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Unsuk Chin and György Kurtág return to the spotlight as we preview Seattle Symphony’s West Coast premiere of Chin’s radiant orchestral piece Rocaná and their centenary tribute to Kurtág featuring chamber works and a new animated film by Lembit Beecher. Plus, John Zorn channels Bach’s violin partitas while Steve Layton connects with Irish paganism. We catch up with new offerings by Matthew Shipp, William Parker, Kris Davis and Ivo Perelman while our 50 years ago in the avant-garde feature traces their improvisation style back to the pioneering Swiss keyboardist Irène Schweizer and Anthony Braxton's short-lived but long-influential mid-70s quartet with George Lewis, Dave Holland and Barry Altschul. Finally, we acquaint ourselves with the Helsinki-based composer Mioko Yokoyama, reacquaint ourselves with the legacy of John Cage’s prepared piano, and continue our exploration of Heiner Goebbels’ Walden through the premiere recording of its full orchestra version.
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Flotation Device 2026-11-01: Annotated playlist by host Michael Schell
Intro and SET 1: 50 years ago in the avant-garde [0:00]
1. [1:51] Heiner Goebbels: Walden - 9. The White Pond. From Walden (ECM, 2026) with Bob Rutman (voice), Ensemble Modern Orchestra, Peter Eötvös (conductor), Udo Wüstendörfer (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed and recorded in 1998. First release of the full orchestral version
2. [7:25] John Zorn: Partita for the Firebird (excerpts). From Barber, Zorn, Glass (Delos/Outhere, 2026) with Geneva Lewis (violin), Philip Hobbs (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2022, premiere recording
3. [11:32]Anthony Braxton: Composition No. 6 C. From Quartet (Dortmund) 1976 (Hat Hut, 1991) with Anthony Braxton (sopranino saxophone, alto saxophone, contrabass saxophone, clarinet, E♭ clarinet, contrabass clarinet), George Lewis (trombone), Dave Holland (bass), Barry Altschul (drums, percussion). NOTE: Recorded live October 31, 1976 at Jazzlife, Dortmund, Germany
4. [21:29] Lembit Beecher: Sophia's Wide Awake Dreams - 2. From Blueprinting (New Amsterdam, 2018) with Aizuri Quartet: Ariana Kim, Miho Saegusa (violins), Ayane Kozana (viola), Karen Ouzounian (cello), Lembit Beecher (sound sculptures, ExCITe Center, Drexel University), Jonathan Herz (custom music box), Ryan Streber (recording engineer, Oktaven Audio)
SET 2: Kurtág at 100 [28:08]
1. [33:00] György Kurtág: Fragments from the Scrapbooks of Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Op. 37a - 1. Die Kartoffeln. From Scenes (Audite, 2019) with Viktoriia Vitrenko (soprano), Niek de Groot (double bass), Justus Beyer (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 1999
2. [33:58] György Kurtág: Signs, Games and Messages - Hommage à John Cage. From Signs, Games and Messages (ECM, 2003) with Stefan Metz (cello), Markus Heiland (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 1987, revised 1991
3. [35:46] György Kurtág: Fragments from the Scrapbooks of Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Op. 37a - 3. …ein Kirchstuhl…, 21. Touropa. From Scenes (credits as above)
4. [37:44] György Kurtág: Double Concerto, Opus 27/2 (1989–90) - 1. Poco allegretto. From Adès | Kurtág | Tippett (Hallé, 2026) with Nicolas Altstaedt (cello), Dénes Várjon (piano), Hallé Orchestra, Thomas Adès (conductor), Steve Portnoi (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 1989–90
5. [47:53] Matthew Shipp, William Parker: Notions of Order. From A Whole System Of (AUM Fidelity/TAO Forms, 2026) with Matthew Shipp (piano), William Parker (bass), Jim Clouse (recording engineer, Park West Studios)
6. [55:59] Outro with Matthew Shipp Duo: Summertime (from Zo)
7. [1:00:18] Steve Layton: Aos sí. From Count Your Blessings (NiwoSound, 2026) with Steve Layton (Reason 14, Audacity 3, sample libraries)
8. [1:05:01] Matthew Shipp, Ivo Perelman: Two (Volume 1). From Duologues 7: Distillation (Squid Note, 2026) with Ivo Perelman (tenor saxophone), Matthew Shipp (piano), Jim Clouse (recording engineer, Park West Studio)
SET 3: Pianos prepared and otherwise [1:08:41]
1. [1:11:24] John Cage: A Room. From A Room (Kairos, 2026) with Hayk Melikyan (prepared piano), Sergey Gasparyan (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 1943
2. [1:13:41] Irène Schweizer: Saitengebilde (Last Part to Dudu). From Wilde Señoritas (FMP, 1977, reissued 2002 by Intakt as Wilde Señoritas and Hexensabbat) with Irène Schweizer (piano), Franz De Byl (recording engineer). NOTE: Recorded November 4, 1976, Berlin
3. [1:19:17] Kris Davis Trio: Nature Piece 5. From Lost in Geneva (4166, 2026) with Kris Davis (prepared piano), Robert Hurst (bass), Johnathan Blake (drums), Ryan Streber (recording engineer, Oktaven Audio)
4. [1:22:18] Mioko Yokoyama: Game of Metal. From Mineralization (Kairos, 2026) with Emil Holmström (piano), Markku Veijonsuo (recording engineer). NOTE: Composed 2017
5. [1:26:24] John Cage: Music for Marcel Duchamp. From A Room (credits as above). NOTE: Composed 1947
SET 4: Room of Light [1:31:54]
1. [1:36:05] Unsuk Chin: Rocaná (Room of Light). From Rocaná, Violin Concerto (Analekta/Outhere, 2009) with Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Kent Nagano (condutor), Carl Talbot (recording engineer). NOTE: Recorded at the premiere, March 3, 2008 at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier de la Place des Arts, Montreal
2. [1:56:49] Outro with Karol Szymanowski: Violin Concerto No. 2 (Thomas Zehetmair, Simon Rattle)
Photo credits: John Zorn by Scott Irvine, György Kurtág via BBVA Foundation, John Cage by Irving Penn, Unsuk Chin by Koo Bon-sook, Heiner Goebbels with Ensemble Modern by Wonge Bergmann, Steve Layton via the artist, Lost in Geneva (Robert Hurst, Kris Davis, Johnathan Blake) via Braithwaite & Katz, Mioko Yokoyama by Maarit Kytöharju, William Parker with Ivo Perelmann and Matthew Shipp via the artists, Irène Schweizer by Sylvia Luckner, Anthony Braxton by Martin S. Gold.