Jazz Articles

Erdem Helvacioglu: Altered Realities

by John Kelman
August 3, 2007

To some, the argument for keeping music and technology distinct and apart is nearly as contentious as that concerning the separation of church and state. But while bringing together the latter arguably creates, at the very least, a moral dilemma about freedom of choice, the concept of integrating conventional musical instruments with modern technological advances only becomes a problem for those who believe that there's something inherently purer about an unadorned, untreated acoustic instrument.

Turkish guitarist/electronic composer Erdem Helvacioğlu clearly ...

Evan Ziporyn: Typical Music

by John Kelman
December 31, 2005

Best-known for his association with genre-defying contemporary chamber group Bang on a Can, Evan Ziporyn as been gradually amassing a body of written work that is evidence of an equally boundary-averse compositional mind. ShadowBang (Cantaloupe, 2004) found him mixing diverse interests in Balinese gamelan and contemporary minimalists like Steve Reich and Terry Riley on a score for the stage performed with Bang on a Can. Typical Music distances Ziporyn (temporarily) from Bang on a Can on a live recording featuring ...