Drummer and composer Sean Noonan has long preferred the term “Rhythmic Storyteller” to describe his audacious, genre-defiant artistry. As a modern-day self-described sonic griot he combines the most ancient of traditions with forward-seeking experimentation; as a kind of post-modern wandering minstrel he gathers irreverent folk tales and offbeat inspirations from various cultures and translates them through his own singular worldview.
The first of the two releases that he has slated for 2022 is Knott Tones, a collision of new music compositions and free improvisation, written for string quartet and drumkit, and inspired in part by comedy legend Don Knotts. Knott Tones will be released on February 21. Noonan’s second 2022 release offers a further glimpse into the wide range of his eclectic tastes and interests. The second release, Zappanation, is a surreal rock opera composed in the provocative and inventive spirit of Frank Zappa and Edgard Varèse (who is known as the “Father of Electronic Music.”)
“I always want to take a listener or an audience on a journey into new worlds,” Noonan says of his always-unpredictable output. “I try to constantly explore different topics and new places.”
Knott Tones, due out February 21, 2022, features the U.K.-based Ligeti Quartet. An acclaimed string ensemble devoted to modern composers and innovative programming, the quartet features violinists Mandhira De Saram and Patrick Dawkins, violist Richard Jones, and cellist Valeria Welbanks (with guest violinist Alicja Pilarczyk stepping in for De Saram on the track “Knott Tones”).
Knott Tones is an outgrowth of “Don Knotts,” a Noonan composition originally recorded on his 2020 release, Drumavox. A self-described “member of the “Three’s Company generation,” Noonan composed the piece based on a 12-tone row and dedicated it to the late comedian—an unlikely inspiration for such intricate music, but perhaps Noonan recognized the stellar grace and timing essential to any successful physical comedy.
The five pieces on the album employ polytemporal rhythmic ideas from composer Conlon Nancarrow’s “Studies for Player Piano,” a key source of inspiration for Noonan. “Nancarrow is one of one of my favorite American composers,” Noonan says. “I spent a lot of time studying his output of music for player piano.”
The unconventional instrumentation on Knott Tones—drumkit and string quartet – allowed Noonan to reimagine the narrative and melodic potential of his rhythmic ideas. “I treat the quartet like it's an extension of the drum kit,” he explains. “My two legs and two arms are almost like the cello, viola and two violins. So, I tried to visualize ways that the quartet’s playing could come out of what I would be naturally playing on the drum set. Sometimes that means transcribing my rhythmic language, though often it’s more abstract than that.”
Close upon the heels of these two releases, Noonan will again partner with the Ligeti Quartet for one of the drummer/composer’s most ambitious projects to date, the multi-media piece Isolation. Commissioned by the Arts Council of England, PRS for Music, and Forestry England, Isolation addresses the issue of solitary confinement—a long-held concern for the composer that has only come into sharper focus during the pandemic era. Noonan will compose a new piece, Bartalk, that he and the Quartet will perform on a five-city tour in April, culminating on April 30 at London’s St. Giles Church. The concert will help kick start the fundraising campaign for the restoration of the St. Giles church organ, built in 1844 and currently in need of repairs.
The first of the two releases that he has slated for 2022 is Knott Tones, a collision of new music compositions and free improvisation, written for string quartet and drumkit, and inspired in part by comedy legend Don Knotts. Knott Tones will be released on February 21. Noonan’s second 2022 release offers a further glimpse into the wide range of his eclectic tastes and interests. The second release, Zappanation, is a surreal rock opera composed in the provocative and inventive spirit of Frank Zappa and Edgard Varèse (who is known as the “Father of Electronic Music.”)
“I always want to take a listener or an audience on a journey into new worlds,” Noonan says of his always-unpredictable output. “I try to constantly explore different topics and new places.”
Knott Tones, due out February 21, 2022, features the U.K.-based Ligeti Quartet. An acclaimed string ensemble devoted to modern composers and innovative programming, the quartet features violinists Mandhira De Saram and Patrick Dawkins, violist Richard Jones, and cellist Valeria Welbanks (with guest violinist Alicja Pilarczyk stepping in for De Saram on the track “Knott Tones”).
Knott Tones is an outgrowth of “Don Knotts,” a Noonan composition originally recorded on his 2020 release, Drumavox. A self-described “member of the “Three’s Company generation,” Noonan composed the piece based on a 12-tone row and dedicated it to the late comedian—an unlikely inspiration for such intricate music, but perhaps Noonan recognized the stellar grace and timing essential to any successful physical comedy.
The five pieces on the album employ polytemporal rhythmic ideas from composer Conlon Nancarrow’s “Studies for Player Piano,” a key source of inspiration for Noonan. “Nancarrow is one of one of my favorite American composers,” Noonan says. “I spent a lot of time studying his output of music for player piano.”
The unconventional instrumentation on Knott Tones—drumkit and string quartet – allowed Noonan to reimagine the narrative and melodic potential of his rhythmic ideas. “I treat the quartet like it's an extension of the drum kit,” he explains. “My two legs and two arms are almost like the cello, viola and two violins. So, I tried to visualize ways that the quartet’s playing could come out of what I would be naturally playing on the drum set. Sometimes that means transcribing my rhythmic language, though often it’s more abstract than that.”
Close upon the heels of these two releases, Noonan will again partner with the Ligeti Quartet for one of the drummer/composer’s most ambitious projects to date, the multi-media piece Isolation. Commissioned by the Arts Council of England, PRS for Music, and Forestry England, Isolation addresses the issue of solitary confinement—a long-held concern for the composer that has only come into sharper focus during the pandemic era. Noonan will compose a new piece, Bartalk, that he and the Quartet will perform on a five-city tour in April, culminating on April 30 at London’s St. Giles Church. The concert will help kick start the fundraising campaign for the restoration of the St. Giles church organ, built in 1844 and currently in need of repairs.
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