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Jeff Arnal

Jeff Arnal (b. 1971) is an American percussionist, composer, curator, and arts organizer whose work bridges experimental and improvised music with interdisciplinary performance and contemporary art, shaped by his studies with Milford Graves and Stuart Sau

About Me

Jeff Arnal (b. 1971) is an American percussionist, composer, curator, and arts organizer whose work bridges experimental and improvised music, interdisciplinary performance, and contemporary art. His drumming is grounded in a highly personal approach to rhythm and texture—an expressive language shaped by his formative studies with free-jazz pioneer Milford Graves and composer/theorist Stuart Saunders Smith. Active since the 1990s, Arnal’s work has evolved through long-standing collaborations, genre-defying ensembles, and a sustained commitment to creative community building.

Musical Approach & Influences

Arnal’s playing fuses experimental percussion traditions with a deeply embodied sense of rhythm. From Graves, he absorbed a holistic understanding of pulse and sound—music as a living practice linked to the body’s internal rhythms. From Smith, he inherited a fascination with structure, notation, and theatrical gesture. Together these influences inform a percussive language that is fluid, physical, and conceptually rich. Critics have described Arnal’s work as “highly original,” exploring the outer edges of improvisation while maintaining an inner propulsion and clarity of form.

Selected Discography

Arnal has appeared on more than thirty recordings for leading independent labels, collaborating with figures across the spectrum of experimental and improvised music. Highlights include:

Chrononaux (2025, Generate) – with Camila Nebbia, Dietrich Eichmann & John Hughes Tides Of Unrest / Berlin 2023 (2025, NoBusiness) – with Dietrich Eichmann Jupiter (2025, Citizen Vinyl) - John English & Kris Gruda Signal Otherwise (2024, Catalytic Sound) – with Ken Vandermark & Bonnie Han Jones almost nothing (2024, OasisLtd) – with Curt Cloninger (as Drum Major Instinct) Drum Major Instinct (2022, Mahakala Music) – duo with Curt Cloninger Astral Chronology (2022, Mahakala Music) – with John Dierker Quadrologues (2009, Clean Feed) – with Nate Wooley, Reuben Radding & Seth Misterka Transit (2005, Clean Feed) – with Nate Wooley, Reuben Radding & Seth Misterka MEJA (2006) – percussion duo with Michael Evans

His recent trio project Jupiter—with Kris Gruda and John English—was released in 2024 on Generate Records, the independent label Arnal founded in 1999 and revived in 2024.

Curatorial & Organizational Work

Alongside his performing life, Arnal has developed an extensive career as a curator and organizer, advancing the presentation and understanding of experimental music and performance. Since 2016 he has served as Executive Director of the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center (BMCM+AC) in Asheville, NC, where he has guided the organization’s growth into a nationally recognized platform for contemporary art and interdisciplinary research.

Major curatorial projects include Points in Space: Performance at Black Mountain College (2025), the first comprehensive exhibition dedicated to BMC’s performance legacy; Viewshed (2025, with Alice Sebrell), exploring intergenerational artistic influence; and Between Form and Content: Perspectives on Jacob Lawrence and Black Mountain College (2018, with Julie Levin Caro). Arnal also launched the Active Archive Residency in partnership with Lake Eden Preserve, and the Performance Initiative, which commissions and presents contemporary artists working in the experimental tradition of Black Mountain College.

Community & Collaboration

Arnal’s practice extends beyond the stage and gallery to encompass community organizing and collective creation. He co-founded the Brooklyn festival Improvised and Otherwise (2002–2007) and later established Free Range Asheville (2015), a platform for performance, research, and discourse. Under his direction, BMCM+AC has cultivated partnerships with Asheville’s vibrant creative network —including Asheville FM, Harvest Records, Citizen Vinyl, Swanatopia, Lamplight AVL, Make Noise, Drop of Sun Studios, and UNC Asheville—linking experimental practice with local cultural life.

Education

Arnal earned an MFA in Music from Bennington College, where he studied composition, improvisation, and percussion, and a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies (filmmaking and music composition) from the University of Maryland. He also pursued studies in orchestration and percussion at the Peabody Conservatory.