the album by patchtax

It’s the end of July 2015. The summer has been hot and humid, with little rainfall. Eve Boltax, Kevin Laba, and Elizabeth Epsen depart from Boston in a 2002 Toyota Camry. They arrive in Lenox, Massachusetts late in the evening. The next day, they pick up Mary Joy Patchett after her performance at Tanglewood, and depart for Vermont. The patchtax tour begins.

The first couple of days are spent in a beautiful home on the banks of the Mad River in Moretown, Vermont. Here, the duo reworks and polishes their concert program, and has valuable rehearsal and choreography time with dancer, Elizabeth Epsen. Sunny outdoor filming sessions, rainy afternoons, cold water river swims and al fresco dining fills their first days on tour. On July 26, they head to Burlington, Vermont for their first performance at Feldman's Bagel Shop. Here, unexpecting bagel and coffee consumers listen to and watch patchtax's multi-disciplinary display of movement and music. Kevin Laba, composer and sound engineer, declares after the show, “It’s a scorcher!”, which leads the group to take a dip in Lake Champlain.

The following day they leave the US and drive to Montréal. While in Montréal, they meet with fellow artist and musician friends, both old and new. They perform in the grassy sunshine of the Parc la Fontaine, for a number of attentive babies, their young parents, and curious passers-by. They visit Elizabeth's mother's childhood home, now occupied by creative young people not unlike patchtax themselves. On the steps leading to this home, they film a music video in the hot afternoon sun, recreating a childhood game Elizabeth’s mother used to play. The following days involve a leisurely drive to Québec City, an accidental ferry ride, filming on rural farmland, and a midnight shoot on the docks. They stop in Montréal on their way back from Québec City to play their final show in Canada at the workers’ cooperative Café L'Artère. The next morning, July 28, they visit the classic Montréal bagel shop, St. Viateur, before hitting the road again. They arrive in Montpelier, Vermont - Eve's hometown - and give the inaugural performance at the new Montpelier Pocket Park on Main Street. patchtax is very well received by a sizable and enthusiastic audience. The group celebrates afterward and returns to Boston the following day.

Post-tour, patchtax feels rejuvenated after showing their concert program to new audiences and sharpening the presentation of their work. They agree the end of the tour was not the end of their collaboration: In the following months, they head to the studio to complete the recording of the album. patchtax is always innovating, always moving, creating art that keeps the blood flowing.

patchtax is a viola and saxophone duo based in Boston and currently in their fourth season. The duo explores unconventional performance practices within the realm of classical chamber music.