The Squid's Ear Magazine


Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra: GIO poetics (Creative Sources)

Glasgow's Improvisers Orchestra from the CCA Glasgow performing three free improvisations and a discretely structured piece by Raymond MacDonald.
 

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Personnel:



Richard Bamford-drums, percussion

Stuart Brown-drums, percussion

John Burgess-bass clarinet

George Burt-acoustic guitar

Matthew Cairns-trumpet

Aileen Campbell-voice

Neil Davidson-electric guitar

Nick Fells-shakuhachi

Krzysztof Hladowski-bouzouki

George Lyle-doublebass

Raymond MacDonald-soprano & alto saxophones

George Murray-trombone

Peter Nicholson-cello, voice

Emma Roche-flute, baroque flute

Ernesto Rodrigues-viola

Guilherme Rodrigues-cello

Matthew Studdert-Kennedy-flute

Armin Sturm-doublebass. voice

Jessica Sullivan-cello

Graeme Wilson-tenor & baritone saxophones

Click an artist name above to see in-stock items for that artist.



UPC: 5609063401141

Label: Creative Sources
Catalog ID: cs114
Squidco Product Code: 11503

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2009
Country: Portugal
Packaging: Jewel Tray
Recorded 3rd of June 2007 at CCA Glasgow by Kenny MacLeod.
Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

Artist Biographies

"Stuart Brown is a full time drummer, band leader, producer, composer and drum teacher based in Glasgow, Scotland, U.K. He endorses Roland Electronic Percussion products.

After studying Electronics with Music (BEng, 1st class honours) at Glasgow University Stuart went on to attend Berklee College of Music, Boston, USA on scholarship, where his private teachers included Kenwood Dennard (Sting, Miles Davis) and Ian Froman (Mike Stern). He has also taken lessons with Ralph Peterson, Ari Hoenig, Clarence Penn, Ed Uribe, Stanton Moore, Steve White, Mark Guiliana and more.

Since leaving Berklee Stuart has gone on to be one of the most in demand drummers in Scotland and has built a strong and diverse musical performance career that encompasses jazz, rock, latin, folk, electronic music, free improv and much more. He is also an established bandleader and composer, writing for his own groups and also creating music for film and advertising.

As a drummer he has toured internationally around Europe, USA, India, Brazil and New Zealand and has worked with many national and international artists including Craig Armstrong (film composer for Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge, etc), Niki Haris (Maddona's backing singer), David Byrne of Talking Heads (for the Young Adam film sound track), Tom Jones, Horse, Barbara Morrison, Rab Noakes, Darius Campbell, Dave Gordon (SunRa Arkestra) Evan Parker, Fred Frith, George Lewis, John Hollenbeck and the unique Orquestra Scotland Brazil project (a British council funded project featuring 16 Scottish and Brazilian musicians).



His own critically acclaimed group, Stu Brown's Twisted Toons (which performs live cartoon scores by Carl Stalling, Scott Bradley and Raymond Scott) has released two albums, which were featured in Mojo Magazines Top Ten Jazz Albums of 2009 and 2016 and in The Times Top Ten Jazz Albums of 2016.

Other current groups and artists that he works with include: Electronic duo Herschel 36, Jill Jackson, Sugarwork, Simon Thacker's Ritmata, Mario Caribé's Boteco Trio, Niki King, Brian Molley Quartet, Glasgow Imrovisers Orchestra, Martin Kershaw's "Hero as a Riddle", Chick Lyall Quintet, Paul Harrison Trio, Carrie Fertig's Glass Percussion project and Drawn to Water. He also co-runs the Jazz at The 78 weekly jazz session with Euan Burton (bass) and Tom Gibbs (piano) which has helped revitalize the jazz community in Glasgow since 2007 by bringing together established and emerging players.

As a composer he has been commissioned to create several works, including a 2010 collaborative work with American drummer John Hollenbeck for Edinburgh Jazz Festival and a 2016 Hippfest commission to create a new live score for the 1926 German silent film, Wunder Der Schöpfung. This was performed by his electronic duo, Herschel 36 and went on to tour Scotland and England in 2016 to critical acclaim. Working as part of Toad's Caravan motion graphics studio, Stuart has also created music and sound for commercial clients include Citizen's Theatre, Starcatchers, Kuoni Travel, Mary's Meals, and more.

As a drum teacher and educator, Stuart works part time for Glasgow schools, is the resident drum tutor on both the Napier University and Glasgow Jazz Summer Schools does regular teaching sessions at DD Drums in Falkirk. He also has a number of private drum students and does additional freelance workshops in Samba drumming, electronic music, animation and more. In addition, he has also presented drum masterclasses in jazz and Brazilian drum kit including appearances at The Scottish Drum Fair 2013 and Sage Jazz Festival 2010."

-Stuart Brown Website (https://www.stu-brown.com/about)
6/16/2026

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

"George Burt is a guitarist and composer based in Falkirk. Early experience includes playing in folk groups, ceilidh bands, pit bands, and mainstream and Trad jazz groups. He has devised a number of works for GIO including Improcherto (for HB) which GIO performed at the 2011 Gateshead Jazz Festival.

He ran a series of improvisation workshops in the 90s, and this eventually led to the formation of the George Burt/Raymond MacDonald Quartet (BMacD). The group was described by the Penguin Guide to Jazz as the leading partnership on the modern/free scene in Scotland, making impressive international associations. These included Harry Beckett, Keith Tippett and Lol Coxhill. The group's crowning achievement is a pair of concept albums celebrating the lives of the Victorian traveller Isabella Bird and her sister Henrietta. He has been lucky enough to perform with a number of his favourite musicians; Barry Guy, Julie Tippetts and Mat Maneri, as well as his two favourite guitarists, Susan Alcorn and Bill Wells."

-Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra (http://glasgowimprovisersorchestra.com/musicians/)
6/16/2026

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

Neil Davidson is a UK guitarist and improviser, known for the groups Age Of Wire And String, Aporias Trio, Dvell, Muris, Muris With Lumps, The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra, and With Lumps. He has performed with other improvisers including Arild Vange, Frode Eggen, Fritz Welch, Ernesto Rodrigues, Guilherme Rodrigues, Hernani Faustino, George Lewis, Nick Fells, Aileen Campbell, Una MacGlone, Tatsuya Nakatani, Raymond MacDonald, Peter Nicholson, Rhodri Davies, Dimitra Lazaridou Chatzigoga, Jane Dickson, Patrick Farmer, Nicole McNeilly, and Michael Shearer.

-Neil Davidson Website + Discogs.com (http://neildavidsonevents.blogspot.com/p/by-water-by-solo-electric-guitar-c50-no.html)
6/16/2026

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

"Raymond MacDonald co-leads The Burt/MacDonald Quartet and is a founder member and key player in The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra. He also performs with The Scottish Jazz Composers Ensemble and the saxophone quartet Rich in Knuckles. He has recently collaborated Lol Coxhill, Keith Tippett, Harry Beckett, Evan Parker, Gunter Baby Sommer, Fred Frith, Keith Rowe, George Lewis, Maggie Nicols, Satoko Fujii, Ken Hyder, Natsuki Tamura, Steve Beresford, Mike Zerang, and Fred Longberg-holm.

Other work includes composing and performing for film, television, theatre and collaborations with visual artists, including commissioned work for Martin Boyce, Simon Starling and Christine Borland. He collaborated with David Byrne on David McKenzie's film Young Adam.

In December 2005 he made a solo tour of Japan and in July 2006 performed with Josh Abrams and Miguel Carvalhais at The Glasgow International Jazz festival."

-Creative Sources (http://creativesourcesrec.com/creative_artists.html)
6/16/2026

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

"George Murray began playing the piano and trombone aged 9. He played in Bodmin School Band and Cornwall Youth Orchestra and Jazz Orchestra before going on to study and Trinity College of Music in London.

George has performed and recorded in wide variety of contexts, in a number of innovative ensembles.

In contemporary music he has appeared as a guest soloist with Scottish Clarinet Quartet and performed regularly with the Glasgow based contemporary music group Symposia.

George was a member of Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra through which he has had the opportunity of working and recording with George Lewis, Maggie Nichols, Barry Guy and Evan Parker in a variety of different contexts. He has also recorded in Germany with Saxophonist John Tchicai and Joachim Irmler.

George has also been working as a Music Therapist and teacher for the last 12 years. He is passionate about music, and its benefits, people respond to music in a fantastic way. He is interested in person-centred learning and working with his pupils to help them to identify and fulfill their goals."

-Music Teachers UK (https://www.musicteachers.co.uk/user/f6e1883c310c35ff7e49/biography)
6/16/2026

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

"Peter Nicholson is a UK cellist, known for the groups Age Of Wire And String, London Improvisers Orchestra, The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra, The One Ensemble, The One Ensemble Of Daniel Padden, and The One Ensemble Orchestra. He is Senior Musician and Director of Music at Scotland's Sistema Scotland team since 2009. Nicholson is a graduate of the University of York and the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now Royal Conservatoire of Scotland). He has extensive experience as a teacher and workshop leader in local authority, higher education and third sector contexts. As a freelance cellist, he has worked with a range of professional symphony orchestras and ensembles alongside establishing a reputation for working across genres and styles as a composer and performer. Peter is a member of the Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra and The One Ensemble."

-Squidco (from Discogs & Sistema Scotland websites) 6/16/2026

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

"Emma Roche began studying flute at the Cork School of Music. She moved to Glasgow to study with David Nicholson at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, where she was the recipient of many awards and prizes, including the John McGregor Flute Prize, the Governors' Woodwind Recital Prize and the Mary D. Adams Chamber Prize. Emma has had solo recitals broadcast on RTE Lyric FM and BBC Radio 3. She performs regularly around Scotland and in Ireland with the Gliouder Ensemble and is also a member of the Glasgow Improvisers' Orchestra. She also teaches flute at Stewarton Academy, St George's School for Girls and Fettes College."

-St. Mary's Music School (https://www.stmarysmusicschool.co.uk/faculty/woodwind/person/emma-roche)
6/16/2026

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

"He has been playing the violin for 30 years and in that time has played all genres of music ranging from contemporary music to free jazz and improvised music, live and in the studio.

His main interest shifted towards contemporary improvised and composed music.

The relationship with his instruments is focused in sonic and textural elements.

Electronic music was an early influence on his approach to violin playing, which challenges traditional romantic concepts of the violin/viola through use of preparations and micro tuning.

Active in different settings on the Portuguese scene for free improvised music, both as a collaborator and in leading his own groups.

Music for Dance, Cinema, Video and Performance.

Has created the record label Creative Sources Recordings in 1999, which mainly concentrates on releasing experimental and electro-acoustic music."

-Creative Sources (http://creativesourcesrec.com/creative_artists.html)
6/16/2026

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

"Was born 1988 in Lisboa, Portugal and started playing cello and trumpet at Orquestra Metropolitana de Lisboa at the age of 7. In 1999 joined Conservatório Nacional de Música de Lisboa to study classical and music theory and in the current year recorded his first album - Multiples - with Ernesto Rodrigues and José Oliveira out on Creative Sources Recordings.

Apart from work in music ensembles ranging for contemporary classical to free improvisation, also works with live music poetry, theatre and film-music. After lengthy residency in Lisboa, (1988-2016) moved to Berlin and has been active as composer and improviser in the scene.

Worked with some international and renewed artists like Ernesto Rodrigues, Jean-luc Guionnet, Margarida Garcia, Manuel Mota, Alfredo Costa Monteiro, Sei Miguel, Tim Goldie, Jeffrey Morgan, Oren Marshall, Gerhard Uebele, Klaus Kurvers, Gabriel Paiuk, Nicolas Field, Jaime Fennelly, Blaise Siwula, Will Guthrie, Pawel Grabowski, Michael Thieke, Wade Matthews, Leonel Kaplan, Diego Chamy, Gabriel Paiuk, Barry Weisblat, Joe Giardullo, Jassem Hindi, Tisha Mukarji, Masahiko Okura, Taku Unami, Toshihiro Koike, Sharif Sehnaoui, Christine Abdelnour, Alexandre Bellenger, Carlos Zingaro, Romaric Sobac, Nuno Rebelo, Nuno Torres, Naoto Yamagashi, Heddy Boubaker, Gerhard Uebele, Guillermo Torres, Tomas Gris, Carlos Santos, Bruno Parrinha, Miguel Leiria Pereira, Miguel Ivo Cruz, Alberto Cirera, Nuno Morão, Mark Sanders, Dennis Gonzaléz, Alípio Carvalho Neto, Raymond Macdonald, Neil Davidson, David Stachenas, Lisa Ullén, D'incise, Cyril Bondy, Miguel Mira, Rodrigo Amado, Abdul Moimême, Monsieur Trinité, João Madeira, Álvaro Rosso, Gil Gonçalves, Marian Yanchyk, Filipe Passos, Rodrigo Pinheiro, Christian Wolfarth, Thanos Chrysakis, Bechir Saade, Kurt Liedwart, Miguel A. Garcia, Ilia Belorukov, Andrew Lafkas, Gao Jiafeng, Eric Wong, Johan Moir, Casey Moir, Magda Mayas, Matthias Muller, Alexander Frangenheim ...

Has performed and toured in all Europe. Released more than 30 albums of his own projects."

-Creative Sources (http://creativesourcesrec.com/creative_artists.html)
6/16/2026

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

Armin Sturm is a bassist and composer, a member of Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra.

-Discogs (https://www.discogs.com/artist/1628101-Armin-Sturm)
6/16/2026

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

"Graeme Wilson is a saxophonist & composer based in Newcastle in the north of England. His previous years on the jazz scene in Glasgow included work with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, Bill Wells Octet and The Delgados. As a composer he has produced scores for large and small ensembles, particularly written work for saxophone quartet. He has been a leading member of Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra in their recordings, international performances and collaborations with, among others, Fred Frith, Evan Parker and Barry Guy, and has contributed improvised interactions and soundtracks for artists' video work including Gair Dunlop and Dan Norton's interactive archive film site The Tomorrows Project at the Commonwealth Film Festival, and Cath Keay's Silkmoths. Recent work includes a textual score performed by GIO and Gunther Sommer's Dresden ensemble, a commission for saxophone ensemble for An Tobar Arts Centre on Mull, and improvisations responding to oral history from archives in the North-East at Culture Lab in Newcastle."

-Creative Sources (http://creativesourcesrec.com/creative_artists.html)
6/16/2026

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


Track Listing:
Related Categories of Interest:

Creative Sources

Improvised Music
European Improvisation and Experimental Forms
Free Improvisation

Search for other titles on the label:
Creative Sources.


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