Reissues

This recording is a reissue of the 1992 Frog Peak/Artifact CD, the first recorded collection of James Tenney’s music of the 1960s. Many of the pieces on this CD were realized at Bell Telephone Laboratories from 1961 to 1969, where Tenney used Max Mathews’s digital synthesis program that eventually became Music IV. This software became the model for many of the common computer music environments of the last forty years, and was the first system of its kind available to composers. Tenney’s pieces …

With Robert Ashley, George Cacioppo, Gordon Mumma, Roger Reynolds, Donald Scavarda, David Behrman, George Crevoshay, Philip Krumm, Pauline Oliveros, Robert Sheff, Bruce Wise. Ann Arbor, Michigan, seems an unlikely site for the establishment of a major avant-garde festival that would shake the new-music community. Tucked away in America's heartland, the city is equally removed from the Eastern metropolises whose artists pride themselves on sensing the pulse of the times, and from the nonconformis…

Larry Polansky, though known primarily for his work in the field of computer music, has produced a major addition to the keyboard literature, this massive theme-and-variations on Ruth Crawford Seeger’s arrangement of the folk song "Lonesome Road." Inspired by his deep engagement with her music, Lonesome Road (1988-89) is a prime example of Polansky’s penchant for building large architectonic structures through complex transformational processes. The work is in three sections of seventeen variati…

Composer/performer Joan La Barbara (b 1947) has been an influential figure in experimental music since the early 1970s. She has devoted her career to the exploration of the human voice as a multi-faceted instrument. Going far beyond traditional boundaries, she has created works for multiple voices, chamber ensembles, music theater, orchestra and interactive technology. ShamanSong features three premieres of vintage La Barbara "sound paintings" of pensive beauty and spiritual resonance.  ShamanSo…

O,O,O,O, That Shakespeherian Rag collects six of the most important compositions from his relatively small body of work. By the late 50s Martirano had begun to freely incorporate elements of jazz and popular music. O,O,O,O, That Shakespeherian Rag(1959), one of his two magnum opuses, is a prime example of this musical synthesis—a serialist choral setting of passages from three Shakespeare plays, accompanied by a chamber orchestra that includes a jazz ensemble. Schoenberg meets bebop in a wild, i…

Works by Bülent Arel, Charles Dodge, Ingram Marshall, Ilhan Mimaroglu, Daria Semegen, Alice Shields. The Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center was the first electronic music center to be established in the United States. From 1959 to the late 1970s, it was one of the premiere sound facilities in the world. The vast majority of pieces composed at the Center - approximately three hundred - were composed during this period. Some have become classics of music history. This selection, draw…

CD reissue, easily one of the top 5 rarest titles on the NWW list (one just went for over $900 on ebay several months back!), this late 60's debut outing from Swiss madman Anton Bruhin (poles apart from his later tape cut up work) is trafficing in a species of demented fragmentary dadaist songform disembowelment of a very post-Zappa/Beefheart meets Futura Records-sounding sort, though this actually precedes anything from the Futura camp. Nevertheless, it's anarchic spirit is clearly informed by …

An art installment in wich the artist has imagined the room 25 at the Beat Hotel rue Git-le-Coeur, where Brion Gysin and William Burroughs lived between 1957 and 1965. The room was an improvised center of intellectual and creative avant-garde. They used there tapes and tape recorders, they discovered through their work that language manipules us and that one can enlarge his perception fields using language. The question what is the use of a tape-recorder leads to the question what is the use of …

Compositions performed by Bethany Beardslee and Lynne Weber (sopranos), Jerry Kudern and Robert Miller (pianos). The four works on this recording span a period of a decade and are among the best of Milton Babbitt’s output, tape and otherwise. Philomel, for soprano, recorded soprano, and synthesized sound, is one of the undisputed classics of electroacoustic music and this is its definitive recording. Two versions of Phonemena —one for soprano and piano, the other for soprano and tape— another vi…

Compositions performed by Barbara Held (flute), Thomas Buckner (voice), MIDI Orchestra. Robert Ashley is known primarily for his theater-based pieces and television operas. This new release presents the world premiere recordings of two of his “orchestral” pieces, Superior Seven (concerto for flute), and Tract (for orchestra and voice), where the orchestra is provided by a MIDI synthesizer. In Superior Seven, the flute floats freely in and out of an atmospheric electronic sound tapestry. It is a …

Ussachevsky was one of the most significant pioneers in the compositon of electronic music, and one of its most potent forces. He produced the first works of “tape music,” a uniquely American synthesis of the French musique-concrète and the German pure electronic schools. He co-founded the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center in 1959 and directed its course for the next twenty years as the leading electronic music studio in the United States. This release couples two of his most powerful a…

The guitar is the popular instrument par excellence. As apt for Brazilian sambas for Irish ballads or American blues, the guitar has also recently been adapted as a surrogate for plucked instruments from non-Western musical traditions; no idiom seems beyond its reach. When social history of the second half of the twentieth century is written, it may be seen that the guitar is as central to this era as the piano was to the nineteenth century. But while the piano was an emblem of upward social asp…

This collection of two tonal works by composers known for their non-tonal compositional style is a fine example of contemporary approaches to sacred choral music. Salvatore Martirano’s Mass is a setting of a traditional Latin Mass whilst Donald Martino’s Seven Pious Pieces sets religious texts by Robert Herrick. The vocal writing is masterful with transparent textures and flowing contrapuntal lines.

“... in the past, the point of disagreement has been between dissonance and consonance, it will be, in the immediate future, between noise and so-called musical sounds.” — John Cage  The most characteristic features of American music are its eclecticism and innovation. The works presented here are perfect examples; their only common feature is that they were written for a piano altered in some way. The disc opens with the eerie, wailing cries of Henry Cowell’s (1897-1965) The Banshee. In order …

Previous LP release, now available as a new version on CD with a mini-LP style CD & new artwork. "Vikki Jackman (no relation to David of Organum fame) is the pianist that we first met in Andrew Chalk's Goldfall, her impalpable chords and notes a preponderant element of that delicate music. Now Faraway Press issues her solo debut, which comes in a stunningly beautiful sleeve, a time-consumed photo in which little Vikki is portrayed near a snowman. One can't escape memory, which is often all that …

Tip! The VocSon series presents on limited editions LP records the most advanced international vocal experiments and is mainly dedicated to the documentation of sound poetry. this series includes now the new LP record by Charlemagne Palestine titled "Voice Studies". Charlemagne Palestine introduction to music or sound was first with his own voice. he began at four years old to sing versions of popular songs and operas in his own way. later on, a director of a Jewish sacred music choir auditioned…

Alga Marghen proudly presents a new chapter in the documentation series of Charlemagne Palestine's historical works. This CD of previously-unavailable recordings not only presents you Charlemagne Palestine activities in 1974, collaborating with some of most important experimental artists and composers from either the New York loft scene and Cal Arts, but also features world premiere recordings of Terry Jennings and The Fundamental D Flat Group. "Short & Sweet" is the title of a breathtaking duo …

Now out of print collection of Lard Free's four albums: Lard Free, I'm Around About Midnight, III/Spirale Malax and Unnamed, all remastered, made in Japan in strictly limited editions and released in mini-lp sleeves. We managed to get a very few of this, but it is out of print now. This set comes with 'a special outer box'.

A three CD box with excellent 56 page booklet dedicated to the music of France that was initially fueled by the Revolt of '68, with one CD dedicated to each decade since. Some material is commonly available, much of it is not; the first CD covers the seventies (1969-77) and features some pretty mind-blowing stuff from the peak years of free-rock cacophony. The 1st CD features the following (an * indicates previously unreleased material, or least unavailable on CD): Jacques Dudon (*, classic frea…

A massive 6xCD box that includes the six titles (Cluster, Moebius & Beerbohm) with special outer box and replica paper sleeve of Cluster (Philips version) '71: the first release of Cluster on Philips in 1971 and reissued on Sky Records in 1980. Experimental electronic sound! Producer: Conny Plank. Sowiesoso: the original LP was released on Sky Records in 1976. The fourth Cluster album produced by Conny Plank. Grosses Wasser: the fifth album on Sky Records in 1979. Produced by Peter Baumann (ex. …

Cluster were key members during the formative years of the Krautrock movement. They initially released 2 LPs in '69/70 with the Kluster spelling that are amongst the earliest Teutonic pulse masterworks. Their first album with a "C" spelling was the s/t LP on Philips (currently o/p as a CD on Sky), before they moved over to the Brain label. This is their first of 2 for that label, from 1972, and is a great, confused space classic by this duo (Roedelius & Moebius). Utilizing primitive synthesizer …

A follow-up to the works of brass player Jacques Berrocal, Catalogue is about a highly de-structured, crazy music. They fervently use the retro flavour attached to the Sixties, by using famous tracks such as "Be-Bop-A-Lula" or "Avoir Un Bon Copain". "Antwerpen Live" is from 1979, the eponymous album from 1980, "Pénétration" from 1983 & "Insomnie" from 1987. Guitar-player Jean-François Pauvros and drummer Gilbert Artman can also be heard here

The hour-long Two Gongs fills the entirety of [this] disc with its ethereal, droning psychedelia. While written in 1971, the '89 recording documented here features Chatham, along with fellow composer Yoshimase Wada coaxing heavy, overlapping tones out of a pair of Chinese gongs. The instruments buzz and hum, moving in waves from deafening rattles to soft, muted drones. The monstrous noise that Chatham concocts is far more akin to the seismic crashes of monstrously distorted guitar feedback than …

Digilogue was originally issued in 1996 as a limited edition clear vinyl LP. It was followed two years later in 1998 by a CD containing three bonus tracks. The CD has been out-of-print for more than a year. As of today, it's the only Zoviet France release in circulation worldwide. The rest of their catalog is out-of-print! The music recorded for Digilogue examines the subtle and shifting nuances that contrast the digital and analog worlds. Zoviet France have always professed their fascination wi…

The opus magnum of microtonal composition - a rare testament to ultrachromatic exploration

Long deleted, last copy of this ultra limited vinyl edition of 150 numbered copies by the famous composer JOJI YUASA's legendary earliest example of musique concrete “AOI-no-UE” (1961) and his final electronic music composition “My Blue Sky No.1” (1975) made at NHK electronic music studio. The sound of “AOI-no-UE” is made from voices of Japanese traditional Noh theater. “My Blue Sky No.1” on the other hand was made from only clicks and pulses as sonic sound sources. Both works are world premiere…

Limited edition of 300 copies. Music For Tinguely was composed in 1963, Appearance in 1967, Music For Living Space in 1969. "in 1967, i was staying in new york for about 10 months with my wife and 2 years old son as a composer in residence under the invitation of jdr 3rd fund. my position was quite free so i was enjoying stimulating new york life by meeting friends of various fields, participating concerts of john cage and david tudor and the members of sonic arts union and so on. one day i had…

Here it is: The Campingsex LP from 1985. Finest depressing Noise-Rock from Germany in the style of Flipper. The whole thing was re-released last year by Vinyl-On-Demand in a limited edition of 500 copies and with a bonus LP including a live concert and rare outtakes. Thurston Moore once said that Campingsex had a huge influence on Sonic Youth. A year after the LP was released frontman Max Müller, drummer Florian Koerner and early bass-player Frank Behnke formed the less punky, heavier band Mutte…

Latest works by legendary French sound-poetry pioneer Henri chopin (born 1922), produced and recorded november 2003 - january 2004. Mastered and cut june 2006 by Rashad Becker-D&M. Edition of 491 copies in printed glossy outer- and innersleeve, with text by Henri chopin (original french, plus english & german translations), and photography by Florence Gonot-Yterce.” “Prologue Les souffles”, “La plaine des respirs vivace comme il se doit”, “Finale Les répressions cassées”.

Recorded in the spring of 2005. Inspired by the film Last Year At Marienbad, this album is reminiscent of the classic Soliloquy For Lilith in its tone. Echo Poeme No. 2 is one continuous piece based around the female voice. Features a four-pages booklet designed by Babs Santini.'

Originally released on LP in 1987 in an edition of 100 copies, this marks the first ever CD release of this Nurse With Wound classic. Comes housed in a gorgeous six-panel digipack featuring reproductions of some of the artwork that came with the original vinyl edition.As a testament to the random disorder and beauty of life, London's Nurse with Wound (Steve Stapleton) functioned outside the normal musical channels for a decade, experimenting with tape collages of disjointed phrases, improvised m…

Originally released in 1999, 'An Awkward Pause' adds David Tibet, Christoph Heemann, Colin Potter and Petr Vastl (Aranos) to the mix, resulting in an extremely unique sounding and dare we say, rocking release. This two CD set is released in a deluxe 6 panel digifile and adds a second disc of all previously unreleased tracks.

United Jnana's Nurse With Wound reissue series continues with Salt Marie Celeste, perhaps the most radical album in the band's catalog. Similar in spirit to Gavin Bryars's "The Sinking of the Titanic," the album's sixty-plus-minute title track delves deep into the themes of unknown darkness and ultimate demise.Recorded in 2002 by Steven Stapleton and electronic studio wizard Colin Potter, this is a landmark recording in the field of contemporary electronic music. Best known for founding the lege…

In 1985, Philip Blackburn climbed the stairs to an attic in Iowa City and started trying to make sense of the boxes piled up there. They contained a composer's life's work: scrapbooks, tapes, photos, letters, scores, and film reels -- fragile treasures documenting the 20th century from a most unusual viewpoint, perhaps the world's most original musician: Harry Partch. The idea was to publish them and reveal Harry to the world on his own terms. Not as the crabby, homeless, self-taught microtonal …

LP reissue. Self-described as "...a cosmic rock relaxation creation to elevate sensory awareness to include the aura of intuitive perception of higher realm of human/divine consciousness using the astral body projection experience vehicle to pierce time/space/logic dimension barriers on the return voyage to the ultimate concept."  On Steven Stapleton's Nurse With Wound list, of course. Moolah was comprised of two youths from New York, Walter Burns and Maurice Roberson. This revolutionary psyched…

Now available for the first time as a vinyl LP. Originally issued as CD in 1998 by Oblique Recordings, Sapphie was Richard Youngs' fifth solo full-length and quite a unique album in his already unique oeurve. Made up of three acoustic tracks -- spanning over 37 minutes in length -- featuring just classical guitar and voice, Sapphie is quiet and introspective. The songs feel like an intimate journey by hand through a song cycle of loss and renewal. Within the context of his massive and ever-growi…

Taste the magic! Nova'Billy is another edible audible from Henry Flynt's dusty lower Manhattan bunker and it stands as one of the fullest, most beauteous document of Flynt's tenure with a full working rock band to date. For less than one calendar year between 1974 and 1975, Henry Flynt's hard driving, heavy jamming agit country rock band, Nova'Billy embraced bareknuckled deep fried groove attacks, bearded hippie jam band workouts & a monstrous melange of blues, boogie and free jazz squeal into a…

This is one of the rarest and earlier sound poetry LP compilation, issued for the 1971 Amsterdam exhibition. 1 copy available

Originally released in 1996 as Scorpion Wind's Heaven Sent CD/LP this album has long been considered the 'lost' classic collaboration between Death In June's neo-folk pioneer Douglas P. and industrial music's renegade innovator Boyd Rice. Recorded in Australia prior to the pair starring in the cult film Pearls Before Swine, it is a unique, melodic and richly orchestrated ode to modern living, modern loving -- and modern hating. Joined by percussionist John Murphy (ex-SPK, The Associates, Current…

A pioneer of live electronic music and one of America's most adventurous composers, Alvin Curran has been walking his own eclectic path since the late 1960s. The range and scope of his work is enormous, and unprecedented. Few composers have as many interests, or as much wit. This special compilation takes us on a whirlwind tour of fifteen of his most productive years (1987–2002), capturing both live and studio performances from around the world. Featuring a seductive work for chorus and ensemble…