Free performance at Albany Institute of History & Art, open to the public, caps yearlong series held at a dozen libraries in Albany County, supported by a community arts grant from the Albany County Arts and Culture program
ALBANY, NY – The Arch Stanton Quartet will conclude its yearlong music-and-spoken-word series “Exploring the Sheltering Sky: The Music and Words of Paul Bowles” with a free public performance on June 19 at the Albany Institute of History & Art. The performance begins at 12:30 p.m.
“Exploring the Sheltering Sky” debuted in October 2025 and has been performed at a dozen libraries for hundreds of patrons who have been transported to the world of Paul Bowles’ writing and music. The series has been generously supported by a community arts grant from the Albany County Arts and Culture program, coordinated by Advance Albany County Alliance.
“Thanks to the Albany County Arts and Culture program, we’ve been able to bring this series, free of charge, to a dozen libraries in rural, urban and suburban communities alike,” said ASQ drummer James Ketterer. “On June 19 we are thrilled to cap our year of performances at the magnificent Albany Institute of History & Art, where the grant award was first announced.”
“The Sheltering Sky” by Paul Bowles is a richly layered novel, set in Post-WWII North Africa, exploring themes of despair and estrangement. In addition to his writing, Bowles was an accomplished composer, who studied with the likes of Aaron Copeland and Virgil Thomson. This complement of literary and musical output presented the Arch Stanton Quartet with a body of references that they have woven together into a cohesive artistic experience, conceived by ASQ drummer James Ketterer.
The program features reinterpretations of Bowles’ compositions, including piano duets and avant-garde lyric songs, adapted into the unique musical worldview of the Arch Stanton Quartet. The performance also includes readings and reflections from Bowles’ written work, accompanied by original music compositions from each ASQ band member, inspired by textual or cultural cues that resonate with Bowles’ music and literary world.
“Our intention with this program is to take the listener on an immersive experience that integrates music, word, culture, and landscape imagery, all the while following a narrative arc,” said ASQ trumpeter and flugelhornist Terry Gordon. “In many ways, the band has experienced a similar creative arc, as we have developed the material and seen it evolve through deeper creative interplay between the music, the words, North African culture, and each other.”
“The band took a real workshop approach to arranging this suite of music while striving to stay true to the original spirit of each composition,” said ASQ bassist Chris Macchia. “While we may have taken Bowles’ music into different harmonic or rhythmic directions, the arrangements kept Bowles’ original melodic themes and motifs fundamentally intact, while our own original compositions for the suite allowed each of us to explore concepts based on the mood or tone of Bowles’ evocative writing style.”
“Music and literature have a unique way of helping us understand ourselves,” said ASQ guitarist Roger Noyes. “Audiences have connected with this project in deeply personal ways. One attendee told us the performance helped her understand why her father felt compelled to return to North Africa for the last time in life – a sentiment expressed by Bowles, who referred to the magnetic effect of the Sahara as a ‘baptism of solitude.’”
Longtime fixtures of the Capital Region jazz scene, ASQ performs original jazz that is experimental yet rooted in bop and post-bop traditions. The band’s debut album, Along For The Ride, was released in November 2012 on WEPA Records. In March 2013, ASQ embarked on an exploration of its own in North Africa. The band’s jazz-diplomacy tour of Egypt included performances and workshops sponsored by the educational organization AMIDEAST, the U.S. Embassy Cairo, and the Center for American Studies at the American University in Cairo. That experience inspired a second album of original compositions, Blues For Soli, and its “Lady Egypt” suite, also released on WEPA Records.
ASQ is no stranger to literary explorations, having also composed and performed a suite of music and readings inspired by Ralph Ellison’s 1952 novel “Invisible Man.”
Learn more about “Exploring the Sheltering Sky” and past performances of the suite on the Arch Stanton Quartet website where you can also find a YouTube playlist for the program.
The Arch Stanton Quartet is James Ketterer on drums, Terry Gordon on horns, Chris Macchia on bass and Roger Noyes on guitar. Learn more about the Arch Stanton Quartet at www.archstantonjazz.com. Listen to their music on Bandcamp, Spotify or Apple Music. Follow ASQ on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
What: “Exploring the Sheltering Sky: The Music and Words of Paul Bowles” finale performance
When: June 19, 12:30-2 p.m.
Where: Albany Institute of History & Art
Admission: Free and open to the public
“Exploring the Sheltering Sky” Program at a Glance
“Cross Country,” by Paul Bowles, arranged by the Arch Stanton Quartet
Spoken text from “The Sheltering Sky,” music by Chris Macchia
“April Fool Baby,” by Paul Bowles, arrangement by the Arch Stanton Quartet
Spoken text from “Their Heads Are Green and Their Hands Are Blue,” music by Roger Noyes
“Nocturne,” by Paul Bowles, arranged by the Arch Stanton Quartet
“Mumkin,” music by James Ketterer
Spoken text from “The Sheltering Sky,” music by Terry Gordon
“Tea in the Sahara,” by Sting/The Police
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Contact:
Roger Noyes
(518) 275-6961
rlnoyes@gmail.com