Ben Zucker makes “stirring compositions…built on a lifetime of musical curiosity” (Chicago Reader). As an intentionally wide-ranging composer/performer, he has contributed to experimental scenes across North America and Europe. Performance highlights include working with musicians including Anthony Braxton, Gareth Davis, Myra Melford, Karen Borca, Vocal Constructivists, Rinde Eckert, and the San Francisco Choral Artists, amongst frequent appearances as an ensemble contributor, and bandleader of experimental jazz quartet Fifth Season and creative music collective Mad Myth Science. Their compositions have received awards and performances by ensembles including the Mivos Quartet, Los Angeles Percussion Quartet, Khorikos, Ensemble Dal Niente, and Chicago Composers Orchestra, and appeared at DOCNYC, the Darmstadt Fereinkurse, Steppenwolf Theater, Trinity College Dublin, Nordic Percussion Festival, Ostrava New Music Days, and Ear Taxi Festival. He has been acclaimed as a “master of improvisation” (IMPOSE Magazine) and “more than a little bit remarkable” (Free Jazz Blog) for solo albums combining brass, percussion, voice, and electronics, released on labels including Whitelabelrecs, Dinzu Artefacts, ears&eyes records, Shimmering Moods Records, and Amalgam. They currently live in Chicago, working as doctoral student at Northwestern University, student labor organizer, Vice President of New Music Chicago, and as varied and caffeinated a freelance life as possible.

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