Flotation Device celebrates its 25th birthday with a grand reunion of current hosts Michael Schell and John Seman, plus Christopher DeLaurenti (who hosted the program in its first decade) and Jonathan Lawson (who inaugurated it in July 2001 on 91.3 KBCS Bellevue/Seattle/Tacoma which remains its broadcast home today). Together we honor some of the guiding angels who've inspired us since the show's inception, including Alice Coltrane, William Parker, John Zorn, Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dempster and Giacinto Scelsi. We’ll also hear from younger proponents of intentional and improvised music, including Ellen Fullman, Theresa Wong, Beatriz Ferreyra, Susan Stone, Visible Cloaks, Cheval de Frise, KMRU and Utterance Tongue. And we’ll honor the 70th birthday of Bang on a Can co-founder Michael Gordon with a sampling of his classic postminimalist and more recent sound cloud compositions. Join us for this very special commemorative episode of Flotation Device!
Comments
Flotation Device 2026-07-19: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell - PART ONE
Intro and SET 1 by Jonathan Lawson [0:00]
1. [4:56] Visible Cloaks: Valve. From Reassemblage (RVNG, 2017) with Miyako Koda, Visible Cloaks: Ryan Carlile, Spencer Doran
2. [8:07] Cheval de Frise: La Lame du Mat II. From La Lame du Mat (Minority, 2005) with John Dieterich, Thomas Bonvalet (guitars), Vincent Beysselance (drums), Jay Pellicci (recording engineer)
3. [10:31] Alice Coltrane: Govinda Hari. From Turiya Sings (Avatar, 1982) with Alice Coltrane (voice, organ)
4. [16:04] Alexander Scriabin: Three Preludes, Op. 74. From Grand Guignol (Avant, 1992, reissued 2005 by Tzadik as The Complete Studio Recordings) with Naked City: John Zorn (alto sax), Bill Frisell (guitar), Wayne Horvitz (keyboards), Fred Frith (bass), Joey Baron (drums). NOTE: Arranged by John Zorn
5. [19:45] Susan Stone: Langue Etude. From The Sound of Radio (Tellus, 1985)
6. [21:40] Giacinto Scelsi: Three Latin Prayers - Alleluja. From Giacinto Scelsi (FY, 1995) with John-Patrick Thomas (countertenor). NOTE: Composed 1970
7. [24:49] Ellen Fullman & Friends: Lion Song. From Secret Spirit House (Cassauna, 2011) with Margareth Kammerer (voice), Theresa Wong (cello), Ellen Fullman (original instruments)
8. [28:51] Outro with Jonathan Lawson
Flotation Device 2026-07-19: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell - PART TWO
SET 2: Michael Gordon at 70 [29:52]
1. [31:47] Michael Gordon: Acquanetta - The Mood. From Acquanetta (Cantaloupe, 2019) with Acquanetta: Mikaela Bennett, Bang on a Can Opera Ensemble: Courtney Orlando (violin), Caleb Burhans (violin, viola), Ashley Bathgate (cello), Taylor Levine (electric guitar, electric bass), Greg Chudzik (double bass, electric bass), Red Wierenga (keyboard, electronics), Daniela Candillari (conductor)
2. [37:43] Michael Gordon: A Western - I wanna be a cowboy. From A Western/How to fold the wind (Cantaloupe, 2025) with Theatre of Voices: Else Torp, Kate Macoboy (sopranos), Laura Lamph (alto), Paul Bentley-Angell, Jakob Skjoldborg (tenors), Jakob Bloch Jespersen (bass), Paul Hillier (conductor), Preben Iwan (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2019, premiere recording
3. [39:17.120 Michael Gordon: Yo Shakespeare (excerpt). From Terminal Velocity (Argo, 1994) with Icebreaker, John Godfrey (director), Neil Hutchinson (recording engineer)
4. [42:38] Michael Gordon: Strange Quiet (excerpt). From Bang On A Can Live Volume 1 (CRI, 1992) with Michael Gordon Philharmonic: Evan Ziporyn (bass clarinet), Ted Kuhn (violin), John Lad (viola), Bob Loughlin (electric guitar), Michael Pugliese (percussion), Michael Gordon (keyboards). NOTE: Recorded live 1987 at Bang On A Can by WNYC
5. [44:29] Michael Gordon: Weather One - Part 1. From Weather (Nonesuch, 1998) with Ensemble Resonanz, Evan Ziporyn (conductor), Günther Kasper (recording engineer)
6. [50:22] Michael Gordon: The Unchanging Sea (excerpt). From The Unchanging Sea (Cantaloupe, 2018) with Tomoko Mukaiyama (piano), Seattle Symphony, Pablo Rus Broseta (conductor), Dmitriy Lipay (recording engineer). NOTE: Recorded live at the premiere May 13, 2016, Benaroya Hall, Seattle
7. [53:52] Outro with Michael Gordon: Field of Vision (Cantaloupe, 2026)
8. [1:00:25] Christopher DeLaurenti: Live at the Muscarelle set one (excerpts). From Towards the Adjacent Possible (Bandcamp, 2019) with Christopher DeLaurenti (electronics). NOTE: Recorded live September 26, 2019 at the Muscarelle Museum of Art, Williamsburg, VA
Flotation Device 2026-07-19: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell - PART THREE
SET 3 by Christopher DeLaurenti [1:05:04]
1. [1:09:51] Beatriz Ferreyra: Vuelo de signos y remolinos. From UFO Forest+ (Room40, 2023)
2. [1:12:34] KMRU: Walking Dreams. From Walking Dreams (Bandcamp, 2019) with KMRU AKA Joseph Kamaru
3. [1:17:04] Utterance Tongue: Radio Baghdad. From Utterance Tongue (Spoo Disc, 1991) with Frank Junk, Rich Hinklin (recording engineer)
4. [1:19:59] Teresa Rampazzi: Duodeno Normale. From Musica Endoscopica (Die Schachtel, 2008) with Teresa Rampazzi, Nuove Proposte Sonore. NOTE: Realized 1972
5. [1:21:22] Alëna Korolëva: Balcony. From Shadows of Mtatsminda (Szara Reneta, 2020)
6. [1:24:13] Outro with Christopher DeLaurenti
7. [1:25:37] Kristen Blinne and Tenali Hrenak: Myanmar in Sound. From Myanmar In Sound (Yoga Activism, 2016). NOTE: Recorded December 2015 in Myanmar
SET 4 by John Seman [1:31:23]
1. [1:36:28] William Parker Quartet: Song for Jesus 3/4. From O’Neals Porch (AUM Fidelity, 2001) with Rob Brown (alto sax), Lewis Barnes (trumpet), William Parker (bass), Hamid Drake (drums), Carl Seltzer (recording engineer). NOTE: First album that John Seman heard on Flotation Device in 2001
2. [1:42:44] Alice Coltrane: Huntington Ashram Monastery. From Huntington Ashram Monastery (Impulse!, 1969) with Alice Coltrane (harp), Ron Carter (bass), Rashied Ali (drums)
3. [1:48:13] Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band: Sue Egypt. From Doc at the Radar Station (Virgin, 1980) with Don Van Vliet (vocals), Gary Lucas (French horn), Bruce Fowler (trombone), Jeff Moris Tepper, John French (guitars), Eric Drew Feldman (bass), Robert Arthur Williams (drums) Glen Kolotkin (recording engineer)
4. [1:51:09] Pauline Oliveros: The Fool’s Circle. From Crone Music (Lovely Music, 1990) with Pauline Oliveros (Titano Emperor V accordion, processing), Panaiotis (procession), Connie Kieltyka (recording engineer)
5. [1:58:30] Outro with John Seman
Photo credits: KMRU and microphone via the artist, Jonathan Lawson via Climate Solutions, Alice Coltrane by Jeff Dunas, Michael Gordon by Peter Serling, Beatriz Ferreyra by INA grm, Naked City (Wayne Horvitz, John Zorn, Bill Frisell, Joey Baron, Fred Frith) by Timothy Greenfield Sanders, Alëna Korolëva by Mike Hoolboom, Pauline Oliveros by David A. Cantor, Christopher DeLaurenti by Alex Woodward, Michael Schell and John Seman via the artists, William Parker via AUM Fidelity.
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