E in cantiere per False Walls c'è un bell'omaggio a Evan Parker ad estendere e coronare i festeggiamenti di compleanno: The Heraclitean Two​-​Step, etc., corposo volume con saggi, interviste, dialoghi, immagini inedite e contributi di John Corbett, Filipe Gomes, Stephen C. Middleton, Martin Davidson e Hans Falb tra gli altri, più quattro cd tratti da concerti in solo tenuti a Warwick e Ramsgate negli ultimi trent'anni. Di nuovo auguri!

CD 1, Unitarian Chapel, Warwick, 1994 and 2023
“Andy Isham organised a concert in the Unitarian Chapel, Warwick on 29 June 1994. As part of a longer concert I played a solo piece on soprano which is the first track on CD 1. It was not long enough to issue on its own and things moved on. Since then I have kept coming back to it because I think it is some of the best solo playing I have ever done. The idea came to me that I should go back to the chapel and see what it was about the space which drew that playing out. As the idea took shape, the saying of Heraclitus about not being able to step in the same river twice started swirling around too. And there it was – I had the title. The “concept”, even – or at least, the conceit…”

CDs 2-4, a sequence of solo recordings made at Arco Barco, Ramsgate, 2018-24
“I was introduced by Matt Wright, the other half of Trance Map, to Filipe Gomes and his Arco Barco studio in Ramsgate on the Kent coast. The studio is located in the upper floors of one of the former chandlers’ work spaces overlooking the harbour. A loft space with control room, a live main room and a smaller, less reverberant room. The acoustic response of the live room and Fil’s passion for sound recording has made Arco Barco my favourite studio and I have recorded there as often as possible.
 Over the many visits Fil has tested various microphones and their positioning. The variation means that some recordings are noticeably “dryer” and/or “closer” than others. Much of the thinking was inspired by the work of the late Michael Gerzon and his pioneering ambisonics. What I brought to the occasions was variability in reed behaviour and embouchure and perhaps most importantly my state of mind.”


https://evanparkerfw.bandcamp.com/the-heraclitean-two-step-etc

 

Fu nel cuore della bollente estate del 2008 che si costituì a Londra la pregiatissima London Improvisers Orchestra, e da allora ogni anno la ricorrenza viene sottolineata con qualcosa di speciale. Per questo luglio, ad esempio, doppio appuntamento dal vivo: uno per la tradizionale prima domenica del mese, presso la St Mary's Church in Stoke Newington - adottata ormai come propria sede di residenza - e poi martedì scorso al Cafe Oto, in formazione ancora più estesa rispetto alla partecipazione a inizio anno all'omaggio a Martin Davidson. Di entrambe le occasioni ha pubblicato ricordi e immagini Douglas Benford, coinvolto egli stesso nelle operazioni dell'ensemble. E tra pochi giorni è già tempo di tornare, al fresco, in Church Street.

https://linktr.ee/londonimprovisersorchestra

 

Un incontro che nemmeno doveva svolgersi, stando al programma, e che invece ha regalato uno dei momenti più toccanti in un'intensa giornata - quella dello scorso 28 gennaio a Londra, con doppio appuntamento prima al Cafe Oto e poi al Vortex - ricca di dediche e di ricordi, di stima e di affetto verso il compianto Martin Davidson (1942-2023): Caroline Kraabel con Veryan Weston, Alive, for Martin Davidson. Ora su Bandcamp.

This duo performance came together at short notice as part of a celebration of the life and work of Martin Davidson, co-instigator of the important improvised music label Emanem ("unadulterated new music for people who like new music unadulterated"), on which our Kraabel/Weston CD, Five Shadows, was released. Martin was a stalwart supporter of improvised music for decades, as well as a good listener, kind friend and inspiring political activist.

https://carolinekraabel.bandcamp.com/alive-for-martin-davidson

 

Un curioso nesso tra Mike Westbrook e Martin Davidson sta in un lontano particolare autobiografico - si parla del 1969 - rivelato dallo stesso Richard Williams durante il suo omaggio pubblico offerto in apertura della giornata dedicata al compianto fondatore della Emanem domenica scorsa a Londra e organizzata in due distinti appuntamenti presso Cafe Oto e Vortex: ora è riportato anche nel post per il suo The Blue Moment, For Martin Davidson. 

"Martin Davidson, who died just before Christmas at the age of 81, was a valued friend of improvised music in Britain and elsewhere. Most significantly, he ran the Emanem label, which made its debut in 1974 with Steve Lacy’s first album of unaccompanied soprano saxophone pieces. Emanem went on to amass a catalogue of new and archive vinyl releases featuring the first generation of London-based improvisers - John Stevens, Trevor Watts, Evan Parker, Derek Bailey, Paul Rutherford and so on - and then, following its re-emergence as a CD label in the mid-’90s, of their successors and many others. At Café Oto and the Vortex many of those artists performed in celebration and commemoration of Martin’s life."

https://thebluemoment.com/2024/01/28/for-martin-davidson

 

Appena un paio d'ore dopo l'omaggio presso il Cafe Oto - e a pochi passi di distanza, pressoché girato l'angolo - prosegue oggi al Vortex l'affettuoso ricordo di Martin Davidson con l'intervento di alcuni degli stessi musicisti (più molti altri) presenti all'Oto: Mark Sanders, John Butcher, Alex McGuire, Simon Pickard, Matt Davis, Phil Minton, Kay Grant, Caroline Kraabel, Marcio Mattos, Phil Durrant, Mat Hutchinson, Maggie Nicols, Alex Ward e George Khan probabilmente con la People Band. Anche in questo caso i proventi saranno devoluti a B'Tselem, che da oltre trent'anni e dunque assai prima dell'attuale conflitto denuncia e combatte l'apartheid e la violazione dei diritti umani nei territori palestinesi occupati da Israele.

The Emanem label was founded in 1974 by Martin Davidson in order to publish music too good and too adventurous to be considered by most other labels. He was a friend to and tireless chronicler/supporter of British creative improvised music and beyond. After sporadically releasing LPs on three continents, the label returned to London and has been releasing CDs since 1995, extending the Emanem tradition of undiluted exploratory excellence. Proceeds from this event will go towards B’Tselem, a Jerusalem-based non-profit organisation whose stated goals are to document human rights violations in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian.

https://www.vortexjazz.co.uk/a-tribute-to-martin-davidson

 

Si celebra domani presso il Cafe Oto a Londra un ricordo collettivo del compianto Martin Davidson (1942-2023), fondatore a inizio anni Settanta dell'etichetta discografica Emanem e - anche tramite essa - elemento propulsore di primissimo rilievo sulla scena delle musiche di improvvisazione in Gran Bretagna e non solo. L'appuntamento si tiene in orario pomeridiano, con inizio alle 13.30, e vede il sostegno di numerosi musicisti e amici: intervengono Richard Williams, Evan Parker con Matt Wright, Pat Thomas, Hannah Marshall e Mark Sanders riuniti nel progetto Trance Map+, Trevor Watts in duo con Veryan Weston e l'intera London Improvisers Orchestra. Partecipa anche la famiglia di Martin, che desidera informare della cessazione, forse solo momentanea, della distribuzione sul web del catalogo dell'etichetta: "The Emanem web site is no longer accepting new orders. We are doing our best to contact anyone with outstanding orders and either post or refund them. We hope to transfer the CD stock so it is available again, but this will take time to organise. If you knew Martin, or the records and CDs he helped put out, please celebrate his life and love of music. He will be missed greatly."

Ha scritto Martin Schray, accostando la perdita di Davidson a quella di Jost Gebers, di poco precedente: "2023 was a year of great loss for the world of free jazz and free improvised music. Not only have great musicians passed away, but also label operators such as Fmp's Jost Gebers. Martin Davidson also died at the beginning of the month, a man without whom the British improv scene in particular would have been unthinkable. Davidson was responsible for Emanem, one of the most influential labels of the last five decades, which was also the parent label of Evan Parker’s Psi label. Many musicians appreciated Davidson not only for his technical expertise in mastering, but above all for his passion for this music and for his sharp humour. His releases were not only professional, they were a testament to his dedication to the craft and the artists he worked with. The careers of Derek Bailey, Anthony Braxton, the Spontaneous Music Ensemble, Evan Parker or John Russell - especially their reception in Europe - would certainly have been different without him."

https://www.cafeoto.co.uk/a-tribute-to-martin-davidson

 

In molti abbiamo istintivamente collegato la scomparsa pochi giorni fa di Martin Davidson (1942-2023), fondatore dell'etichetta Emanem e curatore di molte pubblicazioni Cadillac, a quella di Jost Gebers (1940-2023), responsabile della Fmp, avvenuta appena un paio di mesi fa. Figure entrambe assai importanti in un ambito che quest'anno ha già registrato molte dolorose perdite tra i suoi protagonisti. Ciao Martin!

John Corbett: "Incredibly sad news to hear of the passing of Martin Davidson, one of the most dedicated producers of freely improvised music, since the early 1970s his Emanem label a beacon of maniacal commitment. With the recent death of FMP’s Jost Gebers, we’ve lost two of the pillars of the music. Fortunately they both left extensive legacies for us to remember the decisive role they played in documenting free improvisation."

James Lucas: "The world of jazz and improvised music is mourning the profound loss of a luminary with the passing of our great friend, Martin Davidson. A titan in the industry, Martin not only steered one of the most influential labels in the past five decades, the unmistakable “not to be confused with” Emanem label, but also left an indelible mark on the sonic landscape as the mastermind behind the mastering of many of Cadillac’s releases. Martin Davidson’s impact reached far beyond the technicalities of mastering; it was a harmonious blend of his expertise, passion for the art, and splendid personal qualities that endeared him to all fortunate enough to know him. His contributions to the realm of jazz and improvised music were not just professional; they were a labor of love, a testament to his dedication to the craft and the artists he collaborated with."

Lawrence Daniel: "Martin made incalculable contributions to the music business, and the jazz canon will always remember him as the creative force behind Emanem. Both musicians and music enthusiasts admired him for his extraordinary ear and discriminating taste, which were essential in influencing the development of avant-garde and improvised music. Martin was a kind and kind person who was well-known for his sharp humor and copious generosity, even outside of his professional accomplishments. His infectious enthusiasm for music and his commitment to identifying and developing up-and-coming talent had a lasting impression on the genre. Apart from his label work, Martin’s versatility as a mastering engineer was demonstrated by his significant contribution to the sound quality of other Cadillac releases. His devotion to sound quality was a reflection of his unwavering desire to make sure the music he loved was heard by as many people as possible."

https://www.emanemdisc.com
https://www.discogs.com/Martin-Davidson

 

Esce per Lenka Lente a Nantes (Francia) un fitto dossier su Steve Lacy (1934-2004) con cronologia, discografia e note di copertina, saggi, interviste e contributi vari a cura di Guillaume Tarche: Steve Lacy (unfinished). Ci sono i ricordi e i commenti tra gli altri di Steve Adams, Irene Aebi, Alvin Curran, Martin Davidson, Jean Derome, Christoph Gallio, Ben Goldberg, Guillermo Gregorio, Phillip Johnston, Pablo Ledesma, Urs Leimgruber, Dave Liebman, Giancarlo Locatelli, Roberto Ottaviano, Evan Parker, Jon Raskin, Patrice Roussel, Bill Shoemaker, Bruno Tocanne e Seymour Wright.

À l'approche du vingtième anniversaire de sa disparition (ou du quatre-vingt-dixième anniversaire de sa naissance), écouter Steve Lacy c'est observer diversement la silhouette du sopraniste s'éloigner: pour les uns, une chambre sourde l'enserre dorénavant, étouffant la résonance; pour les autres, son écho nous parvient encore, grâce à ses continuateurs ou par sa seule force...

http://www.lenkalente.com/steve-lacy-unfinished

Confessa apertamente Martin Davidson che tra i motivi che lo portarono a fondare l'etichetta Emanem, nel lontano 1974, c'era il desiderio di documentare - per quanto possano fare le registrazioni audio di concerti di musica improvvisata - le straordinarie gesta della scena londinese dell'epoca. E tra i suoi campioni c'era soprattutto Paul Rutherford, al quale negli anni avrebbe offerto più e più volte spazio con pubblicazioni di grande rilievo, a partire dall'indimenticabile The Gentle Harm Of The Bourgeoisie (1976). Oggi torna a rendere omaggio al compianto trombonista con un nuovo album che raccoglie estratti da vari concerti tra il 1979 e il 2007 in solo, in duo con Paul Rogers o in trio con Veryan Weston e Marcio Mattos: In Backward Times.

We founded Emanem in 1974, mainly because we kept going to improvisation gigs in London and hearing music that was superb, unique and original. And it was not being recorded for further dissemination – it was just there once for the few people who were the audience. Paul Rutherford solo performances were perhaps the most outstanding music that was just (to quote Eric Dolphy) 'gone in the air'. His excellent trio, Iskra 1903, with Derek Bailey and Barry Guy, had been documented on Incus (reissued as Chapter One on Emanem 5311), so I started recording his solo pieces and issued his selection of them as The Gentle Harm Of The Bourgeoisie (reissued on Emanem 4019). I felt at the time that he was the greatest trombonist in free improvisation, thanks to his strong, imaginative lines involving a considerable range of sounds, made with just the instrument enhanced with some use of his voice and mutes. His quiet but outrageous sense of humour and somewhat outlandish use of form also helped. After forty years of further listening to a wide range of improvisers, I still feel the same way. I consider that he was one of the best trombonists in any genre, as well as one of the finest improvisers on any instrument. Once issued, The Gentle Harm became very influential – not just with trombonists.
Going through my archives recently, I came across the four concert items that make up this cd, and they seemed to be crying out to be released as they are some of the best music I have heard in ages. So I make no apologies for issuing yet another collection of his music.

http://www.emanemdisc.com/E5045.html
http://www.emanemdisc.com/cd-rutherford.html

L'emergere e il diffondersi di musicisti, luoghi e pratiche musicali di improvvisazione sulla scena londinese negli anni cruciali tra il 1966 e il 1973 sono al centro del libro Beyond Jazz: Plink, Plonk and Scratch pubblicato lo scorso maggio e distribuito in proprio da Martin Barre. Scritto con grande entusiasmo e un po' sull'onda di ricordi personali, ma suffragato da commenti e opinioni di molti diretti protagonisti: Steve Beresford, Martin Davidson, Lou Gare, Barry Guy, Paul Lytton, Evan Parker, Eddie Prévost, Victor Schonfield e Trevor Watts tra questi. Copia cartacea del testo si ottiene direttamente dall'autore, che già sta lavorando a un secondo volume dedicato agli anni 1973-1980, con il titolo provvisorio di Convergences, Divergencies and Affinities.

How did Free Improvisation, aka Free Music emerge? And how has this most arcane of musical forms survived so long and gained such loyal adherents? Trevor Barre seeks to answer these questions in Beyond Jazz, the first book solely devoted to the so-called ‘First Generation’ of Free improvisers. Beyond Jazz is an account of the genre’s formative London years. It retraces the road that led from the music’s emergence in late 1965/early 1966, through to its consolidation and acceptance as a serious ongoing musical form by 1972, an outcome that was by no means inevitable during the intervening years.

http://improvmusic.co.uk

Dopo un periodo di relativa inattività - e un ennesimo attacco di pirateria sul web - torna in pista la gloriosa Emanem di Martin Davidson con le ristampe di due lavori di Evan Parker a suo tempo usciti per l'etichetta del sassofonista, la psi: The Snake Decides, un solo per soprano registrato nel 1986 a Oxford da Michael Gerzon, e America 2003, doppio cd con una selezione dai concerti americani svolti quell'anno in trio con Alexander von Schlippenbach e Paul Lovens.

Altre pubblicazioni Emanem, incluse diverse nuove produzioni, sono attese nelle prossime settimane. Immutato rimane il manifesto dell'etichetta: "The Emanem label was founded in 1974 by Martin Davidson in order to publish music too good and too adventurous to be considered by most other labels. In particular, it seemed (and still seems) vitally important to document improvised music that does not use the vagaries of notation as a (somewhat imperfect) means of preservation. After sporadically releasing LPs on three continents, the label returned to London and has been releasing CDs since 1995, extending the Emanem tradition of undiluted exploratory excellence.

The Emanem Compact Disc Series features improvised music at its very best - unadulterated new music for people who like new music unadulterated. Every CD is a labour of love - every one an important masterpiece - too good to discontinue. (Why waste time, effort and resources on anything less?) Most feature total improvisation, but some use partly composed material. The presentation of each CD and this web site concentrates on clarity (as does the music) - there is no desire to emulate the current fashion of obscuring and/or omitting vital information. But then, Emanem is not about fashion, it is about substance.
It was tempting to call the Emanem label, Radical Atheist Culture, since very few of the performers have any interest in religion. But then, the areas of music involved transcend factors such as colour, ethnicity, gender and nationality as well as religion."

http://www.emanemdisc.com/emanem.html

Dalla sua nuova residenza a Granada (Spagna) Martin Davidson rilancia le attività dell'etichetta Emanem - che quest'anno festeggia i propri primi quarant'anni - annunciando nuove produzioni e l'avvio presso il negozio norvegese non-profit Subradar della distribuzione in download di alcuni titoli in catalogo. Tra le prime iniziative c'è la ripresa - anche in cd - in versione riveduta, corretta e ampliata dell'album di Nigel Coombes e Steve Beresford White String's Attached, in origine un LP per Bead (1980). All'epoca scrisse Eugene Chadbourne: "Violinist Coombes explains things perfectly in his hilarious liner notes. Nonetheless, a blindfold test of this record to a knowledgeable listener often results in the music being misidentified as, say, a composition by Charles Ives, and rarely as an improvised piece. By the time of this recording, these players had been working together in a variety of contexts and could almost read each other's thoughts, though with music this demented that might not be a good idea. Coombes was a striking figure in this era; a slight, lean Englishman with an Angela Davis-type Afro, who was often clad in a dark duster. He would play on and on, often sounding like a collection of classical violin records being run through a cherry stoner. These duets are, above all, truly enjoyable to listen to. The timing is uncanny, as is the sense of drama. Decisions as to when to play hardly anything and when to unleash a bucketful of notes are intelligent, and often surprising."

http://www.emanemdisc.com/E5032.html
http://www.discogs.com/Steve-Beresford-Nigel-Coombes-White-Strings-Attached/release/1627628
http://subradar.no/label/emanem
http://subradar.no/article/martin-davidson

Martin Davidson aggiunge periodicamente nuovi pezzi al puzzle che ricompone l'evoluzione e l'intricata storia dello Spontaneous Music Ensemble: è il caso di Challenge e New Surfacing, due nuovi titoli Emanem che estendono e migliorano la documentazione finora disponibile. Il primo offre distinte registrazioni di studio effettuate da Eddie Kramer tra il 1966 e il 1967, con Kenny Wheeler, Paul Rutherford, Trevor Watts, Bruce Cale, Jeff Clyne, John Stevens, Evan Parker e Chris Cambridge; il secondo, con riprese dal vivo del 1978 e di studio del 1992, vede presenti John Stevens, Nigel Coombes e Roger Smith.

http://www.emanemdisc.com/E5029.html
http://www.emanemdisc.com/E5030.html
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Spontaneous+Music+Ensemble

In occasione del suo impegno mensile al Vortex Evan Parker dedica il concerto di stasera a Martin e Madelaine Davidson, figure storiche della scena dell'improvvisazione londinese, tra i fondatori quasi quarant'anni fa della rivista Musics e della benemerita etichetta discografica Emanem (sigla forgiata sulle iniziali dei loro due nomi, e non frutto di qualche inaccurato spelling). Il programma si intitola Hasta la Vista, e vi intervengono tra gli altri John Russell, Caroline Kraabel, Adam Linson e Hannah Marshall.

"The Emanem label was founded in 1974 by Martin Davidson in order to publish music too good and too adventurous to be considered by most other labels. In particular, it seemed (and still seems) vitally important to document improvised music that does not use the vagaries of notation as a (somewhat imperfect) means of preservation. After sporadically releasing LPs on three continents, the label returned to London and has been releasing CDs since 1995, extending the Emanem tradition of undiluted exploratory excellence. The Emanem CD Series features improvised music at its very best - unadulterated new music for people who like new music unadulterated. Every CD is a labour of love - every one an important masterpiece - too good to discontinue. (Why waste time, effort and resources on anything less?) Most feature total improvisation, but some use partly composed material. The presentation of each CD and Emanem's web site concentrates on clarity (as does the music) - there is no desire to emulate the current fashion of obscuring and/or omitting vital information. But then, Emanem is not about fashion, it is about substance."

Di Martin Davidson e della sua creatura discografica ebbe a dire Lol Coxhill: "Best record company in the world - for my taste. Certainly the best person to put out improvised music." Un serrato botta e risposta intercorso di recente tra Davidson e il direttore di QRD si legge in http://tinyurl.com/QRDemanem

http://www.vortexjazz.co.uk/index.php
http://www.emanemdisc.com

In ricordo di Lol Coxhill si ritrovano oggi - nel giorno in cui il compianto sassofonista avrebbe compiuto ottant'anni - molti dei suoi amici e colleghi, per un concerto organizzato alla Cecil Sharp House londinese con il concorso di Serious Music, Resonance 104.4FM, la rivista The Wire e The English Folk Dance and Song Society: a partire dalle ore 19.00 sono previsti interventi di Mike Westbrook con Phil Minton, Kate Westbrook e Chris Biscoe, Welfare State Theatre Co., Eddie Prevost / John Edwards / Trevor Watts / Tony Bevan, Roger Turner / Pat Thomas / David Toop, Tony Coe / Phil Wachsmann, David Holland / G.F. Fitzgerald, Maggie Nichols con Art Themen, Veryan Weston, Max Eastley, le 'Sibylline Sisters' (Sybil Madrigal / Armorel Weston / Kay Grant), Mark Sanders / Gail Brand / Simon Picard / Ollie Brice, Hugh Metcalfe / Matt Scott / Dylan Bates / Jim LeBaigue, Simon Coxhill / Sam Coxhill-Davis / Dareen Morris, John Russell / Satoko Fukuda / Henry Lowther, Stan Tracey / Bobby Wellins / Dave Green / Clark Tracey, Evan Parker 'One Bloke' - il riferimento, malinconico, è all'album in trio con Coxhill e Steve Lacy, Three Blokes - e Herbert Spliffington All Stars. A documentare il tutto dovrebbe esserci Martin Davidson, per la Emanem. E per l'occasione, i Westbrook pubblicano sul web alcune belle immagini che ritraggono il sassofonista loro alleato nelle scorribande della Brass Band negli anni settanta: http://www.westbrookjazz.co.uk/photoalbum/brass_ed.shtml

Lol Coxhill Memorial
Cecil Sharp House
2 Regent's Park Rd
London NW1 7AY

Martin Davidson raccoglie nell'album The Sun per la sua etichetta Emanem alcuni lavori rari o inediti di Steve Lacy del periodo 1967-1973, infiammati dalla protesta contro la guerra in Vietnam. C'è anche il controverso brano in quattro parti The Woe, qui nell'unica registrazione completa esistente, quella della sua ultima esecuzione alla vigilia della firma del trattato di pace. Scriveva Lacy: "Conceived in the horrors of the Vietnam War, it is a melodrama in four parts for quintet, two cassettes of war noises (air & ground) and voice. (The cassettes were played in the studio.) This piece was the principal music we performed during the last two years of the USA's involvement in Vietnam. This was the last time we played it. It was recorded (the night before the peace treaty was signed) in its entirety, and broadcast in Switzerland. I have no idea what the reaction was, if any. The Woe is dedicated to Ho Chi Minh and all the people of Vietnam".

http://www.emanemdisc.com/E5022.html

Un concerto del 1972 di Iskra 1903 - allora nella sua prima versione, con Paul Rutherford, Derek Bailey e Barry Guy - viene in questi giorni documentato dall'etichetta Emanem: Goldsmiths, con registrazioni rimaste fino ad oggi inedite, in parte per ragioni legate alla ricerca dei nastri originali. Così spiega Martin Davidson: "I first heard this recording about ten years ago, when Paul Rutherford gave me his reel-to-reel copy. I made listening copies for the three musicians, all of whom wanted it to be issued complete. The trouble was the original tapes were last heard of in California. Rutherford's copy tape was pretty good, but I hoped that the originals would have a bit less distortion. Ten years later, two of the members of the trio are no longer with us, and I still await two of the tapes. One original tape did turn up just as I sent this CD off for release earlier this year. So everything was put on hold hoping that the other two would surface. Nothing has happened six months later, so I have decided to issue this concert using the one available original tape as the source for the first section and the copy tape for the rest. Something else that did turn up was a badly balanced recording of another gig from that period, which yielded two usable sections. The bulk of this CD is arguably the most typical extended concert performance of the original trio to have survived. The occasion was just a local gig in the Cohesion series at Goldsmiths College in south-east London in front of a small audience. The trio playing on home territory, as it were, and sounding very relaxed".

http://www.emanemdisc.com/E5013.html

Nuovi titoli si aggiungono in questi giorni al catalogo dell'etichetta psi: Agustí Fernández con Joan Saura "Vents", Dj Sniff "Ep" - il titolo non è dato dall'abbreviazione di extended play, ma dalle iniziali di Evan Parker, cui il lavoro si riferisce - Adam Linson Systems Quartet "Figures And Grounds", Evan Parker con Matthew Wright "Trance Map" e "Lio Leo Leon", registrazione integrale del concerto tenuto dalla London Improvisers Orchestra lo scorso anno al festival Freedom of the City.

L'etichetta compie quest'anno i suoi primi dieci anni di attività. Così il fondatore Evan Parker: "psi is new chapter in the work of self determination that started in 1970 with Incus Records. After leaving Incus I began a long period of working with other independent labels. I am especially grateful to Leo, FMP, Okka and ECM for the collaborations in this period. In 2001 I decided to start a new label. Martin Davidson of Emanem agreed to help me - without his support, technical know-how and work it would not be a practical proposition. His own label Emanem and psi are both committed to documenting improvised music. Each label however is very firmly independent of the other in terms of their artistic policy. Much has changed since 1970! The LP format with all its attendant technical woes and disappointments has been replaced by CD; although when Nimbus first introduced me to the idea of CD it seemed hopelessly expensive and beyond our reach but gradually the technology and economics have changed markedly in favour of the small independent producer; a whole global culture for improvised music has developed. Thousands of CDs of hard core improvised music are now available - a cursory glance at Peter Stubley's website will astonish anyone who thinks this music is hard to find. Obviously neither the idea of free music nor the small musician controlled label are the news they were back then. As one of the pioneers in the field I am optimistic.
PS: I called it 'psi' for all the associations with irrational numbers, golden ratios etc but above all for the Psi phenomena which I am convinced are at the heart of improvised music making."

http://www.emanemdisc.com/psi11.html
http://evanparker.com/psi.php

Emanem pubblica per il compianto Paul Rutherford un doppio album di materiali completamente inediti: si intitola Tetralogy, e contiene registrazioni dal vivo e in studio effettuate in solo, in trio e in quartetto tra il 1978 e il 1982.

Scrive il produttore Martin Davidson: "Paul Rutherford (1940-2007) was surely the most original and inventive (and enjoyable) trombonist of the last 40 years, and also one of the greatest exponents of free improvisation. It is therefore appropriate and desirable that recordings of his excellent music, like the four in this collection, are made available to the public. The two sets on the first cd were recorded at the Actual-81 festival in London organised by Anthony Wood. The solo set is unusual in that a considerable amount of electronics were used to enhance the trombone or euphonium. The additions include a voice-mike (with added tremolo), a bespoke box made by Ian Mackintosh, and probably standard items such as ring modulators and octave dividers. Three days later, Rutherford convened an improvising brass quartet with fellow trombonist George Lewis, Martin Mayes (French horn) and Melvyn Poore (tuba). They performed two pieces.

My original plan was to issue these two items on a single cd; but it occurred to me that any listener not otherwise familiar with Rutherford’s work would get a strange introduction, as these two are very different to anything else of his on record. So I thought that a second cd of his more typical work from the same period would be appropriate. Riccardo Bergerone recently came up with the Pisa Jazz Festival solo tape, which presents Rutherford without any electronics. Even with just his trombone or euphonium (augmented by his voice) he comes up with a remarkable range of sounds, and unique lines involving wild leaps. The performance of two pieces is almost complete. The final section is something by the working trio that Rutherford set up to contrast with his other trio (Iskra 1903). It features brilliant work by two (then) young musicians as well as the leader: Paul Rogers and Nigel Morris."

www.emanemdisc.com/E5202.html

Dopo l'imprevista cancellazione dell'edizione dello scorso anno, riparte l'eccellente festival londinese di musiche improvvisate Freedom of the City, diretto da Evan Parker e da Eddie Prévost e gestito in larga parte direttamente dai musicisti che vi partecipano; il programma è concentrato in due giorni, il 3 e il 4 maggio prossimi, con una quindicina di concerti pomeridiani e serali, tutti presso la storica sede di Conway Hall, in Red Lion Square.

Freedom of the City is the UK's premier festival of new and improvised music, and one of the most important festivals of its kind in the world.
Founded in 2001 by percussionist Eddie Prévost, saxophonist Evan Parker, and Emanem label boss Martin Davidson, Freedom of the City showcases the often overlooked excellence and diversity of new and improvised music in London. It has established itself as an annual event (with an unexpected and unwanted absence in 2008) which brings together the best of London's improvising community, with welcome guests from elsewhere. Their support is always at their own expense and is a remarkable show of solidarity.
Freedom of the City is one of the few artist run music festivals, and the fact that it is organised by and for musicians means that music is its sole consideration, and it is not dressed up in flashy but ill fitting marketing conceits and fashionable concepts, as it is in some other festivals. What you hear at Freedom of the City is what the musicians want you to hear and nothing else. No special demands are made of them, no templates imposed, no rhetoric or theories foisted upon them - they are simply given a space in which they can be free as musicians and you, the audience, are invited to share that freedom with them.

Sunday 2pm:

Ray Warleigh / Hannah Marshall / Alison Blunt / Tony Marsh

Rodrigo Montoya / Andrew Robinson / Ute Kanngiesser / Olie Brice / Thebe Lipere

Steve Beresford / Peter Evans / Okkyung Lee

Sunday 4pm:

London Improvisers Orchestra

Sunday 7pm:

The Post Quartet with Christian Wolff

Sunday 9pm:

AMM with Christian Wolff

Monday 2pm:

Seymour Wright / Sebastian LexerRoss Lambert / Paul Abbott / Jerry Wigens

John Lely / John White

Monday 4pm:

John Butcher / John Edwards

Ute Wasserman / Aleks Kolkowski

John Coxon / Mark Sanders / Pat Thomas

Monday 7pm:

John Russell’s QuaQua

Lol Coxhill (solo)

Alan Wilkinson / John Bissett / James Dunn

Monday 9pm:

Tony Marsh / Alexander Hawkins

Evan Parker / John Russell / John Edwards / Peter Evans

Freedom of the City

Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL

freedom@freedomofthecity.org

http://www.freedomofthecity.org/

www.myspace.com/freedomofthecity