Other Sounds: An Evening of Performances at the Clyfford Still Museum

6–6:30 p.m. Galleries open
6:30–8:30 p.m. Performances
8:30–9 p.m. Galleries open
Join the Clyfford Still Museum for an evening of experimental performances exploring the expressive possibilities of noise, texture, feedback, and sonic abstraction. Presented in conjunction with Still in Sound and developed in collaboration with Denver sound artist Ben Coleman, this program brings together artists working across experimental music, sound art, and expanded audiovisual practice to transform the Museum into a space for deep listening and new ways to see Still’s art.
Throughout the evening, performances by Adán de la Garza, Phillip David Stearns, Leah Bertrand, and Alex Nees will unfold throughout the galleries, inviting audiences to experience sound as a material with its own physical presence, emotional resonance, and capacity to reshape how we encounter space and art. Blurring the boundaries between performance, installation, and improvisation, the program highlights the richness of Denver's artistic community while fostering new dialogues between sound, image, and abstraction.
The program costs $15 for adults, $13 for seniors, and $5 for CSM members. Space is limited and advance registration is required to attend in person at the Clyfford Still Museum.
Register: https://csm.ticketapp.org/portal/product/25/event/37613663-6432-4636-8233-393530393236
Whether you're a longtime listener or entirely new to experimental sound, this evening offers an opportunity to experience the museum differently—to slow down, embrace curiosity, and discover how attentive listening can open unexpected ways of seeing.
Performance Schedule:
6:30–7 p.m. First set
7–7:10 p.m. Break and reset
7:15–7:45 p.m. Second set
7:45–7:55 p.m. Break and reset
8–8:30 p.m. Third set
More info: https://clyffordstillmuseum.org/events/other-sounds/
Performers:
Leah Bertrand is an audiovisual artist working with ecosystems, computation, and digital ephemera. She performs live as Virga Delta, bringing the energy of live electronics to the immersion of soundscape composition.
Adán de la Garza is an artist, co-conspirator, curator/programmer, and recovering academic. Usually in that order, depending on what job he’s applying for. Recent works have begun to examine the dire circumstances of late capitalism, the relationship between political and emotional stagnation, catharsis and protest, sonic warfare, and emerging futures brought about by climate change. Adán has shown all over the place and shook some hands. If you want to see proof, check out his CV here. Adán was a co-conspirator of the media arts exhibition series Nothing To See Here (2013-2016), is the sole member of the anonymous video screening series Collective Misnomer (2016 – present), smashes a lot of buttons putting on video game exhibitions with Dizzy Spell (2018 – present), and recently co-founded the citywide video art biennial Denver Month Of Video (2023-present). Originally from Tucson, Arizona, Adán is currently based in Denver, Colorado, where he hates writing in the third person.
hlao is the experimental music project of artist and musician Alexandria Nees, exploring the space between ambient, noise, and improvisation. Drawing from deep listening, texture, distortion, and the physical qualities of sound, hlao’s work moves between immersive atmospheres and more unruly, abstract forms. Her practice is rooted in a fascination with sound as an environment—something to enter, inhabit, and surrender to. Recent performances include the Niansa experimental music festival in Slovenia and opening for new age and ambient pioneer Laraaji.
Phillip David Stearns employs electronics, digital technologies, and emerging materials to give form to the intangible. His work draws from music and sound art, expanded photography, installation art, textile art, new media, and digital art. Stearns is an artist-in-residence at RedLine Contemporary Art Center and a Greene Fellowship recipient for 2024. Since earning an MFA in music from the California Institute of the Arts and a BS in music from the University of Colorado in Denver, he has taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Denver’s Emergent Digital Practices, Parsons School of Design’s Design + Technology, New York University Integrated Design & Media, New York Institute of Technology Department of Digital Art and Design, and led a seminar on the Digital Dark Age at Hochschule Düsseldorf.
Photo: Leah Bertrand, Adán de la Garza, Alex Nees, and Phillip David Stearns