The Search for Up
From ancient times to NASA’s current Artemis missions, humans have been looking up at the sky with wonder. In this short film, Duo Extempore explores human curiosity, connection, and our cosmos with improvised music. In collaboration with Hartwick College students and Departments of Physics and Music, duo members Nicole Brancato (keys) and Evan Jagels (bass) recorded the featured music and interviews at the Wright Observatory. Duo Extempore’s curated improvisations weave together storytelling, history, science, and audience interaction - all to create music that pushes the boundaries of what piano and bass can do together.
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Nicole BrancatoDirectorit’s nice to be on the island, 9 Ways to Destroy a Violin, Fire in which we Burn
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Evan JagelsDirectorA League of Their Own, BET Shorts, it’s nice to be on the island
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Duo ExtemporeDirectorit’s nice to be on the island
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Nicole BrancatoWriterit’s nice to be on the island, 9 Ways to Destroy a Violin, Fire in which we Burn
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Evan JagelsWriterA League of Their Own, BET Shorts, it’s nice to be on the island
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Duo ExtemporeWriterit’s nice to be on the island
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Nicole BrancatoProducerit’s nice to be on the island, 9 Ways to Destroy a Violin, Fire in which we Burn
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Evan JagelsProducerA League of Their Own, BET Shorts, it’s nice to be on the island
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Duo ExtemporeProducerit’s nice to be on the island
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Nicole BrancatoKey Castit’s nice to be on the island, 9 Ways to Destroy a Violin, Fire in which we Burn
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Evan JagelsKey Cast"A League of Their Own, BET Shorts, it’s nice to be on the island"
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Parker TroischtKey Cast
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Greg HammontreeKey Cast
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Meghan K. SheehyKey Cast
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Meghan K. SheehyKey Cast
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Duo ExtemporeKey Castit’s nice to be on the island
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Nicholas F. VolkAstrophotography
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Meghan K. SheehyProject Coordinators
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Parker TroischtProject Coordinators
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Hartwick CollegeSponsor
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Nicole BrancatoMusicit’s nice to be on the island
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Evan JagelsMusicit’s nice to be on the island
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Duo ExtemporeMusicit’s nice to be on the island
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Greg HammontreeFilmography
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Project Type:Documentary, Music Video, Short
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Runtime:19 minutes 59 seconds
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Completion Date:April 21, 2023
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Production Budget:15,000 USD
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Country of Filming:United States
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:Digital
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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Hartwick College Earth Day FestivalOneonta
United States
April 22, 2023
World Premiere
Duo Extempore interprets history, art, and space through music. By composing frameworks for improvisation with storytelling arcs, the performance space itself becomes the score for bold, inventive music, bringing stories of the past into the present-day imagination. Through this process, Evan Jagels (bass) and Nicole Brancato (piano) capture time and space in custom musical creations unique to the communities for which they are designed, creating “a new experience that leaves guests wanting more” (Colin Havener, Hyde Hall).
In 2022, Duo Extempore released "it's nice to be on the island," a music film celebrating the history of New York City's Roosevelt Island. To shoot the film, they created a custom mobile stage, performing through the streets of New York City with a piano in tow. Another recent project, a highly-acclaimed concert that told the hidden stories of the historic Hyde Hall, incorporated innovative techniques and contemporary improvisations on 19th-century instruments. And at New York's Carefree Gardens, they featured the biorhythms of plants live-translated into sound.
Evan and Nicole's performance credits include Carnegie Hall (NYC), the Banff Centre of the Arts (Canada), Bellas Artes Centro Cultural Ignacio Ramírez (Mexico), the Blue Note (Germany), and the UniJazz Festival (Czech Republic). They are touring nationally as Duo Extempore during the ‘22/’23 concert season, including the film festival Glimmerglass Film Days in collaboration with the acclaimed filmmaker Bill Morrison.
Duo Extempore’s distinct programs, ranging from museum concerts on period instruments to indie music films to performances with amplified plants, "capture many moods through considerable charm and creativity” (Jonathan Maney, writer). Their curated improvisations draw from classical and jazz virtuosity, and weave together storytelling, local history, architecture, and audience interaction — all to create music that pushes the boundaries for what a piano + bass can do together.
To learn more, visit: www.nicolebrancato.com/projects/duo-extempore