Jazz Articles
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Antonio Della Marina: Sanje
by Mark Corroto
Sound sculptor Antonio Della Marina is an electronic music composer whose work primarily resides in the realm of installation art, creating immersive multimedia experiences for museums and performance spaces. His creative focus lies in the intersection of psychoacoustics and spatial perception--how sound behaves within and transforms a given environment. Sanje originated as part of the multimedia performance “nella notte, al cinema: The Dream," a collaboration with video artist Alessandra Zucchi, presented in July 2021. Della Marina later remixed ...
Continue ReadingAnthony Braxton Saxophone Quartet: Sax QT (Lorraine) 2022
by Mark Corroto
Anthony Braxton's music can often be compared to that reoccurring dream many people have where they have an upcoming university exam. Still, they neither attended the classes nor studied for the test. The reason may be that his graphic notations along with his scores can be formidable and downright indecipherable. Listeners recognize the great man is operating on a higher plane, one which can often be quite daunting. If anyone identifies with the above description, his Sax QT (Lorraine) 2022 ...
Continue ReadingMisha Mengelberg: Rituals Of Transition
by Mark Corroto
It takes a master to speak like a child. Pianist Misha Mengelberg (1935-2017) was such a giant at the keyboard that he could shed all pretension and improvise with a simple innocence. Call it Zen enlightenment or just a blunt brilliance. His music is often absurd and paradoxical, like an inside joke, except he graciously lets us all in on the pranks. Rituals Of Transition is a collection of solo performances recorded from 2002 through 2010 in The ...
Continue ReadingPeter Brötzmann / Maâlem Moukhtar Gania / Hamid Drake: The Catch Of A Ghost
by Mark Corroto
Nearly a quarter century after recording The “WELS" Concert (Okka, 1997), saxophonist Peter Brötzmann reconvened a three-continent trio to deliver a remarkable set of ecstatic-trance music. His European free jazz met American drummer Hamid Drake and African Gnawa music master Maâlem Moukhtar Gania at the AngelicA, Festival Internazionale di Musica in Bologna, Italy in 2019. Same amazing lineup (almost) and same amazing result. “Almost the same lineup" because vocalist and guembri musician Maâlem Moukhtar Gania replaced his father ...
Continue ReadingRoscoe Mitchell: Splatter
by Mark Corroto
The special performances of saxophonist and composer Roscoe Mitchell's Conversation Series with orchestra are cause for celebration. The logistics of more than two dozen players is demanding. Add transcriptions for each instrument, rehearsals, grant writing, and securing an appropriate venue. Mitchell has traveled many miles since his debut Sound (Delmark Records, 1966) and his work in the Art Ensemble of Chicago. These days he has the standing to realize his concepts, and our ears are better for it.
Continue ReadingPauline Oliveros/Roscoe Mitchell/John Tilbury/Wadada Leo Smith: Nessuno
by Karl Ackermann
In 1991 the label I Dischi Di Angelica was founded solely for the purpose of documenting the performances of its namesake music festival in Italy. The non-profit label has grown--but only marginally--releasing a compact catalog of global music, typically related to artists that have some association with the annual event. Fortunately for fans of creative music, producer Massimo Simonini captured this unique event at AngelicA Festival in Teatro San Leonardo, Italy in 2011 and rendered here as Nessuno.
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