Colleen's music is rooted in her innovative approach to the Baroque instrument, the viola da gamba. (© Iker Spozio)
On her new album, Colleen, whose real name is Cécile Schott, pushes the boundaries of the playability of the viola da gamba by using it “as a percussion instrument to create impressively rich, dub-inflected basslines,” writes Matthew Murphy of Pitchfork.
Shortly after the release of her album on Thrill Jockey Records, Colleen debuted a music video for the title track. Created in collaboration with visual artist Naoko Tanaka, the video is a mesmerizing play with blue-hued lights and shadows.
“I knew that the lyrics, which deal with the human brain and heart, would need to be illustrated in a non-figurative way, one that would hopefully preserve the sense of mystery that is at the heart of the song,” Schott told AdHoc’s Max Burke.
Colleen is the final artist to perform in the 2014 - 2015 season of Resonance, the Exploratorium’s music series. An art-meets-innovation program, Resonance draws contemporary musicians and sound artists working in unusual ways. It is curated by Exploratorium staff artist Wayne Grim.