Anthony Braxton

[papsrus]

Anthony Braxton Fans are So Full of Shit

Really now...

.

Interesting. I expected the posting to be much more caustic, given the headline. I like the idea that Braxton's music can be much more playful and "fun" than listeners sometimes give him credit for. This is what I found in "Iridium." Not so much, however, in something like "For Alto."

[7/4]

Anthony Braxton Fans are So Full of Shit

Really now...

Interesting. I expected the posting to be much more caustic, given the headline. I like the idea that Braxton's music can be much more playful and "fun" than listeners sometimes give him credit for. This is what I found in "Iridium." Not so much, however, in something like "For Alto."

I find fun all through his small grp music - all those marches! - but not much in his "classical" music.

It's just a dumb WMFU sort of title.

[Werf]

October will resuscitate my Braxton obsession. I'm geeking for it.

[blajay]

whew! just finished reading this thread. Can't wait for the Braxton Arista Mosaic!

[John L]

I am really enjoying the new budget 4-disc set GTM (2006) on Important Records.

The Iridium might have been a grander concept, but I much prefer the GTM music in this kind of standard quartet format with Braxton as the only reed player. This is like a more fully realized verion of the excellent Delmark album (Four Compositions (GTM) 2000).

The liner notes by Braxton are classic material. There are times when I think that he really is just jiving in the sense of making the text too dense and complex for anybody to understand. I particularly like his initial explanation and definition of GTM:

"The idea for GTM came about as a way to establish an "orbit" quandrant area universe schema that "gravitationally" affects neighboring "event-stream" sonic events in a multi-layer three dimensional imaginary universe of activities (and target materials)..."

Edited August 7, 2008 by John L

[ep1str0phy]

I am really enjoying the new budget 4-disc set GTM (2006) on Important Records.

The Iridium might have been a grander concept, but I much prefer the GTM music in this kind of standard quartet format with Braxton as the only reed player. This is like a more fully realized verion of the excellent Delmark album (Four Compositions (GTM) 2000).

The liner notes by Braxton are classic material. There are times when I think that he really is just jiving in the sense of making the text too dense and complex for anybody to understand. I particularly like his initial explanation and definition of GTM:

"The idea for GTM came about as a way to establish an "orbit" quandrant area universe schema that "gravitationally" affects neighboring "event-stream" sonic events in a multi-layer three dimensional imaginary universe of activities (and target materials)..."

That's really a terrific set, and the first bunch of CDs, when I heard it a month or two back, that had involved me so much in a while.

I also got a copy of Comp. 247 recently--a bagpipe/2 reeds piece--and managed to obtain a copy of the score from James Fei. It is, I believe, from the second stage of ghost trance music, still emphasizing looped eighth note patterns but with some interesting, sometimes jarring interpolations. The score includes a number of Braxton's graphic/algebraic figures, the meaning(s) of which are sometimes intuitive and at other moments pretty mystifying. It's above all really beautiful to look at.

The whip/accelerated GTM phase, from which the box is derived, is a bitch to sight read. Obtuse tuplet streams at somewhat unmanageable tempi and with minimal preparation... I admire and commend any musician who can make this stuff with any sort of proficiency.

Braxton--you mad, crazy, mad genius you.

[papsrus]

Anyone hip to this release?

Braxton / Graves / Parker -- "Beyond Quantum"

Trio sounds intriguing. Drooling a little, but if anyone's heard it ... comments?

[clifford_thornton]

Listened to sound samples and it appears to be solid.

That video clip on the above WFMU blog is ridiculous. If you think Braxton's "joking," in both positive and negative fashion, this might be all you'd need in your pocket.

[GregK]

Anyone hip to this release?

Braxton / Graves / Parker -- "Beyond Quantum"

Trio sounds intriguing. Drooling a little, but if anyone's heard it ... comments?

Got it @ Borders today. Haven't listened yet.

[papsrus]

Anyone hip to this release?

Braxton / Graves / Parker -- "Beyond Quantum"

Trio sounds intriguing. Drooling a little, but if anyone's heard it ... comments?

Got it @ Borders today. Haven't listened yet.

Man. Your Boarders is a lot better stocked than mine! ... I went ahead and ordered from squidco. Looking forward to it. Be interested to hear your thoughts if you get a chance to spin it over the next couple of days.

[GregK]

Anyone hip to this release?

Braxton / Graves / Parker -- "Beyond Quantum"

Trio sounds intriguing. Drooling a little, but if anyone's heard it ... comments?

Got it @ Borders today. Haven't listened yet.

Man. Your Boarders is a lot better stocked than mine! ... I went ahead and ordered from squidco. Looking forward to it. Be interested to hear your thoughts if you get a chance to spin it over the next couple of days.

I was surprised. We have three Borders here and two of them actually had this on release day! Listening to the first tune now; seems like an epic sopranino (how do you pronounce that, anyway?) solo so far, with lots of pushing by the drums. It just sounds great, too. I've heard a lot of detail in the percussion

[7/4]

seems like an epic sopranino (how do you pronounce that, anyway?) s

sop-ra-nin-o.

.

[Chuck Nessa]

Accent on "nin".

[JSngry]

As in "neen".

[Chuck Nessa]

Rhymes with 'tween.

[7/4]

Thanks guys....they're right.

.

[JSngry]

Nina never knew.

[Chuck Nessa]

Nina never knew.

That was a grandmother's name and it was a "hard I" - Ny na.

[JSngry]

Jim never knew!

[GregK]

Wow. I was way off. I had it closer to sop-RANIN-o. Good thing no one heard me.

On the last tune now. This album is very good after one listen. I don't always get Braxton (actually, I doubt I ever do), but this one sounds like he was absolutely on fire for the session. Most of my Braxton listening recently has been the GTM stuff, so it's good just to hear him with less density. My only problem with this new one is the singing that someone is occasionally heard doing.

[PHILLYQ]

You can order direct from Tzadik or Downtown Music Gallery

[7/4]

You can order direct from Tzadik or Downtown Music Gallery

DMG processes the orders for Tzadik so it's almost the same thing.

.

[Chuck Nessa]

You can order direct from Tzadik or Downtown Music Gallery

DMG processes the orders for Tzadik so it's almost the same thing.

.

'cept the percentages.

[J.A.W.]

I look forward to the Arista box--somehow my copies of several of the LPs & CDs have vanished, including the 2LP solo album & the live date from Montreaux.

Montreux, not Montreaux.

Edited August 20, 2008 by J.A.W.

[papsrus]

In the FWIW department, "Beyond Quantum" gets 5 stars here. And this guy listens to a lot of free.