October 9, 2021: Blues Unions at the Modern

Sounds Modern presents Blues Unions: music to celebrate the art of Sean Scully, at 2:00 pm on Saturday, October 9, in the auditorium of the Fort Worth Modern Art Museum, and streaming online.


Dedicated to abstract visual art, Sean Scully was also deeply involved with the tropes of American blues music: he owned and ran a blues club in London, and was in a blues band with his brother. Describing his artwork, Scully described his use of “insets” and other disruptions of the traditional frame of a painting as “pictorial … but it also completely vandalizes the idea of the picture plane … so everything’s getting cannibalized and remade into something else. It’s in constant movement.” His words also capture the spirit of composers George Lewis, Anthony Davis, Julius Hemphill, David Sanford, and others who have vandalized the musical plane of the blues, creating inventions and perspectives that remake it into something else, leading listeners into unexpected worlds of possibility.

The concert will feature performances by flutist and Sounds Modern director Elizabeth McNutt, clarinetist Kimberly Cole Luevano, soprano Molly Fillmore, violinists Mia Detwiler and Andrew May, violist Kathleen Crabtree, cellist Kourtney Newton, pianist Willem van Schalkwyk, percussionist Christopher Teal, and conductor Joseph Klein.

Admission is free and open to the public, but in-person seating is limited; please reserve your free ticket by calling (817) 840-2154, as seats will be made available on a first-come first-served basis. Masks or face coverings are required inside and must be worn at all times during the program. Seats in the auditorium will be spaced to maintain social distancing for the safety of you and the other patrons. If you are unable to get a ticket, or find these restrictions burdensome, don’t worry: you can still watch the live stream!