Things of Inspiration, Pt. 3

Donna Coleman - Piano Sonata No. 2 (Charles Ives)

Donna was my regular teacher during the period 2009-2012. She helped me reinvent my piano technique after I developed intersection syndrome (a kind of RSI) in both my arms. Learning from her has deepened my understanding and love for the piano and music in general. This recording of Ives' most well-known piano work is made all the more significant for me knowing how deep Donna researches and considers everything.


Brian Eno and David Byrne - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts

I've only just started listening to this, but I'm enjoying the playful strangness on this album. It keeps it from becoming over self-concious. Talking Heads was a band I was into in highschool; I remember being struck by how strange they all looked and sounded . . .


Dr. John - Locked Down

I love Dr. John's album Gumbo, everytime I hear it it makes me feel good . . . Locked Down might not be so straight-down-the-line funky, but I think the rhythm-section playing and overall production is fantastic.


Magnet - Steve Magnusson

To me this sounds like an album that has been laboured over, in the best possible way. The attention to detail, in the playing and production, makes this album an instant favourite of mine.

Things of Inspration, Pt. 2

Recently at one of tutorials I run at Monash Unversity, a student asked me about my music collection. I don't think very much of it, as it's grown as I've come across more and more music, but nevertheless the student asked if I could start a list of my listening so that he might be able to track down new things to check out.

A new one in this series of posts will hopefully be up every week or two.

Recent listening:


James Blake - Overgrown

I enjoy Blake's first record a lot. I like it's "roughness." At first listen the new album seems a little too polished for my taste, but it's growing on me.


Craig Taborn - Chants

Taborn is one of my favourite improvising pianists, and I'm loving this album. I've heard some of the music before on bootlegs from Europe and NY, but it's great to here that repertiore brought together under one album.


Daniel Barenboim - Piano Sonatas No. 31 and 32 (L.V. Beethoven)

Although I find Barenboim's renditions a little boisterous, I'm currently in a period of learning more and more about composers I'd only previously taken a token interest in. I was inspired to check out these piano sonatas after reading some of Richard Taruskin's The Oxford History of Western Music in Five Volumes (see my series of posts with an identical label).


Claudio Arrau - Piano Sonata No. 21 (F. Schubert)

See blurb above, although I love Arrau's playing.


Bjork - Biophillia

Not a new album, but I still love the unexpected turns this album contains, the holistic approach Bjork has to music making, and the production.


Lee Konitz/Lennie Tristano - The Complete Atlantic Recordings, Subconcious-Lee and Palo Alto

I'm on another binge of learning Tristano/Konitz. So far it's been Subconcious-Lee, Background Music, April, 317 East 32nd, Wow and Hibeck.  Simply amazing music, to my ears.


J-Dilla - The Lost Scrolls

Not too much to say about this . . . gets me everytime.

More soon . . .