A personal and evocative suite written during the isolation of the COVID-19 period, bringing together the legendary Tristan Honsinger (cello, vocal, narration) with his long-standing Tokyo-based ensemble, The House of Wasps — Yuriko Mukojima (violin, voice), Takashi Seo (double bass), and Shuichi Chino (piano) — in a performance that seamlessly blends chamber improvisation, storytelling, and emotional intensity.

Four voices--Norbert Zajac, Brigitte Kupper, Gala Hummel, Iouri Grankin--sing and speak over the piano work of Russian improviser Andrei Razin in a moody and often startling album that set tonal environments or disorient the listener through constrasting layers of vocalization, as Razin darts among them or sets an atmosphere of lingering tones; often curious, frequently stunning.

"3 Phases", or different aspects of the approach that violist Ernesto Rodrigues applies to improvisation, in three different groupings over three different days, all live at O'Culto da Ajuda, in Lisbon, Portugal in 2018, here in an acoustic sax trio with strings, with Bruno Parrinha on soprano, Nuno Torres on alto, Paulo Galao on tenor sax.

Dedicating his album to Paul Burwell and Z'ev, Spanish percussionist Paolo Sanna demonstrates his many years of research in sound, silence, noise, experimentation, musical research and deconstruction through standard percussive devices and found objects, giving his playing a distinctive and personal palette which he plays with superb technique and timing.

Recorded on New Years Eve in Sintra in the Penedo region of Portugal, three strings--viola from Ernesto Rodrigues, cello from Guilherme Rodrigues, and a second cello from Miguel Mira--are joined by Carlos Santos on electronics for three extended and richly detailed improvisations, active yet concentratively controlled, using impressive and extended techniques.

Two string players, Swedish acoustic guitarist and banjo player Niklas Fite, and German double bassist Alexander Frangenheim, recording in the studio in Berlin in 2017 for 10 succinct improvisations ranging from quick interactive discourse of a pointillistic nature to near silent meditations using unusual and extended techniques, a quirky and informed album.

Finding common ground between the acoustic past and the electronic present, the duo of Christoph Schiller on spinet and Eric Ruffing on analogue synthesizer present two extended improvisations of tempered interaction, exploring periods of extended sound, timbre and decay, scrabbling inside playing, restrained electronic whines, and active pointillistic playing.

The affect of Carlos Santos' electronics and recordings are the foundation of this Portuguese quintet's improvisations, creating an environment over which Ernesto & Guilherme Rodrigues on viola & cello, Eduardo Chagas on trombone, and Andre Hencleeday add subtle gestures of unusual approaches to their instruments, in a mysterious album of lowercase improv.

As part of "The Horse Improvised Music Club" concert series organized by London Improvised Music Scene members Adam Bohman, Sue Lynch and Hutch Demouilpied, the trio of drummer Steve Noble, saxophonist Adrian Northover and acoustic guitarist Daniel Thompson recorded these open-minded improvisations of strong communication and extended technique in 2017 at IKLECTIK in London, England.

Two approaches to keyboards from Japanese acoustic pianist Yoko Miura and keyboardist Jean-Marc Foussat (Fou Records) recording these extended and excursive improvisations in Paris in 2017, contrasting Foussat's alien and encompassing synthetic and electronic worlds with Miura's sophisticated playing inside and out of the piano.

A hushed and enigmatic quintet improvisation featuring Jean-Michel Van Schouwburg's extended vocal techniques alongside Nuno Torres (alto saxophone), Ernesto Rodrigues (viola, crackle box), João Madeira (double bass), and Carlos Santos (modular synthesizer), unfolding in reductionist, pointillistic interplay that explores subtle texture, utterance, and resonance.

Recorded live at CreativeFest #18 in Lisbon, the Isotope Ensemble channels the volatile and fluid nature of caesium through spontaneous improvisation, blending strings, brass, woodwinds, piano, electric guitars, modular synthesizer, electronics, and objects into a dynamic sonic reaction that reflects the element's unique liquid properties that make the isotope pivotal role in atomic timekeeping.

A live document of free improvisation from Udo Schindler (clarinets, cornet, soprano sax), Max Arsava (piano, tapes, sampler, objects), and Gunnar Geisse (laptop guitar, virtual instruments), in a performance of pointillistic exchanges and layered textures that blend intricate acoustic and electronic timbres into a cohesive, exploratory sonic tapestry.

A focused and sonically adventurous trio recording from Santa Fe, New Mexico, bringing together saxophonist Chris Jonas, live-sampling artist and electronic musician David Forlano, and percussionist Gregg Koyle in a contemporary yet organic exploration of space, form, and texture through sharp saxophone lines, intricate sampling manipulations, and dynamic metallic percussion.

A live trio improvisation from violist Ernesto Rodrigues, tenor saxophonist Jung-Jae Kim, and bassist Alvaro Rosso, recorded at Lisbon's CreativeFest#18 at Casa do Comum, in Lisbon, unfolding as a 28-minute journey from hushed, lowercase textures to dynamic, scrabbly interplay, emphasizing timbral nuance and collective exploration in an intimate acoustic setting.

A surreal and visceral homage to French poet Robert Desnos, this collaboration between Belgian vocal improviser Jean-Michel Van Schouwburg and British electroacoustic pioneer Lawrence Casserley transforms the human voice through expressive physicality and real-time electronic processing — fifteen vivid episodes unfolding as a dreamlike, humorous, and haunting exploration of language, body, and sound.

The Cologne-based free improvising trio Der Vierte Zustand — vocalist Hanna Schörken, guitarist Christina Zurhausen, and drummer Ramon Keck — om a compelling blend of experimental soundscapes, noise rock influences, and free jazz energy, driven by Schörken's acrobatic wordless vocals, Zurhausen's effects-laden guitar textures, and Keck's dynamic rhythms.

In this live recording from Munich's Schnitzer& Studio, Udo Schindler's "Low Tone Studies" series expands through a collaboration with Werner Dafeldecker on double bass and Gunnar Geisse on laptop guitar, blending deep-register improvisations across double bass clarinet, cornet, saxophones, and electronic manipulations, exploring the convergence of acoustic resonance and digital textures.

In a live performance emphasizing minimalism and lowercase improvisation, Ernesto Rodrigues (viola, crackle box), Bruno Parrinha (bass clarinet), and Andrew Levine (Theremin, modular synth, crackle box, stereo field) engage in a nuanced exploration of subtle textures and sonic interactions, resulting in an immersive and introspective auditory experience.

Capturing a richly nuanced sonic journey across seven improvised movements from concerts in Berlin, Köln, and Munich, this 2-CD set from the Portuguese trio of Ernesto Rodrigues (viola), Guilherme Rodrigues (cello), and Nuno Torres (alto sax) presents a masterful exploration of intricate textures, hushed atmospherics, and lyrical interplay, woven into a vivid tapestry of contemporary European free improvisation.

A fascinating live performance from Lisbon's Reverso Festival in 2024, where luminaries Carlos Zíngaro (violin), Ernesto Rodrigues (viola, crackle box), and Carlos Bechegas (flute, piccolo) intertwine their distinct approaches into an intricate tapestry that blends classical sensibilities with free improv exploration in a compelling journey through texture and timbre.

Recorded live during the 2024 Creative Sources Cycle, violist Ernesto Rodrigues, cellist Miguel Mira, and analog synthesist Carlos Santos deliver a nuanced and exploratory collective improvisation, drawing on Rodrigues's delicate textural approach, Mira's lyrical sensitivity, and Santos's ethereal synth interactions, evoking an urgent reflection on the fleeting nature of time.

Interpreting Cornelius Cardew's elaborate 193-page Treatise and Earle Brown's minimalist Cheap Imitation, Fred Loisel (gong, electronics), Philippe Lenglet (prepared guitar), and Christian Vasseur (prepared ten-string Weissenborn) assign specific musical parameters to each graphic symbol, creating open compositions that balance individual expression with collective coherence.

Recording in the studio in Milan, the trio of Riccardo Luppi on tenor & soprano saxophones and flutes, Simone Massaron on guitar & electronics, and Daniel Studer on double bass engage in a textural and exploratory dialogue, blending extended techniques, electronic manipulations, and spontaneous interplay across seven distinct ""Takes", each offering a unique approach to collective free improvisation.

A fluid and energetic improvisation recorded live at COSMOS in Lisbon, as Ernesto Rodrigues (viola, crackle box), Helena Espvall (cello), and Tracy Lisk (drums) engage in a texturally rich performance of scattered, bouncing string interplay, with percussion subtly framing the dialogue, resulting in a dynamic and layered exploration of sound.

Exploring the fluid boundaries between singing, recitation, and speech, bassist João Madeira and vocalist Margarida Mestre present an intricate dialogue of sound and expression, recorded in Lisbon, with Mestre's voice shifting between phonetic poetry, storytelling, and abstract improvisation, while Madeira's double bass, guitar, and field recordings weave around and underpin her vocalizations.

Recorded live at BOTA in Lisbon, the trio of pioneering violinist Carlos 'Zíngaro', bassist João Madeira, and drummer/percussionist Sofia Borges engage in a dynamic and expressive real-time composition, balancing intensity and restraint through intricate musical dialogues, evoking the raw energy of free jazz while embracing contemporary improvisational textures.

Assembling a new band from younger generation Portuguese improvisers — Jose Soares on alto saxophone, Eduardo Cardinho on vibraphone, and Gonçalo Neto on guitar & banjo — double bassist Carlos Bica presents original compositions along with work from Neto and collective arrangements from the ensemble, in a lyrical yet experimentally inclined album of modern jazz.

Portuguese pianist Luísa Gonçalves' second volume of solo improvisations extends her 2020 album Unno with eight new, lyrical works of succint and focused compositions that bring both her classical and improvisation skills to the foreground through beautifully structured and elegant works, ending with a lovely homage to "Bill Evans" that seemingly hangs in space.

Seven studio improvisations from frequent collaborators Ernesto Rodrigues on viola & crackle box, Nuno Torres on alto saxophone and Carlos Santos on digital electronics, quiet conversations of subtle and extended technique that adhere to the session title, emulating electronic impulses and signals through understated and impeccably controlled acoustic and electronic expression.

On the active and experimental side of Creative Sources' acoustic configurations organized by label leader and violist Ernesto Rodrigues, this energetic chamber quartet with Carlos Bechegas on piccolo, flute & alto flute, Joao Madeira on double bass and Monsieur Trinite on percussion, explore the three-part title work through rapid action and highly textured reflection.

Improvising collaborators, percussionist Stephen Flinn and cellist Guilherme Rodrigues join with Irish improviser and composer Roy Carroll, a member of Splitter Orchestra and who works with the amplification and signal processing of diverse objects, here the trio performing an extended improvisation of exotic and transformative sonic interaction through unusual, encompassing soundscapes of exotic and transformative sonic interaction.

Translating to freedom, Te Ti'ama is the duo of French trombonist Jérôme Descamps and guitarist Christelle Séry, heard in eleven succinct improvisations that create a unique vocabulary of both active and spacious dialog, from pointillistic energy to introspective rumination, both improvisers favoring peculiar sonic events and techniques for moments of humor and awe.

Bridging jazz and contemporary forms, this 2024 live recording of four improvisations at Berlin's Kuhlspot Social Club channels collective power with chamber jazz influences, showcasing the refined techniques and deep experience of Ernesto Rodrigues on viola, Frank Gratkowski on clarinets and alto saxophone, Guilherme Rodrigues on cello, and Michael Griener on percussion.

French guitarist Christian Vasseur, known for his explorative approach and use of unique instruments like the archlute and electric 10-string lap-steel guitar, joins Dirk Serries (A New Wave of Jazz, Vidna Obmana), who employs an archtop guitar with bow and objects in this live-recorded album at Kapel Oude Klooster in Belgium, featuring seven chamber-like duets that weave resonant, tension-filled acoustic textures with surreal and exotic elements.

Recorded over two days — first in the studio, then live at Freies Musikzentrum in Munich — Udo Schindler on clarinets, saxophones, & cornet joins pianist Rieko Okuda and drummer Eric Zwang Eriksson in a dynamic exploration of texture and interplay, beginning with clarinet-piano duos before expanding into a full-throttle trio improvisation, for an intricate and energetic free jazz performance.

In their second release, the Hunter Underwater quartet of four cellists — Guilherme Rodrigues (Portugal), Gábor Hartyáni (Budapest), Guido Kohn (Buenos Aires), and Hui-Chun Lin (Taiwan) — record at Berlin's Zentrifuge, creating sound sculptures and landscapes with layered harmonics and dynamic interplay through composition and improvisation.

Developed as part of the 2024 artist-in-residence program at Azkuna Zentroa in Bilbao, this series of nine electroacoustic compositions by Miguel A. García and Fernando Carvalho blends rhythms, synthesizers, and Carvalho's field recordings, all manipulated and transformed by García into distinct sonic worlds, each unveiling or making curious mysteriously fascinating sources.

Primarily an acoustic ensemble of nine improvisers led by Ernesto Rodrigues on viola — including saxophonist Joana Sá, percussionist Monsieur Trindade, guitarist Flak, and pianist Luisa Gonçalves — performs a live, extended improvisation of tightly controlled, deeply detailed conversation as part of the 2024 Creative Sources Cycle in Lisbon.

The UK-based Chemical Expansion League of Adam Bohman (prepared strings, voice), Adrian Northover (sax, theremin, wasp synth), Sue Lynch (sax, clarinet, flute), and Ulf Mengersen (bowed & prepared double bass) present thirteen mostly succinct and eccentric improvisations that oscillate between sanity and absurdity, punctuated by industrial elements, bent tones, and surreal soundscapes.

Brooklyn saxophonist Dan Black and guitarist Kevin Miller present a duo album featuring three improvisations using pre-conceived time-based structures, one work using a particular kind of ambience, and an abstract take on a classic jazz tune, all reflecting their years of collaboration and exploration through free improvisation based around jazz standards.

Recorded live during the Creative Sources Cycle at Lisbon's Cossoul on May 2, 2024, this collaboration brings together Ernesto Rodrigues (viola, crackle box), Nuno Torres (alto saxophone), Andre Hencleeday (piano), and Carlos Santos (modular synth) in a delicate journey of reductionist improvisation, blending acoustic and electronic textures to craft an intricate, lower-case performance of subtle sonic dialogues and dynamic restraint.

The Lisbon String Trio — Ernesto Rodrigues (viola), Miguel Mira (cello) and Alvaro Rosso(double bass) — collaborates with Carlos Santos (electronics, modular synth) to create a sophisticated, assertive set that enriches the trio's soundscape with nuanced electronic textures, building on the trio's nearly telepathic coordination and harmonic depth, blending physicality and subtle electronics to evoke mysterious, wave-like motifs and dynamic subtlety.

The debut by a Norwegian trio comprised of Martha Lea on saxophone and flute, Jon-Rune Strom on bass and Dag Erik Knedal Andersen on drums, solidly in the free jazz realm as they present a mix of collective improvisation, plus composition each from Lea and Strom, ending with an interpretation of late bassist Charlie Haden's "Song for Che".

Recorded at Sonoscopia, the Porto, Portugal experimental music and sound art hub under the direction of percussionist Gustavo Costa, double bassist Gonçalo Almeida leads a trio with trumpeter Susana Santos Silva and Gustavo Costa performing the five-part Almeida composition "Restraint", fulfilling the title through commanding cliff's-edge control.

Paying tribute to the music of Steve Lacy from the Italian trio of Danilo Gallo on double bass, banjo & guitar, Ferdinando Farao on drums & percussion, and Roberto Ottaviano on soprano saxophone, the latter having studied with Lacy during the 80s, here in seven Lacy composition and four group compositions clearly influenced by the late, great soprano saxophonist.

Led by Portuguese trumpeter Luís Vicente, his trio with double bassist Gonçalo Almeida and drummer/percussionist Pedro Melo Alves introduce a set of Vicente compositions and one traditional Brazilian piece, Vicente's frameworks and melodic structures opening to great space for all three player to shine through formidable and creative improvisation.

Since 2019 Portuguese drummer & percussionist Pedro Melo Alves has run the Conundrum series at the ZDB club (Galeria Ze dos Bois) in Lisbon, inviting a diverse set of improvisers, many for first time encounters, and recording the concerts which he presents here in this first volume: thirteen fascinating improvisations that challenge both the drummer and participants alike.

The debut of this international septet with three double basses, two electric guitars, drums, and grand piano, led by pianist Margaux Oswald, who chose these players for their connection to Copenhagen and their previous collaborations in varying configurations, here their collective improvisations employing subgroups juxtaposed to full ensemble power through texture and timbre.

Assembling a new band from younger generation Portuguese improvisers — Jose Soares on alto saxophone, Eduardo Cardinho on vibraphone, and Gonçalo Neto on guitar & banjo — double bassist Carlos Bica presents original compositions along with work from Neto and collective arrangements from the ensemble, in a lyrical yet experimentally inclined album of modern jazz.