The Society for Music and Minimalism is preparing to host their second international conference on minimalism September 2-6, 2009 in Kansas City, Missouri. Part of their impressive lineup of performance and lecture includes a performance of Elodie Lauten’s “Adamantine Sonata” by Sarah Cahill during her Friday program. The original recording of the work was included on her 1983 LP, Piano Works, soon to be reissued on an Unseen Worlds 2CD of Lauten piano works.
Of unique interest also will be the reemergence of piano works by Harold Budd (of ambient Eno fame) and Dennis Johnson (of lengthy La Monte Young fame). More details on all this can be found at the official website and within some of Kyle Gann’s working blog posts on Arts Journal.
Hip-O Select has reissued all four Emitt Rhodes albums circa 1969-1973 in a deluxe, limited-edition 2CD set. Long out of print in the U.S. and largely unknown, being tipped by the likes of director Wes Anderson and others has likely helped these classic recordings of melodic pop music make a reappearance. They are a welcome sight in a new, completely thorough package.
We have two videos to feature today from a performance Lubomyr Melnyk gave in Toronto in 1985 that was captured on Betamax videotape. The two videos contain excerpts from his solo-piano performances of “Sonnet no.4 (1982)” and “Islands (1984)” as well as a few bonus snapshot-like moments of the composer.
In advance of the piano works retrospective we are working on with Elodie Lauten comes this performance, June 13th, 2009 at Issue Project Room in New York. Elodie Lauten will perform works of her own selection from the past 25 years including:
Revelation
Adamantine Sonata
Alien Heart
Cat Counterpoint
Sonate Modale
Reason and Blue
Variations on the Orange Cycle Habanera (mp3)
Tango (mp3)
Please don’t miss this special event. Performances start at 8pm with Bing and Ruth opening.
Blue Gene Tyranny has recently updated his website with a brief video section containing a more recent live piano excerpt, a tune from CBCD, and this piece from 1976, “Taking Out the Garbage,” a sort of music of chance, visual score with a soundtrack.
Jim O’Rourke I’m Happy and I’m Singing and a 1,2,3,4 (2009 edition)
Fenn O’Berg Magic Sound and Return of… (2009 edition)
Editions Mego is re-pressing some of their classic titles in new, expanded editions. Perhaps most notably is Jim O’Rourke’s post-minimalist cum 21st-century-digital masterwork I’m Happy and I’m Singing and a 1,2,3,4. The album is indeed classic and this new set offers a bonus disc containing a digital version of the limited-edition, one-sided-LP track “He Who Laughs”, originally issued by NEON Gallery of Sweden, as well as the period pieces “Let’s take it again from the top” and “Getting the Vapors”. Of course, the Japanese are never to be easily outdone in the bonus department and one can find yet another bonus track – “ts baby” – on the P-Vine label’s edition.
Also, keep a look out for the Christian Fennesz, Jim O’Rourke, Peter Rehberg collaboration collection as Fenn O’Berg coming in June. Their second album, The Return of Fenn O’Berg, included in the 2CD set in remastered form also comes highly recommended.
I’m Happy and I’m Singing and a 1,2,3,4 is available right now via Forced Exposure.
Jim O’Rourke I’m Happy and I’m Singing and a 1,2,3,4 (2009 edition)
Fenn O’Berg Magic Sound and Return of… (2009 edition)