The stated intention of Set, a seven-part sequence for bassoon and electronics, is to blur the boundaries between composer and performer. I’ve listened to and enjoyed the record repeatedly, but have yet to hear it as a blurring of lines. What I hear is a trio in which one of the members isn’t exactly present and another isn’t exactly human. The suite alternates between wordless songs composed by Taylor Brook and structured improvisations, both performed by bassoonist Dana Jessen with computer-generated sounds set in motion by Brook. The songs are composed to highlight the extended techniques Jessen has developed, and the improvisations employ programming by Brook that responds to Jessen’s playing. I waited patiently for the epiphany of what distinguishes the songs from the improvisations—not in strategy but in sound—and it never came. It also doesn’t matter. It’s a slow and beautiful progression, full of mist and foghorns and beehives and other dreamlike imagery.
Jessen is a wonderful performer on an instrument not often given the spotlight in any genre. She has in the past recorded works by other deep thinkers integrating solo acoustics with electronics, including George Lewis, Paula Matthusen, and Sam Pluta. As a vehicle for Jessen’s musicianship and Brook’s conceptualization, it’s an hour very well spent.
Kurt Gottschalk is an author, journalist, and broadcaster based in New York City. His work appears in publications in North America and Europe, including Bachtrack, The New York City Jazz Record, The Red Hook Star-Revue, Stereophile, and The Wire and he can be heard on WKCR-FM and WFMU-FM.