Karl Ove Knausgård & Glenn Kotche: Historia
Film by Johan Renck
Thu, Oct 30, 2025, 7:30 pm
The 92nd Street Y, New York
Produced by Liquid Music
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Sun, Nov 2, 2025, 4 pm
Northrop, Minneapolis
Copresented by Liquid Music and Northrop
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Writer Karl Ove Knausgård (My Struggle, The Morning Star) and composer/percussionist Glenn Kotche (Wilco) come together for a shared evening of words and music that celebrates collaboration, craft, and friendship. Featuring visuals by director Johan Renck (HBO's Chernobyl, David Bowie's "Blackstar"), the program centers on the premiere of a new work combining Knausgård's textual prowess with Kotche's sonic explorations, contextualized by reading and performance of pieces both new and old from each collaborator. Closing with a conversation on their creative process, this program invites us to engage with and reflect on the power of artistic communion between two singular voices in their respective fields.
Commissioned by Liquid Music, Northrop and 92NY.
Special thanks to Dr. Thomas von Sternberg and Eve Parker for their generous support of this project.
About the artists
Karl Ove Knausgaard’s first novel, Out of the World, was the first ever debut novel to win the Norwegian Critics’ Prize and his second, A Time for Everything, was longlisted for the 2010 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. The My Struggle cycle of novels has been heralded as a masterpiece wherever it has appeared. His work is published in 35 languages. Knausgaard’s newest novel, The School of Night, will be published by Penguin Press in January 2026.
Glenn Kotche has been the drummer of the groundbreaking rock band Wilco since 2001. With Wilco, he has toured extensively internationally and recorded ten studio albums—garnering a Grammy, 7 Grammy nominations and 2 RIAA certified gold records along the way. As a composer, he has released seven solo albums and has been commissioned by renowned ensembles and organizations including Kronos Quartet, Yo Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, Bang on a Can All-Stars, Eighth Blackbird, So Percussion, Third Coast Percussion, Carnegie Hall, TROMP International Competition, Norway’s 1B1 Orchestra, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras, Cross-linx Festival and Roomful of Teeth—as well as several other soloists, ensembles, institutions and presenters.
Always exploring new possibilities for growth, Kotche has also done disparate, cross-disciplinary collaborations with the likes of choreographer Danielle Agami, actor Jon Hamm, chef Rick Bayless, WNYC’s Radiolab, Notre Dame’s Engineering Dept. digital media company Thunderlab, and Delta Faucets. In 2015 Kotche commissioned composer John Luther Adams resulting in the 50 minute solo tour de force, Ilimaq. He has also created several sound installations for institutions such as MASSMoCA, Artpark in NY and the Netherland’s Van Abbemuseum.
Kotche has played on over 180 recordings by artists such as Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, KD Lang, Neko Case, Laura Viers, First Aid Kit, Radiohead’s Phil Selway and Ed O’Brien, Andrew Bird, Iron and Wine, On Fillmore, Jim O’Rourke, Loose Fur, Neil Finn, Low and Beck. Since 1998 he’s been half of genre-bending duo, On Fillmore, along with Darin Gray. He is also a member of the bands Saccata Quartet and Loose Fur.
In 2020 Kotche started his weekly video post, the Drum Beat Project—a multi-year process piece that explores the compositional possibilities of drum beats. He resides in Chicago with his wife and their 2 children.
Johan Renck has established himself as one of the most respected and sought after directors working today. He began his career directing music videos for top artists, most recently David Bowie’s final two videos “Blackstar” and “Lazarus”. His debut film Downloading Nancy premiered in competition at the Sundance Film Festival, which he followed with acclaimed Swedish limited series The Fat And The Angry. Johan directed the pilots for Vikings, Bloodline and Shut Eye as well as episodes of Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Halt And Catch Fire and Bates Motel. He directed all episodes and co-produced BAFTA nominated limited series The Last Panthers starring John Hurt and Samantha Morton. Johan’s latest is Chernobyl, the highest-rated TV- show ever on IMDb, with 19 Emmy Nominations, 10 Emmy wins, including Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series and Outstanding Limited Series. Most recently, Johan directed the sci-fi feature film Spaceman, starring Adam Sandler, Carey Mulligan and Paul Dano. The film debuted at Number. 1 on Netflix for two weeks running. Johan is currently in development on a range of projects across film and TV, with his new production company Sinestra, based in New York.