Funny Rat

[Д.Д.]

Monteverdi: L'incoronazione di Poppea

(Brilliant, 4CDs)

This is an opera.

I don't like opera.

But this one is good. Even if one soprano is somewhat withered, and tenor is rather bleak. Still good stuff.

The set is dirt-cheap here in Europe (€ 10 for 4CDs). This is not some cheapo edition, on the contrary - thick booklet, good artwork, etc. I don't know how Brilliant pulls it off financially.

[Guest Chaney]

David: Is the Monteverdi played on period or modern instruments?

[Д.Д.]

David: Is the Monteverdi played on period or modern instruments?

Mac powerbook, sine waves, turntables.

Period, really. XVII century vintage. Instrumentlaists are excellent (this is a rather small ebsemble - 12 instuments, and they rarely play alltogether - really sparse orchestration), sound is great.

You have a preference?

Edited March 15, 2006 by Д.Д.

[Guest Chaney]

Back in the days that I listened to this type of material, I was painfully purist: period material played on period instruments. No compromise.

What in hell did I know...?

Edited March 15, 2006 by Chaney

[Д.Д.]

Another excellent one:

The Bach harpsichord album. Robert Aldwinckle (Regis)

I am normally not a fan of harpsichord. I tend to find its sound too harsh, lacking any depth or subtlety. Not the case here. Aldwinckle makes it sound much more than merely decorative (or is it Bach's compositions?). Sound is good.

For period instrument purists among us, the instrument used is a copy of the XVIII century piece, so I gues this should qualify.

Regis is also a budget label, so this one should be available for cheap as well (I think broinc.com carries their releases).

Edited March 15, 2006 by Д.Д.

[Guest Chaney]

An interesting offering in today's Downtown Music Gallery e-mailing:

INCREDIBLY RARE JAPANESE STEVE LACY 2 CD SET FOUND!!

STEVE LACY - "Blues for Aida" - Solo at Egg Farm [2 CD set] (Egg Farm 004/Japan) We've never, ever seen or heard of this one before now. This features two well-recorded solo sets from September 10th of 1995 at the Egg Farm Hall in Japan, a favorite spot of Japanese jazz connoisseurs. The title piece, "Blues for Aida" is a eulogy for Akira Aida, a radical journalist, producer and organizer who presented Steve Lacy in Japan for the first time. Mr. Aida died at the young age of 38 in 1978 and was a close friend of Mr. Lacy. Steve Lacy covers a number of tunes by Thelonius Monk, "Shuffle Boil", "Eronel", "Evidence", "Pannonica" and "Trinkle Tinkle", as well as number of original pieces, ""The Crust", "Prospectus", "The Rent", Revenue" and "Deadline". We have just ten copies of this gem.

2 CD set for $40

I remember asking about this one ages ago. Pretty cool that it's available. Just ordered myself a copy.

Edited March 17, 2006 by Chaney

[brownie]

An interesting offering in today's Downtown Music Gallery e-mailing:

INCREDIBLY RARE JAPANESE STEVE LACY 2 CD SET FOUND!!

STEVE LACY - "Blues for Aida" - Solo at Egg Farm [2 CD set] (Egg Farm 004/Japan) We've never, ever seen or heard of this one before now. This features two well-recorded solo sets from September 10th of 1995 at the Egg Farm Hall in Japan, a favorite spot of Japanese jazz connoisseurs. The title piece, "Blues for Aida" is a eulogy for Akira Aida, a radical journalist, producer and organizer who presented Steve Lacy in Japan for the first time. Mr. Aida died at the young age of 38 in 1978 and was a close friend of Mr. Lacy. Steve Lacy covers a number of tunes by Thelonius Monk, "Shuffle Boil", "Eronel", "Evidence", "Pannonica" and "Trinkle Tinkle", as well as number of original pieces, ""The Crust", "Prospectus", "The Rent", Revenue" and "Deadline". We have just ten copies of this gem.

2 CD set for $40

I remember asking about this one ages ago. Pretty cool that it's available. Just ordered myself a copy.

I already mentioned somewhere I found a copy of this Aida bearing an handwritten dedication by Steve Lacy to a French jazz critic

[Guest Chaney]

WOW! That's very sad and kind of despicable that anyone (a critic, in this instance) would dispose of what should have been a precious item.

[brownie]

That's about what I said in my previous post!

Believe me, the disc is safe with me now

[P.L.M]

I already mentioned somewhere I found a copy of this Aida bearing an handwritten dedication by Steve Lacy to a French jazz critic

Whe want to know everything, Brownie: which famous french critic is it?

The man deserves to have is ignominious name thrown in a public place like this jazzboard.

THE NAME, THE NAME!!!!!!!!!!!

[Guest Chaney]

Anyone familiar with Netherlands-based Staalplaat?

Looks interesting but probably too pricey for those not residing in Europe.

[jon abbey]

sure, Staalplaat is huge, probably hundreds of releases on their various labels, although I'm not really a fan of most of them. I believe Soleilmoon is still affiliated with them somehow, and the prices should be lower for US buyers:

http://www.soleilmoon.com/

[Д.Д.]

Check out the samples at the Matthew Welch's web page. What a telent - both as performer and composer!

Note that the solo bagpipes piece here sounds very traditional compared to the stuff on Welch's "Hag at the Churn" (on newsonic). There, most of the pieces do not sound like bagpipes at all (and morever, every trakc sounds totally different form each other - from quiet drones to fluid soprano saxophone-like solos to menacing multi-layered pointillistic suites and to some pretty indiscribably stuff). I haven't listened to his Leo disc (with pieces for bagpipes and orchestra) yet. Gotta get all the Welch that's available out there.

Anyody heard Braxton's discs with him ("Composition 247" on Leo, and "Compositions for solo bagpipes" on Parallactic)?

[P.L.M]

Anyody heard Braxton's discs with him ("Composition 247" on Leo)?

Yeah, great stuff.

[gnhrtg]

Anyody heard Braxton's discs with him ("Composition 247" on Leo)?

Yeah, great stuff.

I like it too but, frankly, wouldn't have overcome my wariness and bought the disc if Brian O. and walto hadn't heaped ample praise on it.

[Д.Д.]

Today actually I was listening to disc 3 from the 4-CD Braxton's "Six compositions (GTM) 2001" set (on Rastascan/Limited Sedition/Barely Auditable).

I have this set since the day it was released (it costed like $15 at CDUniverse, iirc), and never managed to go through the whole damn thing. The first two discs are occupied by a mammoth composition for a large band that would invariably drive me to despair after 15 minutes, so I think never even got to disc 3. And well, it turned out to be really good! It is for a much smaller band (Braxton-Rosenberg-Shiurba-Sperry-Robair), and past the zombie GTM themes (farly short here) the improvisations are excellent.

[Д.Д.]

Sonny Simmons website

[GregK]

Today actually I was listening to disc 3 from the 4-CD Braxton's "Six compositions (GTM) 2001" set (on Rastascan/Limited Sedition/Barely Auditable).

I have this set since the day it was released (it costed like $15 at CDUniverse, iirc), and never managed to go through the whole damn thing. The first two discs are occupied by a mammoth composition for a large band that would invariably drive me to despair after 15 minutes, so I think never even got to disc 3. And well, it turned out to be really good! It is for a much smaller band (Braxton-Rosenberg-Shiurba-Sperry-Robair), and past the zombie GTM themes (farly short here) the improvisations are excellent.

I still can't get through the first two discs, but I agree with you, disc 3 is excellent, and disc 4 has some interesting moments too

[Alexander Hawkins]

Today actually I was listening to disc 3 from the 4-CD Braxton's "Six compositions (GTM) 2001" set (on Rastascan/Limited Sedition/Barely Auditable).

I have this set since the day it was released (it costed like $15 at CDUniverse, iirc), and never managed to go through the whole damn thing. The first two discs are occupied by a mammoth composition for a large band that would invariably drive me to despair after 15 minutes, so I think never even got to disc 3. And well, it turned out to be really good! It is for a much smaller band (Braxton-Rosenberg-Shiurba-Sperry-Robair), and past the zombie GTM themes (farly short here) the improvisations are excellent.

I still can't get through the first two discs, but I agree with you, disc 3 is excellent, and disc 4 has some interesting moments too

I'm another fan of the set, especially the third disc.

[Д.Д.]

I am going to get more Braxton's GTM, and will go for Four compositions (GTM) 2000 on Delmark: http://delmark.com/delmark.544.htm. This is small group (quartet) and I have been enormously impressed by pianist's Kevin Uehlinger's CD (Alchemusic (Vol. 1) on newsonic), so I am interested to hear his cotribution to Braxton's music.

[gnhrtg]

I am going to get more Braxton's GTM, and will go for Four compositions (GTM) 2000 on Delmark: http://delmark.com/delmark.544.htm. This is small group (quartet) and I have been enormously impressed by pianist's Kevin Uehlinger's CD (Alchemusic (Vol. 1) on newsonic), so I am interested to hear his cotribution to Braxton's music.

I think you will like it - these are varied and short, within the realm of GTM, pieces and don't stifle the flow of the music or individual contributions thereto.

[blake]

Sonny Simmons website

So has anyone picked up the solo CD-R?

[Д.Д.]

Sonny Simmons website

So has anyone picked up the solo CD-R?

I have only his solo on Parallactic, released a couple of years back. Haven't spent much time with it yet. It is here in the "to listen-to" pile - but so far it's been pushed back by this little sucker:

[blake]

Just spotted (and ordered) this one for a reasonable price on Amazon. I've been looking for it for ages - it's way, way out of print. The seller appears to have multiple copies. I figured others here might also be looking for it.

Dudu Pukwana - In The Townships

The band is Dudu Pukwana (alto), Mongezi Feza (trumpet), Harry Miller (bass) and Louis Moholo (drums).

AMG Review

[blake]

Sonny Simmons website

So has anyone picked up the solo CD-R?

I have only his solo on Parallactic, released a couple of years back. Haven't spent much time with it yet. It is here in the "to listen-to" pile - but so far it's been pushed back by this little sucker:

Parallactic...pisses me off every time I hear mention of the label. When that Simmons solo disc came out I ordered it, the Braxton solo disc and a couple others from Brandon Evans. I paid. He never sent the discs.

Funny, I was in a used CD shop yesterday in Chicago and had that Fela disc in my hand but didn't pull the trigger - bought a remastered copy of Eno's Music For Aiports instead.

How is it? Should I go back for it on my next trip?