The Bang on a Can All-Stars is an amplified ensemble that was formed in 1992 by parent organization Bang on a Can.
Called "a flexible and expert sextet" by The New York Times, the ensemble was formed as an agile group with a set instrumentation to take on touring and recording projects for Bang on a Can that would not be feasible for the organization's massive "Marathon" concert productions.
They appeared as guest stars in the season 17 episode of Arthur, "Binky's Music Madness", with Evan Ziporyn and Julia Wolfe as themselves.
In 2005 the All-Stars were named "Ensemble of the Year" by the Musical America International Directory of the Performing Arts. The ensemble has been heralded as "the country's most important vehicle for contemporary music" by the San Francisco Chronicle.
The very first release of the Cantaloupe Music catalog, the All-Stars' Renegade Heaven was ranked the #1 album of 2001 by New York Times classical music editor Allan Kozinn, and their recording of Terry Riley's In C made the 2001 New York Times top ten lists in both classical and pop.
Their recording of Julia Wolfe's oratorio Anthracite Fields in collaboration with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street and conductor Julian Wachner received a 2016 Grammy Award nomination.