Brooklyn Rail Highly Selective Music Events

April 2017

By the Editors

• April 3: Nate Wooley Complete Syllables Music release at IBeam. Trumpeter, composer, and let’s say all-around-arts-administrator, Wooley is releasing a marvelous four CD box of music connected to spoken language. Out on his own Pleasure of the Text imprint, the music is equal successful as experiment and as immersion in Wooley’s trumpet playing. If you miss the show, catch him on our upcoming April podcast.


• April 4: Matt Mitchell at Roulette. Mitchell will be playing music from his new release, Forage, his interpretations of the musical ideas of Tim Berne. Taking Berne’s often off-kilter aphorisms, Mitchell uncovers deep personal expression. Listen to our discussion with Berne on our March podcast.



• April 5: Not OK: The Music of Phil Kline at Roulette. Beyond Unsilent Night, composer Phil Kline has produced a substantial body of work. The Curated by Meredith Monk series presents this concert as both a retrospective and a look forward; there will be excerpts from a new Joan Crawford song cycle, Vienna’s Place, and the debut of Not OK for electric guitar and boombox orchestra, with guest Jim Jarmusch handling both the axe and video projections.


• April 6: Sarah Cahill plays Lou Harrison at (le) poisson rouge. There’s a strong case to be made that Lou Harrison was the sun around which 20th century American classical music orbited, and there’s no one to make a better case for it then pianist Sarah Cahill, who will be playing Harrison’s gorgeous keyboard music.



• April 7: Saltland at National Sawdust. Former member of Thee Silver Mt. Zion and veteran of the Montreal music scene Rebecca Foon, performing as Saltland, celebrates the release of her new record, A Common Truth, with a show in Brooklyn. As evidenced on the recently shared track “Forward Eyes II,” Foon’s cello brings a subtle melodic element to a minimalist, ambient sound that slowly, quietly builds.



• April 7 - 8: Noah Preminger at Smalls. Preminger is bringing his excellent quartet for this two night run, playing music from his beautiful new album, Meditations on Freedom. One of the best and most committed contemporary jazz musicians, Preminger puts his values into every note he plays.



• April 8: Memorial for Tony Conrad at Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center. A year after his death, family, friends, and colleagues will be celebrating the life and considerable achievements of Conrad. This multi-dimensional memorial will feature speeches, videos, and musical performances, a living companion to the documentary Tony Conrad: Completely in the Present, showing at Anthology Film Archives.



• April 9: John McCutcheon at Jalopy. Folk stalwart John McCutcheon plays two sets in Red Hook. McCutcheon’s latest release, Trolling for Dreams, features solid, proficient Americana.


• April 11: Randy Gibson at Wild Project. A previous podcast guest, experimental composer Gibson will be debuting a new audio-visual performance. TIGUE will play The Four Pillars Appearing from The Resonating Discs invoking The 72:81:88 Confluence, based on alternative tunings and overtones, inside his new visual setting, Quadrilateral Starfield Symmetry ATS4 Base 6:81.



• April 11, 18, and 25: Sunwatchers residency at Union Pool. Sunwatchers performs in Brooklyn over three successive Tuesdays with an impressive roster of guests: April 11 features Talibam! and Colin L. playing Billy Joel; Glockabelle joins on April 18; and finally, on April 25, there’s Eugene Chadbourne.


• April 12: Cory Smythe at the Jazz Gallery. Even in a scene where musicians playing in ensembles and situations across genres, pianist Cory Smythe stands out. His realms are classical music, new music, jazz, improvisation, and experimentalism. His own music-making is fascinatingly plastic, with originals and old-time tunes parsed through alternate-universe type acoustic and electronic dimensions. This gig celebrates his solo release, A U T O TROPHS.



• April 13: Michael Pisaro at Musical Ecologies. Hosted by our own Dan Joseph, this experimental music series will present a performance by Wandelweiser composer and musician Pisaro; transparent city (2) for guitar and pre-recorded audio. Expect quiet, space, and stillness.


• April 15 and 16 Tinariwen at Brooklyn Bowl. Mali’s Tinariwen are among the most prominent ambassadors of Saharan blues. The band’s latest record, Elwan, out now on Anti-, pairs fat-toned blues guitar with vibrant, layered percussion, with vocals somewhere between dirge and elegy. Dengue Fever opens each of these two shows. Part of the World Music Institute’s Desert Blues series, which brings over artists from the Saharan region of Africa.



• April 19: Foster Care, Manateees, Choke Chains, and Vat of Acid at Silent Barn. With Shea Stadium the most recent to cease operations (temporarily, we hope) Silent Barn seems the last of its generation of DIY venues still around, proudly putting on punk shows like this one, presented by Gimme Tinnitus.


• April 21: Tongues in Trees at BAM Café. New York trio Tongues in Trees plays art rock informed by North Indian classical and folk music—a potent mix. Part of the World Music Institute’s Global/Local series.



• April 24: Acid Mothers Temple at Monty Hall. WFMU’s Monty Hall is coming into its own as a venue, hosting two sold out shows by Waxahatchee last month and this month hosting Japanese psych rock titans Acid Mothers Temple. Of course, it’s the next Hearty White live show you really need to look out for.


• April 25 - 29: MATA Festival at The Kitchen. Back and as big as ever, the MATA Festival once again will present the broadest and deepest range of contemporary classical music that can be found anywhere. Along with seven world, fourteen American, and five New York premieres, the festival will also present the first American performances by Scenatet, from Denmark, and the local debut of Hocket, an L.A. based piano duo.



• April 29: Mikel Rouse at National Sawdust. The singular Rouse is releasing Hemisphere, a new video album, at this show. This is a chance to experience the work of one of the most accomplished, wide-ranging, and innovative artists from the original Downtown scene.