HurdAudio Rotation: Watermoons

Derek Bailey/Cyro Baptista: Derek. 2006. Amulet Records: AMT 023.

Derek Bailey: guitar
Cyro Baptista: percussion, voice

There was a purity to Derek Bailey's approach to free improvisation. And with it certain seriousness running underneath the variety of non-premeditated angles his fingers would find on the guitar. With Cyro Baptista there's a sense of whimsy and play as he darts through a vast array of sonic sources at hand and in his voice. As a duo these disparate talents compliment each other well. The cultural and spoken language differences dissolving away once the music begins to fly.

Gunda Gottschalk: Wassermonde. 2002. Elephant: 002.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola

The sounding timbral terrain of Gunda Gottschalk is vast. There are any number of ways to draw music out of the sounding board of the violin and viola. But the striking thing is how she doesn't skip around this expended sonic space too quickly. Instead, she follows her own improvisational instinct to focus upon singular patches of ideas and allow them to develop under their own force of duration. Guided by her ears, what results is an hour of severely good taste. This one is a sonic gem.

Iannis Xenakis: Electronic Music. 1997. Electronic Music Foundation: EMF CD 003.

Iannis Xenakis: composer, electronics

Diamorphoses (1957)
Concret PH (1958)
Orient-Occident (1960)
Bohor (1962)
Hibiki-Hana-Ma (1970)
S.709 (1992)

To be honest, most musique concrete leaves me cold. My listening diet is spare in this medium. Audio editing software has made so much sonic manipulation so easy to do that there's already a ready fluency with the basics elements of amplification and signal processing. Many early works of musique concrete sound like dated oddities to these ears. Iannis Xenakis is a significant exception to these reservations. His sensibilities as a composer of major orchestral and chamber works contributed to his uncanny sense of form. Not to mention his background in architecture. The steadfast consistency in all media toward hyper rational structures and stochastic generative process makes each medium into a different glimpse into a vibrant aesthetic soul. One can hear how his ideas feed upon the materials at hand. There is also the relentless abrasive quality of his music that is difficult to turn away from.

Bohor is the main attraction in this collection. A piece that nearly pealed the peeling of Easter morning church bells as it systematically transformed into a howling wind pouring out of my speakers. The use of instrumental source material in Hibiki-Hana-Ma gave it a sense of gravity and allowed these ears to connect with it at an immediate and intuitive level.

HurdAudio Rotation: The House That Hope Built

Gunda Gottschalk/Peter Jacquemyn/Ute Volker: Baggerboot. 2005. Henceforth Records: 102.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola
Peter Jacquemyn: bass
Ute Volker: accordion

Free improvisation with strong parallels to improvised painting. Big, multi-colored paint brushes dripping with thick gobs of paint being flung into the frame of time to produce an aural image that fills every part of the canvas. The three tracks are labeled "Cascade I," Cascade II" and "Cascade III" for a music that cascades with the violence and beauty of a waterfall along a sheer cliff on its way toward a fierce splash and spray at the bottom. The reedy accordion pulled along by strong currents as the string instruments are sawed at mercilessly by Gottschalk and Jacquemyn. A spontaneous creation that loses nothing with repeated listening.

Ron Miles: Heaven. 2002. Sterling Circle Records: SC5151.

Ron Miles: Trumpet
Bill Frisell: guitar

Two forces of creativity and musicianship in its purest form in this outstanding duo recording. The sense of play takes on a particularly even handed quality through its treatment of Ron Miles originals along side Thelonious Monk, Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington, Bob Dylan and a devastating take on Hank Williams' "Your Cheatin' Heart." All played as a flowing conversation between trumpet and guitar. The joyful, rootsy folksiness of "Just Married" is a strong initial draw into this listening journey that invites the ears to listen to the varied nuances that unfold between these players.

Future of the Left: Travels with Myself and Another. 2009. 4AD Ltd: CAD2913CD.

Jack Egglestone: drums, percussion
Kelson Mathias: bass, guitar, synths, vocals
Andrew Falkous: guitar, bass, synths, vocals

Punk music walks a fine balance between intelligence and stupidity. Not enough of either tends to make the end result intolerable. Future of the Left walks that line better than most I've heard. An ability to draw from unfiltered rage without being utterly consumed by it. More "polite" aesthetics rarely give ground to angry and stupid. Future of the Left opens up and traps it within conviction that is vaguely political and indignant. Somewhere along the way they hit upon some brilliant song writing. "The Hope That House Built," "You Need Satan More than He Needs You" and "That Damned Fly" hitting that sweet spot that makes this collection so imminently enjoyable.

HurdAudio Rotation: Free Improvising Trio, Duo, Solo

Michele Rabbia/Marilyn Crispell/Vincent Courtois: Shifting Grace. 2006. Cam Jazz: CAMJ 7791-2.

Michele Rabbia: percussion
Marilyn Crispell: piano
Vincent Courtois: cello

Free improvisation that "shifts" focal points between players with virtuosic ease. Rabbia's percussion takes on a light touch that matches the lyrical whisps of Crispell's piano playing and the artful phrasing of Courtois' cello. Even the foreground "shifts" with each player slipping into focus in a music built upon collective creation. The fluid encounters captured for this recording reveal a mature sense of pace and compositional form.

Derek Bailey/Cyro Baptista: Derek. 2003. Amulet Records: amt 023.

Derek Bailey: guitar
Cyro Baptista: percussion, voice

Completely "in the moment" improvisation from two figures with radically different orbits. The differences between the English guitarist and Brazilian percussionist is bridged by an open responsiveness that allows for humor and deeply individual sounds to coexist upon the same canvas. With this listening I am aware of the individualistic techniques at work in this music. Baptista's sample-and-loop approach feels at odds with Bailey's persistent (and sometimes harsh) strumming at first. The whims of Baptista's words often work against the abstract harmonies and tones of Bailey's wall of acoustic guitar textures. This tension between parts marks much of this sound and the attraction of this disc lies in how these two performers feel out a mutual space with a sense of give and take to fit these jagged pieces into an unusual sonic image.

Gunda Gottschalk: Wassermonde. 2002. Elephant: 002.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola

This one accurately captures the live solo Gottschalk experience. With a wide ranging improvisatory language and a strong intuitive instinct toward long arching forms this disc feeds the lingering hunger to "hear more" of this impressive performer. The long arc holds for over an hour on this collection and even has the surprise entrance of Gottschalk's voice blending within the overall texture late in the performance - just as was the case with her live performance last year.

HurdAudio Rotation: Sometimes I Feel Like a Drummerless Child

Thomas Ulrich/Elliott Sharp/Carlos "Zingaro"/Ken Filiano: T.E.C.K. String 4tet. 2007. Clean Feed: CF089CD.

Thomas Ulrich: cello
Elliott Sharp: acoustic guitar, national tricone
Carlos "Zingaro": violin
Ken Filiano: bass

String timbres have often been at the heart of Elliott Sharp's most attractive works. Be it his string quartets (of the "conventional" instrumentation) or his work with guitars his is a familiar voice to pick out within this quartet of free improvisers. And improvisation has also been a strong facet of Sharp's output. Here the sound bends and undulates with the creative additions of Ulrich, Zingaro and Filiano filling out the soundscape with their own distinctive mark. The music that flows, unpremeditated from this ensemble is quiet and intense. Focused on details while leaving plenty of space for new sonic territory to be initiated from any quarter.

Gunda Gottschalk/Peter Jacquemyn/Ute Volker: Baggerboot. 2003. Henceforth Records: 102.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola
Peter Jacquemyn: bass
Ute Volker: accordion

Three arcing, long-form improvisations with the reedy timbre of Volker's accordion deftly bridging a territory between the high and low strings of Gottschalk and Jacquemyn. Each makes up part of a complete set, like three large canvases hanging next to one another, offering up a study in shading and texture. There's a grounded sense of drone within this sound even as none of these individual players stands still for long, allowing the texture to develop with a sense of unfolding and hearing with ears wide open.

Ron Miles: Heaven. 2002. Sterling Circle: SC5151.

Ron Miles: trumpet
Bill Frisell: guitar

If you've had this disc up on the shelf for a while you might have forgotten how good it is. And if you don't have it on your shelf at all (or on your hard drive, your portable player and all the other ways music worms into it's "non-physical" media) then you're missing one of the most amazing works of understated duo collaboration recorded. Named after the Duke Ellington piece represented in this set, along with Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's A-gonna Fall," Jelly Roll Morton's "King Porter Stomp" and a take on Hank William's "Your Cheatin' Heart" that virtually weeps, it's the Ron Miles originals that shed the most light on a collaborative sensibility that runs deep between these two players.

HurdAudio Rotation: Derek, Gunda and McCoy

Derek Bailey/Cyro Baptista: Derek. 2006. Amulete Records: amt 023.

Derek Bailey: guitar
Cyro Baptista: percussion, voice

This one is a live set from New York's Tonic recorded in 2003. There's an extra element of reactive-ness between these free improvisers that is ever present in the sound. Unfamiliar to one another and unrehearsed, Baptista throws some interesting curves at Derek Bailey as the contrast between the guitar-centric sound against the timbrally varied voice and percussion comes into sharp relief. Bailey's playing provides a sense of gravity that keeps Baptista's whimsical language in check while that same whimsey ("Fred Estaire, I don't care") provides a buoyancy to Bailey's introversion.

Gunda Gottschalk: Wassermonde. 2002. Elephant Records: 002.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola

The contours of the bow sawing across four adjacent strings takes on a raw physicality in the unique improvised language of Gunda Gottschalk. The arching form of this hour-long performance feels composed while the exquisite details take on a spontaneous vibrancy. With a tone that can be heart-stopping in its frailty or richly augmented with Gottschalk's voice surging into the sonic image this is a performance that balances thrilling aesthetic territory with composed intention. The moment-to-moment details are flawlessly molded into an overall form that makes for an intense and satisfying listening experience.

McCoy Tyner: The Real McCoy. 1967 - reissued in 1999. Blue Note Records: 7243 4 97807 2 9.

McCoy Tyner: piano
Joe Henderson: tenor saxophone
Ron Carter: bass
Elvin Jones: drums

This album was a tangible source of escape through hot summers spent sweeping floors in New Jersey while waiting for the next school year to commence. With headphones providing a distraction from dirt and humidity, "Passion Dance" allowed the mind and heart to soar. The Real McCoy still holds that same transcendent soaring quality as one of the great jazz records of all time. Tyner's solo on his ballad "Search for Peace" is an inspiration as a fellow ivory practitioner. This is a quartet of excellence in top form and a document for the ages.

HurdAudio Rotation: Improvising for Change

Charlie Haden/Liberation Music Orchestra: Not In Our Name. 2005. Verve: B0004949-02.

Charlie Haden: bass
Carla Bley: piano, arrangements
Michael Rodriguez: trumpet
Seneca Black: trumpet
Curtis Fowlkes: trombone
Arnee Sharon Freeman: french horn
Joe Daley: tuba
Miguel Zenon: alto saxophone
Chris Cheek: tenor saxophone
Tony Malaby: tenor saxophone
Steve Cardenas: guitar
Matt Wilson: drums

Beauty as a form of contempt. Jazz in the face of mounting injustice. Carla Bley has fashioned some of the most shamelessly tuneful and astonishingly gorgeous arrangements of patriotic music in pure defiance of the ugliness flowing from Washington, DC. "This Is Not America" and the "America the Beautiful (Medley)" are an endless source of chills while the big band take on Bill Frisell's "Throughout" retains the formal crescendo of the original version and builds upon it. It may not change the world, but Not In Our Name offers hope that the human spirit will continue to be stronger than anything republican administrations bring about and that the desire to lift every voice and sing will eventually overcome the bleakest of days.

T.E.C.K. String Quartet: String 4tet. 2007. Clean Feed: CF089CD.

Tomas Ulrich: cello
Elliott Sharp: acoustic guitar, national tricone
Carlos "Zingaro": violin
Ken Filiano: double bass

Free improvised textures from the contrasting sensibilities of these four musicians as they form the unusual guitar/violin/cello/bass variant of the string quartet. The sonic sculpting works well even as it feels like the chemistry between these players hadn't fully coalesced at the time of this recording. The unfamiliarity and probing of one another adds an edge and an unpredictability to the overall sound as each player generously subsumes their own identity in favor of a group sound.

Gunda Gottschalk/Peter Jacquemyn/Ute Volker: Baggerboot. 2005. Henceforth Records: 102.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin
Peter Jacquemyn: bass
Ute Volker: accordion

"Improvisation is musical survival in the meta-cultural soundscape that is thriving, throbbing and sending new possibilities for relationships in a world littered with the millennial old patterns of argument as war. In this music there is negotioation, give and take in intimate and open spaces."
- Pauline Oliveros (from the liner notes)

Amen.
The give and take of a range spanning from double bass up through violin with an accordion in the middle makes for a gritty, reed-tinged timbre for this trio of free improvisers. At times lyrical, at other times a wash of abstract textures and colors with generous space for each individual contribution this disc is a rewarding listen - even more so for this particular spin in the rotation.

HurdAudio Rotation: Wassermonde, Li Po and Braxton on the Ivories

Gunda Gottschalk: Wassermonde. 2002. Free Elephant Records: 002.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola

There's something eerily human about the utterances GundaGottschalk conjures up from horsehair and string. Some of the fragile, quiet sounds that she achieves from varying the amount of bow pressure take the form of cries and near-spoken gestures that speak of the human condition without the hindrance of words and language. At other times, when the sounding tone from her violin is strong, she'll add her own wordless vocalizations to reinforce the overall sound. This is intense, focused free improvisation with a strong sense of formal structure.

Harry Partch: 17 Lyrics of Li Po. Composed between 1931 and 1933. Recorded in 1995. Tzadik: TZ 7012.

Stephen Kalm: intoning voice
Ted Mook: tenor violin

It's almost unnerving how much Stephen Kalm's voice resembles Harry Partch's own intoning voice. This definitive recording of these earliest of Partch's surviving compositions is an ear opening experience into the "Genesis" of Partch's musical vision. With the rhythm of spoken text preserved and reinforced with these arrangements, the beauty of the poetry itself takes on a ringing clarity. These troubadour compositions are some of the most impressive "songs" of the 20th century - filled with humor and unexpected turns.

Anthony Braxton: Piano Quartet, Yoshi's 1994 [disc 1]. 1994. Music and Arts: CD 849.

Anthony Braxton: piano
Marty Ehrlich: alto saxophone, soprano saxophone, clarinet
Joe Fonda: bass
Arthur Fuller: percussion

The rough sound of Braxton's piano playing troubled me when I first listened to this collection and I haven't returned to it since. And yet his music and ideas are so deeply compelling that I decided to bring fresh ears to this difficult listening. Ehrlich, Fonda and Fuller are great musicians and they follow Braxton's lead beautifully and turn in several great solos of their own in this set of jazz standards. But the center of the sound remains Braxton's thorny piano playing and solos. The frustrating thing is that Braxton's musical ideas are solid and adventurous. But his limited piano chops confine him to a narrow dynamic range as he plods through the full set. The other challenge, as a listener, is that these familiar standards serve as launching pads for the rich creative universe that Braxton has devised and he wastes no time shedding most traces of the original melodic and harmonic framework attached to these pieces. If one listens to these pieces as modular entities - in the same manner that Braxton's original compositions are - then things begin to sound cohesive. And there are some brilliant moments on this disc. By the end of this set I was even starting to "get" Braxton's solo on "Cherokee." It just takes a full hour to get acclimated to his piano sound and hear the ideas behind his playing. Even so, his piano sound is the first real challenge to my normally sympathetic ears.

HurdAudio Rotation: Not In Our Name/Baggerboot/Heaven

Charlie Haden/Liberation Music Orchestra: Not In Our Name. 2004. Verve: B0004949-02.

Charlie Haden: bass
Carla Bley: piano/conductor/arrangements
Michael Rodriguez: trumpet
Seneca Black: trumpet
Curtis Fowlkes: trombone
Ahnee Sharon Freeman: french horn
Joe Daley: tuba
Miguel Zenon: alto saxophone
Chris Creek: tenor saxophone
Tony Malaby: tenor saxophone
Steve Cardenas: guitar
Matt Wilson: drums

Born out of the frustration of the 2004 general election: "We were hoping sanity and justice would prevail. They lost out to greed, cruelty and injustice. The machine won the election again by hook and by crook; the way it was won in 2000." Charlie Haden and Carla Bley reconstitute the Liberation Music Orchestra for a new collection of big band protest music. The need for such protest having only grown since their first release in 1968. An ensemble that has figured prominently on my radar since being smitten by 1991's Dream Keeper - a disc that only grows more beautiful with each listening.

Not In Our Name is an extraordinary recording rising out of the bleakness of the current national political and cultural climate. An act of heart breaking defiance in the face of deafening indifference toward art and jazz. From the passionate bass solo on "Amazing Grace" to the big band arrangement of Samuel Barber's "Adagio" to the new take on Pat Metheny/Lyle Mays/David Bowie's "This Is Not America" to the fantastic orchestration of Bill Frisell's "Throughout," this a music of sadness and passionate honesty. And yet it still carries that same "We Shall Overcome" vibe that marked the Liberation Orchestra's first outing almost 40 years ago.

Gunda Gottschalk/Peter Jacquemyn/Ute Volker: Baggerboot. 2005. Henceforth Records: 102.

Gunda Gottschalk: violin, viola
Peter Jacquemyn: bass
Ute Volker: accordion

The reedy quality of the accordion blends well with the bowed strings in this free improvisation as these big ear collaborators fashion sound masses thick with sonic detail. The occasional focal point or cadenza does emerge from time to time, but for the most part this is a self-less effort as each performer adds to the prevailing sound. And in many ways this sounds like an extension of Gottschalk's beautiful solo improvisations with the addition of new range and timbre to these well-formed explorations.

Ron Miles: Heaven. 2002. Sterling Circle Records: SC5151.

Ron Miles: trumpet
Bill Frisell: guitar

These long time collaborators have a similar (and profound) sense of melody. With sparse lines like a slight drizzle of rain, the barest outline of a familiar song will emerge. This is the case with Hank Williams' "Your Cheatin' Heart," as the slow tempo and spare textures coax the tenor of this piece from a mere whisper. This same simpatico also allows these two to lock into a steady groove, which they do with abandon on Jelly Roll Morton's "King Porter Stomp" and the infectious opening track "Just Married" - a Ron Miles composition. Added to this impressive display of melody and rhythm is the generous give and take of their improvisations. Heaven is a welcome spin in the rotation anytime.

HurdAudio Rotation: Solo, Trio, Solo

Forbes Graham: Another Return. 2007. CD-R - available from the composer at Polyrhythmatics.net.
Forbes Graham: trumpet, laptop computer.
The laptop computer serves as a microscope into the plumbing of the trumpet as Forbes Graham builds sonic worlds from the minutia of the brass instrument. After seeing Graham performing live at the Red Room a few weeks ago I had to come back and listen to this music on CD just to hear how it would strike me without the visual element of his performance. The characteristics of "trumpet" are still in the sounds. One can hear the shape of the tubing amplified, the spit rolling around the pipes and the air moving through the columns through all the electronic manipulations. Graham has an ear for the tension of amplified quiet.

Bill Frisell: Bill Frisell with Dave Holland and Elvin Jones. 2001. Nonesuch. 79624-2.
Bill Frisell: electric and acoustic guitars, loops
Dave Holland: bass
Elvin Jones: drums
The pieces on this disc will be familiar to anyone who has followed Bill Frisell's career. It's the trio, and the way they interpret these compositions, that becomes the focal point here. And I always come away from hearing this one with renewed awe for the drumming of the late Elvin Jones. Frisell has played with so many great drummers. But teaming up with Elvin Jones may be the most inspired combination on record.

Gunda Gottschalk: Wassermonde. 2002. Elephant 002.
Gunda Gottschalk: solo violin and viola
This is a well-recorded representation of the solo Gottschalk experience. She has a unique, beautiful sound and a fascinating approach toward solo improvisation. Though on this recording, the formal structure of this 66-minute work is incredibly clear, and a little more obvious than what I heard live. Perhaps I bring a different level of attentiveness to this recording than when seeing her perform. Her ability to return to themes and sounds developed earlier within a single improvisation is convincing and does make for a satisfying listening experience.

Score da Tura on the Fly and Other Great Moments in String Instrument Improvisation

Gunda Gottschalk played Baltimore's Red Room last night, giving my ears a chance to drink in some fantastic improvisation for string instruments.

Her second piece of the evening completely won me over as she executed a beautiful and dynamic score da tura (the re-tuning of the open strings) on the viola as she bowed rapid strokes back and forth across all four strings. The range of intervals and odd tunings were fantastic, and as the string tension diminished the instrument timbre dissolved into an unusual shade of viola reaching for frequencies far below its capability. One of the advantages of unaccompanied solo improvisation is the freedom to abandon any pre-determined (or default) intonation schemes.

Another quality of Gunda Gottschalk's playing that I admire is the range of contrast she works with and the exhilarating transition from one extreme to another. Her first piece began with a restrained exploration of extended techniques con sordina (with the mute on at the bridge) as she worked within a confined space of quiet sounds bowed at various proximities to the instruments' bridge and neck with occasional pianissimo col legno (bouncing the wooden part of the bow on the strings) and some vocalizations that organically flowed into the overall sound. Over the course of the piece she began to open up into some louder, more aggressive territory that gave the listening experience a nice formal shape as the contrasting parts allowed several details to emerge with striking clarity.

For the second half of her set she performed some improvised duos with Audrey Chen on cello/electronics/voice. Chen's playing and vocalizations were well matched as the two filled the air with some rich drone textures. Chen even did a little de-tuning on the fly as well as she twisted the peg of the lowest string while bowing it - allowing the lowest tones to sink a little lower. And bringing even more contrast to the sonic qualities of the evening, Gunda Gottschalk even began playing some straight melodic lines over the top of this thick, droning texture. These were well placed and provided a welcome focal point.