Avant Forms In Russian Jazz

Sergey Kuryokhin

Composer, pianist Sergey Kuryokhin (1954 - 1996) is perhaps the most emblematic figure of eccentric russian avant-garde in 80's - 90's. Radical, unpredictable artist with extraordinary diverse and free-minded vision on art, he subversed the status of music genres and art species generally. Toured in Europe, America and collaborated with many avant-gardists. Legendary was his (active under various line-ups) band POP MEKHANIKA.

(L toR) Vyacheslav Ganelin, Vladimir Tarasov, Vladimir Chekasin

The Ganelin Trio was one of the first and most well known to the west free-jazz soviet (with lithuanian origins) bands. Paused activities in 1987 when Ganelin moved in Israel. Initial line-up: Vyacheslav Ganelin (piano, keyboards, perc.), Vladimir Tarasov (drums, percussion), Vladimir Chekasin (saxes, clarinet...). Many years later Ganelin revived the trio with new line-ups.

Bassist Vladimir Volkov & trumpeter Vyacheslav Guyvoronsky


AVANT FORMS IN RUSSIAN JAZZ
(Sketches from the avant-chamber-folk-fusion-jazz art in Russia and ex-USSR countries before and after the end of sovietism.)

VLADIMIR TARASOV - monotype III
(from "Atto II: Monotypes", Melodiya, 1986)

THE ROOF -Rix

(from "Golden Years of The Soviet New Jazz vol. 3", LEO Records, 2002)

VOLKOVTRIO (w Arkady Shilkloper) - Bob Hard
(from "Fragments", SoLyd records, 1998)

SIMON NABATOV TRIO - Let's Go Baby
(from "Sneak Preview", hatOLOGY, 2000)

SERGEY KURYOKHIN & KESHAVAN MASLAK - my happiness
(from "Friends Afar", Manchester Files, 1996)

ALEXEI AIGUI & PIERRE BASTIEN - musique de rejouissance
(from "Musique Cyrillique", SoLyd, 2001)

ARKADY SHILKLOPER - tales for Alexandra
(from "Hornology", RDM, 1996)

GANELIN TRIO (Ganelin, Chekasin, Tarasov) - poco 5
(from "Poco-A-Poco", 1978 live, Leo Rec, 1988)

ENSEMBLE 4'33'' & ALEXEI AUGUI - abris
(from "Happiness, Fame & Fortune", SoLyd, 2002)

MISHA ALPERIN'S MOSCOW TRIO - prayer pt2
(from "Prayer", Jaro, 1996)

ASPHALT - quiet song
(from "Golden Years Of The Soviet New Jazz vol.3", Leo Rec, 2002)

GANELIN TRIO (Ganelin, Fonarov, Markovitch) - viii
(from "Eight Reflections Of The Past Century", Auris Media, 2004)

GUYVORONSKY, KONDAKOV, VOLKOV - on the other side of the street
(from "In Search Of A Standart", Leo Rec, 2009)

SERGEY KURYOKHIN - last waltz
(from "Children's Album", 1991)

GANELIN TRIO (Ganelin, Fonarov, Markovitch) - iv
(from "Eight Reflections Of The Past Century", Auris Media, 2004)

compiled by LaFolieDuJour

Avant Russian Jazz
(15 tracks, 71 min)

MAGGIE NICOLS & PETER NU "Nicols 'N' Nu" (UK, 1985)

MAGGIE NICOLS - words, voice
PETER NU - piano

Avant vocalist Maggie Nicols and not so much known improv figure, Peter Nu unfold here a bare and incredibly daring piano-voice exploration, a free-music adventure which, further than any sum of its elements, leads to the inner aspect of the work, revealing regions of the artistic act, usually neglected, sightless.

Recorded in London in 1985, released from Leo Records and reissued later on CD. Still available.

tracklist

01. don't assume (21:40)
02. touching faces (2:50)
03. dynamite dream (3:45)
04. kids (9:40)
05. chad's blues (3:30)
06. after the storm (1:00)
07. i could write (1:30)
08. moments (8:15)
09. one note leads to another (17:40)

MAGGIE NICOLS & PETER NU - Moments

Touching The Vibrating Silence : Sounds from the Hermit Foundation Art Symposiums (CZE, 1993 & 1995)

The Plasy Monastery
(front cover of "The Meridian Crossings" compilation)

Selections from two HERMIT FOUNDATION (art center in Czech Republic) compilations, with czech and international artists working on the basis of improvisation, modern composition and free-form sound. Apart from their innovative orientation, the tracks capture the haunted aura of the spaces of (former) monastery of Plasy (Pilzen), where they' re recorded, during the foundation's second ("GROWTHRINGS", 1993) and fourth ("THE MERIDIAN CROSSINGS", 1995) art symposiums.

01 VLASTIMIL MAREK & ROMAN BRENDA - untitled (singing bowls)

02 TIBOR SZEMZO & MARTIEN GROENEVELD - untitled (flute, xylophone, seamachine) 

03 VOJTECH HAVEL - untitled (cello)

04 MICHAEL DELIA & JAROSLAV KORAN - untitled

05 JAROSLAV STASTNY - untitled (prepared piano)

06 WIEL CONEN - untitled (guitar, electronics) 

07 PAVEL FAJT - untitled (percussions)

08 PETER CUSACK - Bees in the bush (w MICHAEL DELIA on kalimba)

09 IRENA & VOJTECH HAVEL - untitled (viola da gamba) 

10 ORLOJ SNIVCU - Concert for Plasy (performed by J. Koran, M. Sebesta, M. Janicek, M. Koran, S. Austen)

HERMIT FOUNDATION SYMPOSIUMS


selected by LaFolieDuJour

CLUSONE TRIO 1988 - 1998

Cellist ERNST REIJSEGER, clarinetist/saxophonist MICHAEL MOORE and legendary dutch percussionist HAN BENNINK started their collaboration in 1980. After their contributions to BENNINK's famous ICP ORCHESTRA, they formed in 1988 CLUSONE TRIO, touring in many countries and leaving behind some interesting live and studio works.
Apart their own compositions their repertoire included many old jazz standards which were performed by the trio in an unpredictable way ranging from faithfulness and form respect to inventive improvised free ways.
CLUSONE TRIO paused activities in 1998.

The selected tracks of this compilation are from albums: "Clusone 3" (1992, live) "I Am An Indian" (1994, live), "Love Henry"(1997, live), "Rara Avis" (1998).

TRACKS: 01 Hindu wu (1992) - 02 Angelica - 03 Bella Coola - 04 Sonoroso - 05 Salish (1994) - 06 Uninhabited island - 07 Restless in pieces - 08 Love Henry (1997) - 09 Yellow bird - 10 Le cygne - 11 Tico tico no fuba - 12 My bird of Paradise (1998)

CLUSONE TRIO - Baltimore Oriole

CLUSONE TRIO
(51 min, compiled by La Folie Du Jour)

THIRD PERSON "The Bends" (US, 1991)

THIRD PERSON was an improvising trio collaboration between cellist TOM CORA (1953-1998, played with Curlew, Skeleton Crew, Nimal, Roof, Zorn, Frith...), percussionist SAMM BENNETT (Semantics, Bosho, solo works) and a different each time guest musician who, as a "third person", joined the project on stage. Two albums, "THE BENDS" (1991) and "LUCKY WATER" (1994) came out of these performances which took place and recorded live at Knitting Factory.

"Third Persons" were: Catherine Jauniaux (voice on tracks 1, 15), Don Byron (clarinet on 3, 9, 11), Zeena Parkins (harp on 7, 19), George Cartwright (sax on 5, 8, 10), Marc Ribot (guitar on 2, 6, 16, 18), Myra Melford (piano on 12), Nic Collins (electronics on 4, 13, 17), Chris Cochrane (guitar on 14).

Saxophonist Kazutoki Umezu was the third person of "Lucky Water".

Tom Cora (photo by Frank Schindelbeck)

THIRD PERSON - "The Bends"
(19 tracks, approx time 73 min)

AXOLOTL "Out Manoeuvre" (FRA, 1983)

Stepping towards the outer limits of avant prog, french outfit AXOLOTL (no relation with other same named bands) created, in this second - and best - effort, grey, intriguing & disturbing sound spaces where weird vocals, electronics and noises bring the free jazz improvisations somewhere between the unpredictable plot of opposition and the industrial area.

OUT MANOEUVRE ( 69mb)

CASSIBER " Perfect Worlds" (GER, 1986)

Riskant edition vinyl cover

Recommended rec vinyl cover

ReR Megacorp CD edition cover

L to R : CHRISTIAN ANDERS, CHRIS CUTLER, ALFRED HARTH, HEINER GOEBBELS

Four different avant garde personalities with equally important roles in creating methods that allow heterogeneous elements to participate in an open, strongly political form.

PERFECT WORLDS was the third LP. After departure of ALFRED HARTH, CASSIBER worked here as trio.

CASSIBER brought out the polymorph and inconsistent face of things, viewing the culture through the fragmented visions of 20th century intellectualism.

PERFECT WORLDS

CATHERINE JAUNIAUX "Fluvial" (UK,1983)

After TENKO`s "Slope gradual disappearance" another avant-impro-vocal, RIO related masterpiece. CATHERINE JAUNIAUX is, as it is said, an inventor of languages, a mime of sounds real or unreal, a voice giver to creatures of the most wild and weird imagination. From far east theatrical forms to european folk, from improvisation to tango and cabaret, from childish tunes to natural noises, from ancient tragedy to lullabies and frightening breaths..."FLUVIAL" is a field of endless surprises. Co-writen with TIM HODGKINSON, this LP belongs to the great tradition of ART BEARS , HENRY COW, DAGMAR KRAUSE... placing its creator, at least next to legends of the genre.
CATHERINE JAUNIAUX has participated in many projects like AKSAK MABOUL, DES AIRES, THE HAT SHOES a.o....and collaborated with important avant garde artists like IKUE MORI, LOUIS SCLAVIS... She was wife of the cellist TOM CORA.

TIM HODGKINSON - guitar, viola, clarinet, piano, organ, drums, percussion
BILL GILLONIS - guitar
GEORGIE BORN - cello
LINDSAY COOPER - oboe, bassoon, sopranino saxophone
STEPHEN KENT- trumpet
DOMINIC WEEKS - vibraphone, xylophone, percussion
MARIO BOYER - balafon, percussion
CHARLES BULLEN - percussion

FLUVIAL (62mb)

TENKO "Slope Gradual Disappearance" (JAP, 1987)

FRED FRITH (bass-guit-piano-violin-perc-production), ZEENA PARKINS (accordion-harp), ARTO LINDSAY (guit-voc), WAYNE HORVITZ (piano-synth), KRAMER (banjo), TOM CORA (cello), DAVID LICHT (drums), NED ROTHENBERG (flute-sax), CHRISTIAN MARCLAY (turntables), DAVID MOSS (voc) a.o.... a small NY army of pioneering musicians summoned up under "commands" of TENKO, a japanese vocalist who started from traditional, art, japanese origins, to develope through amazing mouth-sound ideas & abilities... a semi-improvised, extreme, yet often familiar world of vocal acrobatics, sharp spoken dialogues, polyphonic antithesis, haunted lullabies, murmuring backgrounds, verbal or non verbal auras and beautiful conventional singing... encountered with 80`s noise experimentations and avant garde.
TENKO had worked with impovisation projects & travelled wide with experimental vocal ensembles, so "Slope gradual disappearance" hasn`t been only an uncompromised avant -passionated debut(!) LP, but also a work of distilled knowledge and experience, rich in multicultural influences and global historical/mythological references.
Don`t avoid a contact with Slope Gradual Disappearance...TENKO will carry you to vocal spaces that would have stayed, without her, empty, unfilled.

SLOPE GRADUAL DISAPPEARANCE (51mb)

ZEENA PARKINS "Something out there" (US, 1987)

Zeena Parkins is an avant garde and improvisation multi-intstrumentalist known from works of NEWS FROM BABEL, SKELETON CREW, NO SAFETY, FRED FRITH, JOHN ZORN, DAVID SHEA, a.o...though she`s got some more publicity working with BJORK in 2001. Acoustic and electric harps, her main instruments, loose commom use in Zeena`s hands, creating a wide spectre of unsual or unheard before sounds. "Something out there", released in 1987 from No Man`s Land german label, is her debut solo LP. Great musicians are by her side: Ikue Mori (drums, electronic drums), Tom Cora (drums, samples), Wayne Horvitz (synth), Jim Menesses (drums), Sam Bennett (drums), Christian Marclay (turntables). As the line up reveals, the album is build on improvised percussion and weird harp sounds. One or two times Zeena approaches "proper" structured compositions but generally album`s concept is closer to a free-form meeting of several, often contrasted sounds.

SOMETHING OUT THERE (56mb)