In 2010, seven of New York City’s most sought-after and versatile instrumentalists connected over a shared love for Stravinsky’s magnificent L’Histoire du Soldat, and Deviant Septet was born. Scored for a high and low voice from each instrumental family — violin and bass, clarinet and bassoon, trumpet and trombone — plus percussion, the concert version of L’Histoire explores a unique and marvelous collection of sonic colors.

Through a series of commissions, the “boisterously entertaining” (Lucid Culture) Deviant Septet is currently building and performing new repertoire for their unusual instrumentation. At Duke Performances, the first half of their program will consist of new pieces by Duke Ph.D. student composers, developed over the course of the season while Deviant Septet are artists-in-residence at Duke. After intermission, they perform their signature rendition of Stravinsky’s masterful L’Histoire du Soldat.