Colleen + Sally Decker and Briana Marela

The compositions of Colleen, aka multi-instrumentalist Cécile Schott, are as richly varied as they are precise. Each of Colleen’s albums is shaped by her predetermined distinct instrumentation and parameters, including works composed entirely of music boxes, pocket synthesizers, and baroque stringed instruments. The connective essence of Schott’s music is in her ability to create pieces within specificity that are both transcendently expansive and imbued with profound emotions. Libres antes del final is an album that reaches for the hope and desire to be truly freed from unnecessary suffering and harmful thoughts before reaching the end of one’s life cycle. Sally Decker and Briana Marela perform and compose as a collaborative duo, drawing from their solo practices to create work inspired and initiated from the trust forged through their friendship. With an emphasis on voice, text, and improvisational textural soundscapes, they seek connection to healing oneself and others through their work with sound. Their debut album Small Tremble in Slow Motion was released on Surface World in 2022, and explores the expansive possibilities of being present with oneself within experiences of deep emotional contraction such as grief and loss.