Fred Frith / Chao Tian

Legendary multi-instrumentalist and improviser Fred Frith (co-founder of Henry Cow) joins forces with boundary-breaking Chinese dulcimer virtuoso Chao Tian for a special evening at Rhizome DC on Friday, June 26, 2026. Frith, a pioneering electric guitarist and composer for film, dance, and theater, has spent more than five decades at the forefront of experimental music, collaborating with an immense range of artists and ensembles. Chao Tian, trained in the classical Chinese dulcimer tradition since age five, transforms her instrument into a living, questioning voice through improvisation, intercultural collaboration, and diasporic imagination. Together they promise an evening of exploratory sound.

When: Friday, June 26, 2026.

Doors: 6:30 PM.

Showtime: Music begins at 7:00 PM.

Tickets: $20–35, available via the Rhizome DC website.

Lineup: Fred Frith (multi-instrumentalist, composer, improviser) and Chao Tian (Chinese dulcimer virtuoso, improviser, sonic thinker).

Note: Fred Frith has performed with countless innovators including John Zorn, Brian Eno, Derek Bailey, and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, and is the subject of the acclaimed documentary *Step Across the Border*. Chao Tian, a former member of the 12 Girls Band and a Ph.D. candidate in ethnomusicology at Boston University, founded the initiative Unheard Sounds and the project *From China to Appalachia* with Grammy winners Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer. Her work explores sound as a mode of inquiry, identity, and memory.