Marcia Bassett

Marcia Bassett is a NYC-based musician, performer, and artist known for her innovative and unconventional approach to music. Her work explores areas of sound collage, improvisation, and immersive audio-visual environments. Whether working with traditional instruments or electronic media, Bassett constantly pushes the boundaries of sound and image to create a heady sonic interplay of otherworldly narratives that are equal parts trance and critique.

She often collaborates with others, including Samara Lubelski, Chuck Bettis, Taralie Peterson, Ted Gordon, Thomas Dimuzio, St Celfer, and Ursula Scherrer, among others.

She is the founder of Yew Recordings. She is also known for her solo work as Zaïmph, a project she initiated in 2005. She first made an impact with the Philadelphia outfit Un in the 1990s, releasing on Siltbreeze Records, before forming the experimental drone group Double Leopards. A stalwart of the DIY community, she self-released and formed the Heavy Conversation label with her bandmates in Double Leopards; with Hototogisu, she founded Heavy Blossom.

Recent solo recordings include Midnight Xpander LP recorded at the EMS (Stockholm); Undulating Arkasboning cassette released on Artsy Records (2022), and a Digi-EP, Altering The Form, on the Belgian KraakRecords label KRUT.

She frequently joins others in collaborative installations and multimedia projects. Recent work includes a Studio Residency with ST CELFER in NYC with a focus on visual art and sound; FA/CE sound and live visual collaboration with Ursula Scherrer; Buchla Music Easel improvisation with Ted Gordon; multimedia collaborations with Sergej Vutac; Social Entropy, a 4-channel sound installation at Human Resources, LA; group collaboration with Margarida Garcia, David Maranha and Manuel Mota, and guitar and violin improvisations with Samara Lubelski.

Guided by a commitment to experimentation and artist-run events, Bassett has organized numerous musical events and series over the years. Her latest series "2 Blocks Down" focuses on innovative experimentation and collaborations, resulting in first-time pairings and welcoming a broader community of listeners and practitioners. Additionally, she serves as a contributing member of the Epsilon Spires Board.