Jazz /
Amoungst English Men
2006 release ** Limited edition of 500 hand-numbered copies packaged in special 7" sleeve. "Amongst English Men finds Mark Wastell alone, brooding magnificently in the bottom octave of a superbly recorded Steinway grand piano until his Tilburyesque clangs are eventually lost in a haze of tam tam harmonics and mournful strokes on a tubular bell. It’s deceptively simple to describe but remarkably subtle and compelling to listen to, impeccably mixed and mastered by Graham Halliwell."
Leopardo
Leopardo is a solo recording by the Portuguese guitarist Manuel Mota, who might best be described as a somewhat more fluidly lyrical Derek Bailey. Lovingly recorded on solid body electric guitar, his improvisations have the spiky quality associated with the elder statesman of the freely improvised guitar, but Mota's lines sound as though coated in oil, possessing a slipperiness and liquidity that peeks back at Portuguese traditions. There are very few extended effects employed, the guitar string…
The hearing continues
The hearing continues. The playing continues. The listening continues. The music continues. The London Improvisers Orchestra (LIO) continues to play the first Sunday of every month (except December & January) at the Red Rose. Every concert is different - has its own flavour - largely due to who is performing that night, and whose pieces are performed. Some musicians have other commitments on the night. Some musicians drop out completely, others join afresh. Some are just in London for an extende…
More together than alone
Soprano saxophonist Lol Coxhill always sounds good regardless of what area he is playing in and who he is playing with. This present collection just features his free improvising, but with a variety of partners. The late Hugh Davies was a master instrument inventor. Guitarist John Russell is one of the major stalwarts of the London improvising scene (like Coxhill). Henry Lowther has been a much sought-after jazz trumpeter since the 1960s, but has always kept a toe in free waters. Pat Thomas is a…
Out to launch
Two complete solo soprano saxophone concerts, from Chicago and London, show that Coxhill is as inventive as ever some four decades after his first solo performances. In between there is a 10-minute improvisation by an impromptu 13-piece orchestra. 77 minutes -- previously unissued.
Digswell duets
The 39 minute duet with Simon Emmerson is an early example of interactive saxophone and electronics, wherein Emmerson modifies Coxhill's sound, and Coxhill reacts accordingly, etc. The 34 minute duet with pianist Veryan Weston is an early example of their very compatible duo, which is still going strong. Reissue of Random Radar RRR 005 with extra material from the same sessions. 73 minutes.
Conduction #41: new world, new world
1995 release ** New World, New World - Opperman Music Hall, Florida State University School of Music; February 4, 1994Jesse Canterbury, clarinet; Mimi Patterson, clarinet; Scott Deeter, sax; Philip Gelb, shakuhachi; Gregor Harvey, guitar; Ethan Schaffner, electric guitar; Elisabeth King, voice; Daniel Raney, trombone; David Tatro, trombone; Michael Titlebaum, alto saxConducting is no longer a mere method for an interpretation, but an actual part of the process of composition. Conduction is a mea…
Conduction #38: in Freud’s garden, conduction #39 & #40: threadw
1995 release **Conduction #38: in Freud's Garden: Muffathalle, Germany; December 11, 1993Myra Melford, piano; Zeena Parkins, harp; Bryan Carrott, vibes; Brandon Ross, acoustic guitar; J. A. Deane, trombone; live sampling; Motoharu Yoshizawa, electric bass; Lê Quan Ninh, percussion; Martin Schütz, electric cello; Tristan Honsinger, cello; Martine Altenburger, cello; Edgar Laubscher, electric viola; Hans Koch, clarinet, bass & contrabass clarinet, soprano & tenor saxConduction #39 & #40: Threadwax…
Conduction #31: Angelica, conduction #35: American connection 4,
1995 release ** Conduction #31: Angelica Festival of International Music: Bologna, Italy; May 16, 1993
Dietmar Diesner, soprano sax; Peter Kowald, bass; Wolter Wierbos, trombone; Steve Beresford, piano; Hans Reichel, guitar; Tom Cora, cello; Han Bennink, drums; Catherine Jauniaux, voice; Ikue Mori, drum machinesConduction #35: American Connection 4: Antwerp, Belgium; May 26, 1993Conduction #36: American Connection 4: Amsterdam, Holland; May 27, 1993The Maarten Altena Ensemble: Maarten Altena, ba…
Conduction #28: Cherry Blossom, conduction #31: Angelica
1995 release ** Conduction #28: Cherry Blossom: P3 Art and Environment, Tokyo, Japan; March 28, 1993Yukihiro Isso, nokan; Shonosuke Okura, ohtsuzumi; Makiko Sakurai, shomyo, music box; Michihiro Sato, tugaru syamisen; Kizan Daiyoshi, shakuhachi; Yuji Katsui, violin; Haruna Miyake, piano; Asuka Kaneko, voice; Shuichi Chino, computer; Koichi Makigami, voice; Yoshihide Otomo, turntables, CD player; Kazutoki Umezu, bass clarinet; Sachiko Nagata, percussion; Motoharu Yoshizawa, electric bass; Kazuo O…
Conduction #25 & #26: The Akbank conduction, AkbankII
1995 release ** The Akbank Conduction, Akbank IIIstanbul, Turkey; October 16 & 17, 1992The Süleyman Erguner Ensemble: Hasan Esen, kemence; Mehmet Emin Bitmez, ud; Göksel Baktagir, kanun; Süleyman Erguner, ney; Lê Quan Ninh, percussion; Bryan Carrott, vibraphone; J.A.Deane, trombone, electronics, drum machine; Elizabeth Panzer, harp; Brandon Ross, acoustic guitar; Steve Colson, piano; Hugh Ragin, pocket trumpetConducting is no longer a mere method for an interpretation, but an actual part of the …
Conduction #23: Quinzaine de Montréal
1995 release ** Quinzaine de MontrealThe Spectrum, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; April 11, 1992Tristan Honsinger, cello; Martin Schütz, cello; Eric Longsworth, cello; Michelle Kinney, broom-cello; Ken Butler, broom-cello; Helmut Lipsky, violin; J. A. Deane, trombone, live sampling; Guillaume Dostaler, piano; Mike Milligan, bass; Pierre Dubé, vibesConducting is no longer a mere method for an interpretation, but an actual part of the process of composition. Conduction is a means by which a conductor m…
The Open Air Meeting
Muhal Richard Abrams: piano; Marty Ehrlich: alto saxophone, clarinet.
This disc is taken from a live recording of an open air concert
which took place August 11, 1996 at the Brooklyn Museum in New York.
This duet concert was, on one level, a meeting between two of the
seminal jazz innovators of their respective generations. The nuanced and
subtle interchange of ideas between these two great musicians-as they
challenge and provoke each other to explore new musical ground-is
enthralling thr…
In::tension:.
About I n : : t e n s i o n : 'Since a very young age, I have always been attracted to journeys and traveling to places not known to me. Last year, I watched a film from Mongolia about a dog. Once the dog dies, its soul is free to travel and wonder through landscapes and memories as a disembodied spirit. Each part of I n : : t e n s i o n : . is part of a longer journey, where you can hear, sense and discover different memories that a wandering soul revisits. Percussive, intimate, visceral, ritu…
The wilisau suites
1993 release ** "Those who have appreciated through the years the many talents of bassist Kent Carter (in the bands of Paul Bley, Carla Bley or Steve Lacy for instance), have secretly wished that one day he would lead his own band. Since Mister Carter has always been a very personal and inspired soloist, one would think that his conceptions ought to be extended to the size of an orchestra. With the Kent Carter String Trio, this wish comes through, and our hopes are more than satisfied. The Willi…
s/t
ErstLive is a new series of releases from Erstwhile Records, documenting notable live sets associated with the label. The discs are designed to simulate a concert experience, each in the same template design using two colors chosen by the musicians involved, with a photo of the concert on the back cover. Each will be in an edition of 800 CDs and not reprinted. The initial releases will be chosen from the AMPLIFY 2004 festival which took place in Cologne and Berlin in May 2004. ErstLive …
Between
"between", for me is about the tension and space between objects, and how we might occupy this area, to reside if you like between the conventions, to locate the flexibility that comes from de-theorizing the dogmas. It seemed to me as if Toshi and I were navigating a route through a familiar part of town, where each of the buildings stood for and represented expectations, styles, outcomes and histories. We wanted to resist entering the buildings and to stay between. The cover art and photo attem…
Weather sky
That said, "Weather Sky" is another thing altogether. Bruno Meillier invited Toshi to play a duo concert in St Etienne with AMM's no-concessions table guitar master Keith Rowe, and took them into the studio the day after to record for Erstwhile. Sensitivity to pitch is less important here (Rowe, remember, hasn't tuned his guitar since the early 1960s): the album's three tracks are real slow-burners. Rowe can be agile and aggressive when he wants to, but his preferred working method is to lay dow…