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The Club Foot Orchestra is a multi-faceted musical ensemble whose live performances of modern scores for silent film sparked a revival in the genre that continues today. Their innovative style creates a musical atmosphere that brings silent film into the modern era, synthesizing sounds of Eastern European music, Impressionism, Jazz Fusion, and many other styles. The New Yorker said "This is music that bubbles up from the intersection of aesthetics and the id". Their versatile instrumentation of woodwinds, brass, bowed strings, keyboard, guitar, and percussion has often been augmented by voices, string quartet, Balinese Gamelan, or kinetic sculptural machinery. They have performed at Lincoln Center, Symphony Space, The Smithsonian, World Financial Center, SF Jazz, and their home at the Castro Theater in San Francisco, among many other venues in the US, Mexico, and Canada. Founded by Richard Marriott and Beth Custer, the ensemble got its name from a performance art nightclub called the Club Foot which flourished during the 1980s in the Bayview district of San Francisco. Marriott, who lived upstairs, formed a house band that came to be called the "Club Foot Orchestra." Two albums released on Ralph Records document the music of this period: Wild Beasts and Kidnapped. Richard Marriott continues to serve as the group's creative and artistic director. The Club Foot Orchestra performs live with a variety of feature-length and short-subject silent films ranging from German Expressionist to American Comedy to Asian Dramas. They also scored and recorded 39 episodes of The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat, a CBS Saturday morning cartoon show. Their unique compositions often rely on a collaborative writing process that makes their scores both varied and cohesive. The Orchestra has been honored to have so many skilled performers and composers in its ranks. Current members Past members Guest Artists and Collaborators, Past and Present |