CURRENT COMPOSITION PROJECTS – 2019
SOON/ NOW/ GONE a sight specific audio visual collaboration with Philadelphia artist Erik Ruin commissioned by Mural Arts Philadelphia for their Sight/Sound: Revealing the Rail Park festival, October 2019
Commission for classical composition using invented instruments by Neil Feather for NZs premiere contemporary classical ensemble STROMA, premieres July 2020
Subterranean Nightmare commissioned by the Pyramid Club for their 2019 Festival. This hour long composition was written specifically for some of NZ’s most magnificent and powerful weirdo musicians. Premiered May 3rd, 2019.
Commission for Taonga Puoro and flutes for Al Fraser and Bridget Douglas, Wellington, NZ
New ballet collaboration for BalletX with Tara Middleton and choreographer Matthew Neenan, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Lucid DreamBike – “There Are Other Worlds They Have Not Told You Of…”
A performance where the audience is on bikes and the performers are spread throughout the city, set up in secret places, the audience ride around in a group.
“Through their alchemical pursuits, Lucid DreamBike have stumbled upon a very rare astrological alignment that will make visible – for 3 nights only – realms of mysterious splendour, terrains of surprise and delight.”
Wellington Fringe Festival 2019
SELECTED RECENT COLLABORATIONS – 2018
Collaboration with Guggenheim fellow Neil Feather on album: ‘Popular Organ Fun Party’, music for invented instruments and theatre organ, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Friction String Quartet Commission Occulmente Premiered March 22nd, 2018. Commissioned by Marc Machiz and presented by Bowerbird, in Philadelphia, PA, USA
Composer and performer for Rock-A-Bye with choreographer Penny Saunders and BalletX, Premiered July 2018 in Philadelphia, PA, USA
SELECTED PAST COLLABORATIONS and COMPOSITION PROJECTS
2018 . META with choreographer/performers Jandyra Maciel and Sophie Follett, presented by the Hawkes Bay Arts Festival
2017 Composer and performer for The Hooligan and the Lady, a play by Pauline Hayes, presented by the Hawke’s Bay Arts Festival
2017 Collaborating Composer and performer for a week of creative development for a new theatrical production for children called ‘The Dead Letter Office’. Led by Jen McArthur in Wellington
2016 Piano/Fender Rhodes with the Jim Langabeer Sextet, for the album ‘Secret Islands’, recorded at the Kenneth Mayer Centre, Auckland. Released 2017 on Rattle Records
2014 ‘Sunset o639 Hours’ a full-length (70min) work for contemporary classical ballet created in collaboration with BalletX and choreographer Matthew Neenan. Premiered 2014 at the WILMA Theater, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Subsequent performances at Vail International Dance Festival, Vail, CO, The Joyce Theater Ballet Festival, New York, NY, 2015 and Jacobs Pillow Dance Festival, MA, 2016.
2011 ‘Twelfth Night’ Shakespeare with a live original Eastern European inspired score, in collaboration with Pig Iron Theatre Company. Premiered 2011 at the Suzanne Roberts, Philadelphia PA. Subsequent performances at Fringe Arts, Philadelphia and a season at the Abrons Arts Centre, New York, NY
2011 ‘Proliferation of the Imagination’ an interdisciplinary full-length work for contemporary classical ballet, two actors and three musicians, created in collaboration with BalletX, the WILMA Theater and choreographer Matthew Neenan. Premiered in the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts, 2011, Phila. PA. USA
2003 – 2010 The Zirkus Big Band, an award winning ten to sixteen piece experimental jazz ensemble formed to perform my compositions. With support from Creative New Zealand, Zirkus performed throughout NZ, on national television, recorded albums and won best music awards.
HONOURS, AWARDS, COMMISSIONS, RESIDENCIES
2015
Sundance Theatre Lab Fellow, two week residency at Mass. MoCA, USA
Six-week teaching residency ‘Music Matters’ music school. Colombo, Sri Lanka
2014
Commission; ‘Occulmente’ for Friction String Quartet, San Francisco, CA
2013
Creative New Zealand Arts Grant
First Place Winner, Philadelphia Mummers Parade, Comics Division – with the Rabble Rousers
2012
Bowerbird Sound Sculpture Commission, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Barrymore Theatre Award ‘Outstanding Original Music’, Philadelphia, PA
Barrymore Theatre Award ‘Outstanding Music Direction’, Philadelphia, PA
2009 SOUNZ Community Commission
2008 Chapman Tripp Award for best music (performer)
2007 Creative New Zealand Arts Grant
2006 Best Theatre Award Dunedin Fringe Festival
Best Music Award Wellington Fringe Festival
2005 CNZ Creative Communities Grant
2003 Honours Scholarship, Massey University, Wellington, NZ (offered).
SELECTED PERFORMANCES
2017 Dr Geeklove – Song time in the Spiegeltent with special guests Neil Watson and Anton Wuts. Created for and produced by the Hawke’s Bay Arts Festival, NZ. https://thehook2017.wordpress.com/2017/10/04/dr-geeklove/
2016
High Zero Festival, Baltimore, MD, USA
Jacobs Pillow Dance Festival, Massachusetts, USA
Visiting lecturer at Swarthmore College, Department of Music & Dance, PA
2015
Eyes Out improvised music trio Osaka tour, Japan
Joyce Theater Ballet Festival, NY, USA
Vail International Dance Festival. CO, USA
Black Rainbow Concert Series at Te Uru Gallery, Auckland, NZ
2014 Nowhere Festival, Audio Foundation, Auckland, NZ
2013 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts, PA, USA
2012 Cage: Beyond Silence, Bowerbird Festival, performance of Organ 2 by John Cage, USA
2011
New Orleans Fringe Festival, LA, USA
Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts, PA, USA
Philadelphia Live Arts Festival, PA, USA
2010
Pig Iron Theatre Company, La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego, CA, USA
Generación Espontánea – National School of Music, Mexico City, Mexico
OTHER MUSICAL OUTPUT
Albums
2017 Choice – by Totally Super Pregnant; with Mark McCloughan, USA
2015 Super Meow by Super Meow, Colombo, Sri Lanka
2015 Magic Love Mirrors by the Magic Love Mirrors, Colombo, Sri Lanka
2014 Sunset o639 Hours – by The Sunset Club; with Andrew Mars, Josh Machiz and Isaac Stanford, USA
2012 The Twilight Zone – by Kate Porter and Rosie Langabeer, USA
2011 Strange Satie – by Strange Satie; Josh Machiz, Jesse Sparhawk, USA
2010 Sirius Music – by Zirkus Big Band – released on iiii, NZ
2005 Zirkus – by Zirkus, NZ
Scores for Theare/Dance/Circus/Interdisciplinary performance
2014 The Stairwell Symphony – No Face Performance Group, USA
2013 Hand of Gaul – Inis Nua Theater Company, USA
2011 SEED – Subcircle Dance Theater, Philadelphia, PA, USA
2010 Cankerblossom – Pig Iron Theatre Company, USA
2008 – 2010 Adagio – Awkward Productions NZ
2006 The Nature of Wishing – Alyx Duncan, NZ
SELECTED PRESS
2017 Adams, Geoff, “Secret Islands. Jim Langabeer (Composer and tenor saxophone, flutes and putorino. Rattle CD”. Otago Daily Times Nov, 27, 2017 https://www.odt.co.nz/entertainment/music/classics-november-24
Fitzgerald, Rosheen, “Dr Geeklove”, The Hook, October 4, 2017 https://thehook2017.wordpress.com/2017/10/04/dr-geeklove/
2016 Fenton, John, “Jim Langabeer – Sketches of Aotearoa”, JazzLocal32.com, April 26,2016 https://jazzlocal32.com/2016/04/26/jim-langaber-sketches-of-aotearoa/
2015 Seibert, Brian, “Matthew Neenan of BalletX Nears The Stratosphere”, The New York Times August 6, 2015 https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/09/arts/dance/the-choreographer-matthew-neenan-of-balletx-nears-the-stratosphere.html
Burke, Siobhan, “’Sunset o639 Hours’ by BalletX at the Joyce Theater”, The New York Times, August 12, 2015 https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/13/arts/dance/review-sunset-o639-hours-by-balletx-at-the-joyce-theater.html
2014 Genzlinger, Neil, “Don’t Mess With Malvolio”, The New York Times, Feb 16, 2014 https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/17/theater/within-twelfth-night-a-delirious-one-man-show.html
Stewart, Zachary, “Twelfth Night”, Theatermania, New York City, Feb 7, 2014 http://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/reviews/02-2014/twelfth-night_67461.html