“There’s a group of students who used a term I really liked: countermemory,” Tenzier founder Eric Fillion tells me over Skype from Montreal. “I almost like that better than counterculture.” He’s talking about Tenzier, the avant-garde label which has put out five critically acclaimed vinyl releases in as many years, as well as Tenzier theContinue reading “Tenzier: History Outside the Margins”
Author Archives: Musicworks
The Power of Voice: Musicworks Spring 2016
TWO YEARS AGO, TANYA TAGAQ LANDED ON THE COVER OF MUSICWORKS. Her unforgettable voice has been in my head, so to speak, ever since. Our Spring 2014 CD opened with “Tulugak,” a wild evocation from her album Animism, which won the Polaris Prize later that year. Our cover story, written by Mary Dickie, now seemsContinue reading “The Power of Voice: Musicworks Spring 2016”
Sonic City
We presume hush because business has yet to come. People stand, the movement of feet inaudible Over the creeping perception of noise An indistinguishable hum pervading the acoustic Of suitcases’ wheels Clitter-clattering across cobbled stones Some uneven, some gliding with ease — The bounce of speed announcing a sanguine rhythm To the muted silence ofContinue reading “Sonic City”
The Creative Constructions of George Lewis
“THIS PIECE HAS A NEW NAME,” ANNOUNCED GEORGE LEWIS, composer, trombonist, writer, and professor, speaking from the stage of the Community Church of New York. “I realized as I got into it that the old name—the name you have in your programs—doesn’t really fit.” The title given in the program of the October 23, 2015 concertContinue reading “The Creative Constructions of George Lewis”
Christine Duncan Unleashes the Elements
IT ALL CAME BACK SO FAST: the Whip, the Punch, the Elements. All those gestures unlocked my voice and made it respond exactly as it was supposed to—even after a five-year absence. Late last year, I embedded myself with the Element Choir, the world’s leading structured-improvisation choral group, as it prepared for one of itsContinue reading “Christine Duncan Unleashes the Elements”
Ayelet Rose Gottlieb’s Open-Heart Tunings
There’s a faint but persistent ringing coming from the southwest corner of Ayelet Rose Gottlieb’s Vancouver apartment. We discover one of her young twins picking purposefully at the keys of a brightly coloured toy piano. The other twin comes over, attracted by this large stranger’s curiosity, and contributes her own jangling notes. When I startContinue reading “Ayelet Rose Gottlieb’s Open-Heart Tunings”
The Radical Transcriptions of sfSound
PERHAPS NO OTHER AMERICAN METROPOLIS is more associated with important countercultural movements than the San Francisco Bay Area. From the Beats of the 1950s and the hippies of the 1960s to the radical punks of the ’70s and ’80s, the “city by the Bay” has long attracted creative visionaries, free thinkers, and fringe seekers. AmidstContinue reading “The Radical Transcriptions of sfSound”
Fresh Moves in Music Therapy
One hundred and twenty kids, seated on benches and gym mats, are beaming as they beat out a pulsating rhythm on small percussion instruments. Their ecstatic expressions match that of drummer and occupational therapist Leaf Miller [ABOVE PHOTO, LEFT, working with student at Abilities First School, Poughkeepsie, NY] who is leading this massive jam sessionContinue reading “Fresh Moves in Music Therapy”
Di Mainstone Fashions a New Sonic Future
Di Mainstone, inventor of the Human Harp, describes herself as a “bridge botherer.” But to be accurate, her bridge-bothering activities are fairly recent. Before bridges (the Human Harp has, to date, played bridges in Brooklyn, Omaha, and Bristol) came mood-sensitive kinetic outfits and prosthetic sound devices. In Mainstone’s tiny studio, perched atop a disused VictorianContinue reading “Di Mainstone Fashions a New Sonic Future”
Anna Pidgorna’s Invented Folk Songs
With its balance of bold colour palettes, strong melodic profiles, and unexpected performative elements, composer Anna Pidgorna’s work has been catching eyes and ears of late. Her chamber opera On the Eve of Ivan Kupalo recieved a 2013 SOCAN Foundation Award, and Light-Play through Curtain Holes, a solo accordion piece, represented Canada at the ISCMContinue reading “Anna Pidgorna’s Invented Folk Songs”