The Dither Quartet
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Dither, a New York based electric guitar quartet, is dedicated to an eclectic mix of experimental repertoire which spans composed music, improvisation, and electronic manipulation. Formed in 2007, the quartet has performed in the United States and abroad, presenting new commissions, original compositions, multimedia works, and large guitar ensemble pieces. With sounds ranging from clean pop textures to heavily processed noise, from tight rhythmic unity to cacophonous sound mass; all of Dither's music wholeheartedly embraces the beautiful, engulfing, and often gloriously loud sound of electric guitars.
Mike Olson
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The music is a six-part work which encapsulates his new approach to composition. Olson gave every musician a series of verbal and graphic instructions which suggested durations and pitch levels but allowed freedom and elicited diverse reactions. The resultant music is precise but malleable; it warps perception and defies expectation as it conforms to not category, environment or genre while embracing many.
The Skein
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These duets by The Skein - vocalist Jessica Constable and electro-multiinstrumentalist Andrea Parkins - possess a unified sense of form and feeling. Though fully improvised, it is easy to think of these pieces as composed songs: they are at times quite melodic, exemplifying coherent extemporaneous form. And no matter how unpredictable the sonic content, implicit in all of these pieces is the presence of the human cry: the blues.
Lisle Ellis
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Lisle Ellis's homage to Jean-Michel Basquiat translates the work of a visual artist into a musical palette and Ellis does it with great imagination, integrity, and beauty.
Carla Kihlstedt & Satoko Fujii
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In the liner notes Larry Ochs (ROVA Sax Quartet) says "Carla Kihlstedt and Satoko Fujii show us exactly how improvisation can be the strongest tool in the composer's tool box." He's right. Listen.
Gustavo Aguilar
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This brilliant percussionist covers a wide range of music: solo on snare drum, glockenspiel and poetry, his compositions performed by talented and creative ensembles, and a solo guitar track. No holding Aguilar back; he pays no attention to genres, thank heavens
Lisle Ellis, Marco Eneidi & Peter Valsam
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These recordings were made when the trio was on a US tour last year (2004). How they could keep their amazing musical energy while on-the-road is a feat in itself.
Gunda Gottschalk, Peter Jacquemyn & Ute Völker
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We heard these musicians from Germany and Belgium at the WIM Festival in Antwerp and were basically "knocked out" by their sound.
