Greeting the New Year With Energy and Grace

Updates and thoughts on current work

As quiet as it may seem at times, the new year is quickly gathering momentum here in Connecticut. I spent last Saturday improvising in a promising new chamber setting: Mario Pavone/bass; David Darling/cello & voice; Peter Mceachern/trombone. We stood in a circle in the living room of Vita Muir's Litchfield house while her son Owen did a wonderful job of recording the music. The notion is simple: we all live and work here in Connecticut. A favorite theme of mine-local work for local artists. The working title for our project is the Connecticut Improvising Composers Consortium (CICC). We will name the chamber ensemble at some future point.

We have finished mixing the first album of music by my quartet, Bugaboo, recorded at Firehouse 12 in New Haven. While the recording's home (e.g., a small independent label, or should I start my own label?) is not yet certain, we expect to release the music this summer.

The first release by the Taylor Ho Bynum/Stephen Haynes Double Trio will soon arrive on the Engine label. the music is quite exciting, and was recorded live at the Festival of New Trumpet Music in New York. The instrumentation is Taylor Ho Bynum & Stephen Haynes/cornets & trumpets, Mary Halvorsen & Allan Jaffe/electric guitars; Tomas Fujiwara & Warren Smith/drums & percussion.

Next week, we will spend two days at Firehouse 12 with Bill Dixon, mixing the recording of his new work for orchestra premiered at the Vision Festival and slated for a May joint release on the AUM Fidelity, Arts for Arts, and Bill Dixon imprints. The music is quite wonderful and we hope to find support for additional large ensemble work with Bill in the very near future.

Photographs by Kimberly Ann Watson