A Deep and Jazzy Marching Flash Mob (original) (raw)

Performance Thu Dec 23 2010

Cauleen Smith, a San-Diego-based artist who has been picked up by Threewalls residency program, is in the process of trying to fund her experimental film and LP project, The Solar Flare Arkestral Marching Band. Basically, this is a marching band flash mob made up of musicians of all ages that appears in different locations around Chicago, gingerly plays a Sun Ra song and then scatters. What's better than that? According to Smith's mission statement, "The Solar Flare Arkestral Marching Band brings many Chicago communities together to interrupt ordinary life in the city with fleeting ecstatic moments of visual and aural incongruence."

This project is part of a larger series Smith is working on, examining the influence black musicians have had on popular culture. She is making one film for each city where African-American culture and innovation has had the most substantial influence-- New Orleans, Kansas City, St. Louis, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, and New York.

Sun Ra, being from Chicago, was a natural fit for the Chicago film.

"Sun Ra's remarkable period of gestation and self-actualization in Chicago is a model for every creative person who wants to transcend the boundaries of their craft and confines of everyday life," wrote Smith in her statement.

If your interest is piqued, visit the projects' Kickstarter page for details.