By FORD CRULL January 27th, 2026

New Ear Inc. is a presenting organization dedicated to fostering experimentation in time-based media and interdisciplinary collaboration within a visual art context. Carrying on the spirit of risk-taking experimentation in downtown NYC, New Ear supports artists across artistic and cultural backgrounds, and at all stages of their careers, through commissions and opportunities to present work, residencies and workshops, mentorship, access to specialized equipment, and engineering support.

Spanning three days; January 16-18 this year I was present for the Friday night performance of 3 separate but powerful events, featuring: Talullah Calderwood, Sue Huang and Konjur Collective

They all had different ways of performing, but what struck me  as relevant was how they seemed to present a specific area of concern but a sense of their connection to humanity and the sensibilities they espouse

For Talullah  Calderwood this presents itself as an ambient music creation that  emphasizes different objects  and her own physical instruments to create a rhythmic wholeness that weaves in and out of any prescribed inventions. She uses these elements to examine the human voice and aspects of it. For me it had a hypnotic effect that made me think of traveling through space at the speed of Light. We did not see her until the end, so it made for a sense that  the  project may have  come from space, perhaps a musical sense from the universe.

The visuals that accompanied the sound story were ambiguous but totally in relation to her performance.

Sue Huang on the other hand uses a personal storyline that is very heartful as well as being intensely human. She uses her own life as an allegory to this sensibility.  She is a new media artist that explores intimacy as mentioned in a very personal way. Capitalizing on her own life including motherhood, divorce and relationship in general one felt that they were  part of a very profound exploration into a life that is totally connected to her beingness. There was a feeling of sweetness about her. I thought her visuals added to this story, and left me feeling as if I had made a new friend.

Konjur Collective presented a whole different approach to delivering “an improvisation and ritual rooted in ancestral and radical forgeries of sound with intensions of evoking collective healing/ release and feelings/ visions of a revolutionary future” to quote from the press release.

The group consists of five musicians that each have a distinctive sound yet contribute to the overall worldly approach to the music. It had a very urban sensibility for me and the video, which often featured a man in contorted dance movements, seemed to physically mimic the music. The leaders voice was powerful, intense, and urgent. The music had a sense of being totally present and  was totally in synch with the video.