Songs Without Words: The Art of Music
Nassau County Museum of Art
November 20, 2021 – March 6, 2022
There is something for everybody in this chorus of sight and sound. Rare and important instruments like the Les Paul guitar that Keith Richards played on the Ed Sullivan show, a Gibson Flying V and a copy of Paganini’s legendary “Cannon” violin made by modern master Luiz Amorim are surrounded by manuscripts and memorabilia featuring Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Joni Mitchell, Jimmy Webb, Bernie Taupin, Frank Zappa and an unforgettable portrait of Lady Gaga by Robert Wilson. Masterworks by Matisse, Degas, Vuillard, Feininger, Juan Gris, Romare Bearden, and Jasper Johns join important contemporary works by Idris Khan, Hassan Hajjaj, Malick Sidibé, Tim Rollins and KOS, Christine Sun Kim and many others. The enchantment of an installation of Aaron Taylor Kuffner’s The Gamelatron Project, along with a veritable orchestra of wind, string and percussion instruments from Africa, Asia and the Middle East takes you beyond borders of time and geography into the deeply human creative space where art and music perform their timeless duet.