New Sounds Archive
May 2007
May 2007 New Releases
Thursday, May 31, 2007
It's the most wonderful time of the month - new releases! On this New Sounds program, listen to the pick of the piles. There'll be new music by the Tord Gustavsen Trio, another Norwegian outfit called In the Country, and with any luck, a selection or two from Real Quiet, playing the winning works of Marc Mellits, among others. We'll also hear something from the self-dubbed "Michael Hedges of Montreal," Erik Mongrain. Plus, trombone master Roswell Rudd & Jimi Hendrix of the cuatro Yomo Toro team up for some tango action. And more.
Bang on a Can PCF Concert
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
From the New Sounds Live concert series, the Bang on a Can All-Stars play works commissioned for them through the People's Commissioning Fund. Hear the spare and intense work of Yoav Gal ("Doctor King"), the quirky and driving music of Annie Gosfield ("Overvoltage Rumble"), and the ecstatic and witty music of composer/drummer John Hollenbeck ("Rainbow Jimmies.") Plus revisit Edward Ruchalski's richly textured piece "Another Infinity," a reprise from the first People's Commissioning Fund concert in 2000, where guitar and bass anchor gamelan-like vibraphone and piano phrases, all intertwined with clarinet and cello lines.
World of Choral Music
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
For this New Sounds, listen to choral music from around the world. Hear works from the Republic of Georgia and Corsica, along with the Ensemble Organum. Plus, gorgeous music from UK composer Joby Talbot, and more.
World Trance Music
Monday, May 28, 2007
It’s an hour of world dance music and ecstatic trance on this edition of New Sounds. Hear folktronic sacred DJ music from the Algerian native Cheb I Sabbah, off of his most recent release, “La Kahena.” This master mixer brings together Indian, Arabian and African musical traditions in an intoxicating frenzy of irrestible beats with contributions on the CD from Bill Laswell, Karsh Kale, and many Moroccan musicians. There’s also music by Mercan Dede, who combines modern settings with Sufi-inspired material to set up an hypnotic otherworldly space. From his latest, “Su,” listen to a piece called “Ab-I Verd” (which means rose water), and is dedicated to the famous Turkish singer Kani Karaca. Also, there’s music from Bachir Attar, the leader of the Master Musicians of Jajouka, an ancient family originating from the Moroccan village of Jajouka, whose ritual trance-inducing melodies can help achieve transcendence in music. Plus, hear exerpts from the ecstatic project by Shahram Shiva, “Lovedrunk,” - it's the poetry of Rumi, set to music for whirling.
Daniel Lanois and Belladonna
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Daniel Lanois, the guitarist, singer, songwriter and award-winning uber-producer (Peter Gabriel, U2, Bob Dylan, Dashboard Confessional)visits the studio for this edition of New Sounds. He’ll be presenting music from his most recent release, “Belladonna,” an instrumental album with a low-key atmospheric feel, akin to the ambient soundscapes he recorded with fellow studio guru Brian Eno in the 1980s. Anchored by Lanois’ pedal-steel guitar playing, “Belladonna” also features guest musicians, including pianist Brad Mehldau and drummer Brian Blade (Dylan, Joni Mitchell.)
Ashes and Snow
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Ashes and Snow, the photography/film exhibition by Gregory Colbert, has continued its worldwide migration since its Venice, Italy premiere in 2002. Traveling in the Nomadic Museum, the exhibit came to New York in the spring of 2005 and most recently stopped in Santa Monica, CA (January–May 2006.) This edition of New Sounds is filled with music from Ashes and Snow, including works by cellist David Darling and Robert Een. Also, there’s music by composer Lisa Gerrard, (one half of the duo Dead Can Dance), who has written the scores to several different films like “Whale Rider” and “Gladiator,” to name a few. Plus, electro-acoustic Middle Eastern and Indian hybrid works by Canadian producer, engineer and virtuoso guitarist Michael Brook, along with music by the Armenian duduk master Djivan Gasparyan, and others.
Blues Fallin' Down Like Rain, part 2
Friday, May 25, 2007
For this New Sounds, hear more excerpts from the NY Guitar Festival concert series, reinterpretations of classic blues by Mississippi John Hurt, Skip James, Elizabeth Cotten, and Charlie Patton. Some of the live performers included Jorma Kaukonen, Taj Mahal, Toshi Reagon, Alvin Youngblood Hart, and many more.
Cherchez la femme
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Contrary to the origins of the phrase, this New Sounds program showcases works celebrating the female voice. Hear music that spans centuries and crosses cultures, including creations from Lisa Gerrard, Mediaeval Baebes, and Muriel Louveau. Also, Canadian vocalist and composer Laurel MacDonald contributes richly-textured music featuring eclectic instrumentation and soundscapes concocted by producer and sound designer Philip Strong. And the co-founders of Elysian Fields Jennifer Charles & Oren Bloedow team up for renditions of Sephardic and Ladino songs.
Turn up that Cello
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
On this New Sounds, hear music for processed, looped, and electrified cellos. We'll dig into works by Zeno Gabaglio, Giovanni Sollima, Maya Beiser, and more. Listen also for music from on-the-road guy Matt Haimovitz, and the many cellos of Rasputina.
Mingus and Monk
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Explore the music Charles Mingus and Thelonious Monk, New Sounds-style. From Cuban percussionist Anga to the Massachusetts big band Either/Orchestra, from ex-Police guitarist Andy Summers to avant-garde composer George Crumb, the echoes of Monk and Mingus can be heard in a wide variety of new settings. We'll sample a few of the more unusual renditions of their classic tunes for this New Sounds program.
Big Bottoms
Monday, May 21, 2007
On this New Sounds, there's new music for bass, both electric and upright, bowed, plucked, or slapped, some bottom-heavy and grounding, some emotive and noodley - like the moody suite for electric bass by Jeffrey Roden, called "Seeds of Happiness." There's also music about salt. Yes, salt and salt marshes. Listen for texture-rich music for by Marie-Soleil Belanger and Normand Guilbeault which pairs violins or erhu (Chinese two-stringed fiddle) with double bass. Plus, Tom Johnson's "Failing – a very difficult piece for bass," music by Basso Bongo, Robert Black, and more.
Radiance
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Keith Jarrett once said that “the best improvisations I know of are always made when you have no ideas. The solo concert is like another world that has its own rules that I didn’t make up.” Now comes “Radiance,” a double-disc set of solo piano improvisations from Jarrett - the first in nearly 10 years due to illness - recorded live in Osaka and Tokyo, Japan. On this edition of New Sounds, hear portions of "Radiance" and listen for the interplay of all the music that Jarrett has been through over the years. Also on the show is “Dance,” from “Day of Radiance" by Laraaji. Listen to his electronically enhanced zither, multi-tracked with layers of reverb and delay by uber-producer Brian Eno.
Romanian Fantasies
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Tabla master Zakir Hussain has proclaimed that "without Romanies the musical history of our planet would be completely different." He compares Romanies to bees who fly all over the planet and then mix together the "pollen" they have gathered from its musical "flowers", regardless of anything besides musical perfection. On this edition of New Sounds, hear some of this musical pollination. The Balanescu Quartet plays music inspired by Romanian singer Maria Tanase, sometimes called "Romania’s Edith Piaf." Also, the Kronos Quartet plays with the Romanian gypsy band Taraf de Haidouks and the Klezmatics play “Romanian Fantasy.” Plus, hear works by Ansamblul Hyperion as well as Marius Mihalache, on the traditional Balkan instrument known as cembalo.
Blues Fallin' Down Like Rain, Pt. 1
Friday, May 18, 2007
For this New Sounds, hear excerpts from the NY Guitar Festival concert series, featuring reinterpretations of classic blues by Mississippi John Hurt, Skip James, Elizabeth Cotten, and Charlie Patton. Some of the live performers included Jorma Kaukonen, Taj Mahal, Toshi Reagon, Alvin Youngblood Hart, and many more.
New Folk Routes
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Names like “freak folk” and “folktronica” have been used to try to describe yet another generation of musicians falling under the sway of the British tradition of murder ballads, broadsides, and the like. We’ll hear old favorites like Vashti Bunyan and Fairport Convention, as well as newcomers like Tunng and Espers on this New Sounds.
Give the Drummer Some More
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Drummer/composers take center stage in music on this New Sounds. Hear from the talented Aaron Alexander and his double-drumming punk-klezmer project Midrash Mish Mosh, and sample the sometimes melodic and fluid music of Jim Black's AlasnoAxis. Plus, drummer Brian Blade teams up with guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel for an improvisational foray into the gorgeous, dynamic and restless spaces where loops against loops enable Blade to pick up a guitar as well. Not to be outdone, there's music from Savage Aural Hotbed, who have dubbed themselves the house band for the Orc Prom. Also, listen for the percussive kalimbas through blown-out amps and beatings on car parts of Konono #1, the middle-eastern rockingness of Raquy Danziger and more.
Abrahamic Music
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
For this New Sounds, listen to music that celebrates the common roots of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Listen to a tune called Children of Abraham, and perhaps some more soul-bop-klezmer-boogie from Paul Shapiro, from a recent record called “It's in the Twilight.” There’s also music from Osvaldo Golijov’s latest, “Ayre” – an ingenious cycle of prayers, folk songs and lullabies which crosses Christian, Jewish, and Arab cultures. Hear harmonic chanting by David Hykes incorporating sacred words common to Christianity, Judaism and Islam based on the art of those three religions. Rounding out the show is musical mix of Moorish, Sephardic songs, Indian gypsy and Flamenco musical styles by Juan Martin.
Mighty Winds
Monday, May 14, 2007
Listen to the clarinet textures and eerie cello of Erik Friedlander's recent release Prowl, along with other arresting combinations of instruments like kora, saxophone and Slovenian music, all artfully woven together from Igor Leonardi. Plus, hear music from Canadian saxophonist Quinsin Nachoff, whose release Magic Numbers combines an improvisational sax jazz trio and a neo-classical string quartet for a catchy funky sinewy twist into worlds between Sabbath and Stravinsky. Rounding out the show is music from Robert Stillman, whose wind-driven music contains brilliant melodic washes and Twin Peaks-y buildups.
Splintered "Totalist" Music
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Special guest Mikel Rouse visits the studio for this New Sounds program to present his new music/film/counterpoetry project, “Music for Minorities.” The work was commissioned by UCLA Live, and made while Rouse spent time in the Louisiana Delta as a composer-in-residence. In it, Rouse plays guitar and sings with a soundscape of percussion and guitars under him as he weaves stories and interacts with a kind of fractured video memoir of life. The video clips range from an introduction to a Japanese cowboy to stuttering CNN tapes complete with a scroll announcing that God has called it quits. There’s even a video clip of his wife, a dancer in the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, prancing while Rouse, amusingly, sings of "rubber feet."
Cross-Cultural World Music
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Hear many different cross-cultural collaborations on this New Sounds program like the joyous, energetic music made by the Bang on a Can All-Stars together with composer and virtuoso of the Burmese pat waing, Kyaw Kyaw Naing. The Pat Waing is a traditional instrument made of 21 separately tuned drums that surround the player completely and are played melodically with superhuman speed. Chinese pipa virtuoso Wu Man, joins forces with musicians from Uganda, Ukraine and the southern Appalachian mountains on her most recent release, which brings together the most unlikely of the world’s plucked instruments: pipa and banjo, Ukarainian bandura and Ugandan endongo. Also, music by Betty Anne Wong and the Phoenix Spring Ensemble, a group of intrepid musical travelers from San Francisco. Their music draws on folk music of Tajikistan, Eastern Turkestan, Kazhakstan, Turkey and Iran, and other great ancient civilizations living near the deserts of the world.
New Early Music
Friday, May 11, 2007
Sample some new music for lutes, baroque guitars, and other early instruments on this New Sounds program. Paul O’Dette plays his improvisation on the 16th century Spanish “Galiarda,” from the NY Guitar Festival Marathon concert. Rolf Lislevand reinterprets 17th century Italian music as a kind of modern world music on the album “Nuove Musiche.” And lute player Jos van Wissem returns to the WNYC studio with guitarist Gary Lucas for a set of live music.
Classical Musicians Rock It
Thursday, May 10, 2007
For this New Sounds, classical pianist Christopher O’Riley plays the music of folk-rocker Nick Drake and classical guitarist Benjamin Verdery plays the music of Jimi Hendrix. Plus, the string quartet Amiina sings, adds electronics, and writes their own post-rock music. And much more.
On Earth, Peace
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
For this New Sounds program, listen to some choral music, including “On Earth, Peace,” a new mass by the choir Chanticleer featuring music by five different composers of different faiths. Each composer was invited to set one standard portion of the Catholic Mass according to his or her personal spiritual beliefs. The resulting work, with settings from Kamran Ince, Ivan Moody, Shulamit Ran, Michael McGlynn, and Douglas J. Cuomo, contains a bit of Latin but also incorporates Jewish texts, Rumi poetry, a Gaelic song and a section of Greek Orthodox liturgy. Also on the show, choral music from the Republic of Georgia, Corsica, the Ensemble Organum, UK composer Joby Talbot, and more.
Tango, New Sounds-style
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Tangos, both alleged and apparent, from the likes of Jocelyn Pook, the Penguin Café Orchestra, and Pete M Wyer. Plus, hear some tangos for the end of time, some tangos arranged for unexpected instruments, and anything that makes you want to clench a rose in your teeth.
Mostly Electronic Music
Monday, May 07, 2007
Mostly electronic music is on the menu for this New Sounds program. Hear detuned and ruined piano sounds, digitally sampled and made music by keyboardist, composer and improviser Annie Gosfield. Based on Bach, there's also a piece called "Sebastian’s Shadow" by Tom Hamilton. Then, listen for acoustic music from one of Canada's leading electronic music composers - Ann Southam, performed by percussionist Bevereley Johnston. What better end to the show than music from the pioneering Wendy Carlos (of "Switched on Bach" fame) - it's the recent creation "Tales of Heaven and Hell".
Klezmer-Core, Balkan Bangers and More
Sunday, May 06, 2007
It’s New Sounds party music on this program with high-energy Balkan and Slavic big band music played by Americans. Members of the Hungry March Band, a Brooklyn-based collective with lots of horns and drums, perform crazy speed Balkan boogie along with groovy parade music live in the studio, and it’s powerful fun. (Catch the Hungry March Band live out at Coney Island in Brooklyn for the annual Mermaid Parade on June 24th, starting around noon, rain or shine.) Also, hear music from the Luminescent Orchestrii, who have cornered the market on Appalachian gypsy music with a little nod to the seminal punk band Dead Kennedys. Plus, listen to the Zlatne Uste Balkan Brass Band, and selections from the brand-new Slavic Soul Party record.
New Sounds Live, More Early Years
Saturday, May 05, 2007
Hear music from the early years of concert recordings on this edition of New Sounds. Listen to performances from the long-running concert series by Peter Gordon’s all-star NYC band the Love Of Life Orchestra, the Canadian bagpipe-driven band Rare Air, technofolkies The Horse Flies. Plus, there’s electronic counterpoint from David Borden and Mother Mallard, and funky horns in the memorable “Ramayana Monkey March” courtesy of A. Leroy.
A Love Supreme
Friday, May 04, 2007
For this edition of New Sounds, the Turtle Island String Quartet perform music by John Coltrane live in the WNYC studios. On its latest release, the San Franciso-based group reworks Coltrane classics like "Naima" and "Moment's Notice," in addition to Coltrane's landmark entity "A Love Supreme."
Unusual Prayer Settings
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Experience some unusual prayer settings on this edition of New Sounds. First off, hear excerpts from Osvaldo Golijov's Passion According to Saint Mark, an incredibly imagined blend of Mexican market sounds, Brazilian percussion, Africanized Spanish, and eerie accordion, all winding up with an Aramaic Kaddish. Listen also to Ragnar Grippe’s Requiem setting, which blends electronica-like pop music with an operatic soprano. There’s also the Missa Archaica by Italian progressive rock superstar Franco Battiato. The work, for voices, piano, chamber ensemble, and orchestra, resembles music by Arvo Part and Brian Eno. Rounding out the show is "Butterfly Song," an otherworldly, ethereal song by Jocelyn Pook, from her 2001 record “Untold Things,” a spiritual work that is as sincere as it is haunting, kind of like a mass in an unknown language.
Far-Off Country
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Composer Eve Beglarian and cellist Maya Beiser visit the studio for this edition of New Sounds. Beglarian's recent work, "I Am Writing to You from a Far-Off Country," is a collaboration with cellist Maya Beiser and visual artist Shirin Neshat. The work incorporates live performance and sound design, and is based on Armenian folk songs and chants.
Beyond Kronos
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
For this New Sounds program, hear music by other West Coast new music ensembles. The California EAR Unit plays works by Ann Millikan and Virko Baley. Millikan's music is packed with propellant polyrhythmic textures and draws on African and Brazilian music, along with jazz. Plus, the New Performance Group of the Cornish Institute plays Janice Giteck and the Paul Dresher Ensemble plays music by Paul Dresher, and more.
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