Containing three members this group uses a variety of electronic and acoustic gizmos to create sounds with. Almost cult-like in their approach to making music, Arp of the Covenant insists that once they sit down at their instruments, they have no control over what they will play. They, in fact, become instruments for a mystical synthesizer that they found in a crudely fashioned tomb in the magical forests of northern Wisconsin.... The ARP. When asked to identify themselves in the presence of the ARP they respond only with a slack jawed blank stare. Once the ARP is engaged it takes mere seconds for it to take control of their motor functions and command them what to do.
Mark Siegenthaler
Mark Siegenthaler is a Madison-area musician with several years of professional and academic experience in jazz piano and electronic music performance. He has played in several performing groups in the upper-Midwest and has appeared with prominent jazz artists including Oliver Lake, Geri Allen, and Jeff Coffin. Mr. Siegenthaler has also been a frequent pianist for jazz faculty recitals at both UW Whitewater and UW Platteville. Currently, he is involved in two projects based in the Madison-area: the ARP of the Covenant trio (www.arpofthecovenant.com) and the Executive Tea Set jazz quartet. Mark has earned a Bachelor's degree in Music/Piano Performance at the University of Wisconsin - Platteville and a Masters degree in Improvisation (Piano) from the University of Michigan.
Bradley Townsend
Brad Townsend is a versatile bassist who thrives on diverse performance experiences encompassing jazz, orchestral, chamber, experimental, and improvised music. Recent collaborative performances and recording projects include Arp of the Covenant, A.S.T.R.O (Anders Svanoe’s Teleporting Rhythmic Orchestra), Mantis, BANZAT, Tomato Box and Night Cow. Brad has performed at the Heliotrope Festival, the Spark Festival of Electronic Music, Blue Stem Jazz events, Madison Jazz Festival and Bay View Jazz Fest. He has also been a studio musician and collaborator for films such as Dragged Across Concrete (2018 crime thriller with Vince Vaughn and Mel Gibson) and Bone Tomahawk (2015 American western starring Kurt Russell). Brad has also had the honor of playing with Jeff Coffin, Steve Houghton, Oliver Lake, Chris Potter, Matt Wilson, Anders Astrand, Hanah John Taylor, Carla Bley and many others.
Nick Zielinski
Nick Zielinski channels his creative energies into a variety forward-thinking independent musical projects including: ARP of the Covenant, @indicative_of_drumming, Mantis, ASTRO, and The ArtHaus Improvisor's Orchestra. Additionally, he has had the honor of performing alongside musical innovators such as Henry Grimes, Anthony Cox, Anders Astrand, Thollem McDonas, Ron Bridgewater, Hanah Jon Taylor, Paschal Yao Younge, and Larry Gray. Nick has performed and showcased his compositions and improvisations at festivals and conferences such as: The Heliotrope Festival, The Northern Spark Festival, The International Society for Improvised Music (ISIM), The Two Rivers Jazz Festival, The Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States (SEAMUS), and The Spark Festival of Electronic Music. Currently, Nick is a freelance improvisor, drummer, composer and holds the FJZ Distinguished Chair in Fatherhood and Logistical Engineering at the University of Parents and Familes located in [Insert_Any_Midwest_Town_Here], USA.