Friday, February 6, 2009

Iancu Dumitrescu

Alternances Bas-reliefs Apogeum Reliefs

Electracord ST-CS 0191

Bucharest, Romania

Avant-garde composer Iancu Dumitrescu was born July 15, 1944 in Sibiu, Romania.

Dumitrescu studied composition in Bucharest under Alfred Mendelssohn. He studied conducting and philosophy with Sergiu Celibidache who led Dumitrescu who gave him generous lessons in the principles of phenomenology.

He began composing his mature works in the early 1970's. In 1976 he founded the Hyperion Ensemble, which he describes as "a multimedia group dedicated to experimental music."

Dumitrescu has composed a large body of works for acoustic instruments and ensembles as well as works combining acoustic and electronic sounds and works composed entirely using tape or computer.

Dumitrescu describes his music as "acousmatic" but disclaims a relationship with the Acoustmatic Music of French musique concrete pioneer Pierre Schaeffer. His comositions are based on the acousmatic aesthetics by virtue of whichthe sound is subjected to analyses and dissociations (harmonic multisons - diagonal sounds) which confer it a genuine force of suggestion and penetration. He accepts the "spectralist" label, though he distinguishes his work from some others in the spectral school in that it is not serial. Dumitrescu has been quoted as saying, "I think of myself as a spectralist, but in completely different way from the French."

Dumitrescu is married to fellow composer Ana-Maria Avram (born 1961); they have more than 20 joint CD releases on their Edition Modern label. Recordings of Dumitrescu's works have also been released by Edition RZ, ReR Megacorp, Generations Unlimited, and other record labels.

The following recordings were composed between 1967 and 1972. Vinyl noise from the original Romanian LP release has not been removed so as not to compromise some of the more subtle sounds in the compositions which could have been lost in doing so.

listen to Iancu Dumitrescu

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

New Music: The Alternative 10 - Volume II, 1984

Various Artists: Art of Noise, Romeo Void, Hoodoo Gurus, Robert Gorl, Split Enz, Jimmy and the Suspects

Radio Free America

Marilyn Pittman's radio television career span over two decades. From rock jock in Albuquerque to work as talk show host, stand-up comic, and commentator in San Francisco she is a versatile and dynamic media personality.

Marilyn didn't want to be a waitress at the age of 40, so she got into radio and spent four years in classic rock and pop radio. In 1980 and '81, she was a radio and television news anchor but decided she would pursue comedy instead.

Due to the lack of comedic outlets in Albuquerque she reinvented herself as an independent radio producer and created Radio Free America's "New Music: The Alternative Ten", a half-hour mix of new wave music and interviews nationally syndicated on over 300 college station in 1983-'84.

This particular episode Volume II, 1984 featured Music by the Split Enz, Hoodoo Gurus, Robert Gorl, Jimmy and the Suspects and a few special treats as well. Deborah Iyall, singer and lyricist for Romeo Void chats with Marilyn Pittman about the then new "Instincts" LP and how it came to be.

Also included in the show is a unique "collage" of the Art of Noise's LP "Who's Afraid of the Art of Noise" and Producer John Riegler's experimental sound adventures through the Jungle's of El Dorado.

All of this is brought to you courtesy of the new (in 1984) Today Contraceptive Sponge!

have a listen to "New Music: The Alternative 10 - Volume II, 1984"