How it Works: David Tudor's Work

A talk by Michael Johnsen

March 6, 2026; 3pm 

Starting in the mid-1960s, David Tudor made up a homemade electronic music by following his ears and his all-absorbing mind. He wanted new instruments and began a unique self-education which embraced Brazilian hobby mags, engineering journals, and countless trips to junk surplus outlets. His musical methods were as idiosyncratic as the tools he constructed. This talk will with Michael Johnsen, noted Tudor scholar and circuit designer, will explain Tudor’s instruments, the way they made his music—and vice versa.

Johnsen’s presentation draws on archival images, sounds, animated graphics, technical history, and object lessons to trace Tudor’s process of invention and discovery. The talk examines how Tudor built his practice through material experimentation and patient listening, creating systems that emerged from the specific behavior of electronic components rather than predetermined compositions.

Estimated run time: 60 minutes. Free admission. No registration required. This event is immediately followed by a Tudor Exhibition Gallery Tour.

Tudor Exhibition Gallery Tour

March 6, 2026; 4pm

Join curator Dustin Hurt and Ron Kuivila for a guided tour through the archival materials, collaborative networks, and historical traces that shape David Tudor: A View From Inside.

The tour examines how photographs, programs, letters, and recordings situate Tudor’s practice within specific times, places, and relationships. Moving through the gallery’s timeline, Hurt will discuss how these materials reveal Tudor’s collaborations with composers, dancers, engineers, and visual artists, while also highlighting the gaps and unanswered questions the archive leaves behind. The tour considers how the exhibition’s approach to grouping instruments and displaying documentation helps trace the evolution of Tudor’s work across decades.

Estimated run time: 60 minutes. Free admission. No registration required. This event is immediately preceded by a talk by Michael Johnsen: How It Works: David Tudor’s Work.

For more information about upcoming events, programs, and performances, visit Bowerbird's upcoming events page.