When the words “experiment” and “music” are used together I usually know what to expect. An experiment is just that, an attempt at something in which the actual results are not totally known. It may be interesting, even groundbreaking, or it may be a failure. Australian avant-garde violinist Jon Rose loves to experiment. His album Fringe Benefits is a two disc, 29 tracks collection of experiments from 1977 to 1988 ranging from brilliant to “WTF!”. Fortunately for the listener, very few of these tracks can be called boring.

The tracks tend to fall into not-so-well-defined areas. Many of them are played on prepared instruments such as a 19 stringed violin or complex installations involving violins and other apparatus. Others can be loosely called field recordings but are essentially duets with nature. A couple of the more interesting are “Cattle Train and Violin” or “Fly trapped in violin”. I was especially amused with “Chinese 1:4 violin with 50 feeding parrots”. Some tracks are more conventional, as if that word can be used regarding the eccentricities of this artist. One cut, “The Relative Band 1984″ involves Rose’s continuing collaboration with other like minded improvising musicians. The string trio might actually be considered a conventional composition at least by post-classical standards. Finally I enjoyed Rose’s rendition of Ellington’s “Sophisticated Lady” reminding me of the tongue-in-cheek “America Drinks and Goes Home” by Frank Zappa. Rose shows some good jazz chops but Ray Nance and Stuff Smith need not be worried. Overall, this large collection will bewilder some and dismay others but hopefully some will be fascinated by the wide range of ideas that are explored in this avant-garde retrospective.

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The lute is not exactly the first instrument I think of when someone says “avant-garde” or “contemporary music”. Yet Jozef Van Wissem uses his lute virtuosity to create exactly that. His compositions are clearly minimalist with the use of musical palindromes or mirror structures rather than precise compositional forms. Hearing a Jozef van Wissem compositions is a hypnotic trip down a rabbit hole. I think it is safe to say that most people have never heard the Renaissance minded lute in such a modern yet beautiful way.

A Priori is freely available through Ubuweb and is an excellent introduction to the the composer and lute virtuoso’s odd and quiet world. Very accessible yet very meditative, these tracks lulls you into a calm. Yet this is not casual listening but the kind that pulls you into the structure and gives rewards with every listen. While Van Wissem does work with electronics on some albums this is a pure acoustic effort and, in my opinion, the best way to experience his music.

The album is available in 192kbps MP3. If you enjoy the music, support the artist by buying his CDs.

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At slightly more than 10 minutes, this recorded performance by soprano Jody Pou is shorter than I usually allow for posting. However, the song cycle Lettres a des amies-enfants is an extraordinary piece of music. The music is composed by Igor Ballereau and is based on letters to young girls by British writer Lewis Carroll who is best known for Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The five songs are arranged for voice, flute, clarinet, violin, viola and cello. They are post-modern miniatures that exude a delicate balance between innocence, love and melancholy.

The work is available through the permission of Ballereau and Pou from The Free Music Archive. It is in 256kbps MP3 format.

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Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Aus den Sieben Tagen is a large composition of fifteen pieces. Rarely played, it asks the performers to improvise under rigid written direction from the composer. Supposedly the direction for the last section reads “Play, you do not need me anymore, everything you will do from now on will be right and good.” It is music that Stockhausen described as being from the performer’s intuition rather than his intellect. Certainly, it is an unusual piece even from a seminal 20th century composer who remained ahead of his time.

Le Car de Thon is a large contemporary music ensemble from Switzerland and is exactly the type of artists that would take on a monumental work like this. They have been playing and recording the fifteen pieces for quite a while and collected their four favorite performances, mostly from a concert in 2008, on this free and legal album Nos Meillurs Stockhausen from the Insubordination netlabel. I listened to this album from beginning to end in one sitting and to say it is mind altering is an understatement. It is truly a masterpiece of contemporary music and my only regret is that the do not have the other eleven pieces of music from this work to listen to. This is one of the best online albums of contemporary music on the internet.

The album is available in 320kbps MP3.

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Iranian-American composer and instrumentalist Dariush Dolat-shahi is adept at both contemporary electronic music and traditional Persian music. He is also a master at the tar and setar, which are Persian stringed instruments related to the lute. His five compositions on the album Electronic Music, Tar and Setar, released in 1985 and now offered as a free download from Ubuweb, is a fascinating amalgamation of both the contemporary and the traditional. The pieces are surprisingly percussive and somewhat minimalist yet has a strong folk influence that will appeal to many. I especially recommend a listen to “Sama” which I think brings the contemporary and traditional together in a most appealing way. Those interested in the setar can hear an exceptional performance of the instrument on “Shabistan”. This is an interesting album that will appeal to those who wish to widen their listening experience.

Another album titled Otashgah is available. It was released in 1986 and is a more modern work with little sign of the traditional. It appears by my ears to be written for an ensemble that include some acoustic instruments but is primarily electronic. It is an atmospheric piece that easily keeps your interest for its 35 minutes. Both albums offer a look at the two sides of an unique instrumentalist and composer deserving of more attention.

Both albums are available in 192kbps MP3.

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While I enjoy exposing the unwitting public to experimental music, I occasionally get strange e-mail that basically states “”WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!?”. I understand that music created solely from rubber bands or chaos may not be some people’s idea of the perfect concert. However I often find this extreme music quite intellectually challenging and even entertaining. Experimental music opens the ears and minds.

I said all that just to say this. Not all experimental music need to “hurt the ears” as one perplexed person stated, or even challenge your limits. Take the Italian music collective Zero Gravity Toilet as an example. ZGT is certainly experimenting but their sound is quite melodic and easy on the ears. It also is flooded with imaginative ideas, odd time signatures and other things that tells you this is no ordinary band. The three “Toilet Jams” (I’m sure the pun was intended) are the best examples of this casual improvisatory journey. Actually I’m not really sure how much is improvised and how much is structured which I consider a compliment for this type of music. This is not easily classifiable music borrowing from rock, jazz, and even the avant-garde (see Toilet Jam #3) yet there are very few “fillers” and very little waste (pun is intended). “Morning Comes” is the track that I tend to play over and over. If there is any minor complaint it is that I find some of the playing and especially the vocals a bit tentative at moments but this may just attest to the exploratory style. Overall the musicianship is strong and creative.

Antidotes for imaginary Friends is available from Jamendo in VBR MP3 format.

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Composer Inna Breeze’s composition titled Stairway To Heaven is unusual in that it is one of the very few, if not the only, symphonic work to be released on an internet record label. The symphonic poem, which has no connection to the Led Zeppelin song, was performed in 2008 at the Moscow Composers Centre by The Russian Philharmonia Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sergey Kondrashev. The soloist on pipe organ is Tatyana Karamysheva. It is a lush work that should please all ears. Inna Astakhova aka Inna Breeze, unlike many modern composers, has eschewed cacophony for “beautiful melody, positive mood and lack of internal conflicts”. Her focus appears to be in awakening the soul of the listener. In this sense, her music could be called new age. Whatever it is classified the artist has a distinct talent in orchestration and a knack for creating a sense of spirituality out of an array of sounds. This is an interesting and beautiful composition.

Stairway to Heaven is available from the Top-40 net label in 160kbps MP3.

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Guitarist John Ellis appears to have been around a while having recorded with name artists like Peter Gabriel and The Stranglers. Yet this 23 minutes of instrumental solo compositions has a sound that doesn’t sound much like rock or punk. Ellis calls it a “Car crash of guitar and electronic” yet it is more like rush hour on the L.A. interchange. There is a sense of urgency and tension in most of these tracks that does not let up but the melodies are well executed. “Stuttergun” has an interesting mixture of disco and post-punk. “Pedalo” is a parade of musical desperation that threatens to fall apart but never does. All the tracks, except for the carousel sounding “Fall Down Screaming”, has a lot of this tension. However it is made palatable by distinct melodies and clever arrangements. This is a worthwhile listen for those who like tight but different instrumental music.

Map of Limbo is available from Clinical Archives in 320kbps MP3.

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American poet and composer Jackson Mac Low is best know for his readings that incorporated systematic chance operations and random elements, a method uninfluenced by musicians like John Cage. He often collaborated with colleague and partner Anne Tardos. These three albums, all offered by Ubu and posted with permission from Tardos and the Mac Low estate, give a fascinating perspective on his life work.

Doings is a good place to start. The performance pieces on this album falls into three categories; spoken works, instrumental works, and compositions that involve both voice and instruments. The opening excerpt from “Merxmix 2000″ is a nice introduction to the artist’s use of fragmented speech. It is followed by a short but pleasant flute quartet. The album offers both Mac Low’s solo compositions and those performed in collaboration with Anne Tardos. The artists’ spoken works are certainly odd. They are often electronically altered and have a “word association” quality. “Free Gatha 1 and Free gatha 2″ is a nice example of Mac Low and Tardos performing together.

Music by Jackson Mac Low and Anne Tardos is a live performance from November of 1999. Besides the voices of Mac Low and Tardos, the performance features Andrew Bolotowsky on flutes, soprano Mary Hurlbut, and Violinist Theresa Salomon. There are three collaborative works by the composers and one solo composition by Tardos. These are long pieces with the shortest one being slightly over ten minutes. It makes for involved and fascinating listening. This album also gives you a good look at Anne Tardos’ talent especially on her piece “Three Cycles”.

Finally, Open Secrets has some repeat tracks from Doings but over-all it is a better perspective of the composer’s output. Again Tardos plays a significant role and the tracks are fairly evenly divided among multi-track vocal pieces and instrumental chamber works. I especially like “Lucas i to 29″ and “Wind/Instruments”. Jackson Mac Low and Anne Tardos are new artists to me but these three album makes a good case for viewing these experimental musicians as important to the contemporary music scene in the last part of the 20st century.

The three albums are available in 128kbps MP3. if you enjoy the music and poetry, you might want to check out the books and CDs that are available to purchase from the estate’s web site.

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Doings: Assorted Performances Pieces
Open Secrets
Music by Jackson Mac Low and Anne Tardos

The Voices of Paul Bowles is a very unusual entry in the Tellus audio-cassette series of the 1980s. Born in 1910, Paul Bowles was an American composer and author. He composed film scores and incidental music until the age of 40, then redirected his rather prodigious talent to writing innovative fiction until his death in 1999. I have loved Bowles’ short fiction for quite a while but did not realize he was also a composer. This 56 minutes album of stories written and narrated by the author, plus brief examples of his musical compositions, is the perfect introduction to this important literary figure. I especially recommend listening to the short story “Allal” which, like much of his work, is an eerie psychological allegory. There are two brief instrumental compositions by Bowles. The other musical tracks are field recordings of Moroccan musicians collected by Bowles in 1959. This audio project for Tellus is one the best in the series and is clearly a labor of love.

The album is available in 192kbps MP3.

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One of the most delightful aspects of running this blog is finding out about under-rated composers that would never enter my radar if not for a few individuals who champion their cause. In the past two years I’ve featured reviews of web sites that introduced such talented but over-looked 20th century composers like E. J. Moran and Alexander L. Lokshin. Another name to add to this list is Robert Linn, an American composer who taught at the University of Southern California and created a significant body of work that, in my opinion, stands up to the best in American contemporary music.

I find his works to be in the American tradition of Ives and Barber. It is usually tonal but not afraid at times to press the limit. Most will find this music to be on the conservative side for later 20th century music. Some of his music is witty and fun like the “Antipasto for Clarinet and Violin”and the Baroque pastishe “Interventions for Oboe, Violin, Viola, and Cello”. In fact , he seems to have a strong liking for Baroque and medieval music which influences many of these pieces. Full-bodied “serious” orchestral works also abound in his concertos and “Sinfonia for String Orchestra” . Fifteen CDs, which represent the totality of his output, are available for purchase at his web site but they are also available as free and legal mp3 downloads. The fifteen albums are sorted by types of compositions and titled as such:

Chamber Music, String Instruments

Chamber Music, Wind Instruments (3 CDs)

Chamber Music, Winds and Strings Together (3 CDs)

Music for Solo Piano / Film Score

Vocal Music (2 CDs)

Orchestral Music (3 CDs)

Symphonic Winds (2 CDs)

I am partial to the chamber music albums but that just reflects my bias for small intimate ensembles. It is good to see so much music available from an obscure but immensely talented composer and I appreciate the care and attention that his friends and relatives has taken to see that he is not forgotten.

The albums are available in VBR MP3 at less than 128kbps MP3. Of course, I would have preferred a higher bitrate but this is one of those times you should not let that deter you from this fascinating music. If you like the music, you can purchase the higher quality sound CDs individually or as a set.

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Russian keyboardist and composer Anton Batagov is clearly influenced by the minimalist school of post-modern music but he has a highly individual style that borrows from several genres. His album Passionate Desire To Be an Angel has been released as a free and legal online album by the Electrosound net label and has four tracks of intense and emotional music. All of the four compositions are impressive but the first two, “Can You Feel The Rhythm?” and “Conjunctio” are simpl;y stunning. “Rhythm” start with electric guitarist Theophrastus belting out a punk riff that is soon overlapped by Batagov’s ascending piano lines. By the time trombone,. vibraharp and a soulful vocal emerges you have a mesmerizing mixture of modern classical, rock and soul. “Conjunctio” is a 28 minutes piano and organ piece that is very reminiscent of Terry Riley’s keyboard work and, like Riley, is influenced by Buddhist chants and philosophy. The other two tracks are also exceptional works of post-modern minimalism. “Opus Alchymicum” has a somewhat grand melody in which Batagov’s treatment teeters between Phillip Glass and Vangelis. I don’t know why but every time I hear it I think “Chariots of Fire”. “Umbra Solis” has spiritual overtones in its use of organ and chorale. Throughout the album guitarist Theophrastus and vibraphonist Peteris Shuniatis add excellent assistance. This is an unique and inspiring album.

Passionate Desire To Be an Angel is available in 320kbps MP3

No longer available

Joseph Nechvatel is a digital artist who creates computer-assisted paintings that are often formulated from specially designed computer viruses. You can view a number of his visual works on his web site. He also occasionally delves into the audio realm using a similar process. Ubuweb, with the permission of the artist, has two of his audio works freely available; Viral SymphOny and Murmuring tOngue Of Ovidwhich is described as the “second movement” of the viral symphony.

Viral SymphOny like “Ovid” is derived from the custom-made viruses that he uses to create his paintings. Mathew Underwood and Andrew Deutsch reworked and reprocessed these viruses to create these sound sculptures. Murmuring tOngue Of Ovid is derived from source materials of a 1985 reading of Ovid’s poem Metamorphosis by Jane Smith. Frankly, the entire process eludes my understanding so I am left with simply hearing the final results which is a haunting and mesmerizing collection of sounds weaving in and out of themselves. How much is random and how much is controlled is uncertain but the works do have a distinctly structured sound to it. These are audio compositions that lend themselves to attentive listening in a quiet environment so you can relish all the subtleties and nuances.

The two pieces are available in 160kbps MP3. If you enjoy the music, support the artist by buying the CD with an extra 50 minutes of audio and field recordings at CDeMusic.

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Tellus was a bimonthly audiocassette “magazine” devoted to promoting new and experimental music. It was published from 1983 to 1992 and featured many of the most innovative artists in music, spoken word, and performance arts. Ubuweb has almost all 27 issues available as free downloads. Much of this music has rarely been heard while some tracks have been accepted as seminal works in this post-modern era. I will be featuring many of these albums through the year and I will start with the first two issues of this important “publication”.

Tellus 1, as with the second issue, spotlights artists and musicians from the New York area. For an album that promotes the avant-garde, the music is surprisingly diverse. It starts with a funky soul-jazz number by no-wave guitarist Jody Harris. However it isn’t too long before Sonic Youth shows their more extreme side on the live “Scream” while contemporaries Live Skull and Rat-at-Rat-R play a more typical version of Noise Rock. Brenda Hutchinson contributes a classic work of vocal manipulation in “Wordplay”. Joseph Nechvatal represents the state-of-the arts in the 80s electronic music scene with “Ego Masher” and Rhys Chatham, a regular contributor to this series, plays minimalist guitar music on “Guitar Trio” which is reminiscent of the work of Glenn Branca who can also be heard on this track. The other works are quite interesting if not always successful.

Tellus 2 continues this look at the music scene in New York of the 1980s. The Scene is Now’s “Bugged Out, Wigged Out” may be your only chance to hear avant-garde jug band music. Tony Papa’s “Water Works” is a clever and amusing mixture of moisture and melody. Spoken word is well represented by Mitch Corber’s “Budge, Budge, Budge The Budget” and Cardboard Air band’s “Little Rabbit”. Other favorites include David Garlans “No More Misty Night”, the hip hopish “2-4-7-9-11″ by John Fekner, and Dr. Telecom’s electro-funk “Phone is My Clone”. The rest of the tracks range from entertaining to incomphrensible.

The albums are available in separate tracks at 192 MP3. If you like these two issues of Tellus, make sure you check out the rest.

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Tellus 1
Tellus 2

The Australian chamber group Topology plays post-modern music at crisp tempos and with a contemporary twist that should surprise those who think modern classical music is difficult and elitist. The five person ensemble displays impeccable musicianship in their mildly unusual array of strings, piano, and saxophone.The works on the excellent album, Perpetual Motion Machine are witty, fun and immensely listenable. The music is what is conventionally, if sometimes erroneously, called Minimalist and there is a good sampling of Australian, American and British composers. For me,the most delightful work is Michael Nyman’s four part “And Do They Do”, a lyrically soaring masterpiece that kept me enthralled throughout. Phillip Glass and John Adams are represented by two excerpts from their operas, Nixon in China and Einstein on The Beach respectively. The Adams aria is especially gorgeous. Saxophonist and Topology member John Babbage’s tangoish “Millennium Bug” is a gem. “McLibel 1″ and “McLibel 2″ by Australian composer Robert Davidson, who also is the bassist for Topology, is a rich socially conscious mixture of minimalist composition and spoken word. John Rodgers’ “Viv’s Bum Dance” and the most avant-garde sounding work on the album, “Variations in a Serious Black Dress” by Elena Kats-Chernin, rounds out this exceptional free and legal online album.

Perpetual Motion Machine is available from Jamendo in VBR MP3. If you enjoy the music, be sure to support the artists by buying their CDs and DVDs.

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British composer and improviser Martin Archer presents an 80 minute performance from Krakow courtesy of the AudioTong net label. Armed with electronics, a barrage of sound loops and a sopranino saxophone, he explores every aspect of the avant-garde with ease and imagination. While utilizing drones, samples, and the usual array of tricks, this is no minimalist chill-out. Archer challenges the listener but is able to keep us interested through his wit, creativity and complexity. He starts with a looped statement, “All wars are lost” that seems to be not so much a political statement as a personal one. By the time he is finished, he has transversed industrial sounds, avant garde jazz, Celtic music, and much more. I especially enjoy his ability on the sopranino sax which makes me wonder if he have been influenced at all by the late great British saxophonist Elton Dean. This is an album that is best listened to in its entirely but if you want a track that brings the artist’s talents together, try “CC Loop”. This is a performance that never sits still and will endlessly fascinate.

The album is available in 192kbps Mp3. If you enjoy the music support the artist by buying his CDs

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Kosta Vomvolos is a Greek composer of primarily theater music. From his discography on his web site plus the free albums he has on Jamendo, it appears that he is quite prolific. His influences are ancient and traditional Greek music, classical, jazz and electronic. The nine albums I’ve chosen give a good retrospective of this eclectic composer.

Doxombus may be a good place to start. Written as a soundtrack for the film of the same name directed by Fotos Lambrinos, it relies heavily on Greek folk music and traditional instruments, yet strings play important roles in such tracks as “The Lake” and “Tension”. A four note descending phrase acts as the theme uniting these pieces. This is an interesting example of atmospheric movie music.

A number of his albums are written to accompany ancient Greek drama. Not surprisingly, ancient Greek music is a major influence in these works. Hecuba: Music for Euripides’ Tragedy features a chorus of 16 actresses accompanied by lute, double-bass and drums. The lack of the visual and a translation hinders a full understanding of the work but the interplay between the instruments and monotonic chanting is still quite interesting. Sophocles’ Tragedy: Women From Trachis is much better. Vocalist Elsa Mouratidou and 20 actresses are accompanied by cello, violin, electric guitar and drums in a beautiful theater piece. It is a nice blend of ancient, folk and modern. Euripides ION Actors Touring Company-London is the last of the three works written for ancient Greek drama and it’s my favorite. It is an exotic instrumental piece that works well on its own. Vomvolos has a knack for blending the traditional with the experimental.

Two albums represent music written to accompany later dramas. The Deer’s Curse is a Kurdish tale presented with 30 actors who sing, chant, whisper the traditional story. Again, it is interesting but probably harmed by the fact we get only the aural experience. Kandalis’ Wife fares much better. This is an instrumental work with strong traditional influences. Alternately meditative and percussive, it hold up the best of the previously mentioned albums as a separate composition.

Fake Nightmare is a total different kind of theater music. Written for the National Theater of Northern Greece, this is very modern using elements of jazz, rock, electronic music, European cabaret and, of course, Greek folk music to make a dense and complex musical tapestry. Like the other theater works it still has a mostly dark mood. This is a piece that holds well on its own with “Saturday” and “Funky Finally” being especially compelling.

On My Birthday I Caught a Train to Thessaloniki is a dance piece. It starts out on accordion like a minimalist Reich composition but then moves into rock, jazz and at times an industrial sound. I can’t quite see this as a dance piece but it certainly kept me interested.

Finally, Vomvolos presents a short string quartet of 15 minutes duration titled …And Juliet. As Vomvolos’ other albums tend to be sonorous and dramatic, …And Juliet is light and breezy. The six piece suite is quite classical in feeling but it makes use of a tango in the second track while “Right Walk” has a jazz melody over a striding bass line. This may be the most pleasing and accessible of the albums but all nine will give you a different and worthwhile musical experience.

All nine albums are available in VBR MP3 with an average bitrate of 192kbps MP3. If you enjoy the music, support the artist by buying his CDs.

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…And Juliet: String Quartet
Deer’s Curse
Doxombus
Fake nightmare
Hecuba: Music For Euripides’ Tradegy
Euripes ION Actors Touring Company: London
Kandavlis’ Wife
On My Birthday I Caught a Train To Thessaloniki
Sophocles Tragedy: Women From Trachis

Group 180 was an Hungarian modern classical chamber group. Two of their albums were released in 1980 and 1985 in vinyl LP and are not only out of print but, as far as I can tell, never released on CD. Again Ubuweb comes through by making these two albums available on-line. This is excellent modern music well worth the listen.

The first self-titled album has five works. The first three are clearly in the minimalist tradition. Tibor Szemzo’s “Water-Wonder” starts out with a single repeated note on a single instrument like a water drop. A flute enters and the piece slowly builds up momentum. What Steve Reich’s “Music for Pieces of Wood” lacks in tonality makes up in rhythm. Laszlo Melis’s “Etude for Three Mirrors” may be minimalist but the interplay between piano and woodwinds is quite intense. The last two works are by Fredric Rzewski and they are my favorite of the set. “Coming Together” and “Attica” not only shows the composer’s brilliancy in composition but represent his socio-political influences.

Group 180 II is from 1985 and exhibits the same good taste in modern compositional works. There are two pieces by Steven Reich, “Piano Phase” and “Octet”. Compositions by András Soós and Bela Farago make up the rest of the album. It should be note that, with the exception of Rzewski and Reich, the composers are all members of Group 180. It is again a well played set and one that fans of modern music will treasure.

Unfortunately the albums are available in only 80kbps MP3. There are also quite a few scratches and snaps from these vinyl recordings. Still, I find the sound quite acceptable and urge you check these out in light of their historical significance, their rarity, and the quality of performance.

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German composer Aribert Reimann’s Requiem is a odd but moving work. The orchestra in this work contains no violins. Violas, cellos and double-basses are prominent adding a dark dimension to this already brooding work. Requiems are usually liturgical and even when serious and foreboding, generally spiritually uplifting. This requiem is downright depressing. However that doesn’t distract from the fact that Reimann has written a powerful composition. Reimann is one of the few modern composers that writes almost exclusively for the large orchestra and is also known for his chorales and operas. Listen to the exquisite arrangement and the interactions between the solo vocalists as you listen to this long but involving work.

This particular performance of Reimann’s requiem was recorded in 1983 by the Radio Symphony Orchestra of Berlin with solo vocals from Julia Varady, Helga Dernesch, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, who sang the title role in Reimann’s opera Lear, his most famous work.

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FLAC files
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Born in 1952, Wolfgang Rihm is one of the more important post-war German composer and remains a popular avant garde figure in music. However his earlier music is most associated to the earlier Expressionist movement with strong influences by such giants as Schoenberg and Mahler.

Jacob Lenz is an early opera, his second, and is written for chamber orchestra, voices, and chorus. It is based on the life of 18th century author Jacob Lenz who was a contemporary of Goethe and a writer of the Sturm and Drang period. Lenz suffered a nervous breakdown in 1777 and this stage of his life is the focus of the opera. The sound of this work is at the least, tumultuous. It is a composition that is as disturbing as it is beautiful. The voice of Lenz is sung by baritone Richard Salter. More information and extensive liner notes in German and English are available from the download page for the FLAC files.

The work is available in FLAC and MP3 files. The MP3 files are in the bitrate of 192kbps. FLAC files have a superior sound but be aware that they are huge and your music software may not be able to play them.

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FLAC files
MP3 files

While most of Bob Ostertag’s music is already freely available under a common creative license, his 2007 release marks a new milestone. wOOt is his first recording to go directly to free internet download rather than initially on a CD . The distinction is fitting as the composer created this 50 minute work by using only samples from 18 computer video games including Legend of Zelda, Myst, and World of Warcraft. The fragments are cut, pasted, looped, mashed, overlapped…pretty much everything is done to them that is possible except to bake them at 350 degrees in the oven. The piece starts with a single theme which evolves into a virtual fugue of video game sounds. From that point the work changes constantly making it an aural roller coaster ride. Ostertag’s best works, such as Sooner or Later or All The Rage have strong personal and socio-political themes. wOOt appears to have no purpose but to dazzle you with what can be done with a few primitive sound samples. While not the best of Ostertag’s creations, it is still a very witty and entertaining 50 minutes of music.

The album is available in 160kbps MP3. If you enjoy the music, support the artist by buying his CDs.

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As described by WM Recordings…

A Simple Process is a collection of 6 compositions, each of which is based around a simple melodic fragment. These fragments are then altered by various processes (i.e. adding notes, transposing, shifting the beat placement). The compositions end when the process has run its course.

Thus goes the third online album by one of my favorite ambient / post-modern ensembles. Unlike their first and second albums, the conceptual frame of A Simple Process forces less variety of sound and mood. But that’s the charm of these particular compositions. The musicians take brief melodies and make an extended exploration of its possibilities, all the time being mindful of giving the listener a beautiful and perhaps mind altering experience. Listen to this album in quiet or with earphones to give the full experience.

The album is available in 128kbps MP3. I didn’t see any possibility of buying the CD which is unfortunate as this is a recording I would definitely want in higher quality sound.

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The liner notes by Bob Ostertag for his 1991 composition All The Rage begins like this…

All the Rage was developed from a recording I made of a riot in San Francisco in October 1991, which followed California Governor Pete Wilson’s veto of a bill designed to protect gays and lesbians from discrimination.

This work is only 16 minutes long but it may be the most intense 16 minutes you will find in music. The samples, which include spoken word, shouting, whistles, and breaking glass, are selected, looped and manipulated to shape a structured composition while the Kronos Quartet plays often rough and jagged lines, often in unison to the narration and sounds, creating an angry but powerful work of art. Like Ostertag’s best works (see Sooner or Later) it is both a socio-political statement and a personal statement.

The album is available in 192kbps MP3. As reported before, Mr. Ostertag has made practically his entire output available free under a creative commons license. Make sure you also check out his other albums as I think Ostertag is one of the most original American composers actively working. And of course, if you enjoy the music support the artist by purchasing the CDs in higher quality sound.

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One of the most interesting music sites on the internet is The Avant Garde Project (AGP). The project is an attempt to make available important recordings of post-classical and avant garde works that are no longer in print and would surely be lost to most ears. The site managers take great care to make sure there are no in-print recordings of these compositions available else where. Given the esoteric nature of most of these recordings, this may be one of the few chances you will have to hear these pieces. The composers range from the well-known to the obscure but all are unarguably innovators of modern music.

The AGP archive can be rather unwieldy if you are a beginner to this music so the web managers have provided two Editor’s Choice Samplers to get you started. These are the editor’s favorites and they are hard to disagree with.

Sampler 1 is instrumental music that is live and electronically manipulated. Robert Erickson’s “Night Music” is very beautiful, very melodic, and a excellent place to start for those who think avant-garde music is always dissonant. “Monochrome Sea” is a many colored work by the Japanese percussionist Yasukazu Amemiya. “In Motu Proprio” by Dieter Schnebel features two woodwinds that interacts with long tones and single lines in amazing ways. Finally, Morton Subotnick’s “Descent into Air” is part of The Double Life of Amphibians which is so far my favorite work on the archives.

Sampler 2 is electro-acoustic. For most, this might be seen as the more adventurous album. “ANIMUS III” by Jacob Druckman uses electronics and clarinet. Bernard Parmegiani’s “Ponomatopees II” uses vocal sounds and pop vocals as its source material. It’s an riveting piece. “Musique Douze”, by the Swedish composer Ragnar Grippe is another arresting piece that holds your attention. John Cage’s “Variation II” explores any inch of the piano using microphones and phonograph cartridges to amplify the sound. Finally, Josef Anton Reid’s “Glas-Spiele” is composed for original instruments made of glass.

The AGP offers these tracks in both FLAC and MP3 files. FLAC files have the higher quality sound but they are very large and your music software may not be able to play them. If you enjoy the music, check out the other offerings on the web site. Hopefully you will want to continue to explore the works of these great modern composers.

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Contemporary Chinese Experimental Music offers some truly unique sounds,. This Ubuweb compilation features ten avant garde compositions from 1997 to 2007 by Chinese composers. Unfortunately there are no liner notes for either the works or the artist. This is a mixed blessing. I would liked to have known about the composers, their compositions and how these pieces were created. especially Dajuin Yao’s oscillating wonder of an opening track. But it also forces me to open my ears and discover the music cold.

There is some very interesting listening here. I already mentioned Yao’s “Satisfaction of Oscillation” that sweeps you along with its twists and turns. I’m not sure why but I find Xu Chang’s electronic burps between moments of silence quite amusing. My award for funniest track goes Feng Hao’s brief intestinal delight “Pleasure”. I find Ronez’s “Fan #2″ pleasantly disturbing while Hitlike’s radio samplings is a bit too derivative of John Cage’s compositions for radio. The other tracks vary in quality but all will open your mind to new territories for modern music.

All tracks are available in 192kbps MP3.

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