Jonathan Bepler

Composer Jonathan Bepler was largely self-taught on many instruments before attending Bennington College, where he focused on composition, improvisation, and performance. He employs a wide variety of musical forces, including objects and alternative instruments with performers ranging from non-musicians and children to accomplished players from classical and other traditions. His work often involves the co-mingling of seemingly disparate elements, a love of chaos, and a desire for reconciliation. He has collaborated with choreographers and filmmakers, led ensembles of improvised and pre-composed music, and created concert music for Ensemble Modern, Glenn Branca Ensemble, Basel Sinfonietta, and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. His close collaborations with artist Matthew Barney have spanned over 20 years, including 9 films and numerous performances, from The Cremaster Cycle in 1994 to the recent large-scale symphonic performance Catasterism in Three Movements (2021), featuring the Basel Sinfonietta, and the 14-channel antiphonal atmos sound score for the installation Secondary (2023).