Roscoe Mitchell with Ostravska Banda: Distant Radio Transmission

American born Roscoe Mitchell is a composer/instrumentalist/educator, mostly associated within the realm of avant jazz and classical music. His resume includes cofounder of the Art Ensemble of Chicago and the Association for the Advancement of Music. He has always had a tendency to gravitate towards the idiosyncratic side of musical expression and this is certainly true of his latest CD titled Distant Radio Transmission.

Here he performs with the Czechoslovakian Ostravska Banda on the first track “Distant Radio Transmission�, originally recorded in 2013 by Mitchell, Craig Taborn and Kikanju Baku. With this latest version the sounds build slowly before devolving and building up again. It’s a completely avant piece with bizarre sounds coursing through its twenty minute running time. The second track “Nonaah Trio� was originally composed in 1972 for alto saxophone. Here it has been reworked for piano (Dana Reason), flute (John C Savage) and oboe (Catherine Lee). At times the three instruments play against the other creating an experimental sound palette. Its creative avant-garde chamber jazz that might be hard for some people to fully grasp, myself included. Another full on improvisation, to these ears at least. The free form musical expression continues with “Cutouts For Woodwind Quintet� featuring Roberta Michel (flute), Christa Robinson (oboe), Carlos Corddeio (clarinet), Sara Schoenbeck (bassoon) and John Gattis (French horn). The piece traverses intense and softer motifs, sometimes flowing gently while other moments are quite chaotic. A melding of mellow and cacophonous sounds. The last track “8-8-88� is a three piece movement featuring the pianist Joseph Kubera. His playing is complex and virtuosic displaying a depth of feel that is uncommon to say the least. This is an incredibly intricate piece.

Distant Radio Transmission will definitely be more suited for fans of avant and/or experimental jazz. If that’s you, by all means check this one out.

Track Listing:
1. Distant Radio Transmission (20:14)
2. Nonaah Trio (14:45)
3. Cutouts For Woodwind Quintet (8:44)
4. 8.8.88 Part 1 (4:25)
5. 8.8.88 Part 2 (1:11)
6. 8.8.88 Part 3 (3:20)

Added: June 23rd 2020
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Label's Official Site
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Language: english

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