Soundwaves

Belgian virtuoso Steven Vanhauwaert presented a sampling of his all-Italian PianoSpheres program, stretching from Busoni to Scelsi.

Two solo pieces recently released on CD by the Venice-based Cold Blue Music label: Michael Byron’s “In the Village of Hope,” for harp, played by
Tasha Smith Godínez:

and Daniel Lentz’ “River of 1,000 Streams,” for piano and electronics, played by Vicki Ray:

Saxophonist Jack Wright, bassist Evan Lipson, and guitarist Zach Darrup presented a set of free improvisation under the group name Roughhousing.

Wright’s recent book The Free Musics is a significant contribution to the theory of free improvised music in Western consumer culture.

Elana Mann and John Burtle celebrated their new edited collection of text scores Propositional Attitudes (Golden Spike Press) with a talk and performances by mark so, Corey Fogel, Dana Reason, Mate Behbudi, and themselves.

Here is Dana and Mate’s performance of her “Tea and Fences: A Quiet Tea Party”, which used Skype to connect Dana in Oregon, Mate in Iran, and an audience in Santa Monica:

Vicki Ray presented selections from her April 3 PianoSpheres program:

Kallay performed selections from his Beyond 12 series of commissioned pieces for retuned and remapped keyboards. This concert was a co-production with Microfest.

• Kyle Gann – Fugitive Objects
• Veronika Krausas – Tercos *world premiere
• Nick Norton – Involuntary Bohlen Piercing
• Linda Bouchard – Orchid *world premiere
• Holland Hopson – A History of Elevators in Film
  • Movements chosen from: A Feeling of Moving while Standing Still, Between Floors, Push to Stop – Pull to Run, and 13, Please
• Vera Ivanova – Mbira
• Bill Alves – Paths of the Wind

CalArts graduate and faculty member Barbier performed a set of solo trombone and euphonium compositions:

• Matt Barbier – 9/26/1940

• Nicholas Deyoe – facesplitter

• Chaya Czernowin – Adiantum Capillus-Veneris I: Songs of the Muted One [transcribed for trombone by Barbier]

• Adriana Hölszky – Weltenenden

• Timothy McCormack – HEAVYMATTER

San Diego percussionist/composer Nathan Hubbard, a two-time winner of the San Diego Music Awards Best Jazz Album, assembled an all-star quartet with violinist Jeff Gauthier, guitarist Max Kutner, and electric bassist Steuart Liebig  to perform original open-form compositions.

Continuing the annual tradition of ending with a public participation program, musicians of all levels and styles were invited to join an open workshop ensemble, which rehearsed for an hour before the concert. The program also included some invited artists, representing a variety of approaches to graphic notation. After a pre-concert talk by series organizer Jeff Schwartz, Scott Worthington played James Tenney’s “Beast.”

The California State University at Fullerton New Music Ensemble, led by Charles Sharp, played Christian Wolff’s “For 1, 2, or 3 People.”

The workshop ensemble, led by Jeff Schwartz, played Earle Brown’s “December 1952.”

and Christian Marclay’s “Shuffle.”

Then Sarah Belle Reid directed them in her “[spectral] [impulse].”

and Ellen Burr in her “Ink Bops.”

Saxophonist Barber performed a set of virtuosic polymetric original jazz with Cathlene Pineda (piano), David Tranchina (bass), and Tina Raymond (drums).