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January 2008

New Releases January 2008

Thursday, January 31, 2008

It's that time of the month again for the new releases show on New Sounds. John Schaefer carefully sorts through the stacks, bins, and boatloads of new CDs which have come across his desk over the past month to present some of the finest new releases. What we can see from here includes a new record by guitarist James Blackshaw collaborating with lutenist Josef Van Wiseem, some solo piano techtronics by Francesco Tristano, possibly something from the brothers in Le Trio Joubran and more.


Music for Strings

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

On this program, we’ll hear music by avant-cellist Rufus Cappadocia, whose five-string electric cello asks, “bass, how low can you go?” by extending the cello’s low end, and creates new sounds through amplification. Plus, music by Tod Machover and his work “VinylCello,” where a DJ spins sampled cello sounds coupled with live cello, as performed by Matt Haimovitz. We’ll also listen to music from itsnotyouitsme, the aural equivalent of a lush sensory deprivation tank – this enveloping music from just a duo. Plus, selections from the folk cello songs on Erik Friedlander’s “Block Ice and Propane,” and more.


Remix-a-thon

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

New Sounds lays down the new music remixes for this program. We'll hear from DJs and producers who have had at the music of composers like the New Yorker Steve Reich, Irishman Daniel Figgis, and Algerian native Cheb I Sabbah. Plus, Brazilian artist Cibelle re-renders music by the Kocani Orkestar, and a whole host of folks remix Handel’s Messiah.


African Blues

Monday, January 28, 2008

This New Sounds program is all about bluesy music from the continent that invented it - Africa. Listen to works by Afel Bocoum, an heir-apparent to the Malian desert blues sound introduced to the world by Ali Farka Toure, who was his uncle. There's also music from a collaboration between slide guitarist Bob Brozman & kora player Djeli Moussa Diawara. Plus, music fusing Sudanese and Arabian influences from Rasha, music from Baaba Maal and Mansour Seck, and others.


Unconventional String Quartets

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Over the years, New Sounds Live has played host to some truly remarkable performances that never saw the light of day as commercial recordings. On this edition of New Sounds, we raid those archives for some live recordings from the recent past. Listen to Richard Einhorn’s work for double electric string quartet, “The Silence” as performed by the Sirius String Quartet (formerly the Soldier String Quartet.) Also, the Modern Mandolin Quartet performs InterPlays with violinist/composer David Balakrishnan (from the Turtle Island String Quartet.) Plus, performances by the Kronos Quartet, Turtle Island String Quartet, and the Uptown String Quartet.


Live Bang on a Can

Saturday, January 26, 2008

On this New Sounds show, experience The Bang On A Can All-Stars, in concert. Listen to live recordings from several concerts by the All-Stars, including works by Marc Mellits, Brian Eno, Kurt Cobain/arranged by Evan Ziporyn, and Thurston Moore.


Grim Musical Fairytales

Friday, January 25, 2008

Operating under his band-pen name, “The Gothic Archies,” singer/songwriter Stephin Merritt released a compilation of theme songs called "The Tragic Treasury," one written for each of the 13 volumes of Lemony Snicket's "Series of Unfortunate Events" book series, plus a depressingly upbeat band theme song as well. It’s a bunch of crafty new music/Gothic pop songs, featuring author Lemony Snicket on accordion, and we’ll sample a few on this edition of New Sounds. Extra points if you can match these gloomy and hilarious ditties to the corresponding books without looking. And as always, much more.


Voices Only

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Listen to a capella singing from the Armenian-American trio Zulal (their name means “clear water”), who have just released “Notes to a Crane.” We’ll hear selections from that, along with medieval ballads from England, France and Norway sung by the Norwegian early music group, Trio Medieval. Also, there’s music from the Southern Appalachian Mountains, from the “lined out” hymn tradition, the oldest English-language religious music in oral tradition in North America. Plus, listen to rarities of the Georgian folk repertoire from the trio Kavkasia, songs from Chechnya, and music by composers like Meredith Monk and Veljo Tormis.


John the Revelator

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

For this New Sounds, it's a conversation with Phil Kline, the composer of the gripping and eloquent Zippo Songs, and the mobile, boombox-based holiday piece Unsilent Night. Now Kline has written a modern mass using the early music group Lionheart and the string quartet Ethel, as well as the cathedral-like structure of the World Financial Center’s Winter Garden. He tells us about the making of “John the Revelator,” and we'll hear some of the work as well.


O Berimbau

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Known for being the subject matter of a popular song by Brazilian guitarist Baden Powell, the berimbau is a single-string, bow-shaped percussion from Brazil, whose origins are most likely African. The berimbau was eventually incorporated into the practice of the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira and is also a part of the magico-religious Candomblé-de-Caboclo tradition. For this New Sounds program, we'll hear the instrument in various new music settings, in works by Nana Vasconcelos, Cyro Baptista, Celso Fonseca, Ramiro Musotto, and more.


Hornucopia

Monday, January 21, 2008

Listen to plenty of horns on this New Sounds program, including tunes by likes of the big-band progressive/experimental “downtown” Microscopic Septet from a brand new set of reissue CDs. Then fasten your crash helmets, there’s Indie big band thrashlounge from the Flat Earth Society. Also, listen to the most recent outing from saxophone player and composer Kenny Garrett, “Beyond the Wall,” something of a spiritual dialogue between Africa and China. And, as always, much more.


Wu Man And Friends

Sunday, January 20, 2008

On her recent release, “Wu Man And Friends” the Chinese pipa (lute) virtuoso Wu Man teams up with musicians representing East African, Slavic, and Appalachian traditions. At first glance the combinations of the instruments from such disparate corners of the earth seems forced, however the musical scales of the Ugandan endongo and those of the pipa aren’t so dissimilar; the Ukrainian bandura is also a lute held upright like a pipa, held from behind and played with fingers of both hands; and some Appalachian folk tunes, when played on banjo, seem eerily close to certain Chinese folk melodies. On this edition of New Sounds hear some suggestive conversations between instruments and traditions from Wu Man’s record, with songs about rain in Chinese with accompaniment on Ugandan harp (adungu), a dance from the Appalachian mountains with mouth bow and pipa, and not to be outdone, there’s a pipa/bandura combination hinting at flamenco experimentation.


The Modern Medieval

Saturday, January 19, 2008

Listen to some new music that looks back – way back – on this New Sounds program. There’s “Proverb,” Steve Reich’s take on medieval French counterpoint, along with music from the medieval-looking Estonian Arvo Pärt. We’ll also hear a Requiem from Alfred Schnittke, the Soviet Union-born German-Jewish composer who brings together in his music several unlikely combinations of styles: Romantic, Classical, Baroque, modernist, and medieval. Plus, listen to highlights from Richard Einhorn’s oratorio, Voices of Light, written to accompany the Passion of Joan of Arc (the 1928 Carl Dreyer silent film.) Einhorn’s score pivots between Joan's time and now, using an authentic-sounding medieval style that develops into what NY Times writer Allan Kozinn calls a “post-Minimalist combination of repeating figures and lush neo-Romantic orchestration.”


New Americans: The Middle East

Friday, January 18, 2008

Hear music from Israeli-born musicians like composer Anat Fort and cellist Maya Beiser, and Palestinian-born oud player Simon Shaheen. Plus, works from Iranian-born singer/composer Sussan Deyhim, Turkish-born flute/lute player Omar Faruk Tekbilek, and Lebanese-born composer/musicologist Ali Jihad Racy.


Ryuichi Sakamoto

Thursday, January 17, 2008

On this edition of New Sounds, listen to the many musical sides of Ryuichi Sakamoto, whose birthday is today. The Japanese pianist, producer, songwriter, classical composer, actor, and DJ has recorded early music (Danceries), film music (Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence), “glitch” music with Alva Noto, moody songs with David Sylvian, even moodier orchestral music (Discord), and classic Brazilian tunes with the trio Morelenbaum2Sakamoto. Hear some of all of these, and more.


Indo-Electronica

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

For this New Sounds, there’s music that marries the grooves of modern electronica to traditional songs and dances of India. From the brand new release, Devotion, hear the latest from Algerian DJ Cheb I Sabbah, who blends devotional music from the Indian subcontinent with electronica. Listen for vocal contributions from some of the region's top talent including Shubha Mugdal, Anup Jalota, RiffatSultana and Master Saleem. Plus, The Moebius Trips and others.


Chamber-Rock

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Hear some Chamber-rock from the Nels Cline Singers (an instrumental group), whose latest, Draw Breath, features San Francisco Bay Area rhythm section aces Devin Hoff on acoustic bass and Scott Amendola on drumset, percussion, and live electronics/loops/treatments. Plus, the special guest on the record is Nels Cline's bandmate in Wilco, Glenn Kotche! Also, listen to new music from the collective known as NOW Ensemble along with Mico Nonet's ambient chamber music. Plus, the latest release from the Kronos Quartet with Wu Man playing a work by Terry Riley. And of course, much more.


Musical Meditation

Monday, January 14, 2008

“All of us have impermanence in common,” according to Meredith Monk. The latest work by the composer/singer/director/choreographer/multi-media artist, “Impermanence,” is currently at the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Next Wave Festival. It combines music, movement, video projections, and lighting design (with light almost functioning as another musical instrument), into a haunting evocation of the passage of time. Inspired by her work with hospice patients in London and the death of her long-time partner, Monk has created a musical meditation on the impermanence and ephemeral quality of life. She joins John Schaefer to give us a preview of the work on this New Sounds program.


Solo Sessions

Sunday, January 13, 2008

For this edition of New Sounds, pianist/composer Matthew Shipp presents music from his latest album of nu-jazz, “One.” His first collection of original solo material in nearly a decade, (his last solo outing was a record of standards, not his own works), Shipp gleefully explores and savors where the music might take him, rather than resorting to pianistic pyrotechnics. “One” is not all swirling contemplative eddies, however, there is a streak of volatility in the tune “Electro Magnetism,” where Shipp’s fierce, low-end tones “threaten to shake the song loose from its floorboards.” (PitchforkMedia.com)


New Music from Germany

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Listen to Ensemble Modern playing music of Frank Zappa, Haindling’s updated Bavarian folkmusic, Duo Sonare playing Mike Oldfield’s “Tubular Bells,” and more on this New Sounds program. Hans-Jürgen Buchner, who is better known by the name of his German home town, Haindling, (Lower Bavaria), equally as fond of African drums and South-American congas as he is of his native tuba, borrows music from all over the world, yet somehow comes across as Bavarian. Not only does he sing, but he plays piano, synthesizer, tuba, trombone, tenor horn, alt horn, French horn, bass-trumpet, saxophone, percussion, accordion, singing saw and all kinds of exotic instruments himself. Sample from some of his music along with “serious” music by Frank Zappa, as played by Ensemble Modern, the German new-music group that Zappa worked with late in life. Also, a twosome of German guitarists, Thomas Offermann and Jens Wagner, known as Duo Sonare, render Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells into an entirely new work of art.


Stephen Scott's New York Drones

Friday, January 11, 2008

For this New Sounds, the creator of the “bowed piano ensemble,” Stephen Scott, presents new music for bowed, plucked, hammered, and occasionally keyboard-driven piano. Most of the sounds are made directly on the strings of one open grand piano by ten players using a variety of materials and tools; nylon fish line, horsehair, guitar picks and fingernails, piano hammers, percussion mallets and specially-designed piano mutes. Scott’s latest, “New York Drones,” is a work dedicated to the composer Steve Reich in honor of his 70th birthday, and will receive its New York premiere on Saturday, October 28th in The Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Frederick P. Rose Hall at 7:30 PM. In the work, Scott freely interprets the concept of drones to encompass not only long-sustained tones but also repeating patterns of rhythms on one pitch or repeating melodic and harmonic patterns in a single mode. We’ll also hear music from Scott’s song-cycle fantasy with the Bowed Piano Ensemble, Sounding Landscapes, which celebrates various landscapes, both physical and imagined, both natural and cultural, of Lanzarote, eastern-most of the Canary Islands. All this and more.


The 2007 Listener Poll Show

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Here's the rebuttal to last night’s program where the listeners weigh in on the best new music releases of 2007. Thanks to all of the listeners who voted. We found that there were some hard-fought battles this year between a pianist, a string quartet, and a departed composer. Find out who emerged victorious from Smackdown 2007 on the 22nd annual New Sounds Listener Poll show.


The 2007 New Sounds Top 10

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

On this special episode of New Sounds, John Schaefer presents his annual, highly subjective, completely opinionated list of the ten best new-music releases of 2007. Listen to what made the cut this year: traditional music rescued from fading cultures, desert blues guitar, jazz-prog-rock, multi-faith choral music and so much more.


Music of the World

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

On this New Sounds program, we’ll hear some women’s voices in world music. Listen to performances by Angelique Kidjo, Yungchen Lhamo, Susan McKeown, and more. This time, “more” turns out to be a live in-studio performance by Indian sarod virtuoso and composer Amjad Ali Khan, two of his sons, Ayan, and Amman, and Samir Chatterjee on tabla. Don’t miss this edition of New Sounds for some bhajans and folk music of Eastern India.


New Soundtracks

Monday, January 07, 2008

For the score to “The Kite Runner,” Spanish composer Alberto Iglesias drew inspiration from Afghan music, while drawing a bit on Pakistani and Persian music as well, bringing in an Iranian zither here, a wailing electric guitar there, and the haunting vocals of Iran-born, U.S.-based singer Sussan Deyhim. On this New Sounds, we’ll listen to some of that score, along with some other new film music, including Jocelyn Pook’s new score for “Brick Lane,” which features the voices of Natacha Atlas, Manickam Yogeswaran and Najma Akhtar. Also, we’ll hear from Carter Burwell’s score for the Coen brother’s “No Country for Old Men.” Plus, the music by Joby Talbot for the documentary about polar bears and walruses, “Arctic Tale,” and more.


Primarily Percussion

Sunday, January 06, 2008

On this edition of New Sounds, drink in some music where the drummers get the spotlight, like the debut recording from Afro-Cuban All-Star percussionist Miguel 'Anga' Diaz. His record, “Echu Mingua,” fuses traditional Cuban son, ritual Santeria call-and-response, hip-hop, jazz, salsa, and Malian groove as well, with a guest appearance by Baba Sissoko on n'goni and vocals. Also there's music from the tabla phenom Zakir Hussain and music from the show, Stomp, that uses human bodies, trash cans, brooms, and nearly anything else as a melodic drum.


Gotham - a Filmic Symphony

Saturday, January 05, 2008

On this New Sounds, Listen to Michael Gordon’s “Gotham,” a filmic symphony in collaboration with filmmaker Bill Morrison. “Gotham,” brought to life by the team at the Ridge Theatre who put together Gordon’s 2001 multi-media experience “Decasia,” is structured along the Decasia model with the city of New York as its subject and star. The live concert version incorporates projections (including an opening sequence with a sheep), re-edited archival film, multi-tiered sets, and musicians who sometimes seem actually to inhabit the projected environment. For this program, these two artists discuss their ongoing collaboration of new music and old decaying silent film prints.


Eric Whitacre's Cloudburst

Friday, January 04, 2008

For this edition of New Sounds, the young American composer Eric Whitacre joins host John Schaefer to present music from his record “Cloudburst.” His recorded music output so far is mostly dazzling unaccompanied vocal writing, where Whitacre’s original compositional voice is immediately obvious, in that he’s assimilated everything from prog rock to Mozart and Copland. He’s going for a heart-melting mix of expressively beautiful sound, where lush and shimmering moments give way to elegant and satisfying dramatic conclusions. Plus, music by Arvo Part.


Concert Works From the Clubs

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Tim Brady and the five member Brisbane, Australia-based group Topology share a passion for the intimacy and immediacy of small ensemble music and getting on stage and playing it like there’s no tomorrow. For this New Sounds, we’ll listen to some of “SCAT,” Brady’s rhythmic, jazz-influenced chamber work which also features the speaking voices of the Topology musicians, who each scat their life stories in 30 seconds in the final movement. Also, we’ll hear from composer, virtuoso guitarist, and computer programmer Nick Didkovsky, and his most recent release, “Ice Cream Time.” Plus, Jonny Greenwood’s score from the film “There Will Be Blood.” Incidentally, multi-instrumentalist Greenwood’s long-time side project happens to be a little band called Radiohead, in which he plays guitar.


World Music with Horns

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Listen to some Jewish-Cuban jazz with horns from "Odessa/Havana" by trumpeter, composer and long-time leader of the Flying Bulgar Klezmer Band David Buchbinder along with music that celebrates the the elusive Jewish community of Cuba by Roberto Rodriguez. Plus, some Afro-Cuban Afrobeaty highlife from San Francisco band Aphrodesia from their latest "Lagos by Bus." Also, music by Brooklyn Qawwali Party, the Either/Orchestra and more.


AllSteel String Quartets

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Composer and guitarist John King joins host John Schaefer on this edition of New Sounds to present his latest CD, AllSteel. Earthy and blues-based, King’s music is intense, hard driving and at times breathtakingly beautiful. King is able to blend popular music and classical traditions, while writing works that are both fully composed and allow for improvisation. He’s written for Merce Cunningham, the New York City Ballet, Guy Klucevsek, Aki Takahashi, the Bang on a Can All Stars, to name a few. And on this CD “AllSteel,” which is a trio of string quartets, the first two pieces were commissioned by the quartet Ethel, who recorded all three quartets, AllSteel, 'Round Sunrise, and Lightning Slide.