West Oakland Sound Series :: Presented by sfSound

WEST OAKLAND SOUND SERIES
a weekly new music and experimental sound series presented by sfSound

dresher ensemble studio :: 2201 poplar street, oakland california
(please park perpendicular when past the trees on poplar)
$10-$25 sliding scale (cash & venmo accepted at door)
click here to purchase advance tickets ($20) online on eventbrite
(late arrivals follow instructions on door to get buzzed in)

sunday april 21, 2024 carl stone / jordan glenn, music for other things
sunday april 28, 2024 john bischoff / zofo
sunday may 12, 2024 a/b duo / gretchen jude + cheryl leonard
sunday may 19, 2024 sarah saviet (berlin) / sam weiser + dustin carlson
sunday may 26, 2024 pacific pythagorean music festival

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APRIL 21 2024 7pm $10-$25

CARL STONE
JORDAN GLENN, MUSIC FOR OTHER THINGS

CARL STONE returns to the Bay Area for an intimate performance of solo electronic music and a closing duo with PAUL DRESHER on his invented instrument, the Hurdy Grande. Stone is one of the pioneers of live computer music, and has been hailed by the Village Voice as “the king of sampling” and “one of the best composers living in (the USA) today.” He has used computers in live performance since 1986. Stone was born in Los Angeles and now divides hs time between Los Angeles and Japan. He studied composition at the California Institute of the Arts with Morton Subotnick and James Tenney and has composed electro-acoustic music almost exclusively since 1972. He is on the faculty of the Department of Media Engineering at Chukyo University in Japan.

Drummer, percussionist, composer, improviser and constant collaborator JORDAN GLENN presents sketches for a new ensemble of clarinet, cello, guitar and vibraphone. Will these compositional seeds find their way to future contexts like dance or theater? Will Jordan remember how to play the vibraphone? Let's find out.

JORDAN GLENN - vibes/perc/composition
CORY WRIGHT - clarinets/bari sax
BEN DAVIS - cello
MATT WROBEL - guitar

APRIL 28 2024 7pm $10-$25

ZOFO
JOHN BISCHOFF

The Bay Area's premier piano duet, ZOFO plays excerpts from Echoes of Gamelan. This new program explores the influence of Balinese gamelan music on western composers, as well as how our music perception changes depending on the context.

P R O G R A M
Pemungkah and Tabuh Telu, from Balinese Ceremonial Music
(transcribed by Colin McPhee for two pianos, arranged for one piano by ZOFO)
Beta Cygni - George Crumb
Prisms for Gene Davis, excerpts 1, 2, 4, & 5 - Brian Baumbusch
In the Kraton - Leopold Godowsky
Speech Delay - Ni Nyoman Srayamurtikanti (transcribed by Brian Baumbusch)

JOHN BISCHOFF (b. 1949, San Francisco) is an early practitioner of live computer music known for his solo constructions in real-time synthesis. A founding member of The League of Automatic Music Composers and The Hub network music bands, he was on faculty for many years in the legendary Music Department at Mills College. He presents three solo compositions for computer and custom analog circuits.

Both Visibility Study (2015) and Bitplicity (2020) feature homemade analog circuits in performance with software synthesis elements generated by a laptop. The analog circuits are pulse-wave oscillators sounding in audio and sub-audio realms which are animated by performer actions—-primarily the momentary shorting of conductive points in each circuit. To accomplish this, the circuits are fabricated by the composer with critical trace points brought to the top of the circuit box in the form of brass rails. The rails run parallel to each other where they can be "shorted" (the circuit points closed) with coins wielded by the performer. The two solos share common software structures throughout: -as circuit tones come to life they sound at the loudspeakers and trigger digital synthesis responses via the laptop as well - circuit events are also analyzed for spectral content and elapsed time between events - the pitch and timing of subsequent digital synthesis is driven by this performance-acquired data--no pre-performance data is employed

Calliope (2022) is a take-off on Leon Theremin’s realization of Henry Cowell’s concept—an instrument called the Rhythmicon which automatically reiterates its tones at rates corresponding to the ratios of selected pitch combinations. I was inspired by a YouTube clip of Andre Smirov playing one of Theremin’s original instruments. The device is so beautifully elegant, and sonically quirky at the same time, that I wanted to build a digital synthesis version on the same principles but where the electronic instrument has internal drift in all dimensions - the tones migrate out of tune and disassemble in time as each phrase develops.

MAY 12 2024 7pm $10-$25

A/B DUO
GRETCHEN JUDE + CHERYL E. LEONARD

GRETCHEN JUDE (voice, objects, field recordings) and CHERYL E. LEONARD (natural-object instruments, field recordings) present Peregrinations, a set of improvisations that delve into sonic minutiae. Very quiet sounds are amplified and dialogue with extended vocal and instrumental techniques as the duo evokes imaginary topographies and ecosystems.

From djembe to Nintendo Gameboy to contrabass flute to drum set, A/B DUO'S no-limits instrumentation and imaginative concert programming has delighted audiences all over the United States since 2013. Made up of flutist Meerenai Shim and percussionist Christopher G. Jones, A/B Duo has made a mark for its “fresh, vibrant new music” and “commitment to widening the repertoire.” (Fanfare Magazine)

For this concert, A/B Duo presents building, a new commission from Berkeley composer Ken Ueno. Building Stories, a graphic novel by Chris Ware, inspired this piece. Ware’s novel extends and reimagines both the novel and the comic book. A non-linear form, rather, a consortium of micro-linear forms in the physical guise of different forms (in various sizes and shapes), it gives physical form to a commentary on memory. Fragmentation enacts a repository of psychological traumas. The theme of "building" is literal as well as allegorical to the mechanism of "building" an identity. In my musical composition the flute is fragmented, literally and physically, so that we might build it (or re-build) anew. Links:

MAY 19 2024 7pm $10-$25

SARAH SAVIET
SAM WEISER + DUSTIN CARLSON

SARAH SAVIET explores shifting limits: between interpreter and author, idea and body, virtuosity and failure, periphery and interior. This performance will include her own music which engages with texts by Bauhaus textile artist Anni Albers, as well as music by British composers Jack Sheen and Lawrence Dunn.

Sarah Saviet is an American violinist and compser based in Berlin and dedicated to the performance of contemporary music. She performs as a soloist and chamber musician and is a member of the Saviet/Houston Duo and Ensemble Mosaik. Sarah’s debut solo album SPUN (Coviello Contemporary) was recently nominated for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik for new music. Her recording of Liza Lim’s violin concerto Speak, Be Silent, with the Riot Ensemble on HCR/NMC records was selected as one of New Yorker Magazine’s "Best recordings of 2019."

SAM WEISER (violin) and DUSTIN CARLSON (guitar) both exist in the spaces that straddle classical and improvised music. They have been working together for the past six months on Dustin's new suite for solo violin, entitled, "Her Warrior Longs to Rest". The piece is inspired by the Grave of Griffin Warrior (ca. 1450 BC), one of the wealthiest burials found in Greece in the last 70 years. In addition, the performance will also include Dustin's music for solo guitar, as well as duets.

Sam Weiser, currently the first violinist of the Carpe Diem String Quartet, is a lifelong chamber musician and advocate of contemporary music. He holds a number of positions around the Bay Area, including assistant concertmaster of the California Symphony, member of One Found Sound, and violinist in sfSound. Formerly, he was a member of the award-winning Del Sol Quartet.

Dustin Carlson is currently composer in residence with the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music in Boonville CA. Dustin is originally from New York where he played and recorded with notable jazz musicians such as Anna Webber, Matt Mitchell, Ches Smith, and Kate Gentile. He has recently moved to California after living as a flamenco guitarist in Sevilla, Spain.

MAY 26 2024 7pm $10-$25

PACIFIC PYTHAGOREAN MUSIC FESTIVAL

In a co-presentation with sfSound's West Oakland Sound Series, the DEL SOL STRING QUARET hosts the Bay Area's only festival celebrating 'just intonation’ compositions with an all-star lineup showcasing experimental and traditional styles!

P R O G R A M

DEL SOL STRING QUARET - works by MAT MUTZ and JURI SEO
PAUL DRESHER/JOEL DAVEL INVENTED INSTRUMENT DUO
sfSoundOrchestra - MATT INGALLS' ZIA
SAM WEISER - TAYLOR BROOK'S Vocalise for violin with tape
CALEB ROSE/MATT INGALLS (cl), SAM WEISER (vn) - ANDREW MCINTOSH'S Symmetry Etudes

...details coming soon...

PROPOSALS

Our focus is on the bay area experimental and new music community, hopefully encouraging crossover among sub-scenes (composition and improvisation; established and emerging; institutional and underground; etc.) We strongly suggest local musicians attend concerts before requesting to perform on the series. Visiting aritsts are also welcome, ideally splitting a concert with local musicians.

We are also seeking compositions (in all forms of notation) to be performed by the sfSoundGroup.

We have a 92-key (down to a Low F!) 1953 Bösendorfer 7’4” Model 225 Piano (no sostenuto pedal; inside/prepared is OK). The venue hosts a Meyer Sound System, drum kit, additional piano, lighting, and projection equipment.

Please send proposals to matt ingalls: series@sfsound.org.