Flotation Device celebrates the 50th anniversary of Death in Venice, the last of Britten’s operas, and the only one that makes homosexuality an explicit theme. We revisit its score—notable for the gamelan-inspired percussion music that depicts the teenaged Tadzio, and for the severe and exceptionally chromatic music associated with his anguished infatuate Aschenbach—and position its libretto among operatic portrayals of gay sexuality from Lulu to Brokeback Mountain.
There's new music here as well, beginning a new triple-CD documenting the Fire Into Music quartet, with the late Jemeel Moondoc alongside Steve Swell, William Parker and Hamid Drake. We also survey new albums by Matt Mitchell, Illegal Crowns and Brandon Seabrook’s Epic Proportions, as well as the doyenne of French acousmatic music, Beatriz Ferreyra (featured for her 86th birthday). Creative and improvised music with host Michael Schell, from KBCS-FM Bellevue/Seattle/Tacoma.
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Flotation Device 2023-06-18: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell
Intro and SET 1: New and radical [0:00]
1. [1:25] Matt Mitchell: Covertly Overt. From Oblong Aplomb (Out of Your Head, 2023) with Matt Mitchell (piano), Kate Gentile (drums, percussion), Daniel Goodwin (recording engineer)
2. [7:35] Armaroli/Kujala/Schiaffini/Sjöström: Windows #4. From Windows & Mirrors, Milano Dialogues (Leo, 2022) with Sergio Armaroli (vibraphone), Veli Kujala (concert accordion), Harri Sjöström (soprano and sopranino sax), Giancarlo Schiaffini (trombone), Raffaele Stefani (recording engineer)
3. [12:45] Jörg Widmann: Elf Humoresken - 4. Waldszene, 10. Lied im traume, 7. Intermezzo. From Schumann: Kreisleriana, Geistervariationen, Widmann: Elf Humoresken (Alpha, 2023) with Aaron Pilsan (piano), Renate Wolter-Seevers (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2007
4. [15:25] Oliver Leith: The Big House - 1. Big House. From Big House (Pentatone, 2023) with Ruisi Quartet: Alessandro Ruisi, Oliver Cave (violins), Luba Tunnicliffe (viola), Max Ruisi (cello), Oscar Torres (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2020⠀
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SET 2: Jemeel Moondoc (1946–2021) [19:47]
1. [22:38] Steve Swell: Swimming in a Galaxy of Goodwill and Sorrow. From For Jemeel: Fire From the Road (2004–2005) (RogueArt, 2023) with Fire Into Music: Jemeel Moondoc (alto saxophone), Steve Swell (trombone), William Parker (double bass), Hamid Drake (drums), Nik Tjelios (recording engineer). NOTE: Recorded live live September 8, 2005 at Guelph Jazz Festival, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
2. [33:39] Enno Poppe: Prozession. From Fleisch, Prozession (Wergo, 2023) with Ensemble Musikfabrik: Susanne Peters (flute, bass flute), Peter Veale (oboe, English horn), Carl Rosman (clarinet, contrabass clarinet), Joshua Hyde (alto saxophone), Christine Chapman (horn), Marco Blaauw, Nathan Plante (trumpets), Bruce Collings (trombone), Hannah Weirich, Sara Cubarsi (violins), Axel Porath (viola), Dirk Wietheger (cello), Florentin Ginot (double bass), Ulrich Löffler, Benjamin Kobler (electric organs), Yaron Deutsch (electric guitar), Dirk Rothbrust, Rie Watanabe, Thomas Meixner, Ramón Gardella (percussion), Enno Poppe (conductor), Angelika Hessberger (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2015/2020
3. [45:01] Lotta Wennäkoski: Sigla - Sigla I. From Sigla, Flounce, Sedecim (Ondine, 2023) with Sivan Magen (harp), Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas Collon (conductor), Laura Heikinheimo (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2022
4. [51:49] Outro with Kaija Saariaho: Trans
5. [58:49] Brandon Seabrook: Compassion Montage. From brutalovechamp (Pyroclastic, 2023) with Epic Proportions: Brandon Seabrook (guitar, mandolin, banjo), Nava Dunkelman (percussion, glockenspiel, voice), Marika Hughes (cello), Eivind Opsvik, Henry Fraser (contrabasses), Chuck Bettis (electronics, voice), John McCowen (clarinet, contrabass clarinet, alto and bass recorder), Sam Ospovat (drum set, chromatic Thai nipple gongs, vibraphone, concert chimes), Ben Greenberg (recording engineer)⠀
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SET 3: Paths of oblivion [1:03:26]
1. [1:05:07] Beatriz Ferreyra: Senderos del olvido. From Senderos de luz y sombras (Recollection GRM, 2023). NOTE: Realized 2016–20
2. [1:19:12] Illegal Crowns: Les Mots et les Choses. From Unclosing (Out of Your Head, 2023) with Taylor Ho Bynum (cornet, flugelhorn), Mary Halvorson (guitar), Benoît Delbecq (piano), Tomas Fujiwara (drums), Greg Di Crosta (recording engineer). NOTE: Composition by Benoît Delbecq⠀
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SET 4: Death in Venice at 50 [1:25:16]
1. [1:29:54] Benjamin Britten: Death in Venice (excerpts). From Death in Venice (Chandos, 2005) with Gustav von Aschenbach: Philip Langridge (tenor), Elderly Fop, Hotel Barber et al: Alan Opie (baritone), Strawberry Seller: Alison Smart (soprano), BBC Singers, City of London Sinfonia, Richard Hickox (conductor), Ralph Couzens (recording engineer), and from Death in Venice Suite (Chandos, 1985) with English Chamber Orchestra, Steuart Bedford (arranger, conductor), Ralph Couzens (recording engineer)
2. [1:54:40] Outro with Charles Wuorinen: Brokeback Mountain
Photo credits: Lotta Wennäkoski by Maarit Kytöharju, Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears by Victor Parker, Beatriz Ferreyra via Persistence of Sound, Enno Poppe via Ricordi, Oliver Leith by Marcus Leith, Windows & Mirrors (Giancarlo Schiaffini, Harri Sjöström, Sergio Armaroli, Veli Kujala) via Leo Records, Illegal Crowns (Tomas Fujiwara, Taylor Ho Bynum, Mary Halvorson, Benoit Delbecq) by Julian Parker-Burns, Robert Tear and Paul Zeplichal in Death in Venice (Glyndebourne, 1989), Fire Into Music (Jemeel Moondoc, William Parker, Steve Swell, Hamid Drake) by Jacques Bisceglia, Matt Mitchell and Kate Gentile via the artists, Jörg Widmann by Marco Borggreve, Brandon Seabrook by Reuben Radding.