Composer-lute player Jozef Van Wissem is renowned for his unusual approach of the Renaissance and Baroque lute, probably the most unlikely instruments in the world of contemporary music. He cuts and pastes classical pieces, reverses melodies, adds electronics and processed field recordings The unusual wedlock of composition and improvisation creates an unheard amalgam of contemporary, folk and early music Van Wissem has accomplished the strange feat of bridging the idiom of seventeenth century lute literature and twenty-first century contemporary music. Although he uses subtle electronic sound manipulation, he has largely stayed faithful to the particular timbre, resonance and playing technique of the lute.

Van Wissem first came to be noticed a few years ago because of his radical conceptual approach to Renaissance lute music: He deconstructed existing compositions, for instance by playing them backwards. He also composed his own pieces for lute, using palindromes and mirrored structures. His music therefore does not have a traditional linear progression, nor leads to a climax, it rather stays on the same level of intensity. It doesn’t demand concentrated listening, as it will bring the listener to a state of concentrated listening.

Jozef runs the Incunabulum label, and performs extensively around the world. He also works with M.B. / Maurizio Bianchi, James Blackshaw and Tetuzi Akiyama. With Blackshaw he formed the duo Brethren of the Free Spirit, which has two releases on Important records. Wire Magazine called his solo lute cd “ Stations of the Cross “ a small masterpiece. He has two solo records out on Important records and has lectured a.o. at Wesleyan University and Mills College on ‘the liberation of the lute”. Van Wissem has received numerous commisions and grants, most recently from National Gallery, London.

He performs about 80 concerts per year around the world and has appeared live on national tv and radiostations, twice on the Dutch Vrije Geluiden Vpro TV show and has performed at prestigious festivals and venues like Expo Zaragoza 2008, Spain, Kr-aa-k Festival , Belgium, ZXZW Festival, Holland, Sonorités Festival, France, Serralves em festa Festival, Portugal, Seattle Improvised Music Festival, Suono Per Il Popolo Festival, Montreal, Sintra Music and Dance Festival, Portugal, Byzantine Fresco Museum, Texas, I.C.A, London, and Glasgow, Schindler House, Hollywood.

“In “The Mirror of Eternal Light,” the Dutch lutist Jozef van Wissem catches his own reflection in tender, minimalist picking and gold-spray overdubs.” -David Fricke, senior editor, Rolling Stone Magazine, March 2008

"Van Wissem seems to breeze across musical boundaries with an effortless fluency" - Pitchfork Media

LINK

http://www.myspace.com/vanwissem

Tom James Scott performs solo acoustic guitar, and has so far released two CD's through the London based label Bo'Weavil Recordings. His compositions are often hushed and meditative, and draw influence from a wide range of sources including improvisation, traditional music, and contemporary composition.

LINK

http://www.myspace.com/tomjamesscott