Flotation Device bids farewell to Ralph Towner with a retrospective of his career as composer, classical guitarist and cofounder of the band Oregon, whose virtuosity and unusual instrumentation (including oboe and Indian tabla instead of sax and trap drums) set them apart from other 70s-vintage modal jazz groups. We also celebrate the 90th birthday of Daniel Goode and the 50th anniversary of Iannis Xenakis’s Gigantomachian ensemble piece Phlegra, while continuing our exploration of Frederic Rzewski’s The Road and introducing ourselves to the polystylistic music of Nicholas Richter de Vroe (with help from violinist Ilya Gringolts). We sample new albums by Chaya Czernowin, Eva Novoa, Gavin Higgins and Rosa Ensemble, while Horse Lords goes microtonal and Unexplained Sounds releases their latest collection of global avant-electronica. The Crossing's new anthology of Song of Songs-inspired vocal works by David Lang rounds out the program.
