Union Duo

Mead Witter School of Music Faculty Artist Series. $15 (students free, but tickets required).

media release: Todd Hammes and Anthony Di Sanza make up Union Duo, a percussion duo that has performed together in a variety of settings since 2007. They officially became Union Duo in 2020.

The duo is innovative and imaginative—both with their sounds and with the instruments they use to produce them. In their pieces, everyday objects can become drums, or items might be placed on top of a set of bells to dull the sound of them. The storytelling and improvisation techniques employed by the duo are always surprising, yet their ability to maintain complete synchronicity is truly stunning. Union Duo’s pieces span the gamut of emotionality—from jubilant and daring to ethereal and haunting.

And you never quite know where their music will take you. In their newest project, Tubes and More, you’ll find yourself transported to the forest in a piece called “Singing with Bugs,” a meditative and otherworldly six-minute bell solo set amid the pulsing sounds of nighttime flora and fauna. Yet another piece pays an homage to the English progressive rock band King Crimson. Anthony Di Sanza and Todd Hammes masterfully pull from their influences—a blend of classical, world, and improvisational styles—to create a singular sound.