute of Critical Studies (Mexico), Lasalle College of the Arts (Singapore), the Sonic Arts Research Centre (N. Ireland), and Elysium Gallery (UK).
Curated by IICSI director Dr. Ajay Heble (founder and former artistic director of the Guelph Jazz Festival), IF 2022 will showcase a range of creators—including musicians, dancers, actors, poets, painters, filmmakers, and more — performing new, spontaneous works. Centred around the theme Towards New Futures: Improvising in Transition, IF 2022 will provide space to imagine (and re-imagine) our world, our relationships, and our communities as we emerge from the uncertainties of these tumultuous pandemic years.
IF 2022 will feature a 24-hour online stream of filmed improvisational performances (available for free at improvfest.ca) as well as a special in-person/livestreamed closing performance by Toronto-based Japanese drum ensemble Nagata Shachu at Branion Plaza (University of Guelph) at 6pm (ET) on Saturday, Aug. 27. IF 2022 is paired with a conference on festivals — Curating for Change: The Work that Music Festivals Do in the World — taking place on August 26th (9am-5pm ET, online). Learn more at the conference website.
IF 2022 is presented by IICSI, with support from Musagetes, SSHRC, the Art Gallery of Guelph, and the Government of Ontario as well as the Office of the Vice-President (Research) and the College of Arts at the University of Guelph.
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