The Squid's Ear Magazine


Ducret, Marc: Tower, vol. 1 (Ayler)

Marc Ducret's Tower Project, music composed as a rendering of Vladimir Nabokov's novel "Ada", the first of 4 albums, here in a quintet with Kasper Tranberg, Matthias Mahler, Fred Gastard & Peter Bruun.
 

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Product Information:

Personnel:



Marc Ducret-electric guitar

Kasper Tranberg-trumpet

Matthias Mahler-trombone

Fred Gastard-bass saxophone

Peter Bruun-drums

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UPC: B0050048M6

Label: Ayler
Catalog ID: aylCD-118
Squidco Product Code: 14406

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2011
Country: France
Packaging: Cardstock foldover
Recorded on May 17th and 18th, 2010 at Salle Theleme, Tours, France by Matthieu Metzger.
Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

Artist Biographies

"Guitarist Marc Ducret was born in Paris in 1957. A self-taught musician, he began working in various groups (dance and folk included), and in the studio, before reaching the age of 20. In 1986, he became a member of the first French National Jazz Orchestra. Also in the late '80s, Ducret led his own trio and toured Europe, Africa, and Asia. In 1991, he began working with Tim Berne and went on to play with Berne in Caos Totale, Bloodcount, and Big Satan. Ducret has several solo recordings to his credit, released on Berne's Screwgun label and the Winter & Winter label. In the late '90s, Ducret formed a tentet, Seven Songs, to explore music of the '60s."-Joslyn Layne

-All Music (https://www.allmusic.com/artist/marc-ducret-mn0000955833/biography)
1/14/2026

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Kasper Tranberg (b. 1971 in Denmark) is a composing improviser who plays cornet and trumpet and likes poetry.

Kasper took up the trumpet at the age of ten and was playing in local march and brass bands soon.

Early studies with Prof. Søren Emtoft from The Royal Conservatory of Music, Denmark. Aged 19 Kasper began studies at Berklee College of Music in Boston, US where his main teachers were legendary Herb Pomeroy and trumpeter Greg Hopkins. In 1993 Kasper returned to Copenhagen and got his first major gig with Mercer Ellington at The Duke Ellington Conference in 1994.

At the same time guitarist Niclas Knudsen and Kasper had formed the quartet "When Granny Sleeps" which recorded three successful albums with a.o. David Liebman and Ray Anderson. The band toured in Europe and also performed at The Bell Atlantic Jazz Festival in New York, US.

In the late 1990's Kasper and guitarist Jonas Struck formed the band BUGPOWDER with space-trombonist Mads Hyhne and drummer Laust Sonne. The hard hitting unit recorded two albums, performed quite a bit and was nominated to a Nordic Music Council Award for the album "Autoabsence" released on Kaspers label Bugpowder Records formed in 1998.

Kasper also worked and recorded with many important Danish artists like : Pierre Dørge, Ib Glindeman, Hugo Rasmussen, Lars HUG, Bent Jædig, Paul Banks, Swan Lee, Mew, Fredrik Lundin, T.S Hawk, C.V. Jørgensen, John Tchicai, Savage Rose, Jesper Zeuthen and Jakob Anderskov among many others.

Kasper performed and recorded as a sideman with international artist like : Marc Ducret, Steve Swallow, Tim Berne, Michael Blake, Django Bates, Tyshawn Sorey, Gianluigi Trovesi, Yusef Lateef and Adam Rudolph."

-Kasper Tranberg Website (https://kaspertranberg.com/who/)
1/14/2026

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Falling into the small fanfare, Matthias Mahler begins a copper course alongside his trumpet father. Trumpet and tuba first, his last word will be the trombone. He studied the instrument with his first teachers, Charles Hassler and Patrick Hanss then at CNR Stasbourg and CNSM Paris. After various experiments in chamber music and symphonic orchestra, he takes the path of cross and privileges spaces of freedom and improvisation. Meetings with Francois Corneloup, Marc Ducret, Eric Exhampart and Francois Raulin comfort in this direction.

He is currently active in the following formations: the Little Big Campania of Musiques à Ouïr directed by Denis Charolles, X'tet and Ciné X 'tet directed by Bruno Regnier, The Life of Issiba with André Minvielle, Ozma, Taranta Babu, the False Brothers .."

-South Pole (Translated by Google) (https://www.pole-sud.fr/les-artistes/item/118-matthias-mahler)
1/14/2026

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"I started playing drums at the Rythmic Childrens School in Vesterbro in Copenhagen at the age of three. This became a life-long immersion into drums, music and composition.

My mother and father are both music lovers and in my childhood home there were always instruments and people to play them. I was admitted to the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen, at the age of eighteen. After 3 years I discontinued my formal education to travel in India and Brasil and continue to study on my own.

I'm an active member of ILK (Independent Lable of København). ILK is a danish collective of musicians who releases music with absolute artistic freedom."

-Peter Bruun Website (https://www.peterbruun.info/bio)
1/14/2026

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:
Related Categories of Interest:

Ayler Records

Improvised Music
Jazz
European Improvisation, Composition and Experimental Forms
Staff Picks & Recommended Items
2011 Top 40
Quintet Recordings

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