The friendly folks over at NewMusicBox asked me to write an article about the Yellow Swans‘ final album, Going Places. These guys were friends and collaborators of mine in Portland, Oregon, and I was honored to put together some words.

Ben Ratliff from the New York Times seemed to really enjoy a recent Glissando bin Laden show at the Issue Project Room.

I’ve taken up the accordion lately, and have been having a great time. I’ve been playing that and the violin at a lot of Pearl and the Beard‘s recent New York shows. They’re one of my favorite bands, so it’s a real honor to play with these musicians.

Tatters & Rags will be releasing our first single (on vinyl) this Spring. The release party is on May 8th at Glasslands Gallery. We will be rounding out the rest of May with an every-Wednesday residency at Pete’s Candy Store (shows on the 12th, 19th, and 26th). The show on May 12th will also feature a performance by Poo Poo Jim and Pee Pee Girl, my brand new project of (often inappropriate) songs with the incredibly talented Jocelyn Mackenzie of Pearl and the Beard.

In a turn of events that I’m sure would surprise my professors from college, I’ve made my second cameo appearance in a book from a university press. This time, my tattoo of John Cage’s infamous silent piece is featured in Kyle Gann’s new book, No Such Thing as Silence: John Cage’s 4’33

Glissando bin Laden is a group of musicians with whom I have been playing for almost three years. They are other musicians I met while teaching at The Walden School, a summer program in New Hampshire for young composers. They are Carrie Mallonee, Alex Ness, Sam Pluta, and Meighan Stoops, and they are four of the finest musicians I’ve ever met. They are also some of my favorite people in the world. Our instrumentation includes two violins, bass clarinet, electronics, and vocals. We have recorded several pieces together, collaborating as composers, arrangers, and performers. The pieces include elements of different traditional, classical, and experimental musics, and hopefully reflect the fact that this music is so fucking fun for us, that we usally play with big dumb grins on our faces. We would love for you to listen to this album at the Carrier Records website.
It is our plan to mainly distribute this music electronically, because we can’t really afford to print a bunch of plastic things that nobody buys.

The title of the album, Drone Level Orange, comes from an after-rehearsal session at our after-rehearsal bar, in which we discussed the possibility of putting together a European tour. We are all amusedly concerned with the obstacle that our band’s name may create, and the fact that planning and undertaking this tour may be detected by an overeager NSA email-reader and result in some sort of heightened security situation.

With regards to subjects like printing CDs and traveling places and bail, we would very much appreciate if you can afford to fund your download by donating to our band via the easy to use Carrier Records website, although it is also available for free. We are all happy to invest our time in this music, and your choice to invest in the music as well will make it easier for us in the future to share it with you and other people. Obviously, please feel free to put the tracks on your mixes, portable devices, radio shows, podcasts, playlists, blogs, etc. In fact, if you enjoy the music, please try to share it with someone else who you think might like it. We’d love to begin expanding our community of listeners!

We’ll be playing our last show in New York City for a few months on June 20th, at Monkeytown in Williamsburg. We’ll be playing music along with a live video improviation by Sam Pluta. If you’re in town and have some time, please come by!

Saturday, June 20, 7:30pm
Glissando Bin Laden with Dan Iglesia, Pradeep Ratnayake, and The Draftmasters
58 N 3rd St
(btw. Kent & Wythe)
Williamsburg, Brooklyn 11211

At a recent Eidolon performance, I had the good fortune to have my brand new three basses performed by a truly remarkable trio of bassists. Head over to the music page to hear or download the recording, or check out the score.

I’ve been in the studio with Tatters & Rags recording our album. It should be out by early Summer, check back here for details. Come check us play a set at Matchless, in Greenpoint on April 4th.

My band, Glissando bin Laden and his Musichideen, is also working on a full-length album, to be released by Carrier records. We’ll be playing a set, including some new material, at The Tank on April 8th.

Hot Air Tight Strings, a duo of students at Bard College, commissioned me and several other young composers from New York City to write duets for them. They’ll tackle my over/under for violin and bass flute on April 24th at Bard, and April 26th at Roulette in NYC.

One of my favorite bands, Pearl and the Beard, asked me to contribute some string arrangements to fill out a couple tracks on their new album, God Bless Your Weary Soul Amanda Richardson, which will be released at Joe’s Pub on April 25th.

Also, for reminders of performances and occasional updates, follow me on Twitter.

Tatters and Rags is a rock band with drone, country, and post-punk leanings. Here’s a clip of a song from a recent performance at Cakeshop, courtesy of Punkcast:

Owen Lake is the synth-country project of composer Jeff Snyder. I contributed violin and backup vocals to a few tracks on this EP that I describe to my friends as “Dolly Parton meets The Postal Service.”

I’ve also begun playing violin with Tatters and Rags, a Brooklyn-based “drone country” band. My first show with this band is November 5th, at Cakeshop, in the lower east side of Manhattan. Details soon to come.

Also very exciting is my new piece for recorder and computer, Postcards from New Amsterdam, currently being toured around North America by Terri Hron. Look for it in a city near you!
Tour dates:
October 27, 2008 @ 8 pm – U of A, Fine Arts Building, Studio 27, Edmonton
October 29, 2008 @ 8 pm – Meridian Gallery, San Francisco
November 1, 2008 @ 8 pm – The Western Front Society, Vancouver
November 2, 2008 @ 8 pm – The Music Gallery, Toronto
November 3, 2008 @ 8 pm – Oberlin Conservatory, Oberlin
November 7, 2008 @ 8 pm – Tabler Hall, SUNY Stony Brook
November 10, 2008 @ 8 pm – Harvestworks, New York City

Due to some last-minute changes my cello piece, the language of, was premiered by none other than Dave Eggar, my very favorite cellist. He played the hell out of it, and is incorporating it into his repertoire. Listen for it next at his show at the Stone on October 3rd.

I’m at work on some exciting projects. In the works are more just intonation string pieces, and a work for recorder and live electronics commissioned by Terri Hron. Glissando bin Laden and his Musichideen will be performing late October with all new material and our newest member, bass clarinetist Meighan Stoops. Check here frequently for performance dates and new recordings and scores.

I’m also excited to hear the premiere of my new solo cello piece, the language of on July 13th. It’s a strange piece for me, and I’m looking forward to hearing what it sounds like. the language of is written entirely for the natural harmonics of a standard tuned cello, and contains snippets of thrush song. Here’s a sneak peek: