Best of 2021: Recording of the Year
Number Pieces John Cage Apartment House Another Timbre 4XCD boxed set John Cage’s Number Pieces, late compositions (from 1987-1992) are given two designations, a number indicating the size of the…
Best of 2021: Electronic
Supermundane John Thayer Self-released Far In Helado Negro 4AD Weightless (10 hour version) Signals Marconi Union Just Music Changing Landscapes (Isle of Eigg) Arthur King AKP Fast Idol Black Marble…
Best of 2021: Three Recordings Featuring Matthew Shipp (CD Review)
Codebreaker Matthew Shipp TAO Forms CD Village Mothership Whit Dickey, drums; William Parker, bass Matthew Shipp, piano; TAO Forms CD Procedural Language CD Live at SESC Blu-ray DVD Ivo Perelman,…
Best of 2021 – Burned into the Orange by Peter Gilbert (CD Review)
Burned into the Orange Music of Peter Gilbert Arditti String Quartet; Iridium Quartet, Emmanuele Arciuli, piano; et al. New Focus Records CD/DL This is composer Peter Gilbert’s second recording for…
Josquin 500 Part Two
Josquin 500 Part Two The Josquin Legacy Gesualdo Six Harmonia Mundi CD In Principio De Labyrintho, Walter Tesolin Baryton CD Josquin Desprez The Renaissance Master – Sacred Music and Chansons…
Best EP of 2021: Light Past Blue
Best EP of 2021 Light Past Blue Alex Somers & Aska Matsumiya Mini LP Sometimes music sneaks up on you. This recording, Light Past Blue, just dropped Friday, indeed out…
Best of 2021: Philip Blackburn and Chris Campbell (CD Review)
Best of 2021: Recordings by Philip Blackburn and Chris Campbell Philip Blackburn Justinian Intonations Neuma CD Chris Campbell Orison Innova LP Both Philip Blackburn and Chris Campbell are poly-artists, sitting…
Best of 2021 – Craig Taborn on ECM (CD Review)
Sequenza 21 Best of 2021 Craig Taborn Shadowplay ECM Records I first became aware of pianist Craig Taborn in the early aughts, writing about him for (dearly departed) Copper Press…
Iron Orchid (CD Review)
Iron Orchid Ning Yu and David Bird New Focus Recordings Composer and electronic musician David Bird’s work Iron Orchid enlists pianist Ning Yu as a collaborator. Bird’s electronics often provide…
Best of 2021: Andrew Cyrille Quartet (CD Review)
Best of 2021 Andrew Cyrille Quartet The News ECM Records David Virelles, piano; Bill Frisell, guitar; Ben Street, bass; Andrew Cyrille, drums and percussion Andrew Cyrille is now an octogenarian,…