Two Double Bassists improvising with two dancers
IMPROVISATION QUARTET is the meeting of dancers Benjamin Cheney, Yali Rivlin (also saxophone), and double bassists Betsy Soukup and Paul Erhard in a space of connection and communication through improvisation. Coming together for the first time in May 2024, there was an instant recognition of the depth and freshness of the four’s artistic communication. Benjamin and Yali have a special connection as improvisors since they first met in 2023, a synergy of two who speak the same language of improvisation in dance. Recognizing the uniqueness of their artistic rapport, renowned dancer/choreographer Peter Sparling has created and video recorded pieces for the duo. Betsy has worked extensively improvising with a Brooklyn NY based dancer. Paul and Yali have been exploring bass and dance since 2020. Betsy and Paul’s styles of improvising complement each other in intriguing ways as the two respond to the movements of Ben and Yali and musically to each other as their rhythmic and melodic lines intertwine. The dynamic of these four artists creates a playing field where the four are participating as equal voices. Improvisation Quartet is about dance and music happening together in the space, the four musical and movement voices weaving in and out of each other with spontaneity and imaginative energy. When Yali leaves the dance floor to pick up his saxophone, the saxophone/2-bass trio creates carpets of sound that carry Ben.
BENJAMIN CHENEY is a performer and designer from Northern Michigan. He is the founder and Artistic Director of The Croft Residency, founded in 2018. His personal dance practice centers on moving meditation, with a focus on somatic, intentional, and metaphoric improvisational movement. He uses the tools of Body Mind Centering (BMC) and the Tamalpa Life Art Process (TLAP) as lenses and languages to engage in his explorations and facilitations. He is a level 2 Graduate from Tamalpa and has completed the BMC SME (Somatic Movement Educator) courses. His performance experience includes the New York premier of Bienvenue, with Company SBB in New York in May 2017, The Nutcracker with Crooked Tree School of Ballet in 2018, and a performance at Mass MoCA with Dance The Yard on Valentine’s Day 2019. He worked at The Yard as the Production associate, in 2016, facilitating the onsite needs of incoming artists in residence for performance. He was also an artist educator while at the yard, facilitating classes in schools, senior homes, and at community venues.
BETSY SOUKUP is a bassist, composer, improvisor, and actor living in northern Michigan. She studied classical music for seventeen years, but currently focuses her creative energy on playing freely improvised music, writing and performing her own compositions, writing poetry, and performing comedy improv.
