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A World That Bears a Question
Madre Vaca
Label: Madre Vaca Records
Released: 2026
Duration: 00:42:58
Views: 160
Tracks
Janacek's Sinfonietta; Aomame; 1Q84; Fuka-Eri; Tengo; Komatsu; Irretrievably Lost; The Professor; Buzzcut & Ponytail; Refreshing Iced Barley Tea; Sakigake; If you can't understand it without an explanation, you can't understand it with an explanation; Town of Cats; The Little People; Chekhov's Gun; Strong Green Tea; On Top of the Slide; There Are Two Moons in the Sky; The Dead Goat; The Keeper of the Beat; Air Chrysalis; Leader; We Can No Longer Hear the Voice; Calming Roasted Hojicha Tea; Tamaru; Ushikawa; The Bottom of the Sea; Willow House
Personnel
Madre Vaca
band / ensemble / orchestra
Benjamin Shorstein
drums
Thomas Milovac
bass, acousticJonah Pierre
pianoJarrett Carter
guitarMolly Sweet
clarinetEric Riehm
saxophoneMike Emmert
fluteLance Reed
tromboneSteve Strawley
trumpet
Juan Rollan
saxophoneMilan Algood
percussionAlbum Description
A WORLD THAT BEARS A QUESTION
Inspired by Haruki Murakami's novel 1Q84
by Madre Vaca
Liner notes, Part 1
“If you can’t understand it without an explanation, you can’t understand it with an explanation”
- Haruki Murakami, 1Q84
Liner notes, Part 2
On my second reading of Haruki Murakami’s gargantuan and gorgeous novel, 1Q84, little musical vignettes began to emerge in my mind - fragmented but vivid. These pieces are less about literal storytelling; they are musical portraits sparked by the emotional impressions each character or moment left on me. Over a short time, I composed 28 of these brief reflections, each inspired by a different part of the novel’s richly textured world.
Liner notes, Part 3
In 2011, while walking through Chicago with my father, we stumbled upon a record store. There, I picked up a solo piano album: Vicky Chow playing Ryan Anthony Francis’ Wind-Up Bird Preludes, inspired by Murakami’s The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. That moment became my entry point into Murakami’s work. I went on to read everything of his that’s been translated into English.
Now, more than a decade later, the circle is complete: I discovered Murakami through music, and now I’ve written music inspired by his world. Mr. Murakami - if you’re reading this - I hope you enjoy.
Liner notes, Part 4
This project can be viewed in several ways. It’s a collection of musical vignettes—compact portraits woven together like a tapestry. Each piece is deliberately short, a departure from the more typical jazz format where soloists stretch out over longer forms. Here, the pieces offer fleeting, cinematic glimpses instead.
I also think of it as a score for a film that doesn’t exist. The tracks span a spectrum: from sparse to dense instrumentation, from composed to freely improvised, and from harmony to dissonance. I hope listeners can sense that movement across the album.
-Benjamin Shorstein
All music composed by Benjamin Shorstein, except Janacek’s Sinfonietta, composed by Leos Janacek and arranged by Benjamin Shorstein.
Recorded on October 25-30, 2023 at Retrophonics Recording Studio
Inspired by Haruki Murakami’s novel 1Q84
Recording engineers - John Medico, Jim DeVito, JeanCarlo Mendez
Mixed by John Medico
Mastered by Chris Allen
Album art and design by Andre Gruber
Special thanks to Professor Nicole Nissim Shorstein, Haruki Murakami, Ryan Anthony Francis, Jim DeVito, Tom Haller, George Orwell, Mark Shorstein, and Noah Nissim Shorstein
Produced by Benjamin Shorstein
Madre Vaca Records
Album uploaded by Benjamin Shorstein
