Poetry off the Shelf: Tan Lin

Enjoy an evening of poetry and music with poet, novelist, filmmaker, and new media artist Tan Lin and sonic texture trio NbN.

Tan Lin is the author of twelve books, most recently Heath Course Pak (2012), Bib., Rev. Ed. (2012), Insomnia and the Aunt (2011), and 7 Controlled Vocabularies and Obituary 2004. The Joy of Cooking (2010). Lin’s work is tied to cultural and media studies in a mode of literature he defines as “ambient” literature, which draws on and samples source material from popular culture and the Internet to address issues involving copyright, plagiarism, and technology. He received a Ph.D from Columbia University and currently teaches creative writing at New Jersey City University. In April 2014, Lin was a featured writer for Harriet.

NbN (Nora Barton, Billie Howard, and Nomi Epstein) explores sonic textures through manipulation of acoustic instruments. While the three instruments of the ensemble–cello, violin, and inside of the piano–monopolize the sound space, there is extensive involvement of found sound, and/or percussive instruments by all three members of the trio.