This eclectic show begins with a survey of new improvised tracks by Gordon Grdina, Christian Lillinger, Satoko Fujii and Adam Rudolph. The Ekmeles vocal ensemble with James Weeks revisits Italian madrigals using 31-tone equal temperament, while Osnat Netzer revisits Beckett. Ches Smith arranges a meeting of minds between disco, hip-hop and Beethoven string quartets, while Sam Rivers tackles atonal bebop with a big band.
We interview Anahita Abbasi about a solo piece she wrote for harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani. And a cherishingly selected closing set offers chill music by the late Phill Niblock (featuring what may be his most beautiful drone ever, created just months before his death), Éliane Radigue (a work that she premiered at Niblock’s loft half a century ago), Rhys Chatham (a 2014 duet with Z'EV that’s just gotten its premiere release) and Ewa Trębacz (a fixed-media piece that straddles the worlds of dark ambient and acousmatic music).
