Tweet props to Fully Altered for passing on that link and a million others.

An excerpt from the story of how Reich’s Double Sextet came to be:

Upon hanging up the phone [with Bilfield], Reich thought back to his ’60s pieces like Violin Phase, written for instruments being played live against recordings of themselves. He realized that he could do the same thing for eighth blackbird if the group would agree to pre-record a piece, then play a second sextet performance live against that recording—thus, Double Sextet. He called Bilfield back the next day and proposed the idea, and she took it to the group members, who said they would love to do it.

“And the piece won the Pulitzer Prize, and it is really one of the best pieces I’ve ever written,” says Reich. “But I would never have thought in a million years to write for eighth blackbird. It was Jenny Bilfield, whose basic subtext is ‘I’m not taking no for an answer.’”

And later in the article, some words about the Dave Douglas/Bill Morrison collaboration Spark Of Being [world premiere next month].

“Jenny called me and said, ‘What would you like to do that you couldn’t do anywhere else?” remembers Douglas. “It’s not every day that you get asked that question.”

The basis of the piece is matching Morrison’s talent for shaping films made from a collage of archival footage—his similarly constructed Decasia was named by the Village Voice as one of the 10 best films of 2003—with Douglas’ composition work. It has gone by many different titles over time; for a while, it was known as Frankenstein: The First 100 Years, in reference to Thomas Edison’s 1910 film.

“Before that, it was called The History of Gadgetry,” Douglas says. “For us, it’s all been about this conversation between technology and art, humanity and invention—what our inventions mean to us and how science has affected humanity. We went to Frankenstein because that seemed like a good metaphor for the whole thing. Bill works with older films, creating something new out of them, and I work a lot with samples and various disparate elements of music.”

“The Frankenstein monster is a collage of pieces in and of itself, so we’re referencing our process,” says Morrison. Finally, though, they settled on Spark of Being.

Read the full article here.

In other Masada news, Dave will be conducting a seminar on May 10th at The Stone celebrating the Masada book. Details below. Further info at The Stone’s website.

DAVE DOUGLAS—The Music of Masada
7PM to 10PM—THIRTY DOLLARS: Open to musicians on any instrument.
Trumpeter in various MASADA ensembles since 1993, Douglas talks about and demonstrates some of the unique performance issues raised in this celebrated book of compositions by John Zorn. The group will work on several pieces from the book in differing ensemble formations, illuminating ideas about performance practice and limning the knowns and unknowns in the pages of the MASADA book. For those interested in an inside look at this music, this will be a challenging and fun hands-on experience. Please arrive on time and bring your instrument.

The caveat:

WARNING: these vivisections are, necessarily, unapologetically technical. As I mentioned in the comments to the previous post, I don’t think listeners ought to feel they need to be concerned about process. The important thing is the art, not the steps along the way. That said, should you, for reasons of your own, actually want to see how the sausage is made, click below to continue reading.

Looking forward to the next installment.

So back to full album listening. Here are a few records, new and old, that I’ve been listening to recently. Please, pass on anything — again, new or old — that you have been digging (or not digging if you want) in the comments section here.

NEW RELEASES:

Gil Scott-Heron – I’m New Here [XL]
What a voice. With spoken word and grainy singing, interesting percussion and production elements, I keep coming back to this record for more. And the title track is a cover of a Bill Callahan tune masterfully done here.

Joanna Newsom – Have One On Me [Drag City]
The long-awaited — well, at least by some — new album from the folk pixie turned sophisticate long-form songwriter. A sprawling 3 LP (or 3CD) collection of beautifully arranged tunes. My highest of recommendations.

Nels Cline Singers – Initiate [forthcoming Cryptogramophone]
Details on this forthcoming double-disc and an advance track preview of “Grow Closer” at Crypto’s website. The release date can’t come soon enough.

Citay – Dream Get Together [Dead Oceans]
I got turned onto this label last year when Chicago-stalwarts Califone released their last one, and the Gray/Kotche duo On Fillmore did the same. One of their first releases this year was from this band. One thing I love about the album is the guitarist unapologetically goes guitar-hero on the best tracks. Check out the free downloads at the links above.

OLD HAT:

Abercrombie/Holland/DeJohnette – Gateway I
Getting my hands on that $1 set from the new Dave Holland site last month got me going back through his catalog. One of my faves is this one. Still have some of those guitar riffs from “Backwoods Song” written out in my old college notebook somewhere.

Altschul/Bley/Peacock – Virtuosi
Picked this LP up at Laurie’s Planet of Sound in Lincoln Square for $3.99. A steal. Anytime I see Paul Bley’s name on anything, I buy it. Hasn’t failed me yet.

Fleetwood Mac – Then Play On
Also grabbed this one at the same shop. It’s quickly rising up on my Desert Island list. Don’t let the band name fool you. Quite a different band when Peter Green was leading the troupe.

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Also, I’ve have been checking out In The Soul Kitchen from DJ Harry D at 90.3 FM KUSF. Trying to school myself a bit more in R&B. These playlists have been a great start. Keep ‘em coming Harry!

UPDATE: Check out another review from Mainly Music Meanderings here with accompanying photos. Note: one tune was missing from Posty McPosterton’s setlist — “The Brass Ring” (with the drum solo Posty mentions) should appear between “Awake Nu” and “Mr. Pitiful.” That update came straight from the horse’s mouth. Thanks for posting Posty!

Early Warning: Brass Ecstasy’s next scheduled performance this year will be at the Red Sea Jazz Festival this coming August. More info on that festival coming soon. As always, keep your eye on Dave’s tour page for the most recent tour news.

Half-price tickets are available to students and seniors via walk-up only at the Crystal Ballroom. Limited availability.

For non-seniors and non-students, buy your tickets in advance here.

Jazz Conversations (all at the Art Bar [map] and all free) include:

* Friday, 2/26 at 4pm: Tom D’Antoni with Craig Handy of the Mingus Big Band
* Friday, 2/26 at 5pm: Tim DuRoche with Trygve Seim & Frode Haltli
* Friday 2/26 at 6pm: Matt Fleeger with Christian Wallumrod
* Saturday 2/27 at 12pm: Steven Cantor with Dave Holland
* Saturday 2/27 at 6:30pm: Barry Jonson with Pharoah Sanders
* Sunday 2/28 at 12pm: Lloyd Peterson with Dave Douglas

Left-coasters can hear Dave Douglas & Brass Ecstasy this coming Sunday the 28th at the Crystal Ballroom [map] as part of the Portland Jazz Festival. Get your tickets here.

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To celebrate, this week at the Greenleaf store we have a sale going for all the Brass Ecstasy music.

Spirit Moves: Buy the CD and receive a free upgrade to the Deluxe CD+DVD package. Saves you 40%.
On Stage: Part of our download-only series, pick up these live sets for $5 MP3 or $7 FLAC saving you 30%.
Sheet Music: Five bucks off the digital PDFs of the extended Spirit Moves book of music. Saves you 25%.

Sale ends Monday the 29th.