Bridging contemporary and improvised music, Montreal double bassist Nicolas Caloia wrote these pieces for textured and impossible rhythms; blending pieces by Nancarrow and Grand Master Flash; and manipulating poems by Genevieve Letarte; with supporting improv from Jean Derome & Lori Freedman.

Michel F Cote in a hybrid release of country and actuelle music that is unpredictable and funny with help from artists such as Bernard Falaise, Frank Martel, Billie Folliday, etc.

Sporadic sonic exchanges exploring guidelines, graphic scores, or completely improvised, with an expansive instrumentorium from the sextet of Magali Babin, Andrea-Jane Cornell, Martine H Crispo, Anne-Francoise Jacques, Emilie Mouchous, and Erin Sexton.

Sporadic sonic exchanges exploring guidelines, graphic scores, or completely improvised, with an expansive instrumentorium from the sextet of Magali Babin, Andrea-Jane Cornell, Martine H Crispo, Anne-Francoise Jacques, Emilie Mouchous, and Erin Sexton.

Written in 1998, Danielle Palardy Roger's game piece composition was performed at the first Ensemble SuperMusique concert, here in 7 versions recorded at various locations in bands including Joelle Leandre, Joane Hetu, Guido Del Fabbro, Jean Derome, &c. &c.

Sax and flute player/Ambiances Magnetique label leader Jean Derome's excellent jazz trio with bassist Normand Guilbeault and drummer Pierre Tanguay, in their 4th release, with three Derome originals and 4 standards including a Dolphy number.

Eleven songs by Montreal trombonist Scott Thomson, settings of poems by P.K. Page (1916-2010), one of Canada's distinguished literary figures, in a band with Pierre Tanguay on drums, Yves Charuest on sax, Nicolas Caloia on double bass, and Susanna Hood on vocals.

Quebecois guitarist Bernard Falaise of Miriodor, Klaxon Gueule, Papa Boa and Les Projectionnistes fame, continues his solo series with the fifth note of the scale, "Sol (G)", reflected in a series of eight inventive guitar improvisations using timbral effects and looping structures to expand his virtual ensemble as does in his live performances.

Guitarist Falaise (Klaxon Gueule, Les Projectionnistes) in pieces that reference Aksak Maboul, Braxton, Beefheart, Donatoni, Les Granules, Nancarrow, Stravinsky, & Wyatt.

Sporadic sonic exchanges exploring guidelines, graphic scores, or completely improvised, with an expansive instrumentorium from the sextet of Magali Babin, Andrea-Jane Cornell, Martine H Crispo, Anne-Francoise Jacques, Emilie Mouchous, and Erin Sexton.

A musical theatre in 3 acts using texts, songs, free improvisation and compositional textures, "an evocation of the fusion between opposite forces-tight and flexible, male and female".

An amazing journey in sound and voice from saxophonist/vocalist Joane Hetu with five singers/narrators/musicians/noise-makers and layered field recordings, a remarkable and sophisticated work about sex, loss, death, art, & politics.

Joker brings together 12 vocalists, many core members of the Ambiances Magnetiques/Musique Actuelle collective including Joane Hetu, Jean Derome, Diane Labrosse, Michel F Cote, Lori Freedman, &c, performing unusual works of voice and narration composed by Joane Hetu.

Joane Hetu and Jean Derome formed Nous percons les oreilles 20 years ago, merging their expansive musical interests in idiosyncratic improvisation and orchestration using saxophones & wind instruments, objects, voice, melodica, and piano, here in their 4th astonishing album.

Long-time collaborators the Quatuor Bozzini string quartet of Clemens Merkel, Alissa Cheung, Stephanie Bozzini and Isabelle Bozzini join with Slavic composer living in Montreal Ana Sokolovic, to present a series of 14 short works -- "Ghost 1" & "Ghost 2"; "Commedia dell'arte" in 10 movements; "Blanc dominant"; and "Troisieme page apres le soleil".

Written in 1998, Danielle Palardy Roger's game piece composition was performed at the first Ensemble SuperMusique concert, here in 7 versions recorded at various locations in bands including Joelle Leandre, Joane Hetu, Guido Del Fabbro, Jean Derome, &c. &c.

Composer/percussionist Danielle Palardy Roger's musical satire about capitalism, performed with some of Montreal's finest improvisers using conventional & unconventional instruments and voice, captured live at the Gesu Amphitheater, in Montreal in 2018: Michel F Cote, Andre Duchesne, Joane Hetu, Elizabeth Lima, Isaiah Ceccarelli, Alexander St-Onge, and Ida Toniato.

An exceptional album of widely-embracing collective improvisation recorded during Vertical Squirrel's 2019-20 residency at Silence as part of the You Are I Am series, the core quartet of Daniel Fischlin on guitars, monotron, flute & percussion, Ajay Heble on piano, Lewis Melville on bass & percussion and Ted Warren on drums & percussion are joined by cornetist and world instrumentalist Gary Diggins and vocalist & percussionist Dong-Won Kim.

The duo of Pierre Tanguay on drums and percussion and Tom Walsh on trombone in a release of minimalist construction that blends composition and improvisation.

Layered lowercase electroacoustic improv from the US / Mexico City / German trio of Chris Cogburn on percussion & electronics, Juan Garcia on double bass, and Ignaz Schick on turntables & electronics, eclectically informed by concrete sources and abstract electronics over Garcia's bass work and Cogburn's threshold-crossing acoustics & electronic percussion.

Recordings from Lisbon of Danish saxophonist Lotte Anker with pianist Rodrigo Pinheiro and double bassist Hernani Faustino, both from Red Trio; dynamic improvisation with a sense of restraint and beautiful fluidity.

Extended reissue of the 1997 album bringing jazz and rock artists from 5 decades of ground-breaking work into a mysteriously lyrical band presenting 9 powerful compositions of jazz/rock fusion, led by drummer Tony Williams and bassist Bill Laswell with the stellar personnel of Pharoah Sanders, Buckethead, Nicky Skopelitis, Graham Haynes, Peter Apfelbaum, & Byard Lancaster.

Recording at Vortex Jazz Club in London in 2018, the As You Hear trio of renowned London and European free jazz pianist Veryan Weston with two younger generation improvisers, Pei Ann Yeoh (violin) and Beibei Wang (drums & percussion), here presenting a sophisticated concert of group improvisation, each collective improvisation named for a spice or seasoning.

Combining free jazz and post-punk rock forms with pointed commentary about issues of race, gender, the pandemic, and political autonomy, through provocative vocal works expressing modern angst, from three Asian-American female performers living in NYC: tenor saxophonist Ayumi Ishito, drummer Wen-Ting Wu, and activist and Tiananmen Square survivor Rose Tang on voice, guitar & piano.

Originally released in 1977 during an extremely creative period for both UK free improvising guitarist Derek Bailey and Italian percussionist Andrea Centazzo, this 3rd album on the Ictus label finds both players defining each of these extraordinary improvisations through instrumental timbres, dynamics and metronome speeds chosen to suit each piece.

A collection of compositions drawn from recent works by Michel Banabila, the composer performing alongside artists Rutger Zuydervelt, Yuko Parris, ok Van Vuuren and all n4tural, showcasing his flexibility in developing a variety of works that include cinematic sweeps, ambient/fourth world, sound and noise, and rhythm-based and synthetic.

Lebanese trumpeter Mazen Kerbaj, known from "A" Trio and collaborations with Franz Hautzinger, Toshimaru Nakamura, Birgit Uhler, &c., here joins two Berlin percussionist--Burkhard Beins and Michael Vorfeld--both members of Berlin Echtzeitmusik, to record this fascinating studio album of extraordinary technique and sonic control.

Guitarist Henk Zwerver, bassist Raoul van der Weide and percussionist George Hadow, frequent collaborators in the Amsterdam free improv scene, join with Berlin saxophonist & clarinetist Edith Steyer to make up the Bertch Quartet, their debut album a great and embraceable example of subtle, collective free improvisations that merge traditional and non-idiomatic forms.

Premiere recordings of two major works from Canadian guitarist Tim Brady: "Desir" in 3 movements, a concerto for electric guitar and large chamber ensemble that showcases Brady's playing; and "Eight Songs about: Symphony # 7" where each song is a character in a fictional, subtle and ironic commentary about Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 7 premiered on August 9th, 1942.

Recorded in Britain's longest tunnel--the Standedge Canal Tunnel--during the Marsden Jazz Festival 2017, Norwegian cellist and composer Maja Bugge's solo album uses the natural resonance of the tunnel as an accompaniment to her expressive playing, recorded at a concert that blended composed work with improvisations that respond to the tunnel's unique resonant properties.

The Riviere Ensemble led by bassist Kent Carter with Christiane Bopp (trombone), Albrecht Maurer (violin), Katrin Mickiewicz (viola) and Laura Tejeda Martin (mezzo soprano) recording original works in historic churches in France, blending classical, jazz, free improv & traditional musics.

Montreal/Actuelle players Sylvie Chenard on guitar and voice, Alexander Dubuc on bass, Cathy Heyden on sax, and Miriodor's Remi Leclerc on drums, with all providing electronics, in an encompassing ea-improv journey that balances acoustics with sonic environments and wonderfully controlled chaos.

The final of 4 volumes documenting a series of concerts Eddie Prevost organised at the Network Theatre in London, trio sessions featuring the finest modern free improvising saxophonists, here with Bertrand Denzler on sax and bassist John Edwards accompanying.

Originally called Treffpunkt, or "meeting point", the partnership of violist Frantz Loriot and pianist Cedric Piromalli has evolved as they added collaborators to their idiosyncratic approach to improv, here with guests Antoine Chessex on tenor sax and Christian Wolfarth on percussion and cymbals for an extended, upbeat and wonderfully creative performance.

A tribute to controversial and outrageous Quebec sculptor and installation artist Rose Drummond, through a collection of unusual, diverse, absurdist and absolutely remarkable instrumental & vocal songs drawn from saxophonist and composer Jean Derome's musical career, performed with Musique Actuelle luminaries including Michel F Coté, Joane Hétu, and Éric Normand.

Jean Derome's extended Dangereux Zhomes opened the 25th Victo Festival in 2008, adding Joane Hetu, Lori Freedman, Bernard Falaise, &c. for an incredible and expressive orchestra.

A 3 CD set from bassist Benjamin Duboc: a solo disc of low register improv; plus 2 discs in duo and trio settings with Didier Lasserre, Sylvain Guerineau, Jean-Luc Petit, Pascal Battus, Sophie Agnel & Christian Pruvost.

French free vocalist Isabelle Duthoit met world traveling improviser and Zeitkratzer trumpeter Franz Hautzinger in New York City to record these highly unusual duos, using extreme techniques and inexplicable intent to create 9 uniquely aberrant accompaniments to your most subtle and strange dreams; reference Phil Minton, Axel Dorner, Freddie Kruger.

Eight aquatic themed works from the Berlin-based quintet of Hui-Chun Lin and Uygur Vural on cello, Matthias Müller on trombone, Klaus Kurvers and Ulf Mengersen on bass; also known as Ensemble Discoveries, this album collects work from 2020-22, described as "improvised music and Echtzeit Compositions and the ideas of deep sea, their special living conditions: big pressure, eternity darkness".

Luigi Nono associate Roberto Fabbriciani on hyperbass flute improvising with Berlin-based tuba player Robin Hayward at the Basilica di San Domenico in the Tuscan hilltown of Arezzo.

FEN (Far East Network) is comprised of improvisers from Singapore (Yuen Chee Wai), Japan (Otomo Yoshihide), China (Yan Jun), and Korea (Ryu Hankil), using electroacoustic instrumentation to create a unique merging of cultural and personal aesthetic, in their 1st album recorded in NYC using electronic feedback, computer noises and guitar; intriguing and unconventional.

A recording of wide-ranging, freely improvised solos and duets by Montreal clarinetist and bass clarinetist Lori Freedman & Toronto trombonist Scott Thomson.

The second incarnation of Frisque Concordance, formed in 1992 by Georg Graewe & John Butcher and currently the quartet of Butcher on tenor & soprano saxophones, Graewe on piano, Wilbert de Joode on double bass and Mark Sanders on drums, in a 2-CD set, the first a superb studio set recorded in Vienna in 2017, the second a live concert at the 2018 Konfrontationen Festival in Nickelsdorf.

Helen Mirra uses the index of a W.G. Sebald's novel to create a mysterious, intriguing and fascinating audio world, performed by Mirra on printing press and acoustic guitar, and Fred Frith on rainsticks, mbira, charango, music box, voice, shoes and other objects.

Coordinated and composed by d'incise and Cyril Bondi, this incredible Swiss-based collective of 30 to 40 experimental musicians was founded in 2010 and has presented concerts and recordings since; this CD presents two works, "13 unissons" splitting the orchestra into 13 subgroups; and "27 times" where each musician plays 27 times in 30 minutes; phenomenal.

Petr Vrba and Veronika Mayer use non-idiomatic improvisation to research the combination of textural materials, crossing them with vibrations of objects on the speakers, pure sound waves, feedbacks, tones coming from trumpet, accordion, electronics, and laptop, culminating in the creation of a muscular frenetic soup of tense energy fields.

Alto saxophonist Julie Kjaer, a Denmark native living in the UK and active on the London Improv scene, in a trio with two of the most active London players - Steve Noble on drums and John Edwards on bass - for a live album at Vortex Jazz Club in 2015.

The third release from the Barcelona-based experimental improvising duo L'Ocell of Chilean acoustic guitarist Fernando Carraso and Spanish double bassist Àlex Reviriego-double bass, here joined by guitarist Ferran Fages (a member of Phicus and Radium with Reviriego), for a set of mysteriously dark improvisations recorded live at Sant Roma de Mianigues church.

Paletuvier, or "mangrove", is part of a color series where Labrosse, Lauzier and Tanguay use close-miked acoustic instruments to create an ecosystem of sound in subtle and rich interplay.

Two compositions by the young Austrian composer/organist Klaus Lang, who currently lives in Berlin, Germany.

An album of quiet improvisation focused on timbre, rhythm and pensive pacing from the duo of bass clarinetist Philippe Lauzier and bassist Éric Normand, also using objects to create mysterious tones and acoustic sonics, released as a limited 300g paper card hand-printed by Normad with an accompanying download code, 1 of 2 art cards initiating an 8-card series.

A thorough overview of bassist and vocalist Joelle Leandre's recent work in a boxed set of 8 CDs and a 16 page booklet of essays, photos and credits, each CD bringing a unique grouping from Les Diaboliques to duos with Mat Maneri, Fred Frith, Lauren Newton, & Jean-Luc Cappozzo, plus one solo disc and a quartet with Zlatko Kaucic, Evan Parker and Augusti Fernandez; magnificent.

The Italian duo of pianist Gianni Lenoci and soprano saxophonist Gianni Mimmo using extended and unusual techniques through eight improvisations mixing melody, timbre and tone.

Using unusual techniques and a collection of instruments that include the standard Western instruments of cello and flute, along with guembri, sulittu, dilli kaval, bass xun, launeddas (mancosedda, tumbu), plus the application of objects against strings, the Italian duo of Antonio Bertoni & Stefano Leonardi engage in seven remarkable and assertive improvised duos.

New York pianist Marilyn Lerner in a trio with Ken Filiano and Lou Grassi, instant compositions with great structure, virtuosity and melodic content.

Compellingly lyrical music with a klezmer influence from this Washington, DC trio, blending rock, world music, math rock, klezmer, reggae, noise, ambient and jazz into wonderful groove-based works, here in their 3rd album after 5 years, with a host of guests.

An upbeat and energetic performance at the Konfrontation Festival, Ulrichsberg in 2006, featuring six early compositions by Anthony Braxton, arranged by pianist Pat Thomas and performed by the quintet of superb improvisers and interpreters Alex Ward on clarinet, Evan Thomas on electric guitar, Dominic Lash on electric bass, and Darren Hasson-Davis on drums.

Canadian guitarist Rene Lussier formed this quintette in 2016, with Julie Houle on tuba & euphonium, Luzio Altobelli on accordion, and drummers Marton Maderspach & Robbie Kuster, to play the intricate and lyrical pieces he developed, where up to five parts are overlaid at any given time, though the listener only hears the wonderful interplay and exultation of the resulting music.

Taking two of Montreal's most vital musicians, guitarist Rene Lussier and clarinetist Robert Lepage, and joining them with the far-ranging string quartet Le Quatuor Bozzini for a stunning album that merges chamber music, noise music, and improvisation without leaving behind melody, intention and direction; magnificent!

A solo work from Pierre-Yves Martel performing two works for the viola da gamba, bringing this fretted renaissance-era ancestor to the violin into the 21st century through two slowly evolving and sonically fascinating pieces.

Alto saxophonist Robbins in a free improvising and powerful New York quartet with Nate Wooley on trumpet, Daniel Levin on cello, and Jeff Davis on drums.

Mysterious and beautiful, the compositions of Norwegian improvisers, saxophonist, trumpeter and clarinetist Torben Snekkestad and pianist Søren Kjærgaard, are influenced by the peaceful western coast of Norway where they recorded these 12 pieces, with titles adapted from the texts by Torben Ulrich in the work Meridiana: Lines Toward A Nonlocal Alchemy.

Two unusual approaches to the vibraphone in a duo--Dale Gorfinkel using the tremolo mechanism, additional motors, bows and creative percussive techniques; and Robbie Avenaim using homemade electronic sticks and vibrating objects to create rhythms and textures.

The second album from this Norwegian electric improvising power trio, using dark rhythmic grooves over which guitar, electric piano, amplified objects, no-input mixing board, and pianet emerge, creating hypnotic states that lead to exultant moments through sinuous melody, building and releasing intensity while maintaining a consistent gauzy undertone.

An improvisation for two laptop computers performed by Tim Blechmann and Klaus Filip, recorded live in Vienna at "neue musik in st ruprecht", 2010, contrasting minimal tones with massive bass rumble and frothing frequencies.

The third volume of NY bassist, composer, and electronic/computer musician Carl Testa's amazing Sway project, giving an interactive electronic processor its own voice interfacing with any size ensemble, here with two new works--one for quintet among a set of Chicago improvisers, the other in Portland, Maine with a sextet--each uniquely voiced and excitingly unpredictable.

The debut album of the New York Trio Caveat of Jonathan Moritz on tenor and soprano saxophones, John McLellan on drums, and James Ilgenfritz on bass, in an unusual Christmas album taking understated and obscure approaches to tunes like "Blue Christmas" and "Dreidel", where only the attentive listener discovers the melodic and harmonic basis for each tune.

Composer and sound artist Chaz Underriner composed these eight meditation in 2021 during residencies at the Atlantic Center for the Arts and the NYU Music Technology studios, recorded at Stetson University in Florida with an ensemble including four vocalists, cello, piano, percussion, electronics and field recordings; beautifully introspective and thought provoking works.

910 Noise presents: Douceur Violente A 14 track compilation of electronic and noise artists from Wilmington, North Carolina.

A survey of French and Australian Sound Art recorded in 2011 at Les Instants Chavires, Montreuil during Parisonic, with artists including Eric La Casa, Philip Samartzis, Marc Baron, Jean-Luc Guionnet, &c. &c.

soccer Committee and Machinefabriek's duo album from 2008 is remixed by artists Nate Wooley, Francisco Lopez, Taylor Deupree, Lawrence English, Xela, &c. &c.

TLASILA was an experimental music collective founded in 1990 by composer Tom Smith; this 3 CD + download releases finds a massive cast of artists restructuring the improvisations from the "Noon and Eternity" album into a massive 240 minute work.

Francisco Lopez initiated this project in 2006 with the Pogus CD "Montreal Sound Matter", now expanded into an acousmatic group of linked tracks from a group of impressive sound artists.

A superb instrumental exploration of the American musical language - jazz, folk, gospel, rock, bluegrass, orchestral, electronic, minimalism and post-modernism, with improvised parts played by Jean Derome, Jacques Seguin, Guillaume Bourque and Yanik Cloutier.

Featuring works premiered at the ESM concert "Zigzague and Colore" in November 2022 in Montreal at Escape Orange - Edifice Wilder - Espace Danse, this exceptional concert of Montreal's premiere improvising Ensemble SuperMusique presents the works of three female composers--Elizabeth Millar, Laura Kavanaugh, and Danielle Palardy Roger--through a variety of graphic scores.

Concepts of community, dialog, sharing and transmission, or "recontre", are the linking ideas between these four works commissioned of Montreal composer and wind player Jean Derome, developed for four Quebec ensembles, these pieces combine contemporary and improvisational forms, the scores shaped by constraints from the combinatorial mathematics of Marin Mersenne.

An overview of Montreal's Ensemble Supermusique celebrating their 40th anniversary, drawing on works from founders Joane Hétu, Diane Labrosse, and Danielle Palardy Roger and their projects including Wondeur Brass, Les Poules, Justine, &c., realized by 40 instrumentalists in 8 groups of 3 to 8 players; masterful sophistication with a sense of humor and wonder — exceptionnelle!

Copenhagen composer Niels Lyhne Løkkegaard's long form work refers to units of compositional structure in systems of instruments, each a "bubble" that interacts and collides creating fluctuations, ruptures and tension release in an hypnotic sonic tapestry, performed by Montreal's Quatuor Bozzini on violins, viola, cellos and harmonica; mesmerizing.

Strange and expansive music from the duo of Lee Pui Ming (piano, objects, body) and Joane Hetu (vocals, alto saxophone).

A fascinating work dedicated to improvising cellist Remy Belanger de Beauport written by Montreal composer Joane Hétu and performed by the large Ensemble SuperMusique with Jean Derome, Lori Freedman, Scott Thomson, Diane Labrosse, Danielle Palardy Roger, Pierre Tanguay, &c., commissioned and performed for the Ensemble's 40th anniversary and expanded for this studio edition.