Today is Yom Kippur, the holiest of Jewish holidays and I spent most of the day in silent contemplation. I fasted all day, except for a small cup of coffee, and spent time reading about the history and meaning of Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur is known as the Day of Atonement and Jews are supposed to ask for forgiveness for any sins they’ve committed over the past year. My parents taught me to be honest, sympathetic to others and to not pre-judge anyone based on whatever group they are part of. I think about these things often and do my best to treat others as best as I can. I’ve learned many lessons in the 34 years that I’ve worked at and now run DMG, the main one being to treat anyone who comes to our store with respect, no matter what type of music they are seeking. Considering that I do have a big mouth at times, I’ve learned how to make people feel comfortable and rarely make fun of whatever type of music they listen to. There are enough types of creative and commercial music to go round so I promote the many types that still interest me and there are many.
I didn’t read any news or social media items today and this felt good since we/I are often bombarded with bad or fake news and/or opinions. After so much music listening that I do every day, it felt good to be surrounded by silence for a change. It is much easier to think without the constant distractions. I took a long walk in the sunshine and cool breeze and this felt good. I sat on a bench at the train platform near where I live and just listened to the sounds around me, considering the positive aspects of our collective lives. I’ve been reading a book on mythology which I savor one chapter at a time, thinking certain stories have been with us for centuries and are often at the center of our understanding of life. As Sun Ra says, “Whose Myth are you?”
My Mom passed away in April of 2024 at age of 94 and I still miss her and think of her often. We used to talk twice a week and she was always an inspiration for me, helping to do the right thing. Her unveiling is coming up later this month and I look forward to spending time at her gravesite with my siblings and their families. Later on today I will chant the Kol Nidre prayer for her, while listening to John Zorn’s song of the same title. I believe that the good folks among us never truly die if our memories of them remain inside us.
Last week, I spent four nights at the Village Vanguard, one of the oldest jazz clubs in NYC, which was founded in 1935. The New Masada Quartet played there for six nights and featured John Zorn on alto sax, Julian Lage on guitar, Jorge Roeder on contrabass and Kenny Wollesen on drums. I caught eight sets and all were pretty amazing and quite different. Like the first Masada Quartet (1st gig in September of 1993), all four members of the current band are perfect for their roles and are consistently inspired in their playing. Most of the songs that play are from the first book of Masada songs (around 210, composed 1992-1994), and Mr. Zorn loved to push each member so that they rise to his challenging directions. Zorn has been using hand signals which he developed through his 1/4 century of composing 25 game pieces. All four members of the quartet pulled off a number of astonishing solos on each of the sets that I caught and as I like to say, they are the best band in the land. One of the things that stands out for me is/was the interplay between Zorn’s sax and Julian Lage’s guitar. No matter how far Zorn stretches out the barriers with his fire-breathing, ever-inventive, multiphonic and circular breathing solos, Mr. Lage matches him, their combined explorations are astonishing to witness! I am still smiling and feeling good inside after witnessing so much incredible music in four nights. To me, this is as good as it gets!
John Zorn will be playing at the Big Ears Fest next year (April of 2025) and will be bringing some eight sets of music to this fest! This includes the original Masada Quartet (with Dave Douglas, Greg Cohen & Joey Baron), who haven’t played in many years. I am considering attending myself. I decided not to include the usual lyrics the top of the newsletter, just a short quote from Sun Ra today so thanks for your indulgence. I still believe that Creative Music is the Healing Force of the Universe! Who still loves you all bubbies!?! - that would be me, Bruce Lee Gallanter at DMG
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THE DMG 34th ANNIVERSARY IN-STORE CONCERT CELEBRATION CONTINUES with:
Tuesday, October 7th:
6:30: MUSIQUE LIBRE FEMMES with CHERYL PYLE - Flutes / AYUMI ISHITO - Tenor Sax / JEONG LIM LANG - Contrabass
7:30: patrick brennan: CLAIRE de BRUNNER & SARA SCHOENBECK on bassoons, JOSH SINTON on bari sax & NICK GIANNI - bass clarinet
8:30: JONATHAN REISIN - Tenor Sax / EVAN PALMER - Bass / MARC EDWARDS - Drums
Tuesday, October 14th:
6:30: MICHAEL EATON - Soprano Sax / MAX KUTNER - Guitar / KEVIN SHEA - Drums
7:30: JEFF PEARRING - Alto Sax / STEPHEN GAUCI - Tenor Sax / EVAN PALMER - Bass / PATRICK GOLDEN - Drums
8:30: LEE ODOM - Soprano Sax / JEFF MILES - Guitar / ZACH SWANSON - Bass / KEN KOBAYASHI - Drums
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THIS WEEK'S SONIC DELIGHTS BEGIN WITH THIS AMAZING DUO:
SYLVIE COURVOISER / WADADA LEO SMITH - Angel Falls (Intakt 444; Switzerland) Some albums are built on concept; others on chemistry. This one, from pianist Sylvie Courvoisier and trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith, is rooted in something rarer: a deep, almost philosophical love of art itself. Their collaboration reads less like a recording session and more like an extended dialogue, one in which form dissolves, and communication becomes its own spiritual practice. Not religious, in the limiting sense, but philosophical, expansive, and free.
Mr. Smith has described playing with Courvoisier in terms both urgent and reverent: “Every time I’ve performed with Sylvie, it’s been a creative journey. She’s fearless, and you can hear it in the piano. When she’s inspired, she doesn’t merely approach an idea, she pushes into it as though creation itself were at stake.” That sense of urgency has marked Smith’s career since the late 1960s, when he emerged as a singular voice on the trumpet, first alongside Anthony Braxton, later as a central figure in the AACM, and eventually as a composer whose scores have stretched the boundaries of contemporary music.
Ms. Courvoisier, for her part, has carved out a reputation as one of the most inventive pianists of her generation, moving fluidly between classical rigor, jazz tradition, and the open landscapes of free improvisation. Born in Lausanne, Switzerland, she relocated to New York in the 1990s, quickly becoming part of John Zorn’s downtown scene while developing a sound that is unmistakably her own: precise, percussive, yet full of lyric surprise.
Their paths crossed in 2017, during a concert curated by Zorn. Courvoisier recalls that after the performance, Smith wasted no time: “He asked for my number, and a few months later we recorded a trio with Marcus Gilmore in New Haven.” That session was never released, but it sparked an ongoing partnership: further trios, Smith’s project for two pianos, Courvoisier’s Chimaera, and now, this stripped-down, luminous duo recording.
Smith has long thrived in duos, he’s matched his trumpet with pianists as varied as Vijay Iyer, John Tilbury, Angelica Sanchez, and Amina Claudine Myers, but Courvoisier brings something distinct. She suggested that they avoid written scores altogether, allowing the music to unfold with nothing predetermined. The result is a series of soundscapes that feel both intimate and epic, volatile yet deliberate, an ever-shifting balance between vulnerability and authority.
What makes the album remarkable is not technical display but restraint. There are no elaborate arrangements or self-conscious gestures of virtuosity. Instead, there is the quiet audacity of two master musicians listening deeply, negotiating space, and finding a shared equilibrium. The pieces breathe, expand, contract, and then drift into unexpected resolutions.
For Courvoisier, the album draws on a lifetime of straddling classical and improvised traditions. For Smith, it carries the weight of African American musical history, blues, gospel, jazz, filtered through his own distinct sense of abstraction. Together, they create a language that resists classification, a dialogue of rare clarity and depth.
This is, finally, an album for listeners who approach music as an art form to be savored, not consumed. It feels like a collector’s piece, the kind of record that deepens with every listen and leaves one longing to experience the duo live. Onstage, with nothing between them but sound and silence, Courvoisier and Smith remind us what it means to create, for the love of art, and for nothing less. - Thierry De Clemensat.
CD $18
HENRY THREADGILL with BRANDON ROSS / BILL FRISELL / GREGG BELISLE-CHI / MILES OKAZAKI / JEROME HARRIS / STOMU TAKEISHI / MAYA KEREN / RAHUL CARLBERG - Listen Ship (Pi Recordings ; USA) Listen Ship is the latest masterpiece in the ever-expanding sound world of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Henry Threadgill, whom The New York Review of Books recently described as “one of American music’s great Romantics and a lifelong seeker of the sublime.” The new work is a suite for six acoustic guitars – including individual stylists such as Bill Frisell, Miles Okazaki and Brandon Ross – and two pianos that utilize Threadgill’s unique intervallic syntax to illuminate his idiosyncratic vision. The eight string instruments revel in the music’s painstaking detail with intricate gestures that miraculously entwine to form a grand statement. The meticulous orchestration highlights all of the usual characteristics of Threadgill’s music: unusual forms, unexpected timbres, and slippery counterpoint and rhythms, all shaped by the composer’s conducting into a singular experience.
CD $15
GREGG BELISLE-CHI - Slow Crawl: Performing the Music of Tim Berne (Intakt 443; Switzerland) Guitarist Gregg Belisle-Chi’s longtime attachment to the singularly modern jazz of saxophonist Tim Berne led him to make a record of all Berne songs. Koi: Performing the Music of Tim Berne (2021) kicked off a mini-wave of overdue Berne tribute albums and Belisle-Chi himself had ended up playing in Berne-led ensembles, mostly as a duo or trio. But that close collaboration with his musical hero hadn’t quenched his thirst to cover Berne songs apart from Berne in his own voice.
Thus, the Brooklyn based-guitarist is offering a whole new set of Berne covers. Performed again solely on acoustic guitar, Slow Crawl: Performing the Music of Tim Berne, Vol. 2 (August 15, 2025) can be regarded as a straight continuation of the stunning Koi collection, and also like that earlier album, it’s loaded with Berne songs not previously heard anywhere else.
“Yikes” is one from the Berne-led trio that includes Belisle-Chi and drummer Tom Rainey. This rendition follows the blueprint Berne carried out for this band’s Yikes Too album that came out at the beginning of 2025, yet, Belisle-Chi makes it possible to untangle this tightly packed, seemingly polyharmonic composition. “Sorry” strips down the “Sorry Variations” (also from Yikes Too) down to its core pattern, revealing that when the improv parts are removed, Berne songs are often not nearly as knotted as they can seem to be.
Mr. Belisle-Chi could have easily drawn more tunes from that record, as he’s so familiar with them from regular club dates with the trio, but he wasn’t so interested in an ‘easy’ way out. “Cluster” is drawn from Berne’s only unaccompanied album Sacred Vowels (2020), so Belisle-Chi is able to portray the chords Berne could only imply, and does so at an unhurried pace as to allow the song to fully breathe and unfold. As far as I can tell, the rest of the fare can’t be found on any Tim Berne recording, thus it’s assumed that Berne wrote them for this certain project, as indicated by Belisle-Chi’s own liner notes. - S. Victor Aaron, Something Else!
CD $18
FIVE MORE GREAT TITLES FROM THE FUNDACJA SLUCHAJ / LISTEN! FOUNDATION LABEL:
PAUL ROGERS - Peace and Happiness (Fundacja Sluchaj FSR 18/2025; Poland) Featuring Paul Rogers on 7-string custom made contrabass. Unlike many jazz fans, I have always dug great contrabass solos, whether live or recorded in a studio. Although a number of my favorite contrabassists (Dave Holland, William Parker & Mark Dresser) have recorded solo bass efforts, this is still a rather uncommon phenomenon. Another favorite of mine is British-born bassist Paul Rogers, who has been living in the countryside of France for many years. Mr. Rogers is/was the longtime bassist for the legendary Mujician quartet with Keith Tippett, Paul Dunmall and Tony Levin (the drummer). Aside from the now defunct Mujician, Mr. Rogers has also worked with Elton Dean, Sophia Domancich, Evan Parker and Trevor Watts. Although Paul Rogers has recorded dozens of disc with his old partener Paul Dunmall, this is only his fourth solo bass offering and the older titles are long out-of-print. "Paul Rogers is a singular voice on the double bass, known for a custom 7-string instrument that extends his range and enables chordal writing, counterpoint and orchestral color from a single player." - on-line blurb
This consists of an eight-part suite called "Peace and Happiness". This session was recorded in Mr. Rogers' garage/studio in Le Mans in France. Beginning with the title track, Roger's majestic bowing and the larger-than-life sound of his custom made bass is awe-inspiring. The xtra string here and Rogers' custom-made curved bow both give his bass a bigger sound. For "Accord", it sounds like Rogers is plucking the higher strings while bowing at the same time, rather like a duo. I believe there are sympathetic strings underneath the bridge of the bass which also gives his overall sound another dimension. On each of the 8 pieces here, Rogers' bass and approach sound different. On "Friendship" while Rogers bows, there is a drone sound undertow going on. Rogers plays a haunting melody in between the drone or longer tones. Rogers' bowing becomes more intense on "Reconciliation", giving his a bass a more orchestral sound. What's unexpected is that most of the music here is so lyrical and enchanting at times, rich in sonorous harmonies and not too weird or difficult. "Truce" begins with Rogers tapping on the strings to get some mysterious harmonics. Each piece here creates a different, magical vibe or soundtrack. On "Unity", Rogers bowing across the seven strings resonates with odd multi-string harmonies while on "Bliss" he taps the strings with his bow to great effect, plucking certain strings in odd, mesmerizing ways. Rogers has a unique way of tapping and caressing the strings to show other surprising qualities. This entire disc is a tour-de-force and one of the best and most distinctive solo bass recitals ever. An absolutely essential gem. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $17
JOHN BUTCHER / JOHN EDWARDS - This is Not Speculation (Fundacja Sluchaj FSR 10/2025; Poland) Featuring John Butcher on tenor & soprano saxes and John Edwards on contrabass. Although British improv giants John Butcher and John Edwards have been working together in duo, trios and quartets for more than 25 years, this is only their third recorded duo effort. This disc was recorded live in concert in Munich, Germany in October of 2023. On "Hyperlens", Mr. Edwards is plucking and stretching his strings in a unique way while Mr. Butcher also plays a series of streams on his soprano sax, the balance just right. The duo take their times and often explore similar sonic terrain or textures. Both the sax and contrabass carefully stretch their notes or tones, a strong give and take vibe flowing back and forth. There is a fascinating dialogue going on here and it sounds like two old friends exchanging ideas. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $17
JOHN EDWARDS / LUIS VICENTE / VASCO TRILLA - Choreography of Fractures (Fundacja Sluchaj FSR 19/2025; Poland) Featuring John Edwards on contrabass, Luis Vicente on trumpet and Vasco Trilla on percussion. Recorded at Innovation Studios in Portugal in February of 2024. British contrabassist John Edwards has become one of the most in-demand bassists in the UK and throughout Europe, working with a long list of international greats: Evan Parker, Paul Dunmall, Trevor Watts, Decoy, Sunny Murray and Eddie Prevost. Portuguese trumpeter Luis Vicente can be heard on more than 2 dozen discs since 2012, working with a variety of improvisers like John Dikeman, William Parker, Mark Sanders and many musicians from Portugal and surrounding areas. Spanish drummer Vasco Trilla is even busier than Vicente, appearing on more the 75 discs since 2012, working with a wide variety of Europeans & Americans: Susana Santis Silva, Szilard Mezei, Yedo Gibson, Mars Williams & Ra Kalam Bob Moses.
This disc opens with "choreography of fractures", a soft, somber, near lullaby for haunting trumpet, restrained throbbing bass and skeletal percussion. As the piece unfolds, the trio build in tempo and intensity, the sparks begin to fly. The music unfolds in a mostly organic way, escalating or ascending at times higher and higher. Mr. Vicente is a young master on the trumpet and I hear bits of Don Cherry, Dave Douglas and Thomas Heberer in his palette. There are some occasional sounds which are hard to determine who they are coming from. Some sort of drone-like sounds from bowed cymbals, rubbed or bowed strings or even odd sounds from the trumpet. There is a section on "frozen flow" where the trumpet, bass and drums speed up, exchanging furious lines. This is piece is pretty long (16 minues) and slows down to a more cerebral pace later on, the trio playing in a slower, more dream-like way. John Edwards has a unique, distinctive sound on bass as he plucks certain buzzing notes at times. The last piece, "onset of turbulence" has Vicente playing a solemn, rather sad theme, sounding like a last lullaby of sorts with eerie drones hovering in the background. It sounds like a perfect, righteous ending to a rich, inspired acoustic trio offering. Amen. Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $17
IVO PERELMAN / RAY ANDERSON - 12 Stages of Spiritual Alchemy (Fundacja Sluchaj FSR 22/2025; Poland) Featuring Ivo Perelman on tenor sax and Ray Anderson on trombone. Both of these fine musicians are elder members of the ongoing Downtown Scene, now more than four decades old. I've had my eye on Ray Anderson ever since his first recording with the trio of Mark Helias and Gerry Hemingway was released in 1979. Mr. Anderson is one of the most diverse trombonists around having worked with Anthony Braxton, Wadada Leo Smith, David Murray and Henry Threadgill. Brazilian-born tenor saxist Ivo Perelman's first leader date was in 1989 and has have more than 100 releases since then, often recording weekly at Park West Studios in Brooklyn, where this duo was recorded in December of 2022.
There are a dozen pieces on this disc, most are rather short and all are under 10 minutes at length. Mr. Ivo records dozens of duos, trios and quartet dates with assorted improvisers from the Downtown network and elsewhere. Although they come from different backgrounds, Mr. Anderson and Mr. Perelman share an adventurous, exploratory improvised spirit. Things begin quietly, tentatively at first as the two are getting to know one another and start trading ideas or lines. Both musicians sound like well-seasoned jazz players with a wealth of ideas flowing. The duo move through a march groove, swinging at times, playing odd harmonies and pushing things into the free zone as well. Ray Anderson has always had a humorous, playful side to his playing which seems to bring out a similar vibe from Mr. Perelman. I hear fragments of familiar melodies along with other more exploratory improvising going on here. There are some truly silly moments here as well as quirky back and forth activity or dialogue. It is rare to hear Mr. Perelman quoting a standard or familiar melody but there seems to be quite a bit of this from both musicians here. This is indeed a particularly strong, spirited and diverse duo. I would love to check out this duo live, perhaps even at DMG. Stranger things have happened here, no doubt. - Bruce Lee gallanter, DMG
CD $17
ANGLES 11 with MARTIN KUCHEN / JOHAN BERTHLING / ALEX ZETHSON / MATTIAS STAHL / MAGNUS BROO / SUSANA SANTOS / KJELL NORDESON / et al - Tell Them It's The Sound of Freedom (Fundacja Sluchaj FSR 17/2025; Poland) Personnel: Martin Kuchen on tenor & soprano saxes & compositions, Eirik Hegdal on bari & alto saxes, Susana Santos Silva & Magnus Broo on trumpets, Josefin Runsteen on amplified violin, Alex Zethson on Fender Rhodes & Juno 106, Mattias Stahl on vibes & soprano sax, John Berthling on contrabass and Kjell Nordeson, Konrad Agnas & Michaela Antalova on drums. Since 2008, the Scandinavian all-star collective ensemble, Angles, have produced a dozen recordings, mostly for the Clean Feed label. Although their personnel changes somewhat from record to record, Angles are one of the best Spirit Jazz bands to emerge from the Clean Feed mountain of great releases. Original members include Martin Kuchen (from Exploding Customer), Magnus Broo (Atomic & IPA), Mattias Stahl, John Berthling (Fire! Orchestra) and Kjell Nordeson (AALY & Firehouse). The other names that I know previously are Alex Zethson (Trondheim Jazz Orchestra) and Susana Santos Silva (Fred Frith collaborator).
Angles have always had that deep reaching into your soul Spirit Jazz sound. The disc begins with the title tune, "Tell Them It's The Sound of Freedom", slow moving, sly and sensuous. Johan Berthling plays this hypnotic bass-led groove, over and over while the horns & vibes all simmering together playing an infectious prayer-like theme. The sound of this 11-piece mid-sized ensemble is somewhere between the Sun Ra Arkestra and the Brotherhood of Breath with what sounds like an infectious, spiritual undertow. "A Night in Schwamistan" has another passion-filled repeating groove/riff which is played by all of the horns. That repeating groove reminds me of a Fela Kuti-like funk fest (of perhaps Zion80-like) churning riff/line. Keyboardist Zethson switches between a Fender Rhodes and farfisa-like sound from his Juno synth. I dig the layers of interlocking horns but it is a slamming vibes-led rhythm team that really makes me want to get up and dance along. Like most of the 15 minute Fela songs/jams, it is that infectious greasy groove that makes us want to join in and groove along to it. "Young Blood Transfusions" has another somewhat familiar sounding repeating (percussion-led) riff which keeps churning throughout and features an inspired solo from the violin. The mid-section is freer and has some fire-breathing solos from the trumpet & sax(es). I love the way the entire ensemble swaggers together both loose and tight at the same time. Like each of the previous Angles discs, this one has an ancient vibe which feels like sonic medicine for our current tough times. Dig in deep! - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $17
FINALLY BACK IN STOCK AFTER TWO MONTHS OF DELAYS:
MAJID BEKKAS / NGUYEN LE / HAMID DRAKE - Jazz At Berlin Philharmonic XVII: Gnawa World Blues (Act Music 8007-2; France) Three continents, three musical world citizens. Morocco-born Majid Bekkas, Franco-Vietnamese Nguyên Lê and American Hamid Drake have combined their astonishing musicality, their origins and their global experiences to create a captivating live concert program encompassing desert blues, Gnawa trance, Middle Eastern jazz, sixties rock and Far Eastern serenity. Voice, oud and guembri (bass lute)...electric guitar with a wide spectrum of shimmering timbres...a percussion arsenal between subtlety and physicality - these are the tools of the three world-class, globe-trotting protagonists here. Majid Bekkas's innovations have cast a wholly new light onto the fascinating music and culture of the Gnawa minority in Morocco, and he has also worked with jazz greats such as Joachim Kühn, Archie Shepp and Pharoah Sanders, and, most recently, with the Magic Spirit Quartet, whose recordings for ACT have built a bridge between Nordic and African sound worlds. Among the great guitarists of our time Nguyên Lê is one of the most exciting and individual personalities, having developed a unique style in which Southeast Asian melodies, complex jazz harmonies and highly virtuoso excursions into rock naturally co-exist. And Chicago-born Hamid Drake, with his intuitive feel for many of the world's percussion traditions, provides an improbably wide range of rhythmic impulses. The repertoire which the three performed so memorably on 10 November 2024 reflects a tremendous wealth of ideas which fuse and coalesce, from the desert blues three-way conversation of the opening piece to the Gnawa grooves of 'Mrahba' and 'Sidi Bouganga'; from the earthy John Lee Hooker tribute in 'Boom Boom' to the feverish rock ecstasy of the Hendrix classic 'Purple Haze'; from the Asian reflectiveness of 'Thang Long' to the fast-forward interplay of 'Tair'. Three stellar musicians have drawn on their musical heritages - and created a celebration of human kinship which is breathtakingly alive.
CD $16
UNEVEN ELEVEN with MAKOTO KAWABATA / GUY SEGERS / CHARLES HAYWARD - Live in Brighton (Discus 203CD; UK) Featuring Makoto Kawabata on guitar, Guy Segers on bass and Charles Hayward on drums & vocals. The British-based label Discus has a way of combining musicians from varied styles and geographic backgrounds and presenting New Music which is often beyond the usual categories. This disc combines the talents of three musicians from very different backgrounds/scenes. Japanese psychedelic guitar freak Makoto Kawabata is the longtime leader of Acid Mother Temple. Belgian bassist Guy Segers has worked with Univers Zero, X-Legged Sally and Acid Mother Gong. Legendary drummer/vocalist Charles Hayward was a member of Quiet Sun, This Heat and Massacre. It turns out that this trio has an earlier release from ten years ago (2025), live at Cafe OTO on Sub Rosa.
This disc was also recorded live at Sticky Mike's Frog Bar in Brighton, UK in May of 2013, the same year as their earlier record. This disc consists of three long pieces of collective improvisations. It starts with "Knead the Beat" which revolves around a fine bass groove, solid drumming and some sly space-rock guitar. All three of these musicians are great at what they do so that these pieces evolve over their long lengths. The rhythm team is slamming somewhere between rock, funk and prog grooves while Kawabata whips out layers of guitar with wah wah, fuzz and other space/psych effects added. The bass & drums slowly speed up and slow down while the guitar adds nasty riffs and occasionally solos. Mr. Hayward adds his distinctive vocals when the trio hits a certain groove towards the last section of the first piece.
CD $14
ELLEN FULLMAN & THE LIVING EARTH SHOW - Elemental View (Room40 4247CD; Australia) Elemental View is a work in six movements by pioneering composer Ellen Fullman for her "Long String Instrument" and The Living Earth Show. The expansive installation inhabits an industrial sized space with 136 strings, precisely tuned and configured for this multi-movement piece. Listening to the music of Fullman's singular creation is akin to standing inside a giant musical instrument. The result is a music at once ancient and utterly new, environmental, and folk-like yet orchestral; immersing the listener in a transportive glistening atmosphere. Elemental View invites the listener to discover, as if with a magnifying glass, the details of the physics of string vibration itself. Fullman bows the instrument lengthwise with her fingertips while walking, playing multiple strings at once. As she walks, upper partial tones unfold at different rates, in proportion to differences in string length, imparting an undulating wave of continually shifting overtones. The notation for the "Long String Instrument" contains both temporal indications and spatial choreography, as specific harmonies emerge at distinct locations along the string length. Invention and discovery are at the core of Fullman's work. To produce percussive sounds on the otherwise drone-based instrument, Fullman designed and fabricated the box bow, shovelette, and shoveler, which play three, six, or nine strings at once. Varying techniques with these tools produce either open ringing tones or closed dampened ones. With their laser focused precision and virtuosic ensemble playing, The Living Earth Show brilliantly executes the rhythmic and harmonic complexity of Fullman's composition. In the movements "Environmental Memory" and "Concentrated Merry-Go-Round," Fullman incorporates Travis Andrew's primary instrument, the guitar. Andy Meyerson and Fullman accompany the guitar in duo playing box bow and shoveler. For "Surface Narrative in Four Parts," Meyerson also applies his percussion mastery to the santur, a Persian hammered dulcimer. The santur's unique tuning is derived from the extended microtonal partials of the sequence played by Fullman on The Long String Instrument.
CD $17
Back in Stock:
BOB MOSES With LARRY CORYELL / JIM PEPPER / KEITH JARRETT / STEVE SWALLOW - Love Animal (Ra Kalam Records; USA) Reissue of the Amulet label release. Mozown. Long lost first studio effort from the great drummer Bob Moses with Larry Coryell on guitar & vocal, Jim Pepper on tenor sax, Keith Jarrett on piano & soprano sax (two trax only), Steve Swallow on basses and Bob Moses on drums. This was recorded around the time of the Free Spirits ('67/'68), legendary early (first?) free/jazz/rock band that pre-dated fusion by a few years. On about half of these tracks, Coryell, Pepper and Moses go for it and wail on some heavy jazz/blues/psych/funk/rockin' rambunctiousness. I could do without Coryell's singing on "The Worms Crawl in Blues" or the rather straight reading of "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", but overall the crazed spirit of adventure make this a worthy listen. Any chance to hear the special sax of the Native American giant (the late) Jim Pepper is worth the price of admission. - BLG
Recorded between 1967-68 at Vanguard Apostolic Studios in NYC. This was the time of the cult Jazz-Rock band 'The Free Spirits' with Larry Coryell, Jim Pepper, Chris Hills, Columbus Baker and Bob Moses. Moses was 19 years old and this (Love Animal) was supposed to be his first solo album. All this material previously unreleased except track 3. These young musicians were experimenting with powerful drugs and listening passionately to B.B. King, Robert Johnson, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, the Beatles, the Stones, Bob Dylan, The Band, Mongo Santamaria, Eddie Palmieri, Ray Baretto, Coltrane, Miles, Mingus, Monk, Bill Evans, Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Eric Dolphy, and many more.
Moses says "The music on Love Animal is raw, messy, over the top and mad eclectic but that was the truth of our lives at that time and tho we jumped musical styles like manic kangeroos, I can honestly say we also routinely pushed and expanded the boundaries of those territories to the limit. I.E. we never played any style in a stock, typical or lackadaisical way.
And there are some great musical moments here, Keith Jarrett's profoundly beautiful solo on "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", Steve Swallow's rich tone and across-the-bar phrasing on acoustic bass, Coryell's blistering other worldly guitar playing on "Dancing Bears" and for me most of all another chance to hear the great Native American saxophonist Jim Pepper who I believe is one of the most powerful, unique, soulful and under appreciated voices in the history of the music."
CD-R $15
BACK IN STOCK FROM INTAKT RECORDS:
MARTA SANCHEZ TRIO with CHRIS TORDINI / SAVANNAH HARRIS - Perpetual Void (Intakt CD 421; Switzerland)
CD $18
ANNA WEBBER / MATT MITCHELL / JOHN HOLLENBECK - simpletrio2000 (Intakt CD 430; Switzerland)
CD $18
INGRID LAUBROCK with JON IRABAGON / ZEENA PARKINS / TOM RAINEY - Monochromes (Intakt CD 411; Switzerland)
CD $18
DAVID MURRAY BRAVE NEW WORLD TRIO with BRAD JONES / HAMID DRAKE - Seriana Promethea (Intakt CD 381; Switzerland)
CD $18
JAMES BRANDON LEWIS QUARTET with ARUAN ORTIZ / BRAD JONES / CHAD TAYLOR - Abstraction is Deliverance (Intakt CD 437; Switzerland)
CD $18
JAMES BRANDON LEWIS QUARTET with ARUAN ORTIZ / BRAD JONES / CHAD TAYLOR - MSM Live (Intakt CD 389; Switzerland)
2 CD Set $28
JAMES BRANDON LEWIS QUARTET with ARUAN ORTIZ / BRAD JONES / CHAD TAYLOR - Code of Being (Intakt CD 371; Switzerland)
CD $18
JAMES BRANDON LEWIS / CHAD TAYLOR - Live in Willisau (Intakt CD 324; Switzerland)
CD $18
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ATTENTION ALL CREATIVE MUSICIANS OUT THERE, Around the world.
If you have a link for some music that you are working on and want to share it with the folks who read the DMG Newsletter, please send the link to DMG at BLGallanter@gmail.com
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THE STONE RESIDENCIES / TOMEKA REID OCT 1-4
10/1 Wednesday
8:30 pm - TRIO - Lesley Mok (drums) Yvonne Rogers (piano) Tomeka Reid (cello)
10/2 Thursday
8:30 pm - DUO - Marty Ehrlich (sax) Tomeka Reid (cello)
10/3 Friday
8:30 pm - TRIO - Tomas Fujiwara (drums) Ikue Mori (electronics) Tomeka Reid (cello)
10/4 Saturday
8:30 pm - TRIO - William Parker (bass) Taylor Ho Bynum (trumpet) Tomeka Reid (cello)
THE STONE RESIDENCIES / ERIK FRIEDLANDER / OCT 8-11
10/8 Wednesday
8:30 pm - THOROUGHBREDS - Erik Friedlander (cello) Mark Helias (bass) Uri Caine (piano) Satoshi Takeishi (percussion)
10/9 Thursday
8:30 pm - FLOATING
Sara Serpa (voice) Ikue Mori (electronics) Erik Friedlander (cello)
10/10 Friday
8:30 pm
INK SPOTS
Wendy Eisenberg (guitar) Myk Freedman (lap-steel) Erik Friedlander (cello)
10/11 Saturday
8:30 pm - BRIDGES AND WATERFALLS - Stomu Takeishi (percussion) Ned Rpthenberg (sax, clarinet) Yoshie Fruchter (guitar) Michael Sarin (drums) Erik Friedlander (cello)
THE STONE is located in
The New School at the Glass Box Theatre
55 West 13th Street - near 6th ave
LIVE MUSIC
wed-sat - music at 8:30pm
ADMISSION - $20 per set
unless otherwise noted
cash only payment
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UPTOWN OUT SERIES AT RECIRCULATION:
Thursday, October 9th, 7pm
Uptown Out
Virg Dzurinko (piano), Will Glass (drums), Mary Cherney (flute), Claire de Brunner (bassoon), Matt Lambiase (trumpet)
Recirculation
876 Riverside Dr NY NY 10032 (@160th St)
1 train to 157th, C train to 163rd, A train to 168th
Saturday, October 11th, 7pm
Uptown Out Presents
Wilfrido Terrazas (flute), Mary Cherney (flute), Stephanie Griffin (viola), Will Glass (drums)
Word Up Community Bookshop
2113 Amsterdam Ave NY NY 10032 (@165th St)
A train or 1 train to 168th, C train to 163rd
Thursday, November 13, 7pm
Uptown Out
Ben Stapp (tuba), Claire de Brunner (bassoon), Matt Lambiase (trumpet), Stephanie Griffin (viola), Will Glass (drums)
Recirculation
876 Riverside Dr NY NY 10032 (@160th St)
1 train to 157th, C train to 163rd, A train to 168th
All shows are pay-what-you-can / $10 suggested
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NEW VIDEOS from GUITAR MASTER HENRY KAISER:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgcxTkoIgQI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAWxt3EJSPw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcvoYygehqE
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From CHRIS CUTLER:
Formerly of HENRY COW, THE ART BEARS, NEWS FOR BABEL & RECOMMENDED RECORDS (ReR) has been creating an ongoing series of podcasts called the Probes series. I am often fascinated at listening to each of these as Mr. Cutler does an incredible job of showing a deep history of Creative Music in the 20th century & beyond. I usually listen to these on the train to NYC that I take to get to work each day. The most recent Probes (#37) was released earlier this year, here are the links:
https://rwm.macba.cat/en/research/probes-37
https://rwm.macba.cat/en/research/probes-36