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Randy Woolf

@randy_woolf

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Happy 1 year anniversary to “Woolf at the Door!” For anyone wondering how the artwork came to be…let’s just say jumpscare warning.
#flute #flutist #beatboxflute by @randy_woolf

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3 months ago

Some of my favourite moments from @randy_woolf’s piece “a special education” that I premiered on Friday with @compcord. I was so honoured when Randy decided to write a piece for me, and it’s the longest contemporary solo cello work I’ve ever learned; totalling 30 minutes.

Performed as part of Composers Concordance Presents
Sahara von Hattenberger - Solo Cello
June 5, 2026 at Gallery MC
Video by Vox Novus (Robert Voisey) taken in Gallery MC by @randy_woolf

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4 months ago

TONIGHT! The premiere of my new solo cello piece, "A Special Education", performed by the incredible Sahara von Hattenberger. It’s on a concert presented by my dear friends at Composers Concordance. If you cannot attend, the show will be live streamed, provided by Vox Novus, on YouTube at this link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XA-0nQfGMA0
7pm, Gallery MC549 West 52nd Street!
It’s a piece of “program music”. It depicts the mental state of an intellectually disabled person who undergoes a medical procedure that will make him very, very smart, similar to the story Flowers for Algernon. The procedure works, for a while, and then the patient gradually returns to his formed disabled state.
As many of you know, I am an opera fanatic. I think this piece is a sort of instrumental opera. Maybe monodrama is a better term. I tried to recreate the patient’s view, including their dark thoughts and fears. I resorted to all kinds of ‘extended techniques’, sound effects basically…common to many composers but new to me.
She will also perform The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo 'Cello, Op. 35 by George N. Gianopoulos and Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker.
(Commissioned by Heidi Latsky Dance and NYSCA.)
More info below:
New York, NY — Composers Concordance continues its commitment to adventurous new music with a compelling solo cello performance by Sahara von Hattenberger on Friday, June 5 at 7:00 PM at Gallery MC.

The program will include:
A Special Education by Randall Woolf — a striking and thought-provoking work based on the story "Flowers For Algernon, made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. by @randy_woolf

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4 months ago

Hi everyone
I wanted to tell you about a new work of mine, A Special Education, written for the amazing cellist Sahara von Hattenberger, commissioned by Heidi Latsky Dance and NYSCA. A Special Education. It’s on a concert presented by my dear friends at Composers Concordance.
It’s a piece of “program music”. It depicts the mental state of an intellectually disabled person who undergoes a medical procedure that will make him very, very smart, similar to the story Flowers for Algernon. The procedure works, for a while, and then the patient gradually returns to his formed disabled state.
As many of you know, I am an opera fanatic. I think this piece is a sort of instrumental opera. Maybe monodrama is a better term. I tried to recreate the patient’s view, including their dark thoughts and fears. I resorted to all kinds of ‘extended techniques’, sound effects basically…common to many composers but new to me.

The piece will be choreographed eventually, but this performance will just be Sahara. She will also perform The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo 'Cello, Op. 35 by George N. Gianopoulos and Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker.

The concert is Friday, June 5, 2026 at 7pm, Gallery MC549 West 52nd Street. Hope you can make it!

Best, Randy

Composers Concordance presents an evening of contemporary solo cello music featuring acclaimed performer Sahara von Hattenberger. The concert highlights adventurous new works that explore storytelling, theatricality, and expanded cello technique.
The program includes:
A Special Education by Randall Woolf — inspired by Flowers for Algernon
The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo Cello by George N. Gianopoulos
Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker
The concert will also be livestreamed via the Composers Concordance Facebook page.
Event Details
Concert: Sahara von Hattenberger – Solo Cello Date: Friday, June 5, 2026 Time: 7pm Venue: Gallery MC, 549 West 52nd Street Tickets: $20 advance / $30 door
Founded in 1984, Composers Concordance is a long-running New York organization dedicated to innovative contemporary music programming and the promotion of living composers. by @randy_woolf

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4 months ago

Hi everyone
I wanted to tell you about a new work of mine, A Special Education, written for the amazing cellist Sahara von Hattenberger, commissioned by Heidi Latsky Dance and NYSCA. A Special Education. It’s on a concert presented by my dear friends at Composers Concordance.
It’s a piece of “program music”. It depicts the mental state of an intellectually disabled person who undergoes a medical procedure that will make him very, very smart, similar to the story Flowers for Algernon. The procedure works, for a while, and then the patient gradually returns to his formed disabled state.
As many of you know, I am an opera fanatic. I think this piece is a sort of instrumental opera. Maybe monodrama is a better term. I tried to recreate the patient’s view, including their dark thoughts and fears. I resorted to all kinds of ‘extended techniques’, sound effects basically…common to many composers but new to me.

The piece will be choreographed eventually, but this performance will just be Sahara. She will also perform The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo 'Cello, Op. 35 by George N. Gianopoulos and Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker.

The concert is Friday, June 5, 2026 at 7pm, Gallery MC549 West 52nd Street. Hope you can make it!

Best, Randy

Composers Concordance presents an evening of contemporary solo cello music featuring acclaimed performer Sahara von Hattenberger. The concert highlights adventurous new works that explore storytelling, theatricality, and expanded cello technique.
The program includes:
A Special Education by Randall Woolf — inspired by Flowers for Algernon
The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo Cello by George N. Gianopoulos
Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker
The concert will also be livestreamed via the Composers Concordance Facebook page.
Event Details
Concert: Sahara von Hattenberger – Solo Cello Date: Friday, June 5, 2026 Time: 7pm Venue: Gallery MC, 549 West 52nd Street Tickets: $20 advance / $30 door
Founded in 1984, Composers Concordance is a long-running New York organization dedicated to innovative contemporary music programming and the promotion of living composers. by @randy_woolf

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5 months ago

Hi everyone
I wanted to tell you about a new work of mine, A Special Education, written for the amazing cellist Sahara von Hattenberger, commissioned by Heidi Latsky Dance and NYSCA. A Special Education. It’s on a concert presented by my dear friends at Composers Concordance.
It’s a piece of “program music”. It depicts the mental state of an intellectually disabled person who undergoes a medical procedure that will make him very, very smart, similar to the story Flowers for Algernon. The procedure works, for a while, and then the patient gradually returns to his formed disabled state.
As many of you know, I am an opera fanatic. I think this piece is a sort of instrumental opera. Maybe monodrama is a better term. I tried to recreate the patient’s view, including their dark thoughts and fears. I resorted to all kinds of ‘extended techniques’, sound effects basically…common to many composers but new to me.

The piece will be choreographed eventually, but this performance will just be Sahara. She will also perform The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo 'Cello, Op. 35 by George N. Gianopoulos and Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker.

The concert is Friday, June 5, 2026 at 7pm, Gallery MC549 West 52nd Street. Hope you can make it!

Best, Randy

Composers Concordance presents an evening of contemporary solo cello music featuring acclaimed performer Sahara von Hattenberger. The concert highlights adventurous new works that explore storytelling, theatricality, and expanded cello technique.
The program includes:
A Special Education by Randall Woolf — inspired by Flowers for Algernon
The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo Cello by George N. Gianopoulos
Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker
The concert will also be livestreamed via the Composers Concordance Facebook page.
Event Details
Concert: Sahara von Hattenberger – Solo Cello Date: Friday, June 5, 2026 Time: 7pm Venue: Gallery MC, 549 West 52nd Street Tickets: $20 advance / $30 door
Founded in 1984, Composers Concordance is a long-running New York organization dedicated to innovative contemporary music programming and the promotion of living composers. by @randy_woolf

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5 months ago

Hi everyone
I wanted to tell you about a new work of mine, A Special Education, written for the amazing cellist Sahara von Hattenberger, commissioned by Heidi Latsky Dance and NYSCA. A Special Education. It’s on a concert presented by my dear friends at Composers Concordance.
It’s a piece of “program music”. It depicts the mental state of an intellectually disabled person who undergoes a medical procedure that will make him very, very smart, similar to the story Flowers for Algernon. The procedure works, for a while, and then the patient gradually returns to his formed disabled state.
As many of you know, I am an opera fanatic. I think this piece is a sort of instrumental opera. Maybe monodrama is a better term. I tried to recreate the patient’s view, including their dark thoughts and fears. I resorted to all kinds of ‘extended techniques’, sound effects basically…common to many composers but new to me.

The piece will be choreographed eventually, but this performance will just be Sahara. She will also perform The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo 'Cello, Op. 35 by George N. Gianopoulos and Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker.

The concert is Friday, June 5, 2026 at 7pm, Gallery MC549 West 52nd Street. Hope you can make it!

Best, Randy

Composers Concordance presents an evening of contemporary solo cello music featuring acclaimed performer Sahara von Hattenberger. The concert highlights adventurous new works that explore storytelling, theatricality, and expanded cello technique.
The program includes:
A Special Education by Randall Woolf — inspired by Flowers for Algernon
The Circadian Calendar, Book Two for Solo Cello by George N. Gianopoulos
Holy Human Stupidity, Batman by Gene Pritsker
The concert will also be livestreamed via the Composers Concordance Facebook page.
Event Details
Concert: Sahara von Hattenberger – Solo Cello Date: Friday, June 5, 2026 Time: 7pm Venue: Gallery MC, 549 West 52nd Street Tickets: $20 advance / $30 door
Founded in 1984, Composers Concordance is a long-running New York organization dedicated to innovative contemporary music programming and the promotion of living composers. by @randy_woolf

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5 months ago

Street art we saw in Vila Madalena, São Paulo. Street art and graffiti are seen all over town, giant works on the sides of tall buildings too. by @randy_woolf

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8 months ago

Us and the 'new kids on the bloco', Carnaval in São Paulo. Amazing amazing people and city.. A bloco is one the parades for Carnaval. There are 630 of them. This one had around 30,000 people, like a mobile rave, with a gigantic bus with a live band providing the tunes. by @randy_woolf

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8 months ago

In the continuing saga of the YES-NO-YES-NO nature of life, I have good news and bad news!

BAD NEWS FIRST! The world is still on fire!

BUT NOW THE GOOD NEWS! I have just been awarded a grant from @regionalarts to brandish art all up in the face of every last bit of the BS masquerading as current events!

This RACC grant supports a reboot of the show I produced last summer with luminaries like @kathyexploding, @bonniemiksch, @randy_woolf and @cellochaplin (all of whom will be joining again!) entitled "The Female Gaze: Women and Allies Petrify the Patriarchy" at PSU's Lincoln Hall in April!

This little clip is from the world premiere of my piece "Rant" (for voice, piano and martini) from way back in 2021, when my drag better half, Tartie FaLouze, burst fully-bedazzled into this world with the performances of "Fierce, Fabulous, and Fully Coiffed" at the Clinton Street Theater in PDX.

It's funny to look back at this and realize how relatively tame it was. Hahaha, in those glory days when we still had Roe v. Wade. Hahaha, in that rosy time when the patriarchy seemed like the primary thing we all had to smash.

Tartie has had to up her game with every subsequent performance (some of them ALSO supported by RACC!!!) to keep up with the avalanche of crap (crapalanche) that has been doing nothing but gaining momentum since.

Thanks to RACC, Tartie gets to ride again at "The Female Gaze", along with the many other fabulous, heartbreaking, hysterical, and faith-restoring things on this show.

April 11, 2026: save the date!!

#drag
#rant
#newmusic
#smashthepatriarchy
#womensrightsarehumanrights
#enoughsequinscansavetheworld by @randy_woolf

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9 months ago

Friday, Jan. 2nd, 2026 at 7pm, ShapeShifter Lab, (see below) 837 Union St, Brooklyn, Sahara von Hattenbergerand Jo Kang will play "Mechanical Dolls", a cello piece of mine from 25 years ago...rarely played, and very demanding to play, as well as works by Andrea Casarrubios, Gene Pritsker, and Fazıl Say. They are sharing the bill with Gene Pritsker's amazing Sound Liberation ensemble. Let's all show Gene we can get a big crowd in Brooklyn!

https://www.facebook.com/events/784356734654825/ by @randy_woolf

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10 months ago

Friday, Jan. 2nd, 2026 at 7pm, ShapeShifter Lab, 837 Union St, Brooklyn, Sahara von Hattenbergerand Jo Kang will play "Mechanical Dolls", a cello piece of mine from 25 years ago...rarely played, and very demanding to play, as well as works by Andrea Casarrubios, Gene Pritsker, and Fazıl Say. They are sharing the bill with Gene Pritsker's amazing Sound Liberation ensemble. Let's all show Gene we can get a big crowd in Brooklyn!
Image by ChatGPT
https://www.facebook.com/events/784356734654825/ by @randy_woolf

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10 months ago