Buy Tickets

Museum admission tickets are now available through the month of February. Reserve now

This event is sold out for both members and nonmembers!

Boston-born and internationally recognized, DJ Kon takes over the ICA’s waterfront Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater for a special night of music and dancing. The last of an increasingly rare breed of dedicated record crate diggers, Kon brings his deep knowledge of obscure goodies to clubs and festivals worldwide. Dance the night away and celebrate a Boston artist and innovator who places his love of music above everything else. Plan on arriving with comfortable shoes and open ears!

About the Artist

Boston-born and -raised, DJ Kon, whose name stands for “King of Nothing,” has been digging in crates since 1976, DJing since 1985, and spinning in clubs since 1991. DJ duo Soul Clap describe him as the “best disco DJ in the world,” and tastemakers such as Questlove, Jazzanova, Derrick Carter, Jacques Renault, Danny Krivit, Dimitri From Paris, Dâm-Funk, and Gilles Peterson are major supporters of his work. He has played an integral role in Boston’s hip-hop community for decades and has preserved the development of it as a true culturist. Kon has positioned himself at the forefront of a group of multi-track collectors who possess digital versions of the original recording sessions of some of pop music’s greatest artists such as Stevie Wonder, Barry White, Michael Jackson, George Benson, Mizell Brothers, and many more. This resource, along with Kon’s vast knowledge of music, has resulted in some of the most dance-floor-friendly edits and remixes today.

Presented in partnership with Keep On. Keep On is a party held twice a month at Middlesex in Cambridge whose aim is to build community through dance music.

Sip a drink from the ICA Wine + Coffee Bar and enjoy live music from Gregory Groover, one of Boston’s best and brightest jazz musicians.

About Gregory Groover, Jr.


New York-born and Boston-bred saxophonist, composer, and educator Gregory Groover Jr pushes the boundaries of jazz while honoring its deep legacy. As a bandleader, Groover has released two albums (Negro Spiritual Songbook, Vol 1 & 2) and made his Criss Cross Records debut in April 2024 with his record Lovabye. In addition to being a bandleader, Groover is a highly sought-after collaborator having performed in music festivals in the United States, Latin America, Europe, and Africa with some of the world’s leading voices in contemporary music. Groover’s continued dedication to his craft and unwavering commitment to excellence have solidified his position as a prominent figure in the contemporary jazz scene.

Star Scores is both a performance and immersive sculptural installation by Roberto Carlos Lange (also known as Helado Negro) and visual artist Kristi Sword. The piece features a live ensemble performance of four experimental compositions, paired with an impressionistic film that explores the imperceptible forces that shape the West Texas landscape and the Appalachian skies. Parts of the film were originally commissioned by Ballroom Marfa and organized by Sarah Melendez. 

The installation, featuring large-scale weather balloons, never-before-seen abstract visuals by Sword, and an immersive soundscape by Lange, will be on view in the Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater, included with museum admission, at the following times:
Thu, Feb 13, 2025 | 5–9 PM
Sat + Sun | Feb 15 + 16, 2025, 11 AM–4 PM

About Roberto Carlos Lange

Roberto Carlos Lange, known as Helado Negro, is a South Florida native born to Ecuadorian immigrants and is based in North Carolina. As Helado Negro, he creates music that blends ambient avant boleros with abstract lyrical songs and more rhythm-driven electro-acoustic pieces, and he sings in both English and Spanish. His artistic works reach beyond music. He creates experimental films, sound installations, and community song collaborations. In 2019, he received a United States Artists Fellowship in music and a Grants to Artists award in music from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts. He has exhibited with Ballroom Marfa in collaboration with Kristi Sword and the pair has an upcoming installation performance at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Helado Negro released his latest album, PHASOR, on 4AD in 2024. 

About Kristi Sword

Kristi Sword is a visual artist working in small-scale sculpture and drawing with materials such as mylar, hand-drawn 16mm film, translucent adhesives, and brass to explore their textural and sculptural possibilities. Her foundation in metals and jewelry has created a bedrock for methodical processes. Her exploration of different media extends from large-scale blackandwhite penandink drawings to 2D stopmotion animation. Kristi has shown her artwork at Ballroom Marfa and has an upcoming show with Roberto Carlos Lange at The University of Tennessee in Knoxville. 

Accessibility

  • Accessible seating is available first-come first-served and may be selected upon theater entry. Please contact our Visitor Services team at visitorservices@icaboston.org or 617-478-3100 for more information.
  • Assistive listening devices are available for all theater programs at the theater entrance.
  • A link to live captioning will be shared by the day of the event and will be available in the theater.
  • ASL interpretation is available by advance request; please contact our Visitors Services team at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org to make a request.

Are there other access accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.

French composer Pierre Boulez (1925–2016) was among the most influential composers and music educators of the last hundred years. Consistently challenging the musical status quo, Boulez’s music transformed and revolutionized the contemporary musical landscape. In addition to composition, Boulez was a singular conductor who led performances by some of the world’s best orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and the Chicago Symphony. Boulez also invested in contemporary music’s future, building institutions, ensembles, and training programs like IRCAM, Ensemble intercontemperain, and the Lucerne Festival that still thrive today.

The ICA and the Boston University Center for New Music celebrate the life and legacy of Boulez. Sound Icon, one of Boston’s leading interpreters of contemporary music, will perform under the direction of conductor Jeffrey Means two monumental Boulez works: the early career masterpiece Le marteau sans maître and the late period Dérive 2. These two pieces highlight the extraordinary range, color, and depth of Boulez’s music and offer audiences a rare opportunity to hear these works performed live.

Pierre Boulez’s music and the institutions he built made a lasting impression on the contemporary music world, and his influence continues to challenge and inspire.

Accessibility

  • Accessible seating is available first-come first-served and may be selected upon theater entry. Please contact our Visitor Services team at visitorservices@icaboston.org or 617-478-3100 for more information.
  • Assistive listening devices are available for all theater programs at the theater entrance.
  • A link to live captioning will be shared by the day of the event and will be available in the theater.
  • ASL interpretation is available by advance request; please contact our Visitors Services team at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org to make a request.

Are there other access accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.

Sip a drink from the ICA Wine + Coffee Bar and enjoy live music. Jonathan Suazo provides an energetic and inviting musical experience that fuses Afro-Caribbean elements within the ever-growing landscape of jazz.

“Richly built, written from the heart and packed with complexity, always seeking the next level of altitude”
—New York Times

“A soundscape propelled by lyrical sax playing”
—DownBeat Magazine

About the Artist

Jonathan Suazo is an award-winning saxophonist, composer, and cultural seeder who utilizes music to shine a light on undervalued and underrepresented elements of his Puerto Rican and Dominican roots. Suazo was named one of the top ten emerging Jazz artists of 2023 by the GRAMMYS and his debut album “Ricano” (Ropeadope Records) was listed as one of the best Jazz albums of 2023 by The New York Times. A Berklee Global Jazz Institute graduate (M.M), he’s received many honors including the 2024 Chamber Music America New Jazz Works Grant, The WBUR Makers Series Award for generating impact in the Boston’s community, The Winter 2023 South Arts Jazz Road Tours Grant, and the Berklee Urban Service Award for using the arts to support humanitarianism. Suazo’s resume includes collaborations and performances with Miguel Zenón, Terri Lyne Carrington, David Sánchez, Charlie Sepúlveda, Gonzalo Grau, Danilo Perez, Ricky Rodriguez, Ileana Cabra (iLÉ), Calma Carmona, Rakalam Bob Moses, Joe Lovano, Paoli Mejias, Humberto Ramirez, David Rivera, Tito Matos, Ricardo Pons, William Cepeda, Jon Secada, Pedro Capó, Obie Bermudez, Hans Glawischnig, Humberto Ramirez, Silverio Perez, and Tony Escapa.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Samuel Batista will no longer be performing.

Join the ICA and the visionary Thaddeus Miles—acclaimed photographer, passionate community leader, and the heartbeat behind the Black Joy initiative—for a celebratory outdoor concert for the fourth annual Black Joy Day in the City of Boston.

The museum’s outdoor space will come alive with the electrifying beats of DJ Jo, the soulful melodies of ToriTori, and the dynamic rhythms of Latrell James.

More than just a jubilation, Black Joy Day stands tall as a radiant beacon of resistance. Through the harmony of Black music, the depth of poetry, and profound dialogues on restorative justice, we aim to amplify the empowerment and resilience of Black voices worldwide.

In the words of Thaddeus Miles, “Black Joy Day is more than a moment, it’s a movement. A symphony of voices, talents, and spirits, echoing the resilience, love, and vibrancy of our community. Let’s come together to feel, heal, and revel in the rhythm of joy.”

Samora Pinderhughes is a composer, pianist/vocalist, and interdisciplinary artist whose work delves into the things our society tries to hide—about its history, its structures, and the individual and daily things we all experience but don’t know how to talk about. His art is an invitation to feel things deeply and to think deeply about how we all live. He is known for his honest lyrics, his harmonic language, his vulnerable visuals, his cultural commentary, and his commitment to making art that is of use to everyday life. He is also known for using his music to examine sociopolitical issues and fight for change, and he works in the tradition of the Black surrealists, those who bend word, sound, and image toward the causes of revolution. Pinderhughes’s emotional, soulful music and lyrics beautifully unravel difficult and vulnerable topics.  

For this one-night-only experience at the ICA, Pinderhughes will perform in support of his new album, Venus Smiles Not in the House of Tears. He will be joined onstage by his longtime band members and a multi-voiced choir for an unforgettable evening of contemplative, searching, and joyful music.

Pinderhughes has collaborated with many artists across boundaries and scenes, including Herbie Hancock, Glenn Ligon, Sara Bareilles, Simone Leigh, Daveed Diggs, Kyle Abraham, Titus Kaphar, and Lalah Hathaway. He is the first-ever Art for Justice + Soros Justice Fellow and a recipient of Chamber Music America’s 2020 Visionary Award.

Accessibility

  • Accessible and companion seating can be selected when purchasing tickets online, or at the Box Office at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org.
  • Assistive listening devices are available for all theater programs at the theater entrance.
  • A link to live captioning will be shared by the day of the event and will be available in the theater.
  • ASL interpretation is available by advance request; please contact the Box Office at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org to make a request.

Are there other access accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.

Renowned quartet Sandbox Percussion joins forces with Gandini Juggling to illustrate how we hear, see, and perform sounds and rhythm. This unique new live collaboration combines percussion music by contemporary composers Steve Reich, Iannis Xenakis, Amy Beth Kirsten, and Andy Akiho performed live by Sandbox with the virtuosic, mind-blowing juggling of Gandini to illuminate music both visually and aurally. With vanishing dots of sound and balls replicating and complementing complex rhythms in the air, Gandini Juggling and Sandbox Percussion make the complex simple and the simple complex. This will be serious fun.

Following the Friday performance, members of the company will join John Andress, Bill T. Jones Director/Curator of Performing Arts, for a post-performance conversation.

Advisory note: This performance includes moments of flashing light.

Read the performance program

Accessibility

  • Accessible and companion seating can be selected when purchasing tickets online, or at the Box Office at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org.
  • Assistive listening devices are available for all theater programs at the theater entrance.
  • A link to live captioning will be shared by the day of the event and will be available in the theater.
  • ASL interpretation is available by advance request; please contact the Box Office at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org to make a request.

Are there other access accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.


This performance was developed at a Summer Stages Dance @ ICA/Boston residency in July 2023. Summer Stages Dance @ ICA/Boston is made possible, in part, with the support of Jane Karol and Howard Cooper, George and Ann Colony, The Aliad Fund, and Stephanie and Leander McCormick-Goodhart. 

Three legendary jazz musicians perform together for the first time for a night of improvisation and cross-cultural collaboration. Featuring Pulitzer Prize-winner Henry Threadgill on winds, MacArthur Fellows Dafnis Prieto on percussion, and Vijay Iyer on piano, the trio blends tradition and experimentation with a diverse set of influences that pushes musical boundaries and explores the ever-evolving nature of jazz.

Accessibility

  • Accessible and companion seating can be selected when purchasing tickets online, or at the Box Office at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org.
  • Assistive listening devices are available for all theater programs at the theater entrance.
  • A link to live captioning will be shared by the day of the event and will be available in the theater.
  • ASL interpretation is available by advance request; please contact the Box Office at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org to make a request.

Are there other access accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.

New Orleans electro-revival dynamo Dawn Richard unites with multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer Spencer Zahn for a stunning concert in support of their second collaborative album. Quiet in a World Full of Noise blends atmospheric and orchestral soundscapes with mellifluous soul, jazz, and journalistic vocalizing—driving it all home with stark, confessional lyricism. Richard is, “a singer of big emotions, and even as she’s pushed her solo work further into experimental realms, she has continued to foreground feeling above all else” (Pitchfork). Zahn and Richard have made an album that serves as a blueprint for stillness, simplicity, and the art of working across differences in the midst of a polarizing cultural climate. Richard describes Quiet in a World Full of Noise as grounding: “Right now, everyone’s a little bit overwhelmed. I hope that this will be the record that people put on when they need the opportunity for reflection, when they need the stillness in their lives, now more than ever.”

Niecy Blues will perform an opening set. The music of South Carolina singer and producer Niecy Blues captures a sense of deep-rooted divination, cycling between simmering ballads, ghostly R&B, downtempo gospel, and looped vocal improvisations.

Accessibility

  • Accessible seating is available first-come first-served and may be selected upon theater entry. Please contact our Visitor Services team at visitorservices@icaboston.org or 617-478-3100 for more information.
  • Assistive listening devices are available for all theater programs at the theater entrance.
  • A link to live captioning will be shared by the day of the event and will be available in the theater.
  • ASL interpretation is available by advance request; please contact our Visitors Services team at 617-478-3100 or visitorservices@icaboston.org to make a request.

Are there other access accommodations that would be useful to help you fully participate in this program? Let us know at accessibility@icaboston.org or learn more about Accessibility at the ICA at icaboston.org/accessibility.