Episode 8 – Dedicated to Peter Brötzmann and Henry Grimes

Don Cherry: Symphony for Improvisers from “Symphony for Improvisers” (1966) [19.44] – Peter Brötzmann, Fred Hopkins, Rashied Ali: No Messages from “Songlines” (1994) [12.38] – Sonny Rollins: Summertime from “Sonny Meets Hawk” (1963) [5.56] – Peter Brötzmann and Keiji Haino: excerpt from “Evolving Blush or Driving Original Sin” (1997) [10.15] – Marc Ribot Spiritual Unity: Spirits (live broadcast) [9.14] – Peter Brötzmann: Tell a Green Man from “Nipples” (1969) [15.32] – Henry Grimes Trio: Flowers for Albert from “Live at the Kerava Jazz Festival” (2004) [7.48]

Henry Grimes (born November 3, 1935, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a jazz double bassist, violinist, and poet. After more than a decade of activity and performance, notably as a leading bassist in free jazz, Grimes completely disappeared from the music scene by 1970. Grimes was often presumed dead, but he was rediscovered in 2002 and returned to performing. As a child, Grimes took up violin, tuba, English horn, percussion, and finally the double bass at age 13 or 14. At Juilliard, established a reputation as a versatile bassist in the mid 1950s. He recorded or performed with saxophonists Gerry Mulligan and Sonny Rollins, pianist Thelonious Monk, singer Anita O'Day, clarinetist Benny Goodman and many others. When bassist Charles Mingus was experimenting with a second bass player in his band, Grimes was the person he selected for the job.

Gradually growing interested in free jazz, Grimes performed with most of the music's important names, including pianist Cecil Taylor, trumpeter Don Cherry, saxophonists Steve Lacy, Pharoah Sanders, Archie Shepp, and Albert Ayler. He released one album, The Call as a trio leader for the ESP-Disk record label in 1965.

In the late 1960s, Grimes career came to a halt after his move to California. It was commonly assumed Grimes had died. Then Marshall Marrotte, a social worker and jazz fan, set out to discover Grimes's fate once and for all. In 2003, he found Grimes alive but nearly destitute, without a bass to play, renting a tiny apartment in Los Angeles, California, writing poetry and doing odd jobs to support himself. He had fallen out of touch with the jazz world and was unaware Albert Ayler had died, but was eager to perform again. Word spread of Grimes's 'resurrection', and some musicians and fans offered their help. Bassist William Parker donated a bass (nicknamed "Olive Oil", for its distinctive greenish color) and with David Gage's help had it shipped from New York to Los Angeles, and others assisted with travel expenses and arranging performances. Grimes's return was featured in The New York Times and on National Public Radio. A documentary film is planned, as is a biography.

Peter Brötzmann (born 6 March 1941) is a German artist and free jazz saxophonist and clarinetist.

Brötzmann is among the most important European free jazz musicians. His rough timbre is easily recognized on his many recordings. He studied painting in Wuppertal and was involved with the Fluxus movement, but grew dissatisfied with art galleries and exhibitions. He experienced his first real jazz concert when he saw American jazz musician Sidney Bechet while still in school at Wuppertal, and it made a lasting impression. Brötzmann has designed most of his own album covers. He first taught himself to play various clarinets, then saxophones; he is also known for playing the tárogató. Among his first musical partnerships was that with double bassist Peter Kowald.

For Adolphe Sax, Brötzmann's first recording, was released in 1967 and featured Kowald and drummer Sven-Åke Johansson.

1968, the year of political turmoil in Europe, saw the release of Machine Gun, an octet recording often listed among the most notable free jazz albums. Originally the LP was self-produced (under his own "BRO" record label imprint) and sold at gigs, but it was later marketed by Free Music Production (FMP), In 2007, Chicago-based Atavistic Records reissued the Machine Gun recording.

The album Nipples was recorded in 1969 with many of the Machine Gun musicians including drummer Han Bennink, pianist Fred Van Hove and tenor saxophonist Evan Parker, plus British free-improv guitarist Derek Bailey. The second set of takes from these sessions, appropriately called More Nipples, is more raucous. Fuck De Boere (Dedicated to Johnny Dyani) is a live album of free sessions from these early years, containing two long improvisations, a 1968 recording of "Machine Gun" live (earlier than the studio version) and a longer jam from 1970.

The logistical difficulties of touring with an octet resulted in Brötzmann eventually slimming the group to a trio with Han Bennink and Fred Van Hove. Larger groups were put together again later, for example in 1981 Brötzmann made a radio broadcast with Frank Wright and Willem Breuker (saxes), Toshinori Kondo (trumpet), Hannes Bauer and Alan Tomlinson (trombones), Alexander von Schlippenbach (piano), Louis Moholo (drums), Harry Miller (bass). This was released as the album Alarm. In the 1980s, Brötzmann flirted with heavy metal and noise rock, including a stint in Last Exit and subsequent recordings with Last Exit's bass guitarist and producer Bill Laswell.

Brötzmann has remained active, touring and recording regularly. He has released over fifty albums as a bandleader, and has appeared on dozens more. His "Die Like A Dog Quartet" (with Toshinori Kondo, William Parker and drummer Hamid Drake) is loosely inspired by saxophonist Albert Ayler, a prime influence on Brötzmann's music. Since 1997 he has toured and recorded regularly with the Peter Brötzmann Chicago Tentet (initially an Octet).

To listen to the podcast, go to Podomatic website and search for 'completecommunion'.

To send me material to be featured on the podcast, email me at galasi.g [at] virgilio.it or gianpaolo.galasi [at] gmail.com

Episode 7 – Iannis Xenakis: electronic and acoustic music

Voyage absolu des Unari vers Andromède for 2-channel tape (1989) [15.29]

Metastasis for orchestra (1953-4) [9.03]

Keren for trombone solo (1986) [6.41]

Pitoprakta for trombone, percussions and strings (1956) [9.43]

Khoai for harpsicord solo (1976) [16.47]

Jonchaies for large orchestra (1977) [17.27]

Iannis Xenakis (May 29, 1922 – February 4, 2001) was a Greek composer, music theorist, and architect-engineer. After 1947, he fled Greece, becoming a naturalized citizen of France. He is commonly recognized as one of the most important post-war avant-garde composers. Xenakis pioneered the use of mathematical models in music such as applications of set theory, stochastic processes and game theory and was also an important influence on the development of electronic music. He integrated music with architecture, designing music for pre-existing spaces, and designing spaces to be integrated with specific music compositions and performances.

Among his most important works are Metastaseis (1953–4) for orchestra, which introduced independent parts for every musician of the orchestra; percussion works such as Psappha (1975) and Pléïades (1979); compositions that introduced spatialization by dispersing musicians among the audience, such as Terretektorh (1966); electronic works created using Xenakis's UPIC system; and the massive multimedia performances Xenakis called polytopes. Among the numerous theoretical writings he authored, the book Formalized Music: Thought and Mathematics in Composition (1971) is regarded as one of his most important. As an architect, Xenakis is primarily known for his early work under Le Corbusier: the Sainte Marie de La Tourette, on which the two architects collaborated, and the Philips Pavilion at Expo 58, which Xenakis designed alone.

[from Wikipedia]

http://www.iannis-xenakis.org/xen/index.html

To listen to the podcast, go to Podomatic website and search for 'completecommunion'.

To send me material to be featured on the podcast, email me at galasi.g [at] virgilio.it or gianpaolo.galasi [at] gmail.com

Podcast Episode 6 - The Voice of the Soul (for Yusef Lateef)

Yusef Lateef, Roots Run Deep II from “Roots Run Deep” (2012) [6.13]

* Recitation of verses from the Qu’ran [2.26]

Yusef Lateef, Love and Humor from “The Sound Of Yusef” (1957) [6.12]

* Dhikr (Remembrance) [2.18]

Yusef Lateef, 1984 from “1984” (1965) [8.16]

* Dunya Yunis, Abul Zeluf [3.03]

John Coltrane, Mars from “Interstellar Space” (1974) [10.46]

* Baba Hakim, Tanbur Solo [4.44]

Yusef Lateef, Three Faces of Balal from “Eastern Sound” (1920) [2.23]

* Gunbri (folk song) [2.53]

Sun Ra, Voice of Space from “Cosmic Tones for Mental Therapy” (1963) [7.43]

* Tahlil [6.19]

Yusef Lateef, Nubian Lady from “The Gentle Giant” (1972) [6.33]

* Wasinxzama Khan Naseri and Nazir Ahmad, Kavali [4.37]

Yusef Lateef, First Gymnopedie from “Psychicemotus” (1965) [3.30]

* Hussein Ali Zodeh, Tar solo [4.55]

Yusef Lateef, Interior Monologue from “Roots Run Deep” (2012) [3.38]

Tracks marked with * are from the album “Music in The World Of Islam, Vol. 1: Human Voice, Lutes” (Topic Records, 1994)

Yusef Lateef (born William Emanuel Huddleston; October 9, 1920) is an American Grammy Award-winning jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, educator and a spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community after his conversion to the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam in 1950.

Although Lateef's main instruments are the tenor saxophone and flute, he also plays oboe and bassoon, both rare in jazz, and also uses a number of world music instruments, notably the bamboo flute, shanai, shofar, arghul, sarewa, and koto. He is known for his innovative blending of jazz with "Eastern" music.

Lateef's sound has been claimed to have been a major influence on the saxophonist John Coltrane, whose later period free jazz recordings contain similarly 'Eastern' traits. For a time (1963–66) Lateef was signed to Coltrane's label, Impulse. He had a regular working group during this period, with trumpeter Richard Williams and Mike Nock on piano. They enjoyed a residency at Pep's Lounge during June 1964; an evening of which was issued across several albums.

In 1960, Lateef again returned to school, studying flute at the Manhattan School of Music in New York. He received a Bachelor's Degree in Music in 1969 and a Master's Degree in Music Education in 1970. Starting in 1971, he taught courses in autophysiopsychic music at the Manhattan School of Music, and he became an associate professor at the Borough of Manhattan Community College in 1972. In 1975, Lateef completed his dissertation on Western and Islamic education and earned a Ed.D. in Education from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

[from wikipedia]

To listen to the podcast, go to Podomatic website and search for 'completecommunion'.

To send me material to be featured on the podcast, email me at galasi.g [at] virgilio.it or gianpaolo.galasi [at] gmail.com

Podcast Episode 5 - Little Red Riding (Child)hood Hit The Road [*feat. François Cambuzat]

L’Enfance Rouge & Eugene Robinson: Bleed a Little (2012) [6.20]

*Costas Dousas The Trawler From “Café Rembetika – The Birth of the Greek Blues” (2000) [4.04]

*Bästard: 200 Miles From Hanoi from “Radiant, Discharged, Crossed Off” (1996) [4.25]

*Keiji Haino: Untitled from “Tenshi No Gijnka” (1995) [4.23]

*Miguel Angel Costas: Mi llanto (Solea) from “Bordòn De Trapo” (2006) [3.15] -

*Einstürzende Neubauten: Sehnsucht (Zitternd) from the movie “1/2 Mensch” (1985) [2.55]

*Olivier Messiaen: Meditations sur le mistère de la Sainte Trinité (1969) [8.28]

*Derek Bailey: Stella By Starlight from “Ballads” (2002) [7.22]

L’Enfance Rouge: Petite Mort from “Trapani - Halq Al Waady” (2008) [8.46]

Iannis Xenakis, Nomos Alpha (1965) Pierre Strauch cello [12.40]

Dälek: Eyes to Form Shadows from “Absence” (2004) [6.30]

Ennio Morricone: Astrazione con Ritmo from “Il Serpente” (1973) soundtrack [4.19] 

Living Colour: Wall from “Stain” (1993) [5.24]

The music in this episode marked with (*) is kindly provided by François Régis Cambuzat of L’Enfance Rouge, who gave me the records from which I selected the tracks. While waiting for his new album with L’Enfance Rouge and Lofti Buchnak, I hope to invite more artists as guest podcasters in the near future. I took his photos here during a concert near Milan (Italy) last summer.

François Régis Cambuzat biography from womex.com: French, born in Viet Nam, from pieds-noirs parents. Since birth, François R. Cambuzat has never lived more than four years in the same place. Saïgon, Paris, London, New York, Berlin, Amsterdam, Tunis, etc.

His touring life has led him from Vilna to Cadiz, as from Tbilisi to Athens and further. He has been invited to many great festivals such as Documenta in Kassel, and so, geographically as well as artistically, François R. Cambuzat has explored many music genres from punk to contemporary classical music, from jazz to maghreb's music, as his discography testifies.

He has created major projects as famous as the Kim Squad, Il Gran Teatro Amaro and L'Enfance Rouge.

François' repertoire is to be seen literally as a secret garden. A part of his favourite melodies. Arie and chants from early Birthday Party to Claude Debussy, songs from peculiar areas & quarters of Tunis until the '900 Paris of Jacques Ibert or the Spain of Buenaventura Durutti and Garcia Lorca, maybe his most intimate soul, maybe his darkest soul and paradoxally his more sunny side.

To listen to the podcast, go to Podomatic website and search for 'completecommunion'.

To send me material to be featured on the podcast, email me at galasi.g [at] virgilio.it or gianpaolo.galasi [at] gmail.com