New Sounds from WNYC

Listen to rhythmic music, whether for percussion, string quartet or vocal duet for this New Sounds. Hear works from percussionist Ian David Rosenbaum, Kelly Moran, and the Jasper String Quartet, and a vocal duet from Meredith Monk and Robert Een. From the recent record, Unbound, by the Jasper String Quartet, hear a non-stop motoring work by Judd Greenstein, “Four on the Floor.” Usually the term applies to thumping dance-club bangers, but in this work, pairs of instruments work “with and against each other, until they settle their differences and combine into a shared groove,” according to the composer. Hear music with rhythmic intensity, for prepared piano, with and without electronics from Kelly Moran, and her record, Bloodroot, which is where minimalism and black metal collide. Then, listen to music from Hauschka, who layers player piano with prepared piano. Also, listen to Inuit-style breathing games from Meredith Monk and cellist/vocalist Robert Een, from her long-form work, "Facing North," inspired by the Canadian wilderness. Then, listen to increasingly tricky and complex rhythms in a work by David Crowell for percussionist Ian David Rosenbaum. Plus, hear a work –"Redwood"- involving saxophone and interlocking guitar parts from Empyrean Atlas, the band of composer/multi-instrumentalist David Crowell. And more.

Hear music that begins with classical instruments, like the string quartet, piano, or an orchestra, but which is then augmented, enhanced by electronics, percussion, or preparation. Listen to works by English violinist, pianist, and composer Poppy Ackroyd, Netherlands-based composer Peter Adriaansz, and cinematic music from the augmented string quartet amiina.

“Indian music does not stop and start with Ravi Shankar.” So says tabla master Zakir Hussain, who, along with young sitar virtuoso, Niladri Kumar, joins John in the studio for a live performance. Niladri Kumar and Zakir Hussain perform a radio-friendly (short) Raga Charukeshi, for Rupak Tal (a seven beat rhythmic cycle) and Raga Bhairavi in Teental (16 beats.)

This episode continues the series exploring the new music of Ireland. John Schaefer sits down with Jonathan Nangle at the Contemporary Music Centre in Dublin. Nangle tells how Donnacha Dennehy influenced him to explore more experimental music, and then shares how electronics and silence factor into his compositions. Listen to how Nangle uses electronics to subtly augment conventional instrumentation on "Where distant city lights flicker on half-frozen ponds". Hear Nangle explain how his piece "Then Falls by Shadow" takes the inspiration of Irish weather to combine shuffle mode with a choral performance. Later in the hour, John Schaefer talks to David Bremner about his own compositions and playing the pipe organ at Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin. Hear Bremner's piercing organ compositions "Variations upon 'the usual reason'" and "Amhrán na Leabhar." PROGRAM #3715 New Music from Ireland: Part 3 (First aired on 4/17/2015) ARTIST(S) RECORDING CUT(S) SOURCE Kate Ellis Jump Donnacha Dennehy: Aisling Gheal [2:09] Diatribe Records Jonathan Nangle Self-released DIY Aeolian Harp [:39] Soundcloud Jonathan Nangle new music::new Ireland 2 Where distant city lights flicker on half-frozen ponds [excerpt 1] [2:14] CMC Ireland Jonathan Nangle new music::new Ireland 2 Where distant city lights flicker on half-frozen ponds [excerpt 2] [4:47] See Above Ergodos Musicians I Call To You Jonathan Nangle: Ich ruf' zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ [2:22] Ergodos Records Jonathan Nangle Commissioned for Dublin SoundLab untitled (after Dan Flavin) [1:42] Soundcloud Jonathan Nangle Commisioned by David Bremner and Elizabeth Hilliard Then Falls thy Shadow [:51] Soundcloud Jonathan Nangle Contermporaty Music from Ireland, Volume Nine Our headlights blew softly into the black illuminating very little [5:21] CMC Ireland – CMC CD09 Contemporary Music Centre Jonathan Nangle & David Bremner Ergodos 2009 'Off-Grid' Festival Untitled improvisation [1:25] Soundcloud David Bremner Contemporary Music from Ireland, Volume 2 Variations upon ‘the usual reason’ [4:40] CMC Ireland David Bremner L’Air Du Temps Amhrán na Leabhar [2:49] Soundcloud

Composer, keyboardist and bandleader, Missy Mazzoli, joins John Schaefer to introduce selections from her new recording, “Vespers for a New Dark Age.” The work, commissioned by Carnegie Hall for the 2014 Ecstatic Music Festival, is a 30-minute suite for singers, chamber ensemble and electronics, and is built around text, both spiritual and worldly, by contemporary poet Matthew Zapruder. Mazzoli wrote for the very specific voices of sopranos Martha Cluver, Melissa Hughes and alto Virginia Warnken Kelsey, who all have a lot of experience with contemporary music but also early and Baroque music. Her ensemble Victoire provides dramatic settings while drummer Glenn Kotche (perhaps best known for his work in Wilco) propels the work percussively. Plus, hear selections from Phil Kline’s millennial mass “John the Revelator,” written for the early/new music vocal group Lionheart and the quartet ETHEL.

Hear unusual music for string quartet on this program, as Australian composer Andrew Byrne, now based in New York, uses the string quartet as a percussion instrument in his work called “Striking.” Then, listen to Bang on a Can All-Star saxman, clarinetist and composer Ken Thomson’s work for the JACK Quartet, “THAW.” There’s also folk-informed music from the singer, songwriter and composer Aoife O Donovan as played by Brooklyn Rider. Hear string quartet music by multi-instrumentalist composer Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ, who plays a traditional Vietnamese string instrument on “Green River Delta,” in collaboration with Kronos Quartet. Plus, hear a work from Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Luther Adams that uses the string quartet as an ambient music ensemble, relying upon harmonics and on tones played on open strings. That, and more. PROGRAM #3686 Music for String Quartet (First aired on 1/21/2015) ARTIST(S) RECORDING CUT(S) SOURCE Ken Thomson (JACK quartet) THAW Thaw, excerpt [1:41] Cantaloupe Records 21095 bangonacan.org Members of Either/Or Ensemble Striking; Whispers and Cries Andrew Byrne: Striking Parts 1 & 2 [7:32] Available for purchase directly through composer here: andrewbyrne.com JACK Quartet John Luther Adams: The Wind in High Places John Luther Adams: The Wind in High Places - Above Sunset Pass [7:24] Cold Blue Music CBM 41 coldbluemusic.com Ken Thomson (JACK quartet) THAW THAW: Thaw [10:55] Cantaloupe Music 21095 bangonacan.org Brooklyn Rider Almanac Aoife O'Donovan: Show Me [4:56] Mercury Classics / In A Circle Records #002159302 mercuryclassics.com Available at iTunes, Amazon.com, Emusic.com Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ with Kronos Quartet Three-Mountain Pass Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ: Green River Delta/Luu Thuy Truong [4:40] Innova 866 innova.mu Members of Either/Or Ensemble Striking; Whispers and Cries Andrew Byrne: Striking Parts 3 & 4 [8:30] Available for purchase directly through composer here: andrewbyrne.com

Listen to new music for the instrument from Southwestern Norway known as the Hardanger fiddle, (or hardingfele), but of course there’s a twist. For this New Sounds, there’s post-rock, world music, electroacoustic music, and even an Irish-American duet on this Norwegian instrument – with music from Scotland, Ireland, and the U.S. Hear the collaborative recording between Hardanger fiddle master Nils Økland and the post-rock duo The Low Frequency In Stereo, called Lumen Drones – which comes off as a psychedelic drone band. Then, listen to music from the octogenarian bard Robin Williamson (of Incredible String Band reknown), along with violist Mat Maneri and drummer Ches Smith. Then, hear a duo record from Caoimhin O Raghallaigh (of The Gloaming) and Dan Trueman (founder of Princeton Laptop Orchestra), which stretches and recombines the DNA of Norwegian folk and Irish trad fiddling on a 10-stringed instrument, the Hardanger d’Amore. Plus, there’s music from the Hardanger’s likely ancestor, the viola d’amore, by composer/violist Garth Knox, and more. PROGRAM #3676 Hardanger Fiddle Music (First aired on 12/23/2014) ARTIST(S) RECORDING CUT(S) SOURCE Lumen Drones (Nils Okland/Per Steinar Lie/Orjan Haaland) Lumen Drones Dark Sea [3:54] ECM 2434 http://ecmrecords.com Annbjørg Lien Baba Yaga Aja [6:27] North Side #6044 / Grappa Musikkforlag GRCD 4158 annbjorglien.com Robin Williamson w/ Mat Maneri, viola and Ches Smith, drums Trusting In The Rising Light Our Evening Walk [5:40] ECM 2393 ecmrecords.com Lumen Drones (Nils Okland/Per Steinar Lie/Orjan Haaland) Lumen Drones Keelwater [6:15] See above. Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh & Dan Trueman Laghdú fead an iolair [4:02] store.irishmusic.net Carla Kihlstedt Borrowed Arms Hold My Own [5:00] kihlstedtbossi.bandcamp.com Garth Knox D'Amore Malor me bat (2004) [4:54] ECM 1925 ecmrecords.com

Listen to music for two-somes by Xylouris White, Mary Lattimore & Jeff Zeigler, Jeffrey Zeigler (confusingly) & Jason Treuting, Piers Faccini & Vincent Segal, and more.