ABOUT

Celine (Suh Yeon) Kang is a guitarist, composer, and improviser based in New York. Influenced by European improvisation, Black American music, and music concrete, her sound and composition are the result of her obsession and love for raw, dense, and textural sounds, and the flexibility and pulses of Black music. She primarily performs improvised music and original compositions, and she has performed at The Stone, The Drawing Center, Roulette Intermedium, Big Ears, and more. 

During her time at The New School’s performing arts college, she studied and worked with artists such as Steve Cardenas, Joe Morris, Brian Marsella, Darius Jones, Ches Smith, and more - focusing on building her own world of improvisation and working on translating those into her own compositions. 

Celine's original compositions are often performed by her quartet, with Colson Jimenez on bass, Josh Mathews on drums, and Ivan Chen on piano. This group has also been performed by other close collaborators of hers, including Brian Marsella, Ches Smith,  Jacob Patrone, Kayla Kessler, and Nathan Nakadegawa-Lee. While focusing on her quartet, she has also performed with larger groups of hers and has also been part of John Zorn's COBRA, performing with some of the greatest improvisers, mentors, and influences of hers. 

Growing up with soul music, rock, musique concrete, and film soundtracks, these shaped her unique approach to music and sound. Her work blends dense and heavily composed materials, tonal and atonal improvisations, and deconstruction and rebuilding of form. Her music is interpreted by musicians who often come from diverse backgrounds in music with different perspectives yet have a shared understanding of music with her. 

Alongside the music, Celine also works in photography and design. Her photography often delivers a similar perspective and aesthetic to her music, attempting to portray artists in their most natural and transparent form.