From: jgthomas@crchh420.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (John Thomas)
Subject: Re: orchestral cecil
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 00:45:29 GMT
Distribution: na
Reply-To: John Thomas <jgthomas@bnr.ca>              
Organization: BNR, Inc.

In article <1993Jan11.182057.24291@cbnewsl.cb.att.com>, mingus@cbnewsl.cb.att.com (Damballah Wedo) writes:
|> > mad@cs.wm.edu (Michael A. Dritschel):
|> > There's been a lot of discussion of recordings of Cecil Taylor in
|> > various venues, but one area that's it seems to me to have been
|> > neglected are his large ensemble pieces, which I find to be some of
|> > the finest music of this sort.  Unfortunately I am only aware of two
|> > such recordings.  The first is a Gil Evans recording on Bluebird(?)
|> > called _Into the Hot_ that is half Cecil Taylor compositions.  The
|> > other is a Hat recording.  The title doesn't come to mind (my
|> > recordings and terminal are unfortunately not near each other), but I
|> > think there may be two, depending on which side you look at.
|> > Something with "winged serpent" in it, I believe.  I imagine someone
|> > with a better memory for or more convenient record collection can fill
|> 
|> As other people have pointed out, INTO THE HOT orchestral stuff is
|> actually by Johnny Carisi. The Cecil taylor material on that album
|> is small-group. Here is the complete recdb on WINGED SERPENT, IMO
|> an atypical album. I am VERY sorry I missed seeing that big band during
|> that one week it was at Sweet Basil, way back when...
|> 
|> Records with this Title:
|> Taylor, Cecil                                            Soul Note SN 1089 (LP)
|> Title: Winged Serpent (Sliding Quadrants)
|> Recorded: 10/22/1984, 10/23/1984, 10/24/1984 at Studio 7, Milano, Italy
|> Released: 1985
|> With: Enrico Rava, Trumpet
|>       Tomasz Stanko, Trumpet
|>       Jimmy Lyons, Alto Sax
|>       Frank Wright, Tenor Sax
|>       John Tchicai, Tenor Sax, Bass Clarinet
|>       Gunter Hampel, Baritone Sax, Bass Clarinet
|>       Karen Borca, Bassoon
|>       William Parker, Bass
|>       Rashied Bakr, Drums
|>       Andre Martinez, Drums, Percussion
|>       Cecil Taylor (leader), Piano
|> Contents: 1) Taht                                                      ( 08:50)
|>           2) Womb Waters Scent Of The Burning Armadillo Shell          ( 13:04)
|>           3) Cun-Un-Un-Un-An                                           ( 07:10)
|>           4) Winged Serpent                                            ( 13:54)
|>           Total:                                                       ( 42:58)
|> Purchased: 1985
|> 
|> As other people have also noted, Cecil plays with a big band on one of the
|> FMP box CDs. I don't have it, so I can't comment, but all reviewers have
|> raved about the box, so...
|> -- 
|> Marcel-Franck Simon             	mingus@usl.com, usl!mingus
|> 
|> 	" Papa Loko, ou se' van, ou-a pouse'-n ale'
|> 	  Nou se' papiyon, n'a pote' nouvel bay Agwe' "

I recently got the FMP 2 CD set you mention, ALMS TIERGARTEN.

Despite the glowing review Bill Hsu gave it, I'm not sure I can include it up
there with some of my faves of his (The 2 Blue Notes - CONQUISTADOR and
UNIT STRUCTURES, 3 PHASIS, the solo and trio LOOKING, SILENT TONGUES).

The ensemble includes some of the players from WINGED SERPENT -- Rava, Stanko,
Hampel, for example, plus  Peter Brotzmann, Evan Parker, Han Bennink, etc.
I haven't heard WINGED SERPENT so I can't compare but overall I like the second
disc more than the first as the first seems to be dominated by a lot of
blaring (esp by the horns) and it's hard to hear a lot of the time Hampel
and Taylor and even the strings.  This can be a bit numbing for sixty
minutes which is the effect it had on me -- powerful though it may be.
The second disc definitely has more space for development in my opinion.

Whoever wrote that Cecil's monolithic themes are the norm on these was right
on the money.  Slabs o' sound. 
From: errol@hpgnd153.grenoble.hp.com (Errol Inan)
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 18:28:24 GMT
Subject: Re: Ellington suggestions
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, GND