I found a letter I submitted to the NYTimes this past November. It was in response to Les Dreyer’s Invitation to Dialogue: Saving Classical Music. I realized no one except my parents had really read it (and who knows what happened to it after I sent it into the black hole of the NYTimes…
Playlist.
Quartz Safari - Quartz Safari (Fadeaway Tapes)
Jean Sibelius - Symphonies Nos. 1 and 4 - Minnesota Orchestra/Osmo Vänskä (Bis)
Philip Glass - Symphony No. 7 “Toltec” - Linz Opera Chorus, Bruckner Orchestra Linz/Dennis Russell Davies (Orange Mountain Music)
Osvaldo Golijov - Oceana - Luciana Souza, Gwinnett Young Singers, Atlanta Symphony Chorus and Orchestra/Robert Spano; Tenebrae - Kronos Quartet; Three Songs - Dawn Upshaw, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/Robert Spano; etc. (Deutsche Grammophon)
Nicolas Flagello - Passion of Martin Luther King - Ezio Flagello, Ambrosian Singers, London Philharmonic Orchestra/Nicolas Flagello; L’Infinito; The Land - Ezio Flagello, I Musici di Firenze/Nicolas Flagello (Naxos Historical)
Suffocation - Pinnacle of Bedlam (Nuclear Blast > MOG)
Josh Mason - Timecode Beach (Digitalis > Bandcamp)
Quiet Evenings / Sundrips - split CS (Fadeaway Tapes)
Trabajo - Gamelan to the Love God (Bandcamp)
Gerald Clayton - A Life Forum (Concord Jazz; due April 2)
Elliott Sharp - Errata (Neos)
Elliott Sharp - Rheo-Umbra - Orchestra Carbon (Neos)
David Bowie - The Next Day (ISO/Columbia; due March 12)
Depeche Mode - Delta Machine (Columbia; due March 26)
birds of passage / Je Suis le Petit Chevalier / Motion Sickness of Time Travel / Aloonaluna - Taxidermy of Unicorns (Watery Starve)
Thoughts on Air / Fallen Axe / Knit Prism / Trailing - split 2CS (Fadeaway Tapes)
Brian Green - Milltown (A Giant Fern)
Nodolby - Inception/Aftermath (Field Hymns)
The Cats’ Orchestra / Regular Music - split CS (Field Hymns)
Pierrot Lunaire - This Love of Mine (SicSic)
Digital Natives - The Old Truce (SicSic)
Fluorescent Heights - Vendetta in Paradise (SicSic)
Glass House - Savage Times (SicSic)
Je Suis le Petit Chevalier - Dark Morse (Shelter Press)
Brian Green - learning how to read the map to get there (Bandcamp)
Richard Wagner - Die Walküre - Linda Watson, Edith Haller, Mihoko Fujiamura, Johan Botha, Kwangchul Youn, Albert Dohmen, Bayreuth Festival Orchestra/Christian Thielemann (Opus Arte)
Kyle Landstra - Sage (Cosmic Winnetou)
Playlist.
Kenneth Hesketh - Dei Destini Incrociati; Aphorisms; Fra Duri Scogli; Three Pieces in the Shape of a Shoe; Theatre of Attractions - Psappha/Nicholas Kok (Psappha)
Thomas Adès - Powder Her Face - Jill Gomez, Valdine Anderson, Niall Morris, Roger Bryson, Almeida Ensemble/Thomas Adès (EMI Classics)
Jonas Kaufmann - Wagner - Orchester der Deutsche Oper Berlin/Donald Runnicles (Decca)
Celer - Dwell in Possibility (Blackest Rainbow > Bandcamp)
Royallen - Allen Classic I (Permanent Nostalgia)
New Future Wanderer - Plaza for Media Conference 92 (Hooker Vision)
Jake Blanchard - Archaic Practices (Feathered Coyote)
Opponents - Thought Control (Baked Tapes)
Long Distance Poison - Rare Human (Baked Tapes)
Headboggle - Backed Tape (Baked Tapes)
Andrew Scott Young - Warm White Light (Baked Tapes)
Dads Against Vietnam - Courage (Baked Tapes)
Grateful Dead - Dave’s Picks, Vol. 5: Pauley Pavilion, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 11/17/73 (Grateful Dead/Rhino)
Celer - Without Retrospect, the Morning (Glacial Moments > Bandcamp)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - Jess Thomas, George London, Hans Hotter, Martti Talvela, Gustav Neidlinger, Irene Dalis, Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra/Hans Knappertsbusch (Philips > MOG)
Caroline Park - OTO (Bandcamp)
Ottorino Respighi - Fontane di Roma; Pini di Roma; Feste Romane - Oregon Symphony/James DePreist (Delos > MOG)
Giya Kancheli - Symphonies Nos. 1, 4 & 5 - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra/James DePreist (Ondine)
Paul Hindemith - The Four Temperaments; Noblissima Visione - Carol Rosenberger, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/James DePreist (Delos)
Dmitri Shostakovich - Festive Overture; Symphony No. 10 - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra/James DePreist (Delos)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal, Act Three - Karl Hartmann, Elsa Larcén, Hans Wocke, Hans Reinmar, Ludwig Weber, Chorus and Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin/Hans Knappertsbusch (Preiser > Spotify)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - Plácido Domingo, Jessye Norman, Kurl Moll, James Morris, Ekkehard Wlaschiha, Jan-Hendrik Rootering, Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra/James Levine (Deutsche Grammophon > MOG)
Alex Cline - For People in Sorrow (Cryptogramophone; due March 19)
King Crimson - Rainbow Theatre, London, England, Dec. 13, 1972 (DGM)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - Plácido Domingo, Waltraud Meier, Falk Struckmann, Franz-Josef Selig, Wolfgang Bankl, Ain Anger, Vienna State Opera Chorus and Orchestra/Christian Thielemann (Deutsche Grammophon > MOG)
Leonard Bernstein - On the Waterfront - Symphonic Suite; On the Town - Three Dance Episodes; Fanfare for JFK; Divertimento for Orchestra; Candide Suite; Candide Overture - University of South Carolina Wind Ensemble/Scott Weiss (Naxos)
Kimberly K. Archer - Symphony No. 2; John Mackey - Kingfishers Catch Fire; David Maslanka - Give Us This Day; David R. Gillingham - Symphony No. 2 “Genesis” - Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Wind Symphony/John Raymond Bell (Mark)
Howard Hanson - Dies Natalis; Warren Benson - The Leaves Are Falling; Henry Brant - Angels and Devils - Bonita Boyd, Eastman Wind Ensemble/Donald Hunsberger (Centaur)
Ralph Vaughan Williams - Toccata Marziale; Variations for Wind Band; Paul Hindemith - Konzertmusik for Wind Orchestra; Aaron Copland - Quiet City; Karel Husa - Music for Prague 1968 - Wynton Marsalis, Phillip Koch, Eastman Wind Ensemble/Donald Hunsberger (CBS Masterworks)
Arturo Márquez - Danzón No. 2; Andrew Boysen Jr. - Scherzo; Guy Woolfenden - Bohemian Dances; Ralph Hultgren - Of Questions and Answers; Roger Cichy - Bugs; Nigel Clarke - Gagarin - University of St. Thomas Symphonic Wind Ensemble/Matthew George (Innova > MOG)
Kenneth Hesketh - Infernal Run; Rolf Rudin - Out of Nowhere; Martin Ellerby - Mass of St. Thomas Aquinas; Philip Sparke - Deserts; Loris Chobanian - Armenian Rhapsody - University of St. Thomas Symphonic Wind Ensemble/Matthew George (Innova)
Ralph Hultgren - Whirr, Whirr, Whirr!!!; Luis Nani - Lost Forest; Kit Turnbull - Scenes from Childhood; Chen Qian - Ambush! From All Sides - University of St. Thomas Symphonic Wind Ensemble/Matthew George (Innova)
Carter Pann - Serenade for Winds; Concerto Logic; Daniel Kellogg - A Tent for the Sun; Pyramus and Thisbe - University of Colorado Wind Symphony/Allan McMurray (Klavier)
Bright Sheng - Shanghai Overture; Joel Puckett - The Shadow of Sirius; Michael Daugherty - Lost Vegas; Kristin Kuster - Two Jades; William Bolcom - Graceful Ghost Rag; Concerto Grosso for Saxophone Quartet and Band - Amy Porter, Xiang Gao, Donald Sinta Saxophone Quartet, University of Michigan Symphony Band/Michael Haithcock (Equilibrium)
Frank Ticheli - Wild Nights!; David Dzubay - Shadow Dance; Steven Bryant - Dusk; Roshanne Etezady - Anahita; John Mackey - Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Wind Ensemble - Vince Gnojek, University of Kansas Wind Ensemble/Scott Weiss (Naxos)
Vincent Persichetti - Pageant; Hale Smith - Expansions; Henry Brant - Verticals Ascending; Robert Russell Bennett - Symphonic Songs for Band; Ross Lee Finney - Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Band - Frederick Hemke, Northwestern University Symphonic Wind Ensemble/John P. Paynter (New World > MOG)
David Maslanka - Concerto for Trombone and Wind Ensemble; Symphony No. 8 - Stephen Parsons, Adriana La Rosa Ransom, Illinois State University Wind Symphony/Stephen K. Steele (Albany > MOG)
Karel Husa - Smetana Fanfare; Al Fresco; Concertino for Piano and Wind Ensemble; Music for Prague 1968 - Momoko Gresham, Illinois State University Wind Symphony/Stephen K. Steele (Albany > MOG)
Coyote Image Medicinals - untitled CD-R (Kimberly Dawn > Bandcamp)
Courtly Illusion Limited - untitled cassette (Space Slave > Bandcamp)
Grant Evans - False Flag Loops (Hooker Vision > Bandcamp)
Quiet Evenings - Various (Bandcamp)
Reedbeds - Basement Grotto (SicSic Tapes > Bandcamp)
Kyle Landstra - Sage (Cosmic Winnetou > Bandcamp)
Vincent Persichetti - Divertimento; Psalm; O God Unseen; Pageant; Masquerade; O Cool Is the Valley; Parable IX - Winds of the London Symphony Orchestra/David Amos (Naxos)
Vittorio Giannini - Dedication Overture; Fantasia; Praeludium and Allegro; Symphony No. 3; Variations and Fugue - University of Houston Wind Ensemble/Tom Bennett (Naxos)
H. Owen Reed - Overture-1940; Karel Husa - Smetana Fanfare; Václav Nelhýbel - Fanfares from the Opera Libuše; H. Owen Reed - Fanfare for Remembrance; Karel Husa - Music for Prague 1968 - Rutgers Wind Ensemble/William Berz (Naxos)
Kevin Puts - Millennium Canons; Jonathan Newman - My Hands Are a City; Kristin Kuster - Lost Gulch Lookout; John Mackey - Kingfishers Catch Fire; Gustav Holst - Hammersmith: Prelude and Scherzo; Adam Gorb - Awayday - University of Georgia Wind Ensemble/John P. Lynch (Naxos)
Michael Pisaro - A wave and waves - Greg Stuart (Cathnor > Bandcamp)
Celer + Hakobune - Vain Shapes and Intricate Parapets (Chemical Tapes > Bandcamp)
Jean Sibelius - Symphony No. 1 - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Robert Kajanus; Pohjola’s Daughter; Tapiola - London Symphony Orchestra/Robert Kajanus (Naxos Historical)
Marc Copland - Some More Love Songs (Pirouet)
Kacey Musgraves - Same Trailer Different Park (Mercury)
Jean Sibelius - Belshazzar’s Feast - London Symphony Orchestra/Robert Kajanus; Karelia Suite - excerpts; Symphony No. 2 - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Robert Kajanus (Naxos Historical)
Jean Sibelius - Symphony No. 3; Symphony No. 5 - London Symphony Orchestra/Robert Kajanus; Finnish Jäger March - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra/Robert Kajanus (Naxos Historical)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - Peter Hofmann, Dunja Vejzović, José van Dam, Victor von Halem, Kurt Moll, Siegmund Nimsgern, Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Berlin Philharmonic/Herbert von Karajan (Deutsche Grammophon > MOG)
Kenneth Hesketh - A Rhyme for the Season; Graven Image; At God speeded summer’s end - Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra/Christoph-Mathias Mueller; Ein Lichtspiel (after Moholy-Nagy); Wunderkammer(konzert) - Ensemble 10/10/Clark Rundell (NMC)
Dai Fujikura - Secret Forest - Art Respirant/Ken Takaseki; Rubi(co)n - Kate Romano; Phantom Pulse - Lucerne Percussion Group/Michel Cerutti; Eternal Escape - Adrian Bradbury; Okeanos - Okeanos (NMC)
New music from Grant Evans and Rachel Evans (Motion Sickness of Time Travel) under their recently adopted alter-ego Coyote Image, forthcoming from Kimberly Dawn, Frank Baugh’s limited-run mini-CDr label. Grant and Rachel are most familiar for their individual efforts, their duo Quiet Evenings and their ceaselessly fascinating indie label, Hooker Vision. It was brilliant to finally see them perform live at the Stone in New York City on February 1. Already I’m looking forward to next time, but suspect they’ll drag me down to Athens, Georgia, before that.
Playlist.
Isis - Live IV (self-released)
Igor Stravinsky - Violin Concerto; Circus Polka; Arthur Honegger - Pacific 231; Rugby; Frank Martin - Violin Concerto - Baiba Skride, BBC National Orchestra of Wales/Thierry Fischer (Orfeo)
Hector Parra - Early Life; Stress Tensor - ensemble recherche; Caressant l’Horizon - Ensemble Intercontemporain/Emilio Pomárico (Col Legno)
Luke Bedford - Wonderful Two-Headed Nightingale - Jonathan Morton, Lawrence Power, Scottish Ensemble; By the Screen in the Sun at the Hill on the Gold - Ensemble Modern/Sian Edwards; Chiaroscuro - Fidelio Trio; Man Shoots Strangers from Skyscraper - Ensemble Modern/Franck Ollu; Or Voit Tout En Aventure - Claire Booth, London Sinfonietta/Oliver Knussen (Col Legno)
Wolfgang Rihm - Cantus Firmus - Music in memoriam Luigi Nono (1st attempt); John Dowland - Lachrimae veræ; Wolfgang Rihm - Ricercare - Music in memoriam Luigi Nono (2nd attempt); Anton Webern - Six Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6; Wolfgang Rihm - Chiffre II - Silence to be beaten; Karlheinz Stockhausen - Kreuzspiel; Wolfgang Rihm - Séraphin-Sphäre - Klangforum Wien/Emilio Pomárico, Sylvain Cambreling (Col Legno)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal: Orchestral Suite - Berlin Philharmonic/Alfred Hertz; Parsifal: Prelude and selections, Acts I & II - Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra/Karl Muck; Parsifal: selections, Act III - Berlin State Opera Chorus and Orchestra/Karl Muck; Parsifal: “Good Friday Spell” - Fritz Wolff, Alexander Kipnis, Bayreuth Festival Orchestra/Siegfried Wagner (Naxos Historical)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - Wolfgang Windgassen, Martha Mödl, Ludwig Weber, George London, Arnold van Mill, Hermann Uhde, Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra/Hans Knappertsbusch (Naxos Historical)
Derek Rogers - Mist & Drift (Jehu & Chinaman)
Derek Rogers - Saturations (Greenup Industries)
Liars - WIXIW (Mute)
Forma - Off/On (Spectrum Spools)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - Gary Lehman, Violeta Urmana, René Pape, Mariinsky Soloists, Chorus and Orchestra/Valery Gergiev (Mariinsky)
Motion Sickness of Time Travel - The Perennials (Boomkat Editions)
Butch Morris - Berlin Skyscraper (FMP > Bandcamp)
Butch Morris - Conduction #70: Tit for Tat (for4ears)
Nadia Sirota - Baroque (Bedroom Community/New Amsterdam)
Hong Chulki and Choi Joonyong - Hum and Rattle (Balloon & Needle)
Hong Chulki - Amplified WC (Ghost & Son)
Choi Joonyong - Burn Yoido Burn (Ghost & Son)
J D Emanuel - Sound Paintings (Bandcamp)
The Residents - Fingerprince (Tourniquet of Roses) (Cryptic Corporation > MOG)
Yes - Fragile (Atlantic/Rhino > MOG)
Cecil Taylor Feel Trio - “Owele Standing (Small Bird)” from Two Ts for a Lovely T (Codanza > MOG)
Mulgrew Miller - Solo (Space Time Records > MOG)
Richard Wagner - Parsifal - James King, Bernd Weikl, Kurt Moll, Matti Salminen, Franz Mazura, Yvonne Minton, Tölzer Knabenchor, Bavarian Radio Symphony Chorus and Orchestra/Rafael Kubelik (Arts Archives)
RIP Butch Morris (February 10, 1947–January 29, 2013)
News has arrived that Lawrence D. “Butch” Morris, a cornetist, conductor, composer, conceptualist and inimitable spirit, has succumbed to the cancer with which he was diagnosed last year. I’d so hoped for his recovery, but it was not to be. If you know his work, this poignant musical slideshow will kindle warm memories; if you don’t, let this be the start of a fruitful voyage of discovery.
Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby: Black Flag live at Bierkeller, Bristol, England, May 19, 1984. Hank, Greg, Kira and Bill destroy material from Damaged, My War, Slip It In and more.
Playlist.
Satanic Abandoned Rock & Roll Society - Bloody Imagination (Mikroton)
throuRoof - Emerald Tablet of Hermes (Housecraft)
Scott Cloud - Absolute Down (Cloud Valley)
Cyquoia - Within Colored Reach (Cloud Valley)
Perspectives / Josh Mason - split CS (Permanent Nostalgia)
Andrew Chadwick - Kerning, Vol. 2 (Permanent Nostalgia)
Cool Person - Cool Person (Permanent Nostalgia)
Sovetskaya Gone - Kimberley Al Butnan (Digitalis)
Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing (and Other Stories) (Kscope)
A Thousand Other Names - A Thousand Other Names (Birdcage)
Mountains - Centralia (Thrill Jockey)
Golden Retriever - Occupied with the Unspoken (Thrill Jockey)
Gay Shapes - MOSS 006 (Moss Archive)
HMS - Cascades (Avant Archive > Bandcamp)
Pink Buffalo - Belvedere (Rotifer)
The North Sea - Royal Arsenal (Black Horizons)
Quartz Safari - Pineal Origins (Rotifer)
Xiphiidae - Unreleased #2 (self-released)
Grant Evans - Dragging Alabaster (House of Sun)
Hunting Rituals - Tree Route (Housecraft)
Black Eagle Child - Black Eagle Child (Housecraft)
Tricorn & Queue - Straits of Maize (Object Tapes)
Pan to Scratch - What Is Kept and What Is Thrown Away (Housecraft)
Josh Burke - Imagination (Housecraft)
Zebulon - The Spirit of Spatterdock and Muminchogs (Housecraft)
The Second Family Band - Our Way Is the Right Way (Housecraft)
Fossils - Empty + Marvelous (Housecraft)
Jason Nicolaus - Song of Hope for the Bluebird (Housecraft)
Xiphiidae - Unreleased #3 (self-released)
King Crimson - Elzer Hof, Mainz, Germany, March 30, 1974 (DGM)
Zony Mash + Horns - Live at the Royal Room (self-released)
Stephan Mathieu and David Sylvian - Wandermüde (Samadhi Sounds)
Roberto Gerhard - Complete String Quartets; Chaconne for Solo Violin - Arditti Quartet (Aeon)
Witold Lutoslawski - Vocal Works - Lucy Crowe, Toby Spence, Christopher Purves, BBC Symphony Orchestra/Edward Gardner (Chandos)
Antonio Vivaldi - Bassoon Concertos, Vol. 3 - Sergio Azzolini, L’Aura Soave (Naïve)
Hevreh Ensemble - Between Worlds (self-released)
Lake Mary - Lake Mary (Planted Tapes)
Laura Kaminsky - Vukovar Trio; Duo for Cello and Piano; Wave Hill - Ensemble Pi; Cadmium Yellow - Cassatt String Quartet; Music for Artur; Triftmusik - Idith Meshulam; Transformations - Colorado String Quartet (Albany)
Sarah Kirkland Snider - Penelope - Shara Worden, Signal/Brad Lubman (New Amsterdam > MOG)
Chrome Canyon - Elemental Themes (Stones Throw > MOG)
DJ Dopeshoes - Darkshoes mix (Soundcloud)
Glass House / Even the Dew Is Porous - split CS (Tranquility Tapes)
Emuul / Hemosis - split CS (Tranquility Tapes)
Millions / Dads Against Vietnam - split CS (Tranquility Tapes)
Kyle Landstra / Subtle Body - split CS (Tranquility Tapes)
Motion Sickness of Time Travel / Imperial Topaz - split CS (Tranquility Tapes)
Pete Swanson - Punk Authority (Mexican Summer)
Stephen Falken - The Curious Case of Wiedenfalsen (VCO Recordings)
Chris Potter - The Sirens (ECM)
Hong Chulki and Choi Joonyong - Hum and Rattle (Balloon & Needle)
Choi Joonyong, Hong Chulki, Sachiko M and Otomo Yoshihide - Sweet Cuts, Distant Curves (Balloon & Needle)
Ryu Hankil, Hong Chulki and Choi Joonyong - Inferior Sounds (Balloon & Needle)
Derek Rogers - Requiem for Mark Linkous (Anathema Sound)
Various artists - Inscriptions, Vol. 1 (Sacred Phrases)
Hong Chulki - Amplified WC (Ghost & Son)
Choi Joonyong - Burn Yoido Burn (Ghost & Son)
Michael Pisaro, Oswald Egger and Julia Holter - The Middle of Life (Die Ganze Zeit) (Gravity Wave)
Michael Pisaro - The Punishment of the Tribe by Its Elders (Gravity Wave)
Impressive sample from Insight by Hundred Acres, the third release on the new Worn Habit imprint from Michael Pouw, who also runs the honored Canadian tape label House of Sun; plays in Basked Unit; and records as Knit Prism and Elder. No idea who Hundred Acres might be – though it’s probably not this band – but I’m eager to hear more. You can connect with Worn Habit on Facebook and Twitter, too.
Discovered through a mention by Nathan McLaughlin on the Fangs & Arrows bulletin board, the newish tape by Lake Mary – a.k.a. itinerant muso Chaz Prymek – sounds like a winner. Limited to 70 copies, the tape can still be had from the source, Planted Tapes.
