Tag Archives: contemporary music

Ruben Machtelinckx + Arve Henriksen’s A Short Story

Count this disc as yet another that is a balm in these extraordinary times. Now, Belgian guitarist and composer Ruben Machtelinckx couldn’t possibly have known that we’d be facing war in Europe as February faded into March of 2022, when … Continue reading

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Slagr’s Linde

I last covered the music of the Norwegian trio Slagr on the occasion of their 2015 Ozella release Short Stories. Here’s what I said in the opening paragraph of that review: Slagr was founded in 2003 by hardanger fiddler Anne … Continue reading

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Yggdrasil’s Two Suites by Kristian Blak: The Four Towers and Heygar og Dreygar

Kevin Lau wrote this review. I must confess that before I heard this disc, I had no idea what I was in for. Coming from a purely classical background, I have had a fascination with jazz but little real knowledge … Continue reading

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Gary’s favorite jazz and experimental music of 2020

A lot of my absolute favorite music of 2020 was instrumental: jazz and especially various kinds of experimental music. Some of it I reviewed here at GMR, some I didn’t. Here’s a look at 10 of my favorites in this … Continue reading

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Arvo Pärt’s The Deer’s Cry

I first ran across the music of Arvo Pärt many years ago, in a coffee shop owned by a man whose taste in music was as eclectic as my own. It was the Passio, and I was intrigued enough that … Continue reading

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D1V1N1T1’s Terra Divina

I’ve encountered several collaborations between Canadian musician Tim Clément and other artists — readers here may remember Wolfsong Night, in which Clément and guitarist Kim Deschamps delivered a complex and multi-facted album that stands up under repeated listenings. Clément’s latest … Continue reading

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Down the Track’s Landscapes

There is, in the history of “classical” music a — call it a “genre” — of what is known as “program music” going all the way back to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons (at least), and including works by such luminaries as … Continue reading

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numün’s voyage au soleil

They had me at “Morton Subotnick.” The 1960s electronic music pioneer is listed as one of the influences of numün on voyage au soleil, their inaugural full-length release. I listened and was captivated. Numün is a New York-based trio of … Continue reading

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Nous’s Nous II

What first attracted me to this recording was the presence of Shahzad Ismaily, the New York-based multi-instrumentalist whose playing, composing and arranging skills have made him a valued contributer to projects by so many musicians it’s impossible to list them … Continue reading

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Lumen Drones’ Umbra

Let’s see, how many of my musical buttons does this new release by Lumen Drones push? Hardanger fiddle? Check. Folk-based experimental music? Check. Nordic music? Check. And of course the big one, right there in the name: drones, drones, drones! … Continue reading

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