This episode features the premiere recording of a Tristan Murail composition that contemplates Böcklin’s Isle of the Dead in a way that’s just as sensuous but less literal than Rachmaninoff’s famous depiction. We contrast it with the more subdued sound world of Pēteris Vasks, Latvia's preeminent composer, for his 80th birthday, and we also continue our journey down Frederic Rzewski’s The Road with an excerpt that takes Dickens as its inspiration. The Sylvie Courvoisier and Biondini/Godard/Niggli trios offer acoustic improv, while Melvin Gibbs and Roman Rofalski take a more electronicized approach. Worst Spills and Carlos Guedes present contrasting flavors of avant-rock, while trumpeter Samantha Boshnack unveils a new big band project in Seattle. The Tallis Scholars' own upcoming Northwest performances lead us to examine the modern practice of Lamentations settings from Stravinsky to Muhly, rounding out one of our most variegated and intriguing programs yet on Flotation Device!
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Flotation Device 2026-04-19: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell - PART ONE
Intro and SET 1: Boshnack in Seattle [0:00]
1. [1:35] Worst Spills: Mama, They Fed Me To The Pig. From Hum Death (Sweet Wreath, 2025) with Worst Spills: Jacquie Cotillard (voice, saxophone, pig), Joel Nelson, Brad Davis (electronics), Ryan Brown (bass), James Elliot (drums), Jasper Lee (chain, strings, recording engineer)
2. [4:31] Melvin Gibbs: Felonious Monk. From Amasia: Anamibia Sessions 2 (Hausu Mountain, 2025) with Casey Benjamin (Electronic Wind Instrument, synth), Chris Williams (trumpet), Pete Cosey (guitar), Onaje Allan Gumbs (electric piano), John Medeski (organ, Wurlitzer piano), Melvin Gibbs (bass, sound design), Scotty Hard (recording engineer)
3. [10:49] Carlos Guedes: Fragile Ecosystems - 3. Escher's Back. From Time Poetries (NEOS, 2026) with João Dias (bass drum), Carlos Guedes (fixed-media electronics)
4. [19:12] Samantha Boshnack: Summer That Never Came. Live in Santa Monica (Orenda, 2019) with Seismic Belt: Samantha Boshnack (trumpet), Ryan Parrish (tenor and baritone saxophones), Paris Hurley (violin), Lauren Elizabeth Baba (viola), Paul Cornish (piano), Nashir Janmohamed (double bass), Dan Schnelle (drums), Daniel Jimenez Afanador (recording engineer)
SET 2: The Tallis Scholars in Seattle [25:43]
1. [30:50] Frederic Rzewski: The Road - Part 7: Final Preparations, Mile 50, Castles in the Air. From The Road (Passacaille, 2025) with Daan Vandewalle (piano), Yannick Willox (recording engineer, Acoustic Recording Service). NOTE: Composed 1995–2003. First complete recording
2. [43:01] Roman Rofalski: Tuesday. From Awaiting PM (Oscillations, 2026)
3. [48:50] Nico Muhly: No Resting Place - 1. Incipit lamentatio; ALEPH, Quomodo sedet; 2. BETH, Plorans ploravit; 3. GHIMEL, Migravit Judas. From No Resting Place (Linn/Outhere, 2026) with The Tallis Scholars, Peter Phillips (director), Philip Hobbs (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2022, premiere recording
4. [58:42] Outro with Igor Stravinsky: Threni (Collegium Vocale Gent, Royal Flemish Philharmonic, Philippe Herreweghe)
5. [1:02:46] Sylvie Courvoisier: Big Steps Towards Silence. From Éclats, Live in Europe (Intakt, 2026) with Sylvie Courvoisier Trio: Sylvie Courvoisier (piano), Drew Gress (bass), Kenny Wollesen (drums, Wollesonics), Olivier Mazarguil (recording engineer)
Flotation Device 2026-04-19: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell - PART TWO
SET 3: Accordions and Vasks at 80 [1:12:27]
1. [1:14:05] Biondini/Godard/Niggli: Fables of Time. From Fables of Time (Intakt, 2026) with Luciano Biondini (accordion), Michel Godard (tuba, serpent, e-bass), Lucas Niggli (drums, percussion), Francesco Ponticelli (recording engineer)
2. [1:17:59] Pēteris Vasks: The Fruit of Silence. From Prophecy (Alpha, 2026) with Ksenija Sidorova (accordion), Estonian Festival Orchestra, Paavo Järvi (conductor), Aude-Marie Piloz (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2013 for chorus and piano, arranged by George Morton for accordion, vibraphone and string orchestra (first recording)
3. [1:23:35] Pēteris Vasks: Sonata for flute and alto flute solo - 2. Flight. From Edge (Present Sounds, 2011) with Paul Taub (flute). NOTE: Composed 1992
4. [1:27:59] Pēteris Vasks: Voices (Symphony No. 1 for strings) - 3. Voice of conscience. From Viola Concerto, String Symphony "Voices" (BIS, 2020) with Sinfonietta Rīga, Maxim Rysanov (conductor), Marion Schwebel (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 1991
SET 4: A Murail premiere [1:36:28]
1. [1:40:02] Tristan Murail: Near Death Experience. From Near Death Experience (NEOS, 2025) with Ensemble Risonanze Erranti: Aaron Dan (flute), Carlos Andrés Lafarga (oboe), Richard Elliot Haynes (clarinet), Pablo Marín-Reyes (trombone), Michaela Girardi (violin), Carla Usberti (viola), Åsa Åkerberg (cello), Konrad Fichtner (double bass), Jacopo Salvatori (piano), Christian Wissel (percussion), Peter Tilling (conductor), Klemens Kamp (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2017, premiere recording
2. [1:56:56] Outro with Sergei Rachmaninoff: The Isle of the Dead (Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy)
Photo credits: Nico Muhly by Heidi Solander, Arnold Böcklin: Die Toteninsel III via Alte Nationalgalerie Berlin, Pēteris Vasks via Wikimedia, Tristan Murail via Radio France, Samantha Boshnack by Daniel Sheehan, Frederic Rzewski by Lynn Garon, Roman Rofalski via the artist, Igor Stravinsky by Richard Avedon, Sylvie Courvoisier Trio (Kenny Wollesen, SC, Drew Gress) by Caroline Mardok, Carlos Guedes via the artist, Melvin Gibbs by Michael Schell, Fables of Time (Luciano Biondini, Michel Godard, Lucas Niggli) by Annette Meier.
Flotation Device features creative and improvised music from the Northwest and around the world with host Michael Schell, Sunday nights 10pm–Midnight Pacific Time on 91.3 KBCS-FM Bellevue/Seattle/Tacoma. Visit us online at https://linktr.ee/MichaelSchell