Bassist Joelle Leandre recorded these two live concerts over two consecutive nights in Ulrichsberg, Austria, the first with a tentet and the second as a trio, showing two sides to her incredible writing and playing skills.
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Joelle Leandre-doublebass
Susanna Gartmayer-alto saxophone, bass clarinet
Boris Hauf-tenor saxophone, clarinet
Lorenz Raab-trumpet
Bertl Mutter-trombone
Burkhard Stangl-electric guitar
Thomas Wally-violin
Elaine Koene-viola
Melissa Coleman-Zielasko-cello
Kevin Norton-vibes, percussion
John Tilbury-piano
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UPC: 5024792059423
Label: Leo Records
Catalog ID: LEOR594.2
Squidco Product Code: 14390
Format: 2 CDs
Condition: New
Released: 2011
Country: UK
Packaging: 2 CDs in a single Jewel tray
Recorded on April 30th, 2009 and May 1st, 2009 live at Ulrichsberg Kaleidophon.
"Another treat from Joëlle Léandre, her 60th birthday gift to music lovers, two CDs in one set, with two totally different approaches, showing the various sides of the artist, and both equally compelling.
Both were also recorded live on two consecutive nights in Ulrichsberg, Austria.
The first one is a tentet recording, a piece which made Léandre quite nervous because she had not composed for a large ensemble for quite a while, being better known as a small ensemble improviser first and foremost. The fifty-three minute long piece is like a suite, with a string quartet consisting of Thomas Wally on violin, Elaine Koene on viola, Melissa Coleman-Zielasko on cello, and Léandre on bass, with a horn section of Sussana Gartmayer on alto saxophone and bass clarinet, Boris Hauf on tenor saxophone and clarinet; Lorenz Raab on trumpet, Bert Mutter on trombone, and completed with Burkhard Stangl on electric guitar and Kevin Norton on vibes and percussion. But it is one band in truth when you hear them. The music evolves from modern classical to avant-garde with rock elements, free jazz moments, strange atmospheres with spoken words overlapping each other, dramatic tension, the intensity of free improvisation, with changing moods and modes, in a tribute to her masters and role models: Morton Feldman, John Cage. The central moments of the composition please me the most, with the arco bass evolving into a menacing classical chamber string quartet, almost Michael Nyman-like, leading to unison trumpet and sax, hesitatingly, vulnerable, abruptly encountering a walking bass and jazz drums, supported by a great string cadence, evolving in absolute free expression of the whole tentet, cautiously, respectfully, then arco bass, with Léandre adding her angry poetry, jazz power and silent whispers. In sum, the composition brings a huge wealth of ideas, a strange compilation of instrumentation and styles without actually merging them, with accuracy and extreme discipline to keep things light, without overdoing it, a lifetime celebration of music.
And good as the tentet album may be, the trio improvisation is absolutely stunning, with Léandre on double bass, John Tilbury on piano, and Kevin Norton on vibes and percussion. The music is minimalist to say the least, weaving the lightest textures out of sparse sounds, creating an unreal, primeval atmosphere of incredible purity, where sounds are dissociated from form, yet combined they offer the organic lyricism of life itself, before it actually takes shape. This doesn't mean the music is naïve or friendly, no, it can be harsh and dramatic, but almost without consequence, just as sound, arising and evaporating, leaving an imprint as context for the next sound, equally beautiful by itself, equally powerful, ..... fragile beauty.
Léandre has sometimes referred to herself and her instrument as the farmer using her tractor, but this music is among the most sensitive she has created, surely as the result of hard work and lots of sweat, yet the album shows you the artist as she learned to be from the start: "Be yourself! Do it and go!". She did exactly that. This is her music. This is her musical journey compressed into two CDs.
The second CD alone is worth the purchase. The first CD alone is worth the purchase."-Stef, FreeJazzStef
Get additional information at Freejazz-Stef @ Blogspot
Artist Biographies
• Show Bio for Joelle Leandre "Joëlle Léandre is a famous French Bassist and is known for her collaborations with other musicians in the field of improvised music. Born in France on September 12th, 1951, she made her music debut in 1984 with Les Douze Sons. Her childhood was filled with music, and she was particularly interested in the piano during her early years. In her later years, she developed an interest in double bass, which won her many honors and scholarships during her education. Her double bass teacher Pierre Delescluse encouraged her to apply to the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Paris, where she was formally trained and noticed for her talent in the bass. Her outstanding musicianship took her to the United States and to the Centre for Creative and Performing Arts in Buffalo through a scholarship. In the United States, she expanded her network and met some of the best composers, such as John Cage, Giacinto Scelsi, and Morton Feldman. Among them, John Cage greatly influenced her music and compositions. Her time in the United States also enabled her to experience downtown New York music, which was another significant influence that led to her continued involvement in the field of improvised music. Some of her notable collaborations in the field of contemporary music are with Pierre Boulez, Merce Cunningham, John Cage, and Giacinto Scelsi. Among them, John Cage and Giacinto Scelsi were the biggest influences in her life and music. In an interview, Joëlle Léandre said that John Cage was her spiritual father and changed her perception of sound and music. In another interview, she tells how Giacinto Scelsi allowed her to discover her own music and how his music transported her into a new world of improved consciousness. In the field of jazz music, she collaborated with Derek Bailey, William Parker, and Sebi Tramontana. Her music was owned and distributed by different music labels, including FMP, Leo, RougueArt, and Red Toucan. Some memorable songs and albums she released throughout the years include Instant Replay, Les Douze sons, Trios, Sweet Zee, Frerebet, Joelle et Tetsu, Philippe Fenelon, Voyages, etc. Some of the recent releases include Can You Hear Me and Unleashed. She has also performed live at the Tampere Jazz Festival twice, where popular international artists compete with each other. Joëlle Léandre is also the member of European Women's Improvising Group (EWIG). The group evolved from the Feminist Improvising Group, and Joëlle Léandre joined the group in 1983. In the early 1900s, she co-founded Les Diaboliques with Irene Schweizer and Maggie Nicols, who were her long-time musician friends. Besides that, she also teaches several classes in prestigious universities about contemporary and improvised music. She has lived in France, Germany, and U.S during her lifetime, teaching at academic institutions in the religions and playing concerts. In 2002, she was invited to Canada as a visiting professor for music and composition." ^ Hide Bio for Joelle Leandre • Show Bio for Susanna Gartmayer "Susanna Gartmayer studied painting and printmaking and is self trained in bass clarinet and composition. She is part of many ensembles of elusive musical genres, for example the experimental rock band Broken.Heart.Collector or The Vegetable Orchestra (music for instruments made of out of vegetables). She is participating in the SHAPE platform with three different projects. Solo 2015 saw the release of Gartmayer's debut solo recording, AOUIE. In this album, mouth cavity shapes and vowel sounds, necessary for multiphonic wind instrument playing and the shift of overtones were the starting point for a multidimensional journey into the bass clarinet's sound. The Guardian wrote: "Bass clarinetist Susanna Gartmayer is a mainstay of the Viennese improvised music scene and AOUIE, her debut solo release, is long overdue.(....) This piece opens with cascading note patterns - a springboard for Gartmayer to indulge in her wonderland harmonies and her palette of flinty percussive clicks and spits." Gartmayer's live show, based on this album, is played without amplification. She exhibits the same attention to detail - the setup for each tune is slightly different, taking into account the way the audience is sitting as well as venue acoustics and the playing position she wishes to adopt. Möström The trio Möström was formed in 2010 and consists of Gartmayer, Tamara Wilhelm (DIY electronics) and Elise Mory (keys). The group is specifically interested in weird sound worlds and their humorous potential, as well as playing with stereotypes. Comments about their debut album range from "genre defying", to "barking mad, laugh out loud even". Michelle Foster of The Quietus concluded her album review with the following words: "For those who will come to it open-minded and brave enough to embrace the darkness with the light, the known and the unknown, Möström's debut album is an endless journey of inspiration." Duo with Brigitta Bödenauer As of 2012, Susanna has often worked with Brigitta Bödenauer, who has been active in Vienna's noise and experimental music and film scene since the early '90s. Their collaborative work focuses on abstract soundscapes and polyrhythmic figures as well as stage performances as a visual statement. The duo's debut album is coming soon." ^ Hide Bio for Susanna Gartmayer • Show Bio for Boris Hauf "Multi-intrumentalist, composer, producer and performer Boris Hauf plays saxophones, flutes, synths, organ, various computer-based applications, cymbals, bells, rudimentary guitar and sings. He composes for large and small ensembles, performance artists, film, radio, soloists, video and installation art. More than 40 releases on vinyl, CD, tape and online. He initiated and curated the annual composition festival Chicago Sound Map in Chicago and the concert series Playdate in Berlin and lectures at the University of the Arts in Berlin. Hauf tours worldwide in a variety of bands, ensembles as well as in various performative contexts and if necessary as a solo artist. Current bands include Owl & Mack, Postmarks, Next Delusion, The Peeled Eye. As performer and composer he collaborates closely with Choreographers Christina Ciupke, Martin Nachbar, Karen Christopher and many others with in the performance context. He owns and runs the independent record label shameless and lives in Berlin, Germany." ^ Hide Bio for Boris Hauf • Show Bio for Burkhard Stangl "Guitarist and composer Burkhard Stangl works in the fields of improvisation, electronica and contemporary classical. Among many others he played, recorded and collaborated with musicians / groups / composers /artists like Anestis Logothetis, Franz Koglmann, Radu Malfatti, Gunter Schneider, John Butcher, Franz Hautzinger, Taku Sugimoto, Taku Unami, Olga Neuwirth, Polwechsel, Gene Coleman, Kevin Drumm, dieb13, Billy Roisz, Martin Siewert, Boris Hauf, Gustav Deutsch, Oswald Egger, Uchihashi Kazuhisa, Katharina Klement, Christof Kurzmann, Kai Fagaschinski, Anna Zaradny, Robert Piotrowicz, Patrick K.-H., Klangforum Wien, efzeg, Christian Fennesz, Barbara Romen, Steve Bates, Katharina Ernst, Juan José Rivas, Fernando Vigueras, Mario de Vega, Attila Faravelli, and, last but not least, with his partner in life and art Angélica Castelló." ^ Hide Bio for Burkhard Stangl • Show Bio for Kevin Norton "Kevin Norton was born in Brooklyn and raised in Staten Island, NY. The composer/percussionist came to jazz in an unlikely setting but befriended drummer and fellow record collector Kenny Washington as a teenager. Studies at Hunter College introduced Kevin to Milt Hinton and after a short period, Kevin began to perform with Milt Hinton, eventually recording The Judge's Decision with a quartet led by Milt. Under Milt's encouragement, Kevin went back to school to get his Masters Degree from Manhattan School of Music. After graduation he played every kind of gig available to a versatile percussionist: classical, jazz, blues, Dixieland, off-Broadway shows, rock, but especially taking part in the blossoming downtown New York City scene that strove to combine all these musics. This lead to him playing with Fred Frith's band Keep the Dog, which also included harpist Zeena Parkins and saxophonist John Zorn. Soon Mr. Norton was asked to play with a vast amount of downtown New York (sometimes called the Knitting Factory scene) ensembles. However, he longed to return to his jazz roots and began to play with downtown outsiders Phillip Johnston and Joel Forrester and their co-led band, the Microscopic Septet (and later Johnston's Big Trouble, with two CDs on Black Saint). Still unsatisfied on a level of self-expression, Kevin began to devote himself to his own projects featuring his composition work and his improvising on total percussion (predominantly vibes and drums). Kevin has written several multi-movement pieces sometimes based on extra-musical subject matter. For Guy Debord (in nine events)is a piece for quintet and woodwind soloist (originally Anthony Braxton) based on the texts of the radical French philosopher whose thought proved central to the riots of Paris, 1968. Change Dance (Troubled Energy) draws it's inspiration from another radical political activist, Kathy Change (born Kathleen Chang). Both suites are approximately an hour in duration. On February 23, 2006 Kevin's Water and Fire Suite was premiered. It was commissioned as part of the national series of works from Meet The Composer Commissioning Music/USA, which is made possible by generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts, The Helen F. Whitaker Fund, and the Target Foundation. In less than 10 years he has led and/or co-led about 20 critically acclaimed recordings, many of them making year-end "Best of" lists. On one of the recent recordings, Time-Space Modulator integrates intricate, sophisticated composition work with the deep improvisatory skills of Kevin, Tony Malaby, Dave Ballou and John Lindberg. Kevin has also played with many highly esteemed European Improvisers such as Paul Rogers, Jo‘lle LŽandre, Paul Dunmall and Frode Gjerstad. Also, for about ten years, Mr. Norton was Anthony Braxton's main percussionist in both the "ghost trance" phase and the "standards" phase, plotting out the course for all percussionists who followed him. His most recent projects include compositions for various sized chamber groups and a duo with pianist Connie Crothers. In June of 2002, Kevin Norton was a resident composer at the prestigious MacDowell Colony. He has served on the faculty of several schools including the University of Maryland and is currently on the faculty of William Paterson University." ^ Hide Bio for Kevin Norton • Show Bio for John Tilbury "John Tilbury (born 1 February 1936) is a British pianist. He is considered one of the foremost interpreters of Morton Feldman's music, and since 1980 has been a member of the free improvisation group AMM. Tilbury studied piano at the Royal College of Music with Arthur Alexander and James Gibb and also with Zbigniew Drzewiecki in Warsaw. 1968 he was the winner of the Gaudeamus competition in the Netherlands. During the 1960s, Tilbury was closely associated with the composer Cornelius Cardew, whose music he has interpreted and recorded and a member of the Scratch Orchestra. His biography of Cardew, "Cornelius Cardew - A life unfinished" was published in 2008. Tilbury has also recorded the works of Howard Skempton and John White, among many others, and has also performed adaptations of the radio plays of Samuel Beckett. With guitarist AMM bandmate Keith Rowe's electroacoustic ensemble M.I.M.E.O., Tilbury recorded The Hands of Caravaggio, inspired by the painter's The Taking of Christ {1602). In this live performance, twelve of the members of M.I.M.E.O. were positioned around the piano in a deliberate echo of Christ's Last Supper. The thirteenth M.I.M.E.O. member (Cor Fuhler) is credited with "inside piano" as he interacted and interfered with Tilbury's playing by manipulating and damping the instrument's strings, essentially doing piano preparation in real time. Critic Brian Olewnick describes the album as "A staggering achievement, one is tempted to call The Hands of Caravaggio the first great piano concerto of the 21st century." Another notable recent recording of Tilbury's was Duos for Doris (like The Hands of Caravaggio also on Erstwhile Records), a collaboration with Keith Rowe. It is widely considered a landmark recording in the genre of electroacoustic improvisation (or "EAI"). In 2013 he collaborated with artist Armando Lulaj in FIEND performance at the National Theatre of Tirana (Albania)." ^ Hide Bio for John Tilbury
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Track Listing:
CD 1
Can You Hear Me? 53:54
CD 2
Trio 46:58
Improvised Music
Jazz
European Improv, Free Jazz & Related
Leo Records
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