Today, the blog’s turning its attention to the Bang on a Can Marathon, taking place Sunday from 2:00 pm to midnight at World Cafe Live. Philadelphia’s no stranger to adventurous music, with organizations like Relache, Ars Nova, and Bowerbird making the city a hotbed of musical innovation. Tomorrow’s marathon is a celebration of all things new and adventurous in music, and of musical community, and your ticket lets you come and go all day long. For details and tickets, click here.

So, what to expect? Let’s allow the press to speak for us:

>>>David Patrick Stearns in the Inquirer: “Staying for the whole thing is a point of honor in some circles, an act of immersion for others, and a defiance of practicality for all – particularly those producing the event. Sets range in length from 12 minutes to an hour, meaning that 100 or so musicians will be trooping in and out of the cozy World Cafe Live.”

>>>Philadelphia Weekly: “For 10 hours, BOAC will challenge the hurried pace and soundtrack of our lives and provide a glimpse at a community founded on the power of music.”

>>>City Paper: “BoaC is an all-you-can-hear buffet of the outré, from new music to experimental noise to free jazz and various incestuous hybrids thereof.”

>>>Introducing an interview with co-founder Julia Wolfe on Phawker. Dave Allen writes: “In 27 years, Bang on a Can has become something of a towering figure in contemporary music, but its founders continue to innovate, even as accolades come their way as if drawn by a powerful magnet.”

>>>A wonderful feature on Bang on a Can—and why it matters—on the Philadelphia Music Project blog. You can also hear an interview with members of the Sun Ra Arkestra, who will perform at the marathon, here.

I’ll see you there! It’ll be bangin’. (I kill me.)

–Nicholas Gilewicz

Photo by Christine Southworth.