On May 16, experience an evening of genre-defying duets with an evocative, arresting sound.
Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith head to The Nimoy to perform original music from their acclaimed 2025 album ‘Defiant Life.’ Collaborators for over 20 years, Iyer and Smith’s partnership has spawned soaring compositions and resonant performances.
Tickets in bio.
Description: Footage of Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith play as show information for the duo’s performance at The Nimoy is overlayed in text.
⚠️ Low ticket alert! ⚠️
On May 16, composer-pianist Vijay Iyer and composer-trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith unite forces at The Nimoy for an evening of duets that defy categorization in pursuit of an evocative, arresting sound.
Deeply attuned and grounded in the present, Iyer and Smith perform original music from their acclaimed 2025 album Defiant Life.
Tickets in bio.
Something’s coming on May 19 … 🌾
Let the countdown begin to a VERY exciting announcement - check back here on May 19 for something sure to stir the soul.
Description: a video panning across rolling hills and fields with white text overlaid that reads ‘5.19.26’
Excerpts from a ‘Defiant Life.'
Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith close out the 2025-2026 season on May 16 at The Nimoy with an evening of music from their album ‘Defiant Life.’
Tickets in bio.
Description: Close up footage of Vijay Iyer’s hands playing the piano cuts into Wadada Leo Smith playing the trumpet.
We are so grateful to everyone who joined us this past Saturday at The Nimoy for The Center is Between Us!
A huge thank you to our singular and spellbinding collaborators and musicians:
@absolute_focus@chrisvotek@urbanmona@katerbridge #LukeSantonastaso @mmartassofia@dereksteincello@marloniusmusic@patrickshiroishi@archiecarey4@mattie_barbier@orionrountree@briansea.xyz
And of course, endless gratitude to our lovely friends at @cap_ucla . The Center is Between Us closes out ‘Wild Up at The Nimoy’, a concert series exploring the multiplicities of sound, texture, and improvisation.
See you again next season!
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Images courtesy of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance. Photos by Jason Williams.
I have been sinking into unexplored raga zones with @absolute_focus #raga #hindustaniclassicalmusic #chambermusic composing a piece for @wildup for Santoor, Tabla, Indian cello, and string sextet ! Hope you can make it to the premiere on May 9th at @cap_ucla Nimoy theater ! Wildup will also perform “the Park” and the “the backyard” from Robert Ashley’s TV opera “Perfect Lives”, narrated by @orionrountree . We can’t wait 🍀
Meet us at the Center.
Wild Up presents ‘The Center is Between Us’ on May 9 at The Nimoy. The finale of their 3 part series ‘Wild Up at The Nimoy,’ this evening weaves between a performance of Robert Ashley’s ‘The Park’ and ‘The Backyard’ to an improvised Hindustani raga set feat. Jas Ahluwalia, Kamaljeet Ahluwalia, and Chris Votek.
Tickets on sale now in bio.
Description: short video of audience members at an outdoor ampitheater watching and listening as a violinist performs.
“The second collaborative album by the jazz composers and instrumentalists is a searching meditation on resistance and revolutionary potential.” — Pitchfork
Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith perform selections from their 2025 album ‘Defiant Life’ on May 16 at The Nimoy. Experience an evening of duets that defy categorization in pursuit of an evocative, arresting sound.
Tickets in bio.
Description: Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith perform in a bookshelf lined studio
American experimental opera meets Indian classical tradition in a musical and spiritual dialogue.
Santoor and tabla duo Kamaljeet and Jas Ahluwalia and cellist Chris Votek join Wild Up at The Nimoy on May 9 for the world premiere of a brand new composition.
Tickets in bio.
Image description: Kamaljeet Ahluwalia, Jas Ahluwalia and cellist Chris Votek pose with their respective images in front of a grey backdrop.
Why do you support the arts?
Sharon Kagan shares why she chooses to support the arts via CAP UCLA’s Membership program. The sense of belonging Sharon describes doesn’t happen by accident. It exists because people choose to sustain it, through their presence, advocacy and support.
Don’t just attend. Belong. Learn more about becoming a member at the link in our bio.
Description: Sharon Kagan stands outside of The Nimoy and speaks to camera about why she supports CAP UCLA through membership. As she speaks, footage of Sharon speaking with Edgar Miramontes and clips from performances intermittently play.
Kamaljeet Ahluwalia, Jaswinder Ahluwalia, and Chris Votek would like to invite you the world premiere of “Echoes of the Unstruck Sound”, a brand new collaborative composition exploring the full arc of Raga Gavati through Santoor, Tabla, Indian Cello, and a Western String Sextet! May 9th at the Nimoy Theater in Westwood. We are delighted to be working with the incredible new music ensemble Wild Up for this one of a kind concert. The first half of the program is “The Park” and “The Backyard,” surreal excerpts from Robert Ashley’s cult TV opera Perfect Lives. This will be an awesome and hypnotic experience, narrated by Wild Up’s artistic director Christopher Rountree.
