Steve Reynolds

I prefer Mary is smaller groups with more improvisation & less structured mannered music. She’s great live when she gets more out.

Drummer was Sofia Borges with Signe, James & Brandon add the 2 large ensemble sets from Ikue Mori from last night included Ches Smith, Sylvie, Satako Fujii, Erik Friedlander, Charmaine Lee, David Watson, Zeena Parkins and more. Composed pieces with incredibly exciting grooves & improvised madness. Brilliant genius level stuff. Top 5 show of 2023.

I wish I kept track. More than 65 this year. Probably close to a hundred sets or more. Best concert attending year for me ever. It’s been incredibly satisfying. The music in the areas that I love is better than ever. Golden Age. I never take for granted what was lost to the pandemic. Nothing like live music played by the greatest improvisers on the planet. I’m very fortunate to be at maybe the epicenter of the whole thing with great respect to London, Berlin & Chicago. Throw in Portugal, Warsaw and various other places around the world. But the downtown NYC and Brooklyn scenes are smoking hot and vibrant. The amount of amazing young musicians and the young people attending is very invigorating.

Adding Pavement in October from the rail Yo La Tengo from last week from 3 rows standing from the stage then last night Ikue Mori, Craig Taborn, Lotte Anker & Ches Smith saw Lotte 4 nights in 5 days. As great an improvising alto & soprano saxophonist as I’ve seen in quite some time. also forgot about John Zorn’s Cobra from early Fall. Top 5 show of the year.

So glad you are seeing this. Especially with the *great* Joe McPhee right in the middle of the lineup!! Tomorrow night Mary Halvorson & Sylvie Courvoisier @ Jazz Gallery. Front table:)

Yo La Tengo at Bowery Ballroom they just posted as I’m about 10th in line / opening band is the Sun Ra Arkestra under the direction of Marshall Allen!!!

Hopefully you see them. I saw them at The Stone about 6-7 feet from Mary:)

Too many to count for sure top sets: Crispell, Dresser & Hemingway / hard to say but probably the best most amazing show I’ve seen in quite some time. BassDrumBone with Anderson, Helias & Hemingway Zoh Amba, gabby fluke-mogul, Steve Gunn & Ryan Sawyer Chuck Roth solo electric guitar three times plus a duo with Chloe Sobek. Plus duo with James McKain. Chuck Roth is the best young improvising young guitarist on the planet as far as I’ve heard. Watch out!!!! Larry Ochs, Nels Cline & Gerald Cleaver all sets with Joelle Leandre at Vision Fest / especially the larger group that ended the night. With Ingrid Laubrock, Steve Swell, Mat Maneri, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Joe Morris etc. Mat Maneri Quartet 4 concerts/ the best was second set at Jazz Gallery with Lucian Ban, Brandon Lopez & Randy Peterson Michael Foster, Brandon Lopez & Joey Sullivan Michael Foster, Brandon Lopez & Greg Kelley Signe Emmuleth, James McKain, Brandon Lopez & a drummer I forgot her name Tim Berne’s Sun of Goldfinger twice Tim Berne, David Torn, Trevor Dunn & Tom Rainey about 8-10 other Berne sets were also very good to excellent Gerald Cleaver’s Black Host Jones Jones: Larry Ochs, Mark Dresser & Vladimir Tarasov Thumbscrew with Mary Halvorson, Michael Formanek & Tomas Fujiwara Brandon Lopez, Gerald Cleaver & Fred Moten Fred Frith & Zeena Parkins Michael Attias, Kenneth Jiminez & Randy Peterson Hery Paz, Joe Morris & Tom Rainey Marta Warelis solo piano Chris Cochrane band Zoh Amba, Forbes Graham, Luke Stewart & gabby fluke-mogul Fred Frith, Nava Dunkelman, Carla Kihlstedt & Theresa Wong Ches Smith quartet with Mary Halvorson, Mat Maneri & Craig Taborn Tomeka Reid quartet with Mary Halvorson, Jason Roebke & Tomas Fujiwara

One of most amazing things I’ve read in a long time. Chuck - you are very blessed to have had a friend like Mars:) I’m sure you miss him madly

I also saw the Ayler X-Mas project 12/4/17 at The Stone. Right in front about 5 feet from Mars. Incredible set. Will never forget it. SO joyful and beautiful. With Tomeka Reid, Nels Cline, Chris Corsano etc.

gut punch was just listening to him play yesterday on some amazing recording of a great Chicago ensemble First saw him with the legendary Brotzmann Tentet in 2000 at Tonic will never forget KV, Mars, Mats & Peter. Now THAT was a reed section !! deep condolences to you, Chuck RIP, Sir

Trevor Watts with Jamie Harris Jazz Gallery in NYC

Even better than last week’s Sun of Goldfinger show. Like last week, fully improvised. The opening 44 minute piece had Rainey fully peaking. I’ve seen him dozens of times over the years and yet he still shocks me. Stunning with only grooves that he plays. Sounds like no other drummer. Best brush player on the planet. Dunn is understated to some extent and simply brilliant. Torn is like no one else and Berne was on fire. Second 16 minute piece slightly less great but it would have been an impossibility to match the first improvisation.

Tim Berne with David Torn, Trevor Dunn (on electric bass) & Tom Rainey gonna be insane

Same here. Fell asleep and woke up to late to take the drive.

Same 2 for me:)

Sun of Goldfinger Tim Berne, David Torn & Ches Smith starts in about 30 minutes 3 feet from David Torn:)

Extraordinary 50 minute set of freely improvised music. Second to last piece they morphed into a post bop like groove. Magical. Helias has to have the most gorgeous bass sound. Last 4 months I’ve seen Brandon Lopez, John Hebert, Luke Stewart, Mark Dresser, Caroline Morton, Eivand Opsik & Michael Formanek. Some of them multiple times (Lopez 6-7 times I think). I’m truly blessed to be able to witness these masters of the double bass so often. Missed a quartet with Luke Stewart tonight as I’m a bit under the weather. With Maria Valencia, Stewart, Nate Wooley & Ryan Sawyer. I’ve never seen Valencia who is a young saxophonist/clarnetist.

Erik Friedlander’s The Throw Erik on cello, Mark Helias on double bass & Ches Smith on drums The Stone at The New School looks like no charts which makes me happy:)

His first NYC appearance ever was this past August 17th / a duo with Tomeka Reid at The Stone (at The New School)

Saw Savannah Harris with Peter Evans’ “Being and Becoming” this past spring and he was amazing. Will get that CD. Love Tomeka Reid.

Patricia Brennan Trio: The Stone at New School unfamiliar with the guitarist (Keisuke Matsuno) or drummer (Noel Brennan) Patricia is a great vibraphonist fwiw this past Tuesday great sets at Record Shop in Brooklyn / think I commented elsewhere. The little improv scene in Brooklyn is piping hot!!!

Ron Anderson / weak is a very relative term. Probably too strong. Issue is that Chuck Roth (26 years old) is one of the greatest young guitarists I’ve seen. My friend Kevin called Chuck a wunderkind. Recordings should start coming out soon. Incredibly original and very intense. Plus the bass amp wasn’t designed for a bass so his sound was a bit covered up. Nice dude, fwiw. second group was strong as well. Tom Weeks on alto, James McKain on tenor, Caroline Morton on double bass & Kevin Murray on drums. Out of Ayler but with a current modern touch. The 2 saxophones were tremendous. I’ve seen James McKain quite a few times this year and he is excellent. Great taste. Knows what the fuck is up. Very learned and is a critical listener. Was very impressed first time seeing or hearing Tom Weeks. Caroline Morton is young and just another one of the great young woman musicians on the scene. Very inspiring and invigorating to these older ears. Murray is a beast. They are starting to find space and the saxophonists both know when to step back. Strong listening all around.

Sunday 10/22 Chris Corsano quartet with Nate Wooley at P.I.T. In Brooklyn Wednesday 10/25 at New School: Erik Friedlander, Mark Helias & Ches Smith

I always appreciate your honest commentary I was at a gig last night. 3 short sets by 3 groups. Mostly very young. Incredibly loud and very energetic. First trio was Chuck Roth on guitar, Ron Anderson on electric bass & James Paul Nadian on drums. Best and loudest of the groups despite that the older dude who played last night was the weakest. Anderson is a fine bassist but Chuck & James brought the heat. But hard to really know the depth of this or the other sets. But seeing these sets is invigorating. Will be great to see them grow. Key is allow silence & softer passages. Usually happens with dedication. Will see more experienced musicians Thursday.