We’re excited to host an evening with two of Chicago’s finest songwriters with their respective ensembles, Lindsay Anderson and Angela James!

Join us for a night of decibels and thrashing(trashing) to kick off our Pleiades Series curation in 2026 with Shrift and Trash.com!

Shrift unites the bass guitar of toxic nerd Jill Lloyd Flanagan, the vocals of local funnyman Carly Wicks, smooth sax by the large-mitted Sonia Monet and the solidly punishing beats of museum replicator Janice Lim.

Trash.com is Hedra Rowan, Alex Maerbach and Linda Sherman. Self proclaimed ‘Jock Jams for Ham Hocks’

Come for a wild time! There will be no open jam this evening, but do come out for our annual Jan Jam on January 12th!

An evening of serious play at the Improvised Music Series: vocalists Gabrielle Lochard and Julian Otis present an in-progress experimental opera project synthesizing improvisation, jazz, folk, children's songs, and spirituals; Adam Shead’s microplastique celebrates the release of its second album “Many Roads,” turning multi-instrumentalism and everything including the kitchen sink into introspective presence and a whimsical embrace of the avant-garde.

Two trios (almost alike in instrumentation), bringing unique sensibilities at the edges of jazz: loose compositions and tight improvisations by Fred Jackson Paul Giallorenzo and Bill Harris, and the Indo-Jazz fusion of the Amarkalam Project.

Unaccompanied solo upright bass courtesy of the wonderful Tyler Wagner followed by an electro-acoustic trio of guitar/laptop, violin, and bass.

Welcome to 2026! There’s a TON in store for Pleiades Series in 2026 (including a heavy rocking edition on January 30th.) But first, we jam.

Tonight’s the night for all femme/trans/non-binary artists to join us at Elastic and participate in an all-night jam session! We’ll get your name on a list and decide upon small ensembles on the spot. You can sign up by emailing pleiades@elasticarts.org or just show up. All levels of musicianship welcome! We can’t wait to see you for the 4th Annual JAN JAM!

Like an ecstatic game of telephone gone haywire, Noa Micaela Fields’ debut book E (Nightboat Books) practices mishearing as a glitchy hormonal transition of language. Join us for the book launch ritual of enjambment as embodiment as escape art: an evening of ethereal remixes, multimedia performances by collaborators, and euphoric dancing in the naughty clairvoyant loading zone. 

Regina Martinez sets the tone during a selective listening hour, followed by live performances by Maya Nguyen, Ruby Que, Noa Micaela Fields, and Barbiefoot. Stick around for a dance party with DJs girly*** and relaxxX. As Vaginal Davis decrees, “E is for epic!” 

Our first Elastro series of the year features the visiting duo of Andrea Parkins + Eliad Wagner, and a solo performance from Anne Liao. Andrea Parkins' and Eliad Wagner’s electroacoustic duo tumbles through a thicket of sonic densities, fusing sounding objects — a sliver of stone, a bell on a string, a spring in a chamber — with electronic tones, rhythms, and noise. The artists focus on gesture as a foundation for composition and improvisation — shaping their music through haptic interaction, careful listening, and the spontaneous "invention of instruments" through playful engagement with their materials. Join us Saturday January 10th!

At our first CLEAT Series of 2026 welcome solo cello/electronics artist Lia Kohl to the system for the first time, along with the return of Big Pal in collaboration with The Little Streams and series curator Stephan Moore.

We’re excited for this first time collaboration between the experimental pop band Big Pal, dance company The Little Streams, and electronic improviser Stephan Moore, who are creating multichannel and multimedia piece featuring choreography and music sequenced by card game mechanics.

Lia Kohl is no stranger to Elastic Arts, but we’re excited for her to finally bring her special blend of abstract electronics, cello, and voice to the 16 channel CLEAT system.

The Improvised Music Series kicks off 2026 with an invitation to our community of music makers! Following an opening set by the evening’s ‘house band’, a heavy-hitting quartet lead by trombonist Dan Merlo, we’ll put together rotating small sets of performers to get new sounds and connections going in the new year.

It’s that time of year — DKV Trio is back for their annual two night run here at Elastic Arts! This fantastic pairing of journeymen Chicago improvisers found its roots in the mid-1990’s and has worked actively since that time. It has become an important tradition for this group to finish out the year for us here at Elastic, so we hope you can join us for one or both of these shows.

Ken Vandermark - reeds
Kent Kessler - bass
Hamid Drake - drums

It’s that time of year — DKV Trio is back for their annual two night run here at Elastic Arts! This fantastic pairing of journeymen Chicago improvisers found its roots in the mid-1990’s and has worked actively since that time. It has become an important tradition for this group to finish out the year for us here at Elastic, so we hope you can join us for one or both of these shows.

Ken Vandermark - reeds
Kent Kessler - bass
Hamid Drake - drums

Join us for the opening reception for our new visual gallery exhibition Girlhood 2, from artists Alexa Gutierrez and Madeline Penzel.

The reception is free admission and open to all. 7pm!

A string-focused night with drummer Weasel Walter assembling a quartet with 2 violins and double bass coupled with Akjai, a quartet with violin, cello, double bass, and vocals brought in by our very own Ishmael Ali.

This month’s Pleiades features pianist Laurie Lee Moses and clarinetist Sarah Craft, first brought together at our Improv Jam and now performing as a duo. They’re followed by Heavy Tiny (Lia Kohl and Nick Meryhew), a dense miniature world of field recordings, synths, walkie-talkies, and found objects that feels bigger inside than out.  

Following the performances we’ll have our classics Pleiades Jam open to all femme/trans/non-binary performers. Bring your instrument, body, voice! Sign up at pleiades@elasticarts.org or when you arrive.

We have a very special Elastro series to close out 2025 w/ SMACT Ensemble, Yes Yes Nooky, and Giallorenzo/Jesalva/Damon!

The first Frequency Leak DRONE READ is here at Elastic Arts!

This event is intended to create an environment for listening to live ambient drone music while reading (BYOBook) and to encourage people to talk about what they are reading with friends, maybe make some new friends, or spawn a book club. Come at the beginning to read, come at the end to dance.

The space will be set with cozy reading areas and individual book lights will be provided. The evening will start with static lights and installations. Visuals and fog will be brought in after the drone read for the DJ sets.

Heliogabalus is Eric Leonardson, springboard; Lili Wosko, cello; Andy Cohn, piano; Christophe Preissing, flutes, voice, noise box; with special guest, Tatsu Aoki, shamisen. Heliogabalus, or Elagabalus in honor of the god his family worshiped, was a Roman emperor known for their extravagant and eccentric behavior. Sometimes celebrated as an example of an ancient transgender person, their brief reign acts as a prism into religion, gender and sexuality, ethnicity and racism presaging modern themes. Like Heliogabalus, the group's improvisations are unrestrained, elaborate, ornate, and excessive.

Carol Genetti and Riley Leitch will perform duo. Carol Genetti is a Chicago-based vocalist whose work encompasses sound and visual art media. Her vocal palette is primordial, existing in a space where “language” and “music” have yet to be formulated into familiar cultural patterns. Riley Leitch is a composer and performer of contemporary, creative, and freely improvised music. His practice is founded around trombone playing but extends across multiple disciplines.

8:30 Genetti/Leitch Duo

9:30 Heliogabalus wsg Tatsu Aoki

$15 / $10 w/ Student ID - Tickets Available at the Door

We gather during the holidays once again to celebrate Elastic Arts, our community, and the great things that have happened with the organization over the past year.

We'll have a few nibbles and sips, fellowship and music, warmth, comfort, joy, and a chance to become an Elastic Arts Member!

Bring anyone you love and anything you'd love to share.

‘A Defiant Echo’ is a multimedia play written and directed by Kyle Gregory Price. The premiere of this play will utilize Elastic Arts’ CLEAT sound system as well as multi-channel video. Britt Anderson, Richie Schiraldi, Kao, Surinder Martignetti, Gordon Fung and Justin Cavazos perform live with interspersed projections of Deirdre Harrison and Brian Shaw.

FFFT returns for its third iteration of sound and movement collaborations for 2025! Freedom From and Freedom To is an exploration and celebration of artistic circumstance. Movement and sound improvisors from all around Chicago gather in front of a live audience, where they are grouped by chance. Each group performs an improvised set. We fuse diverse artistic backgrounds and practices to create unique and fleeting worlds. There will be a special opening set from musicians Caitlin Edwards, Avreeayl Ra, and Yaw alongside dancers Solomon Bowser and Rahila Coats. Following we’ll have 6 x 15 minute sets from on-the-spot lottery chosen ensembles. Don’t miss this!

Shake Shook Shaken is a theater/movement workshop series produced by Julie Meckler. The series is designed for people to gently bring body awareness, allowing participants to open up, explore outside of their comfort zone, bond with each other, create and show. By playing with these concepts using our bodies, voices, words, and each other, we will explore our own awareness and sensitivity as artists and people. 

Tonight features groups lead by young improvisers in Chicago’s free music scene! Don’t call them up and coming—they’ve already more than arrived, and have the sound to prove it.

We’re pleased to host two very special CLEAT Series events in December, starting with an evening with Chicago artists Macie Stewart and Sen Morimoto!

In honor of The Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) 60TH Anniversary, legendary percussionist and Rhythm Testament founder, Carlos Pride, has curated an unforgettable performance. The AACM Percussion Ensemble, featuring world-class talents like Paul Cotton (Muntu Dance Theatre of Chicago, Don Moye’s Sun Percussion Summit & The Chicago Immigrant Orchestra under the direction of Fareed Haque), & Felix “D-Kat” Pollard (Lionel Richie, Sheila E, & Chaka Khan). These three masters span four continents including Africa, Asia, North America & South America, to create a groundbreaking fusion of rhythms and sounds. Instruments such as The African Talking Drum, Mbira, Djembe, Himalayan Singing Bowls, Cajon, Diddley Bow, Lap Steel Guitar & Roland Handsonic will weave together the vibrant traditions of the past and the innovative spirit of the present, all under the banner of Great Black Music, Ancient to the Future.

Join us to celebrate the Black Friday Record Store Day release of Power to Consume, a double-album tribute to Lou Reed's seminal Metal Machine Music. Headlining the evening is Mark Solotroff, performing in support of his contribution to this landmark release from Sony Music/Legacy Recordings. Solotroff's decades-long journey through underground music explores the depths of sound with analog synthesizers and voice, as the founder of projects like Anatomy of Habit and BLOODYMINDED. His solo work is a sonic landscape of bass-heavy synth compositions that reflect on modern themes of grief and isolation. Supporting Solotroff are three compelling Chicago-based artists. Exhumed Corpse, the solo project of Sam Dour, takes you on a slow-motion descent into subsonic dread with bleak, dark industrial soundscapes built from decaying tape loops and salvaged audio equipment. Black Triangle Badge, the solo work of audio engineer Kenny Rasmussen, crafts unpredictable soundtracks of unease that reflect a world plagued by fascism and hate. Finally, Starvation Cage will deliver a violent, percussive, and unrelenting performance, drawing from the primal brutality of combat sports and the chaos of everyday existence. Prepare for an evening of powerful, uncompromising sound.

Pianist and a Partner (Perhaps) is BACK! At this fourth edition, we have Jim Baker w/ Vincent Davis, Erez Dessel w/ Kim Alpert, Mabel Kwan w/ Ayako Kato, Nolan Chin (solo), and Sharon Udoh hosting + in duo with Chris Corsano to kick of the night. Join us at 8pm!

Re-reunion(s) is an audience lead interpretation of John Cage and Marcel Duchamp's performance reunion. Reunion was a multichannel performance where Cage and Duchamp played/performed chess matches with a chess board that was designed to operate like a sound mixer. Whenever a chess piece was moved on the board, a series of prepared sounds were remixed and rearranged within a multi-speaker system.

We welcome Florian Nastorg from Toulouse, France with a stellar quartet assembled by Hunter Diamond. .VOM opens up the night with an ambient sax /guitar duo.

In conjunction with Experimental Sound Studio and the CLEAT Series we continue our series of artist-led introduction workshops exploring spatial audio.

This week we feature Hugo Flores Garcia. More info TBA