| Sign up for our Email Newsletter & Subscriber Only Specials
|
|
|
Electric Ascension
|
|
|
|
|
 |
| In 1995, Rova initiated the idea of a 30th anniversary concert of Ascension to celebrate the passion of John Coltrane’s most profound work. That 1995 performance was a gigantic success in its live performance in San Francisco (and again at the Bolzano Jazz Festival in Italy); the live recording from that 1995 performance, released by Black Saint in 1997, is available here tonight. For that performance, we decided to use the same instrumentation as Coltrane used in 1965: five saxophonists, two trumpeters, two bassists, drummer, and pianist. And we generally followed the form of the original performance, alternating full-group ensemble improvisations with sections featuring soloist plus rhythm section.
But John Coltrane was nothing if not a relentless innovator. In the spirit of that search for knowledge and innovation, we employed the same form in 1995, but incorporated our own improvising sensibilities and language. And in the spirit of Coltrane’s search for the new, we propose to imagine a new instrumental line-up and a modified form, tailored to that new line-up, for this 21st century performance of Ascension. For tonight’s performance we have gathered together a group of daring improvisers whose own musics are created with the same spirit of exploration and innovation. It is not our intention to replicate the original Ascension recording, but rather to use it as a springboard to improvise in our moment of the creative continuum. We are indebted to Coltrane (and other great artists) for inspiring us to engage uncompromisingly in the risky business of creativity. |
ARTISTS
Rova Orkestrova: Chris Brown, Ikue Mori, Nels Cline, Otomo Yoshihide, Dan Robinson, Carla Kihlstedt, Jenny Scheinman, Bruce Ackley, Steve Adams, Larry Ochs, Jon Raskin, Fred Frith. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shopping Cart
