Polwechsel (was Re: [microsound] montreal-specific: pita, marcus)

[JonAbbey2@xxxxxxx]

In a message dated 7/11/00 9:22:46 PM, phalbig@xxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:

<< in addition: thoughts on Polwechsel? >>

since no one else has followed up on this, I'll be happy to chime in:

Polwechsel is a Viennese quartet who have so far released two CDs. they 
straddle the lines of improv and composition, electronic and acoustic, jazz 
and classical, sitting right at the nexus of all of these. 

the first CD, Polwechsel (Random Acoustics, now reissued on Hat Art), is a 
great example of lower-case improv, maybe the first band to fully delve into 
this territory. this CD is from 1993-94 and is all acoustic. personnel: Radu 
Malfatti-trombone, Burkhard Stangl-guitar, Michael Moser-cello, Werner 
Dafeldecker-double bass, guitar.

after this, Malfatti was asked to leave the band because his compositional 
style had become too sparse even for them (on friendly terms, just creative 
differences). John Butcher (tenor and soprano saxophones) replaced him, and 
they released the superb and essential Polwechsel 2 (also Hat Art). Dafeldecke
r mixes in some electronics on this one also. the quartet also played 
(debuted?) some of the pieces from the forthcoming Polwechsel 3 in Chicago in 
May.

another highly recommended record is Stangl's solo CD, Récital (Durian). 
redefining the concept of solo guitar.

I'm in the midst of releasing three consecutive side projects from the 
members of Polwechsel. already out is Schnee, duos by Stangl and Christof 
Kurzmann (g3). out in a few days is Requests and Antisongs, Butcher's duos 
with Phil Durrant, who processes and manipulates his sounds in real time. and 
in August, I'm releasing Aluminium, two long improv pieces by Dafeldecker and 
Dean Roberts, recorded in Vienna in April.

there's also a really promising two-day festival in December in Ulrichsberg, 
Austria curated by Dafeldecker and including all of these musicians and more. 
details at: 

http://jazzatelier.nwy.at/index_e.html

Jon
www.erstwhilerecords.com



From: obscure@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Fellow artist trade?
To: microsound <microsound@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Message-id: <l03130307b592bd676f08@[209.216.151.102]>
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Joshua:


My name is Mark Laliberte, a quiet lurker on the Microsounds list... I've
been meaning to contact you to tell you how much I enjoy your emails... you
always have something articulate and interestig to say, and I wish more
people participated at that level, it would make for some great
discussions.

Anyway,  I was wondering if you'd be interested in trading CDs? I'd like to
hear some of your stuff, but have never run across any of it. I'm an artist
coming to the realm of sound with a tie to the gallery context, and I just
had a CD release in relation to an art exhibition.  I'll paste some info
from the gallery press release:


>>> Mark Laliberte: PILLOW SCENES SOUNDWORKS (1996-1999)... This special
>>>product has been produced by the Thames Art Gallery (Canada) in an
>>>edition of 500 to accompany a recent solo exhibition by Canadian media
>>>artist Mark Laliberte titled 'Labyrinth' -- a series of 8 new
>>>photographs + sound compositions currently on exhibit in Chatham, ON.
>>>The CD package compiles 24 audio tracks (a total of 72:33 minutes) of
>>>Laliberte's unique electronically assembled sound collages, with a 28
>>>page booklet featuring a comprehensive essay examining the series by
>>>critic Lorenzo Buj, and with 10 images reproduced from the series
>>>itself. This catalogue is the most comprehensive look to date at
>>>Laliberte's unique hybridization of still photography and sound art, and
>>>is designed to exist outside of the gallery context. This is the first
>>>time one of his installations has been translated onto CD.

>>> ABOUT THE 'PILLOW SCENES' ART INSTALLATIONS... 'Pillow Scenes' is a
>>>mythos that explores the possibilities of working with photo and sound
>>>in specific combinations to examine elements of non-traditional
>>>narrative. Using soundscape as part of a storytelling language,
>>>speaker-lined pillows are scattered around the exhibition space, each
>>>linked to a different photograph -- 'sleep portraits' revealing little
>>>in way of set, with an emphasis on props and body position. The personas
>>>Laliberte creates for 'Pillow Scenes' are both male and female, and are
>>>presented in different bedroom scenes of a sometimes gentle, sometimes
>>>brutal nature. The overall sound within the exhibit exists as a kind of
>>>taunting, ever-present din of information in need of both attention and
>>>separation. Through this audio presence the photo stills demand to be
>>>deciphered, the sleeping bodies becoming ripe for possible
>>>interpretation. To hear the narrative content, the viewer must mimic the
>>>position of sleep by laying their head on each individual pillow. In
>>>this manner, the artist invites the viewer to directly engage with his
>>>work.

>>> ABOUT THE ARTIST... Mark Laliberte is a multi-media artist, poet &
>>>independent curator whose work has been shown in exhibitions throughout
>>>Canada and the USA. He is a founding member of Thinkbox, a media arts
>>>collective located in the Windsor / Detroit area, and his newest audio
>>>installation titled 'Explaining Noise To Dead Air' (neon, cement, steelm
>>>+ six-channel audio installation) recently debuted as a part of their
>>>four-part 'Audiodrome' installation series. He was born in Canada in
>>>1971.




If your interested, let's trade mailing addresses.

PS: I think I faintly remember someone on the list mentioning that you used
to release under M-1 Alternative? I think I remember a track or two on 'The
Marvels of Insect Life'... but I could be wrong.





From: obscure@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: oops
To: microsound <microsound@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
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Sorry, the last email I sent was meant for an individual, not the list.
Please delete/ignore.