Who is Fisher/Lau Project?
Fisher/Lau Project advances contemporary percussion music through the originality and flair that they bring to their performances.
Dr. Abby Fisher and Dr. Matthew Lau founded Fisher/Lau Project in 2014 during their doctoral studies at Stony Brook University. Best friends, the pair quickly realized that they were a mighty musical match!
Fisher/Lau Project cultivates an international presence through engagements such as the Transplanted Roots Percussion Research Symposium (Brisbane, Australia), Percussive Arts Society International Convention (Indianapolis, USA), and Ensemble Mise-En Curator Series (Brooklyn, USA). F/L Project promotes the contemporary and avant garde aesthetic with clarity and approachability at concerts, engagement at masterclasses, and through their interactive social media presence. With repertoire extending from European master Philippe Manoury to esteemed compositional voices of today including Alex Temple and Jordan Munson, F/L Project works to perform music from a diverse range of composers.
Fisher/Lau Project proudly endorses Marimba One , and Black Swamp Percussion instruments.
Abby
Abby Fisher is a percussionist and educator who is focused on performing and supporting continued growth of new music.
Her solo and collaborative performances have been heard nationally and internationally including: Stony Brook University's TEDx (Stony Brook, NY), Transplanted Roots Percussion Symposium (Brisbane, Australia; Guanajuato, Mexico; San Diego, CA), New Music Gathering (Baltimore and Boston), Festival Internacional de Músicas y Artes Sonoras Contemporáneas (Cuenca, Ecuador), Big Ears Festival (Knoxville,TN), Percussive Arts Society International Conventions, and One World Trade Center (NYC).
Abby is a dedicated educator and is the Assistant Professor of Percussion and Director of Percussion Studies at Northern Arizona University. She previously taught at University of Tennessee Knoxville and Pellissippi State Community College. She has presented recitals, lectures, and masterclasses around the USA and internationally including: Carleton College, Western Carolina University, Northern Illinois University New Music Festival, Tennessee Day of Percussion, Festival Internacional de Musica Academia Contemporanea, University of Kentucky, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Ithaca College, and Arizona State University. Abby currently serves as a member of the Percussive Arts Society New Music/ Research Committee and is co-hosting the New Music/ Research Day as part of PASIC 2022.
Abby is a co-founder of the percussion duo Fisher/Lau Project with Matthew Lau, and she is regularly collaborating with composers and musicians on new works. In February 2019, she worked with percussionist Steven Schick and Pulitzer Prize winning composer Roger Reynolds for the inaugural ‘Cross-Wired’ performance/workshop at University of California, San Diego. At the 2019 Big Ears Festival, Abby performed with Grammy winning vocal project Roomful of Teeth for the concert “Triptych” by Bryce Dessner. She recently co-commissioned and recorded the multiple percussion and speaking voice work ‘Correspondence’ (2019) from composer Andrea Mazzariello.
Abby is the Managing Director for Nief-Norf, and works with the NN team to produce the annual Nief-Norf Summer Festival, where more than fifty international participants experience an engaging environment of collaboration, experimentation, and support.
Abby holds degrees from Stony Brook University (D.M.A), New York University (M.M), and Lawrence University (B.M). While completing her doctoral work, she served as a graduate teaching assistant in ethnomusicology. She has been fortunate to study with Dane Richeson, Eduardo Leandro, Beverley Johnston, Jonathan Haas, James Saporito, Simon Boyar, Nani Agbeli, Faith Conant, Joe Ludwig, Jamie Ryan, Michael Spiro, and Janet Cramer. In the summer of 2010, Abby continued her study of Ewe drumming and dancing at the Dagbe Cultural Center in Kopeyia, Ghana.
Website: www.abbyfisherpercussion.com /// Instagram @abbyplaysperc
Matt
Hailed by the Aspen Times for his “soulful and technically impressive solo” at his vibraphone concerto debut at the Aspen Music Festival, percussionist Dr. Matthew Lau performs a wide range of repertoire with an absolute commitment to communicating the meaning and essence of percussion music to its audience, from arrangement of Bach’s Violin Sonata on marimba to avant-garde contemporary pieces by Franco Donatoni and Iannis Xenakis. Matthew is the winner of the 2018 Hong Kong Arts Development Award for Young Artist in music.
Pursuing a strong interest in contemporary percussion music, his vision and aesthetic are aimed to expand the ever-growing percussion repertoire by pushing existing boundaries, incorporating electronics & technologies and discovering new sounds. His interest in exploration of new music has led Matthew to commission new pieces with many renowned composers. He is also the co-founder and artistic director of the contemporary percussion group The Up:Strike Project. Matthew is currently on the Keyboard Committee for The Percussive Arts Society, and Board of Directors for The Vibraphone Project Inc.
A finalist at the 2016 Italy Percussive Arts Society Competition Vibraphone Category, Matthew performs around the world. Recent engagement includes appearance at Oh My Ears New Music Festival 2020 (Phoenix, AZ), DrumsFest 2019 Competition & Festival (Moscow, Russia), performance at Percussion Arts Society International Convention (PASIC) 2020 & 2018 at Indianapolis (USA), recital and masterclasses at Gnessin College of Music (Moscow, Russia), various conservatories and universities in the greater Buenos Aires area (Buenos Aires, Argentina), San Miguel de Tucuman (Tucuman, Argentina), La Plata (Buenos Aires, Argentina), Melbourne Conservatorium of Music (Melbourne, Australia),University of Western Australia (Perth, Australia), University of Tennessee at Knoxville (Knoxville, TN), Transplanted Root Percussion Symposium 2017 (Brisbane, Australia), Australian Percussion Gathering 2016 (Brisbane, Australia), The Modern Academy Series by Hong Kong New Music Ensemble (Hong Kong), Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice (Boston, MA). Other engagements in the United States include Rite of Summer Music Festival (New York, NY), Necessary Noise Percussion Festival (Montclair, NJ), New York PAS Weekend of Percussion (New York, NY), Make Music New York (New York, NY), Gettysburg Chamber Music Festival (Gettysburg, PA), Aspen Music Festival (Aspen, CO), Bang On A Can Marathon Concert (New York, NY), Film Music Live! (New York, NY). He has also performed in Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, Symphony Space New York, Roulette, Firehouse (Brooklyn, NY), Spectrum (NY), Benedict Music Tent, Harris Concert hall (Aspen, CO), Suntory Hall (Tokyo, Japan), KBS Hall (Seoul, Korea).
Matthew obtained his Doctor of Musical Arts in contemporary percussion performance from Stony Brook University under the guidance of Eduardo Leandro. He holds a Master of Music from New York University studying with Jonathan Haas, Simon Boyar, and James Saporito. Previous teachers include Dr. Heung-Wing Lung, and James Boznos. Matthew is currently an adjunct faculty at Hong Kong Baptist University, and maintains a private teaching studio on the side.
Dr. Lau is artist endorser of Marimba One, and Black Swamp Percussion; his signature marimba and vibraphone mallets are made by Elite Mallets.Besides music, he is also an avid knitter and certified as a Level 1 Master Knitter by The Knitting Guild Association.
Website: www.matthewlaumusic.com /// Instagram @matthewlaumusic
