Flotation Device explores new albums by Charles Uzor, Mary Halvorson, the Ingrid Laubrock/Tom Rainey duo, and Heiner Goebbels, whose latest release on ECM features Ensemble Modern somberly interacting with old recorded voices. Vanished myths and memories is a salient theme in much of this music, but there are new voices to be heard too: making their Flotation Device debut are John Aylward (US), the quintet Nakama (Norway and Japan) and Trio ETE (France) which we'll relate to Rhys Chatham for his 70th birthday.
A selection from Unexplained Sounds Group’s latest global survey of avant-electronica helps to round things out, while our “50 years ago in the avant-garde” feature provides perspective by commemorating the September 1972 premieres of one of the earliest examples of Polish minimalism and a little-known chamber opera (or "musical-scenic unity" if you prefer) by Stockhausen.
Annotated playlist and photo credits in Comments. Creative and improvised music with host Mike Schell.
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Photo credits: Nakama (Ayumi Tanaka, Klaus Ellerhusen Holm, Christian Meaas Svendsen, Andreas Wildhagen, Andreas Hoem Røysum) by Jan Tore Eriksen, Ingrid Laubrock and Tom Rainey by Peter Gannushkin, Rafał Iwański AKA X-Navi:Et by Agnieszka Janik, Charles Uzor via Neos Music, Tomasz Sikorski in No (1980), Mary Halvorson by Kelly Jensen, Heiner Goebbels by Jakob Rendtorff, Anna Zielińska by Lidia Zielinska, John Aylward by Kate Soper, ETE Trio (Eric Echampard, Andy Emler, Claude Tchamitchian) by Christophe Charpenel, Karlheinz Stockhausen by Rob C. Croes/Anefo, row from Stockhausen: Am Himmel wandre ich
Flotation Device 2022-09-25: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell
Intro and SET 1: Memories without clarity [0:00]
1. [1:06] Ingrid Laubrock, Tom Rainey: Foisted Fables. From Counterfeit Mars (Relative Pitch, 2022) with Ingrid Laubrock (soprano saxophone), Tom Rainey (drums), Andy Taub (recording engineer)
2. [4:17] John Aylward: Ananke. From Celestial Forms and Stories (New Focus, 2022) with Klangforum Wien: Vera Fischer (piccolo, flute, alto flute, bass flute), Markus Deuter (oboe), Bernhard Zachhuber (clarinet, bass clarinet), Sophie Schafleitner (violin), Dimitrios Polisoidis (viola), Andreas Lindenbaum (cello), Florian Müller (piano), Finnegan Downie Dear (conductor), Kristaps Auster, Christoph Walder (recording engineers). NOTE: Composed 2019
3. [19:22] Heiner Goebbels: Wax and Violence - 2. Achtung Aufnahme. From A House of Call, My Imaginary Notebook (ECM, 2022) with Hans Lichtenecker (recorded voice, Berseba 1931), Ensemble Modern Orchestra, Vimbayi Kaziboni (conductor), Gerhard Gruber (recording engineer)
4. [22:51] Heiner Goebbels: When Words Gone - 1. BakakI - (Diálogo). From A House of Call, My Imaginary Notebook (as above) with Luciano and Victor Martínez (recorded voices, Quebrada Isue 1980), Ensemble Modern Orchestra, Vimbayi Kaziboni (conductor), Gerhard Gruber (recording engineer)⠀
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SET 2: Memories and stasis [27:55]
1. [31:22] Charles Uzor: White Paperflowers Descending on Tienanmen Square. From Mothertongue (Neos, 2021) with Ensemble La Notte, Charles Uzor (conductor). NOTE: Composed 1989
2. [38:40] Trio ETE: The document, The real, The fake, The lies. From The Useful Report (La Buissonne, 2022) with Andy Emler (piano), Claude Tchamitchian (double bass), Eric Echampard (drums), Gérard de Haro (recording engineer). NOTE: Compositions by Andy Emler
3. [54:01] Outro with Rhys Chatham: Guitar Trio
4. [59:00] Nakama: Gaki. From New World (Nakama, 2022) with Christian Meaas Svendsen (voice), Klaus Ellerhusen Holm (alto sax), Andreas Røysum (clarinet), Ayumi Tanaka (piano), Andreas Wildhagen (drums), Aksel Jensen (recording engineer). NOTE: Composition by Christian Meaas Svendsen⠀
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SET 3: Three continents [1:03:09]
1. [1:04:49] Nakama: Æ-b. From New World (credits as above). NOTE: Composition by Christian Meaas Svendsen
2. [1:14:14] Mary Halvorson: A Fine Intrusion. From Strings & Things (Bandcamp, 2022) with Mary Halvorson (guitar, electronics). NOTE: Recorded in 2014
3. [1:16:49] Tomasz Sikorski: Holzwege, Roads to Nowhere. From Polish Collection of the Warsaw Autumn 1956–2005 (Polmic, 2005) with Warsaw Philharmonic National Symphony, Andrzej Markowski (conductor). NOTE: Composed 1972. Recording of the premiere, September 24, 1972 at the Warsaw Autumn Festival
4. [1:22:58] X-Navi:Et: Machina Nova. From 8th Annual Report (Mid Year Edition) (Unexplained Sounds, 2022) with Anna Zielińska (violin), Rafał Iwański AKA X-NAVI:ET (electronics)⠀
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SET 4: Am Himmel wandre ich [1:30:26]
1. [1:34:33] Karlheinz Stockhausen: Am Himmel wandre ich (excerpts). From In the Sky I Am Walking (Mode, 1998) with Nicholas Isherwood (bass baritone), Isabel Soccoja (mezzo soprano), Joël Perrot (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 1972, premiered as part of ALPHABET für Liège on September 23, 1972 in Liège, Belgium
2. [1:54:32] Outro with Karlheinz Stockhausen: Stimmung