HurdAudio Rotation: Spinning Streaming in the Age of Streaming

Matthew Shipp Trio: Circular Temple. 1990. Infinite Zero: 9 14506-2.

MatthewShip: piano
William Parker: bass
Whit Dickey: drums

Intense free jazz improvisation that explodes in bursts. The extreme brevity of the third movement is offset by the epic, rolling duration of the fourth. The Second movement is subtitled "Monk's Nightmare" as the odd melodic angles evoke a clear nod toward Monk's sensibilities and a sense of reverence toward the deep roots this Circular Temple is built upon.

Killick: Smudgeriffic! 2007. Sulponticello: 021 (#9 of a one-time pressing of 33).

Killick: guitar

A 38-minute slice from within the mind and improvisational sensibilities of Killick as the physical properties of the instrument itself are fair game for creative interpretation. The noises of turning effects switches on and off and plugging and unplugging the line input fill the sound field well ahead of plucked and strummed strings with a halting start/stop sound that finally gives way to an energy that seizes upon the ad hoc textures and harmonic constructs as they are discovered. This is an aggressive and quiet music that carves out unusual sonic territory.

Muhal Richard Abrams/George Lewis/Roscoe Mitchell: Streaming. 2005. Pi Recordings: PI22.

Muhal Richard Abrams: piano, bell, bamboo flute, taxi horn, percussion
George Lewis: trombone, laptop
Roscoe Mitchell: soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, percussion

Given the caliber and excellence of past projects spearheaded by each one of these improviser/composers as individuals it's still surprising how outstanding this effort is. This is the kind of sound that keeps me scrambling for new CDs in the age of digital downloads. While George Lewis's trombone playing is (and always has been) a joy to hear and his Shadowgraph compositions are pure genius, I've always been secretly disappointed with Voyager along with his other electronic works. But his laptop work on Streaming surprised me with the rich timbral range and the way it meshes and even interacts with Abrams' piano playing. There's a surprising amount of percussion sound in these textures - even to the point of long stretches without Roscoe's reed work in the sonic picture. The percussion and electronics create vast oceans between the piano/trombone/saxophone configuration. This is a trio effort unlike any other and the aggressive interplay of trombone and piano at the onset of "Dramaturns" makes this one well worth many repeated spins.

Scale of the Day: E Flat Lydian no 5 1% narrow

The E Flat Lydian no 5 1% narrow Scale. The subtractive variant of the equal tempered Lydian with compressed octaves.

Scale of the Day: E Flat Lydian no 5 2% wide

The E Flat Lydian no 5 2% wide Scale.

Scale of the Day: E Flat Lydian minor 2 no 5 1% wide

The E Flat Lydian minor 2 no 5 1% wide Scale. The Lydian-ness of this scale is still cognitively detectable in spite of the alteration, subtraction and deliberate de-tuning. Even at 6-cents sharp relative to the equal-tempered "tritone," the augmented fourth maintains the coloration the ears associate with Lydian shading.

HurdAudio Rotation: Strings and Strings

Elliott Sharp/Sirius String Quartet: Dispersion of Seeds. 2003. zOaR: ZPO-03.

Elliott Sharp: composer, computer
Sirius String Quartet:
Meg Okura: violin
Gregor Huebner: violin
Ron Lawrence: viola
David Eggar: cello

In his characteristically terse liner notes Elliott Sharp writes:

Dispersion of Seeds takes its title from the recently discovered natural history work from 1862 by Henry David Thoreau dealing with the mechanism of reforestation and the propagation of plant tree species, a ripe metaphor for the possibility of positive memes thriving and spreading in a time of crass stupidity, fear, and militarism.

As a string quartet, this piece features austere and dissonant textures that take root in the acoustic "first movement" before propagating through electronic processing and augmentation in the second and third realizations of the same piece. As a multi-movement experience - with the option of regarding each movement as a modular part of the whole - I find the fixed duration of each portion unsettling in its exactness. As a musical experience I find the individual textures and variance irresistible. The duality of optimism of positive memes against the persistent (and well founded) pessimism of contemporary socio-political realities finds resonance in the sustained tension of this music.

Terry Riley/Kronos Quartet: Cadenza On The Night Plain. 1984. Gramavision: R2 79444.

Terry Riley: composer
Kronos Quartet:
David Harrington: violin
John Sherba: violin
Hank Dutt: viola
Joan Jeanrenaud: cello

Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector
G Song
Mythic Birds Waltz
Cadenza on the Night Plain

This recording is a definitive part of the HurdAudio sensibility as listening to the deeply familiar nuances of this performance is like visiting an old friend. Terry Riley manages to make the narrative form of Cadenza on the Night Plain work as he transforms the string quartet into a medium of wordless story telling. There's an unusual balance of elements that stitch this musical yarn from the introspective yearning of "Where Was Wisdom When We Went West?" to the whimsical "March of the Old Timers Reefer Division." The individual cadenzas for each performer are amazing and Riley doesn't get nearly the credit he deserves for his talent for arranging.

Nels Cline/Elliott Sharp: Duo Milano. 2007. Long Song Records: LSRCD103/2007.

Nels Cline: guitars
Elliott Sharp: guitars

There's an impressive single-mindedness to this music as the improvisational sensibilities of Cline and Sharp overlap to the point of amplifying one another's sound. Divided into a set of five acoustic guitar improvisations and a set of five electric guitar explorations the acoustic set expands upon the thorny language Sharp has developed for this instrument with Cline matching his sound with eerie resonance. In the electric sets the gravity feels reversed as Sharp is pulled slightly closer to Cline's sensibilities and the durations swell toward longer noise studies. Filled with multiple shades of ugly beauty, this exchange of creative energy makes for a rewarding listening experience.

Scale of the Day: E Flat Lydian no 5 mapped to the 3/2

The E Flat Lydian no 5 mapped to the 3/2 Scale. Appealing to my odd sense of irony, here is the Lydian scale with the perfect fifth removed compacted to fit within the 3/2 just perfect fifth.

HurdAudio Rotation: Two From New York and One From Montreal

Erik Friedlander: Topaz. 1998. Siam Records: SMD-50003.

Erik Friedlander: cello
Andy Laster: alto saxophone
Stomu Takeishi: electric bass
Satoshi Takeishi: percussion

The rhythm section of Takeishi and Takeishi lock in with an electric bass language of elastic, rubbery timbres and natural harmonics complimented by a soft touch on the cymbals and skins. Added to this inviting ground is the merging and diverging raspy tone of Friedlander's sawing against Laster's reedsmanship. This is a Friedlander led quartet, but each player cycles into sharp focus with enormous fluidity and I am struck by Andy Laster's sense of melody on this one.

Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: Five Other Pieces (+2). 1999. Hat Hut Records: hatOLOGY 533.

Ellery Eskelin: tenor saxophone
Andrea Parkins: accordion and sampler
Jim Black: percussion

Eskelin's "klangfarbenmelodie of textures" takes on particular clarity with his treatment of the five "other" pieces on here and it makes for a particularly satisfying listening experience. John McLaughlin's "The Dance of the Maya," John Coltrane's "India" and Charlie Haden's "Song for Che" retain all the same verve and immense appeal of the original versions while still drawing from a sonic pallet that is clearly Eskelin. Following these up with almost half an hour of original compositions makes for a compelling argument for Eskelin as an artist and innovative improviser worthy of comparisons to McLaughlin, Coltrane and Haden.

Marianne Trudel: Espaces libres. 2004. TRUD 2004.

Marianne Trudel: piano

Individually, the 16 tracks on this disc cover a lot of territory with poetic brevity and startling transitions. Taken as a whole, this is a unique pianistic voice with refined technique and an almost whimsical sense of phrasing. The shortness of these pieces leaves the ears hungry for longer expressions of extended intensity, which is part of its charm. There are shades of Abdullah Ibrahim, Erik Satie and Vince Guaraldi in this music. The ears come away deeply intrigued by this Montreal pianist.