Saturday 3 October 2015, 8pm
Vocalist Phil Minton is joined by turntable artist Christian Marclay to celebrate the release of his new LP of solo improvisations, A Doughnut's End (Fataka). How to celebrate the release of a record of improvised music when the material is unrepeatable? This concert will invite the audience to listen to A Doughnut’s End in a new situation: Marclay will use the LP as source material, doubling up Minton's live vocals against their recorded imprint, juxtaposing voice and vinyl in an exploration of the limits of what mouth and stylus can do.
“an exercise in revolting vocal technique and mangled language, flitting between any and every (in)conceivable function of the larynx, teeth, and lips. Alternately resonant and breathless, Minton’s improvisations are as much a vocalization of collective discontent as a personal one: few albums this year have evoked disgust and terror quite as excitingly as here” – Soe Jherwood, Tiny Mix Tapes
Bass and drums is probably one of the most common instrumental combinations in music, but it's unusual to hear them by themselves, without other instruments in front. Likewise, John Edwards and Mark Sanders have appeared at Cafe Oto many times together, but they've never before appeared here as a duo. This will be a rare opportunity to hear two of the world's finest improvisors firmly in the foreground.
For a long time now Phil Minton has been working as a improvising singer, solo and in groups and situations at various locations all over the place, deserts, quarries, concert halls, pubs, holes, dodgy clubs, containers, up trees, in prisons, on mountains, in churches, under bridges and cafe oto etc.
Phil Minton comes from Torquay. He played trumpet and sang with the Mike Westbrook Band in the early 60s - Then in dance and rock bands in Europe for the later of part of the decade. He returned to England in 1971, rejoining Westbrook and was involved in many of his projects until the mid 1980′s.
For most of the last forty years, Minton has been working as an improvising singer in lots of groups, orchestras, and situations. Numerous composers have written music especially for his extended vocal techniques. He has a quartet with Veryan Weston, Roger Turner and John Butcher, and ongoing duos, trios and quartets with above and many other musicians, including tours with American singer Audrey Chen - with whom he has sang far and wide in the last ten years.
Since the eighties, His Feral Choir, where he voice-conducts workshops and concerts for anyone who wants to sing, has performed in over twenty countries.
Over the past 30 years, Christian Marclay has explored the fusion of fine art and audio cultures, transforming sounds and music into a visible, physical form through performance, collage, sculpture, installation, photography and video. His latest major work, The Clock, is a 24 hour video piece constructed from films where the time is expressed has been declared 'a masterpiece' (Frieze Magazine).
Raised in Switzerland, Marclay has spent most of his adult life in America, but now lives in mostly in London and New York. He began performing with turntables whilst still a student in the late 70s - According to critic Thom Jurek, Marclay was the 'unwitting inventor of turntablism' and has since been active in the field of free improvisation, performing with the world's best improvisors including Evan Parker, John Zorn, Otomo Yoshihide and many many more. Marclay's graphic scores, which take musical motifs from everyday objects, signs and advertising was recently celebrated with a three month festival at the Whitney in New York during July-September 2010.
“Christian Marclay can make music out of almost anything.” – WNYC
John Edwards grew up in London and started experimenting with the bass guitar before he switched in his twenties to play double bass. He is deeply rooted in the creative free jazz and improvisation genre. Since the 80ties he is as soloist and in many groups and ensembles in Europe active and became one of the most renowned bass players. He played/plays regular for example with Peter Brötzmann, Joe Mc Phee, Phil Minton, Maggie Nichols, Evan Parker, Roscoe Michtell, Louis Moholo-Moholo, Mark Sanders, Caroline Kraabel, John Butcher, Pat Thomas, Irène Schweizer, Hans Koch, Florian Stoffner, Gabriele Mitelli, John Dikeman.
"I think John Edwards is absolutely remarkable: there’s never been anything like him before, anywhere in jazz." - Richard Williams, The Blue Moment
Mark has worked with many greats of the British, European and American free jazz improvised music scene including Roscoe Mitchell, Roswell Rudd, Evan Parker, John Butcher, Henry Grimes, Elaine Mitchener, Wadada Leo Smith, Myra Melford, Charles Gayle , Sirone and William Parker
He has also played with Jah Wobble, Harold Budd, Bill Laswell, Christian Marclay, International Contemporary Ensemble, Ilan Volkov and The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.
He is a member of many working groups including duos with Nicole Mitchell and Rhodri Davies, Neil Charles' 'Dark Days' with Cleveland Watkiss & Pat Thomas, 'Last Dream of the Morning' with John Butcher & John Edwards, 'Shifa' with Rachel Musson and Pat Thomas and 'Sarost' with Larry Stabbins & Paul Rogers.
As an educator he has taught improvisation at many universities around the country as a lecturer and guest tutor.
Mark has played concerts and festivals around the world and appears on over 220 CD and Vinyl releases.
Mark was a recipient of the Paul Hamlyn Award for Artists 2024
"Drop the needle on the first track — or any track for that matter — and the first thing one is bound to notice is the amazing percussion skills of Mark Sanders" – Peter Thelen... Exposé
"Mark is just incredible and immensely diverse, he is at the center of "Kwingyaw" and it is difficult to tell what he is doing to get some of these sounds." – Bruce L Gallenter, Downtown Music Gallery, NY
