Author: Robert

From Bay Improviser:

Thursday, March 22, 8pm
OutSound presents the Luggage Store New Music Series, this week featuring a set at 8pm with Sarah Elena Palmer (vocals, processing), and at 9pm with Ann/Marianne, featuring Ann O’Rourke (cymbals, drums, found objects, effects) and Marianne Tomita McDonald (Scottish harp). Luggage Store Gallery, 1007 Market St. (@ 6th St.), San Francisco | $6-10

From CNMAT, Berkeley:

Thursday, March 22, 8pm
CNMAT presents pianist and Regent’s Lecturer Gloria Cheng in a performance, demonstration, and discussion of new works for piano and live electronics. The pieces have been composed for this occasion by UC Berkeley graduate composers Sivan Eldar, Dan Van Hassel, and Jen Wang. CNMAT, University of California Berkeley, 1750 Arch St., Berkeley | Free

From Bay Improviser:

Friday, March 23, 6:30pm
In 1975, California-based Dutch Conceptual artist Bas Jan Ader disappeared under mysterious circumstances at sea while attempting to cross the Atlantic in a small craft. Filmmaker Rene Daalder uses this story as the basis for a sweeping overview of contemporary art and an epic saga of the transformative powers of the ocean in his 2008 film Here is Always Somewhere Else: The Life of Bas Jan Ader. Before the screening, immerse yourself in a recording of ARP’s meditative electronic musical work Odyssey (For Bas Jan Ader). In conjunction with the exhibition State of Mind: New California Art circa 1970. Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way, Berkeley | Free to $7

Friday, March 23, 8pm
Artists’ Television Access presents an evening of electroacoustic audio-visual improvisation with Bill Hsu (electronics, interactive animation), Tony Dryer (contrabass), Jacob Felix Heule (percussion), and special guests from Norway. Artists’ Television Access, 992 Valencia St., San Francisco | $6-10

Friday, March 23, 8pm
Open Sound West at CNMAT presents Jacob Zimmerman’s Lawson and Zachary Watkins’ Positively Right On. The Lawson Ensemble, formed in the fall of 2009, features Jacob Zimmerman (alto sax), Theo Padouvas (trumpet), Rob Ewing (trombone), Michael Coleman and Dan VanHassel (keyboards), and Dan Good (electronics and trumpet). Positively Right On by Zachary James Watkins is a new work written for Ava Mendoza and John Shiurba who are also the performers (electric guitars). CNMAT, University of California Berkeley, 1750 Arch St., Berkeley | $10 / $5 UC Berkeley students

Friday, March 23, 9pm
Free Jazz/Free Punk band, LIBERTAS, will be performing live at The Starry Plough. Also performing will be THE ECONOMEN (MINUTEMAN tribute) and BRIAN KENNY FRESNO. Starry Plough, 3101 Shattuck Ave. (@ Prince), Berkeley |

Saturday, March 24, 1pm
Sculpting Air – Vocal Workshop: Theresa Wong will lead a workshop exploring the voice through raising awareness of the body. During the workshop, the following topics will be explored: using the breath, singing long tones, awareness of body tension, the location of vibration frequencies and creating sounds via focusing awareness on the body. Simple games of conducting via free movement gestures will be used to generate vocal sounds including textures, melodies, text and noises to allow the voice to take flight into its infinite expressive qualities. To reserve a spot, email tree_wong (at) yahoo.com. Berkeley Arts Festival, 2133 University Ave., Berkeley | $30-60 sliding

Saturday, March 24, 4pm
Heavy Disciplne and Good Bellies Cafe present a double bill Saturday, with Aram Shelton (reeds) and Mark Clifford (vibes), along with Retro Blue, a new band with Jim Ryan (vocals, sax, flute) and Esten LIndgren (double bass). Good Bellies Cafe, 4659 Telegraph Ave. (@46th), Oakland | donations encouraged

Saturday, March 24, 8pm
The Swarm Gallery presents an evening with India Cooke (violin) and Cloud Shepherd – Andrew Joron (theremin), Brian Lucas (electric bass/tapes), Joseph Noble (flutes/reeds), Mark Pino (‘cloud kit’ percussion) share their experiences in sonic space travel. Swarm Gallery, 560 2nd Street (Jack London Sq. area), Oakland | sliding scale

From CNMAT, Berkeley:

Saturday, March 24, 8pm
Cal Performances, CNMAT and the Department of Music present the Eco Ensemble, UC Berkeley’s professional performance group dedicated to new music by established and emerging composers. Featured on this evening’s program is Martin Matalon (Tunneling),
Liza Lim (Songs Found in Dream), Aaron Einbond (What the Blind See), and Nico Muhly (Clear Music). University of California Berkeley, Hertz Hall, Berkeley | tickets start at $30, available here

From Yoshi’s, SF

Saturday, March 24, 10:30pm
Yoshi’s San Francisco presents the Eric McFadden Trio, in concert. Thoughout his illustrious career, singer, songwriter and guitarist Eric McFadden has steadfastly rebuked the Sirens of commerce, instead heeding the fearless, uncompromising Muses inside his head. Yoshi’s San Francisco, 1330 Fillmore St., San Francisco | $18

From Bay Improviser:

Sunday, March 25, 4:30pm
ODC Dance Commons will host San Francisco Contemporary Music Players: Contemporary Insights: Music and Conversation, as they perform Katharina Rosenberger’s scatter 2.0.  Scored for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano and percussion, scatter 2.0 is the ensemble’s first performance of music by this innovative composer. Katharina Rosenberger will visit San Francisco to discuss her work with Steven Schick and the audience at this event, as well as at the pre-concert talk the following evening, Monday, March 26, 8:00 p.m. at Herbst Theatre. ODC Dance Commons, 351 Shotwell Street (between 17th and 18th Streets), San Francisco | $10

Sunday, March 25, 7:30pm
OutSound presents the SIMM Series, featuring at 7:30, the duo of Kyle Bruckmann (oboe, English horn, electronics) and Lance Grabmiller. At 8:30pm, the Mirror Trio (sextet) will perform, featuring Jacob Felix Heule, Tony Dryer & Guro Skumsnes Moe (contrabass), and Håvard Skaset. Musicians Union Hall, 116 9th St. (@ Mission), San Francisco | $10 / $8

From FaceBook:

Monday, March 26, 7pm
Nebraska Mondays at Luna’s Cafe presents the Know Hassell Project with Foothill Jazz Trio. Nebraska Mondays is the weekly underground jazz/electronic/poetic/creative music spot, hosted by Ross Hammond. Luna’s Cafe, 1414 16th St., Sacramento | $5-20 sliding

From Bay Improviser:

Monday, March 26, 8pm
The San Francisco Contemporary Music Players present Zone 4: in which momentum and position co-exist within the physicality of a musical performance. The San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, conducted by Artistic Director Steven Schick, will perform a concert of music by Katharina Rosenberger, Brian Ferneyhough, Olly Wilson, Geoffrey Gordon, and Heinz Holliger. Wilson and Rosenberger will participate in a pre-concert talk at 7:15 p.m., hosted by Schick. Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness, San Francisco | $30 / $25 seniors / $10 students box office info

Wednesday, March 28, 7:30pm
Tuesdays at Tom’s Place will host the Barney Childs Festival, evening one of a two-day celebration of his music performed by his students and collaborators. Tuesdays at Tom’s Place, 3111 Deakin St., Berkeley | Free, donations requested

From Bay Improviser:

Thursday, March 15, 8pm
OutSound presents the Luggage Store New Music Series, this week with Guest Curation by Greedmink in a triple bill featuring Rubber (() Cement, Bran…Pos, and Hora Flora. More information about these three acts is available here. Luggage Store Gallery, 1007 Market St. (@ 6th St.), San Francisco | $6-10 sliding

Thursday, March 15, 8:30pm
El Valenciano will host a three-band Ides Of March Concert, featuring The Tri-Cornered Tent Show, Forward Energy, and Green Alembic. The Tri-Cornered Tent Show is Philip Everett (electrified autoharp), Anthony Flores (drums), Ray Schaffer (electric bass), and Valentina O (voice). Forward Energy features Jim Ryan (flute, saxes, trumpet), Scott R. Looney (piano), Rent Romus (saxes), Eric Marshall (bass), Tim Orr (percussion), and C.J. Borosque (trumpet). Green Alembic is Amber Lamprecht (oboe, flute), Theo Padouvas (trumpet, violin), Jeff Hobbs (alto clarinet, violin, trumpet), Jim Ryan (amplified kalimba, flute, word & image), Bob Marsh (bass), and Sam Ospovat (percussion). El Valenciano Restaurant & Bar, 1153 Valencia St., San Francisco | donations encouraged

Friday, March 16, 6:30pm
Flash back to the early years of BAM/PFA at this celebration of California performance art, presented in conjunction with the exhibition State of Mind: New California Art circa 1970. Three important performance artists revisit works from the early 1970s: Linda Mary Montano meditates in a chicken bed, Jim Melchert does whatever the television tells him to do, and Adam II (the late Paul Cotton) presents “Mystical Body of The Astral-Naught Bride-Groom (Living Sculpture) in Her Present State of Herm-Aphroditic Metamorphosis,” which is exactly what it sounds like. Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way, Berkeley | Free to $7

Friday, March 16, 7:30pm
SOUNDINGS AT THE INSTRUMENTARIUM: the first of two evenings of soundings and resoundings on an array of invented instruments, featuring: Bart Hopkin – a true guru and established authority on invented and homemade acoustic instruments; Todd Lerew (Friday the 16th ONLY) – on the Quartz Cantabile, a new instrument which uses a principle of thermoacoustics to convert heat into sound; David Samas – our host for the evening, and inventor of an array of instruments which utilize and appropriate natural and found objects. At these events he will be premiering several new instruments, including the Mbira Tree Harp, also with Grace Renaud and Ash Ritter playing the Glass Garden. Turquoise Yantra Grotto, email TurquoiseYantraGrotto@hotmail.com for reservations and address | $10-15 sliding

Friday, March 16, 8pm
Voces del Desierto is a multidisciplinary musical composition inspired by the journey of all those who dare to cross borders in search of a better life. This original and eclectic work merges video, performance art, and instruments made from migrants’ personal belongings found at the Mexico/US border with musical instruments of a traditional wind quintet. Voces del Desierto, an original concept and composition by Guillermo Galindo specifically created for Quinteto Latino, features Diane Grubbe (flutes), Kyle Bruckmann (oboe, English horn), Leslie Tagorda (clarinets), Armando Castellano (French horn), and Shawn Jones (bassoon). MACLA / Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana, 510 South 1st St., San Jose | $12 advance / $15 door

Friday, March 16, 8pm
Light A Fire Special: Space in the Jazz Age…an evening of music exploring the DNA of jazz in a post-everything era, with Swarm Intelligence, Grex, and more, featuring Karl Evangelista (guitar,vox), Rei Scampavia (keys, vox), Jordan Glenn (drums), Phillip Greenlief (alto sax), Kasey Knudsen (tenor sax), and Dan Seamans (bass), with Sam Ospovat’s PIKI – a collection of solo pieces, sound tableaux and polyrhythmic songs. Viracocha, 998 Valencia St., San Francisco |

From CNMAT Berkeley:

Friday, March 16, 8pm
This performance marks the first collaboration between Laetitia Sonami and James Fei. While the materials and techniques used by the two musicians are distinctly different, both employ tactile interface coupled with electronic systems that exhibit complex behavioral response. Sonami will introduce her new spring-based instrument (un-named and still in progress). She constructed this new “instrument” around a web of springs whose vibrations are analyzed by neural networks (Rebecca Fiebrink’s Wekinator). The results so far are particularly erratic…. Fei’s setup consists of a mix of vintage and self-constructed analog modules. The instrument is driven by multiple feedback loops, often on the brink of instability. Signals are recursively routed through microphones, spring reverb, and between audio and control voltages. Circuit elements are also modified by touch, integrating the non-linearities and the immediacy of the body with the electronic processes. UC Berkeley, Center for New Music and Audio Technologies, 1750 Arch St., Berkeley |

From Bay Improviser:

Saturday, March 17, 1pm
Sculpting Air – Vocal Workshop: Theresa Wong will lead a workshop exploring the voice through raising awareness of the body. During the workshop, the following topics will be explored: using the breath, singing long tones, awareness of body tension, the location of vibration frequencies and creating sounds via focusing awareness on the body. Simple games of conducting via free movement gestures will be used to generate vocal sounds including textures, melodies, text and noises to allow the voice to take flight into its infinite expressive qualities. Berkeley Arts Festival, 2133 University Ave., Berkeley | $30-60 sliding, reservations required – email tree_wong (at) yahoo.com

Saturday, March 17, 5pm
Heavy Discipline Creative Music Series presents Tracy Hui & Company, bringing together a challenging and artistically stimulating combination of players in improvisational settings. Good Bellies Cafe, 4659 Telegraph Ave (@ 46th), Oakland | donations accepted

Saturday, March 17, 7:30pm
SOUNDINGS AT THE INSTRUMENTARIUM: the second evening of soundings and resoundings on an array of invented instruments, featuring: Bart Hopkin – a true guru and established authority on invented and homemade acoustic instruments; Todd Lerew (Friday the 16th ONLY) – on the Quartz Cantabile, a new instrument which uses a principle of thermoacoustics to convert heat into sound; David Samas – our host for the evening, and inventor of an array of instruments which utilize and appropriate natural and found objects. At these events he will be premiering several new instruments, including the Mbira Tree Harp, also with Grace Renaud and Ash Ritter playing the Glass Garden. Turquoise Yantra Grotto, email TurquoiseYantraGrotto@hotmail.com for reservations and address | $10-15 sliding

Saturday, March 17, 8pm
Saxophonist and composer Larry Ochs and Kihnoua perform music influenced heavily by “the blues” in general and the blues of Korea – an ancient form of music called p’ansori – in particular. BUT what “influence” means here is that you’ll feel the spirit of that music; the actual forms and some of the sounds Ochs and his ensemble ( Dohee Lee – voice, Trevor Dunn – bass, Scott Amendola – drum) use to realize the music are often contemporary in origin. Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St., Berkeley | $15 / $10

Saturday, March 17, 8pm
The Pacific Exchange brings composers and performers from diverse areas of the Pacific Rim together in order to exchange ideas and create music on a shared concert stage. Thingamajigs created this event to emphasize the commonalities of artists living on the Pacific Rim, as well as to showcase their diversity. Artists and groups involved in this year’s Pacific Exchange events include Paul Kikuchi (Seattle) and Tide Tables, Tatsuya Nakatani (Japan), Paul Stapleton (L.A.), Gretchen Jude (Oakland) and the Thingamajigs Performance Group (Oakland). Meridian Gallery, 535 Powell St., San Francisco | $10-15

Saturday, March 17, 8pm
Voces del Desierto is a multidisciplinary musical composition inspired by the journey of all those who dare to cross borders in search of a better life. This original and eclectic work merges video, performance art, and instruments made from migrants’ personal belongings found at the Mexico/US border with musical instruments of a traditional wind quintet. Voces del Desierto, an original concept and composition by Guillermo Galindo specifically created for Quinteto Latino, features Diane Grubbe (flutes), Kyle Bruckmann (oboe, English horn), Leslie Tagorda (clarinets), Armando Castellano (French horn), and Shawn Jones (bassoon). MACLA / Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana, 510 South 1st St., San Jose | $12 advance / $15 door

Saturday, March 17, 8pm
The fifth installation of ongoing house concerts will feature the Marielle V. Jakobsons & Sarah E. Palmer Duo (synths, strings, vocal processing), along with Suit – Jacob Felix Heule (percussion),
Tony Dryer & Guro S. Moe (contrabass), and Håvard Skaset (guitar). 784 65th St., Oakland (2 blocks from Ashby BART) | $6-10 sliding

Sunday, March 18, 2pm
Voces del Desierto is a multidisciplinary musical composition inspired by the journey of all those who dare to cross borders in search of a better life. This original and eclectic work merges video, performance art, and instruments made from migrants’ personal belongings found at the Mexico/US border with musical instruments of a traditional wind quintet. Voces del Desierto, an original concept and composition by Guillermo Galindo specifically created for Quinteto Latino, features Diane Grubbe (flutes), Kyle Bruckmann (oboe, English horn), Leslie Tagorda (clarinets), Armando Castellano (French horn), and Shawn Jones (bassoon). MACLA / Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana, 510 South 1st St., San Jose | $12 advance / $15 door

Sunday, March 18, 7:30pm
OutSound presents the SIMM Series featuring, at 7:30, New Monsters CD release set featuring Dan Plonsey, Scott Looney, Steve Horowitz, and Steve Adams. At 8:30 Lords of the Outland (Rent Romus, C.J. Borosque, Ray Schaeffer, and Philip Everett) performs The Cloudknitters Suite, a live recording inspired by artist Leo Reijnders. Musicians Union Hall, 116 9th St. (@Mission), San Francisco | $8 / $10

From FaceBook:

Monday, March 19, 7pm
Nebraska Mondays at Luna’s Cafe presents Tatsuya Nakatani with the John Haynes / Steve Adams Duo. Nebraska Mondays is the weekly underground jazz/electronic/poetic/creative music spot, hosted by Ross Hammond. Luna’s Cafe, 1414 16th St., Sacramento | $5-20 sliding

From Bay Improviser:

Thursday, March 8, 8pm
OutSound presents the Luggage Store New Music Series, this week featuring The Misspelled Trio at 8pm, and from Albuquerque, trombonist Christian Pincock performing a solo set at 9pm, with improvised and composed music on valve trombone and a computer-based instrument of his own creation with MAX/MSP. The Misspelled Trio is Phillip Greenlief (sax), Arora Josefson (voice), and Matt Davignon (drum machine, cd player). Luggage Store Gallery, 1007 Market St. (@ 6th St.), San Francisco | $6-10 sliding

From CCRMA:

Thursday, March 8, 8pm
CCRMA at Stanford presents a Cabaret Series concert with Jaap Blonk (composer, performer, poet) with his latest piece “Polyphtong” for voice and live-electronics, plus a rare complete performance of Kurt Schwitter’s “Ursonate”! Stanford University, The Knoll Building, CCRMA Stage (3rd floor), 660 Lomita Dr., Stanford | Free

From Bay Improviser:

Thursday, March 8, 8pm
The Mills College Music Department Graduate Program presents Signal Flow, an annual spring festival showcasing new student works in music and sound art. This evening’s concert includes works by Evan Bogunia, Matthew Creer, Lydia Martín, Edan Mason, Brandon Rolle, Ryan Ross Smith, and Ben Tinker. Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland | Free

Friday, March 9, 6:30pm
Pioneer of computer-enhanced performance practice Edmund Campion transforms Gallery B, at the Berkeley Art Museum, with sound and visuals, including video projection, a choir spread throughout the building, and his own brand of dynamic, buoyant electronic music. Designer Raveevarn Choksombatchai, artist and 3-D animator Claudia Hart, and the Cornelius Cardew Choir come together to collaborate with Campion, a codirector of UC Berkeley‘s Center for New Music and Audio Technologies. Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way, Berkeley | Free to $7

Friday, March 9, 8pm
The Mills College Music Department Graduate Program presents Signal Flow, an annual spring festival showcasing new student works in music and sound art. This evening’s concert includes works by Sarah Davachi, Giselle Eastman, Nick Kanozik, and Xo Nguyen. Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland | Free

Saturday, March 10, 8pm
The Mills College Music Department Graduate Program presents Signal Flow, an annual spring festival showcasing new student works in music and sound art. This evening’s concert includes works by Rachel Condry, Adam Lowdermilk, Yaman Palak, Edward Stumpp, and Nick Wang. Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland | Free

Sunday, March 11, 2pm
Gilberg Johnson and Ken Bullock Presents Second Sunday Jazz at Cafe Royale, featuring three sets from The Lost Trio – Phillip Greenlief (tenor saxophone), Dan Seamans (bass), Tom Hassett (drums). Cafe Royale, 800 Post St. (@ Leavenworth), San Francisco | donations accepted

Sunday, March 11, 4pm
The Mills College Music Department Graduate Program presents Signal Flow, an annual spring festival showcasing new student works in music and sound art. This evening’s concert includes works by Ashley Bellouin, Cindy Colins, Wendy Farina, Moni Gbadebo, Ryan Jobes, and Ralph Lewis. Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland | Free

From Dana Street Roasting:

Sunday, March 11, 7:30pm
Back for more! Always a great experience, the Scott Amendola Trio bring their “A” game to Dana Street and offer you a unique musical perspective that is rarely found at any venue in the Bay Area…and we offer it, up close and personal. Jeff Parker (guitar), John Shifflett (bass), and Scott Amendola (drums/electronics). Dana Street Roasting Co., 744 W. Dana St., Mountain View | $15

From Bay Improviser:

Sunday, March 11, 8pm
The Swarm Gallery presents a triple-bill evening of music with local avant-jazz-post-rock group Stratic – Michael Coleman (keyboards, electronics), Aram Shelton (saxophone, electronics), and Alex Vittum (drums), an album release performance by Berkeley/Brooklyn hybrid trio Jabberclaw – Jon Arkin (drums), Brian Drye (trombone), and Mike McGinnis (clarinet), and an opening set by Chicago bassist Anton Hatwich. Swarm Gallery, 560 2nd St., Oakland | $10-15 donation

From FaceBook:

Sunday, March 11, 8pm
Cello Joe presents Cello MADNESS Congress 2012, featuring mystical moments of musical mayhem…cellists improvising in ways you’ve never heard cello before. Our jams can depict the ephemeral wisps of smoke rising from a funeral pyre to the prismatic rainbow colored fanfare of a three ring circus complete with elephants and clowns. We also read music arranged for cello. We invite all cellists to come and explore with us. Other instruments are welcome too, especially violin, viola, and upright bass. Featured performers include Rushad Eggelston (the craziest punk rock cellist in all the lands), Clay Chollar Vs. CelloJoe (live dubstep trip tron phonics & cello), and Cello Joe (see it to believe it, friends: beatboxing + cello = classical hip hop). Viracocha, 998 Valencia St. (between Liberty & 21st St.), San Francisco | $8-20 sliding

From FaceBook:

Monday, March 12, 7pm
Nebraska Mondays at Lunas’s Cafe presents Gerry Pineda/Ross Hammond Duo with Scott Collard Group. Nebraska Mondays is the weekly underground jazz/electronic/poetic/creative music spot, hosted by Ross Hammond.
Luna’s Cafe, 1414 16th St., Sacramento | $5-20 sliding

From Bay Improviser:

Tuesday, March 13, 9pm
Active Music Series at the Uptown presents: Moe!kestra + Clifford / Hatwich / Shelton / Wick. Moe!kestra is the large ensemble/orchestra project of Bay Area experimental musician, Moe! Staiano, which began at Berkeley’s Beanbenders’ series in 1997. For this concert, Staiano will conduct 30+ Bay Area musicians through Piece No. 9: When Terrie Had Six, based on songs by, and dedicated to, the Dutch band, the Ex. Opening will be the quartet of Mark Clifford (vibraphone), Anton Hatwich (bass), Aram Shelton (clarinets), and Jacob Wick (trumpet). Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph Ave., Oakland | donations encouraged

Wednesday, March 14, 7:30pm
Meridian Music: Composer in Performance Series presents the San Francisco-based composer/performer and media artist, Pamela Z, featuring new solo voice and electronics works. Meridian Gallery, 535 Powell St., San Francisco | $10 general / $5 student/senior

Wednesday, March 14, 9pm
Moe! Staiano’s own Surplus 1980, the fervent fishes of ReCardiacs Fly, and the mysterious (but loud) PG13 (Thomas Scandura, John Shiurba, and Phillip Greenlief) — will take over the Hemlock Tavern and your world. Cardiacs T-shirts and stickers will be on sale to benefit the ongoing medical care of Cardiacs frontman Tim Smith. Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk St., San Francisco | $7

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From Bay Improviser:

Thursday, March 1, 8pm
OutSound presents the Luggage Store New Music Series, this week featuring T.D. Skatchit & Company, with the “Skatch Surveillance” CD release show. Tom Nunn and David Michalak (skatchboxes) will perform with guests, in various formations, with Tom Bickley, Tom Djll, Phillip Greenlief, Aurora Josephson, and Polly Moller.
Luggage Store Gallery, 1007 Market St. (@ 6th St.), San Francisco | $6-10 sliding

Thursday, March 1, 8pm
Edgetone Records celebrates the CD release of “The Green Mitchell Trio”, featuring Cory Wright (reeds), Lisa Mezzacappa (bass), and Jason Levis (drums). Cory Wright will also perform a solo opening set.
Maybeck Studio, (contact cowrig@gmail.com for address/directions), Berkeley | $10-20 sliding

Thursday, March 1, 8pm concert, 7pm Panel Discussion
The palindromic Norwegian ensemble asamisimasa kicks off three nights of Other Minds concerts at the JCCSF with a full program of works by young mavericks Øyvind Torvund and Simon Steen-Andersen. Torvund’s virtuosically quirky Neon Forest Space combines influences from Purcell to Black Flag in seven sections, making use of radios, aerosol cans, bird whistles and an electric milk steamer. Audiences will also be treated to the world premiere of his new work, Willibald Motor Landscape, composed especially for asamisimasa. Where Torvund’s work harnesses an incredibly disparate collection of sounds, Steen-Andersen focuses on a kind of micro-world, amplifying barely audible instrumental gestures in both sound and video. In his words, he is “trying to approach the human being behind the instrument, because then music can suddenly be about everything that is most important: communication, being, fragility and intimacy.” His set of four recent works concludes with a haunting piece for cello with a “video-shadow,” bringing the concept of amplification into a multimedia context.
Jewish Community Center SF, Kanbar Hall, 3200 California St. (@ Presidio Ave.), San Francisco | $25-35

Friday, March 2, 7pm
the Explorist International Records & Books presents Free Jazz Friday, featuring a set by Michael Whitaker (reeds & brass)(solo improvisations) and a set by El Topo (Sutherland/ LaBreche, sax/drums).
Explorist International Records & Books, 3174 24th St., San Francisco | Free

Friday, March 2, 8pm concert, 7pm Panel Discussion
The second night at the JCCSF of Other Minds 17 features Harold Budd, Ikue Mori, and Gloria Coates, with performances by Del Sol String Quartet, Tyshawn Sorey and Ken Ueno. Esteemed expat Gloria Coates (b. 1938) and the ambient/avant-garde legend Harold Budd (b. 1936) are joined by Japanese-American innovator Ikue Mori on this eclectic program. A prolific composer and declared “the greatest woman symphonist” by Kyle Gann, Gloria Coates has remained outside of the mainstream of American classical music, having lived in Europe since 1969. Born in Wisconsin, she began experimenting with overtones and clusters at age nine, and has continued to explore the outer limits of expressive tools in her deep catalog of 15 symphonies, nine string quartets, and numerous other works. San Francisco’s Del Sol String Quartet tackles her String Quartet No. 5, an emotive masterpiece whose first movement is a double canon with the first violin and viola tuned a quarter-tone sharp. Budd brings his trademark atmospheric piano style to the Other Minds stage in collaboration with Seattle bassist Keith Lowe. After a purported retirement in 2004, Budd has in recent years re-emerged, producing new works that blur the line between minimalism and his better-known ambient music collaborations with Brian Eno. The evening concludes with a special set of improvisations led by Japanese punk drummer-turned electronics composer-performer Ikue Mori. Equally at home as a soloist or collaborator, Mori brings a drummer’s sense of propulsion and invention to her laptop-based improv. She’ll perform solo, and also together with Tyshawn Sorey (drums) and Ken Ueno (voice / throat-singing).
Jewish Community Center SF, Kanbar Hall, 3200 California St. (@ Presidio Ave.), San Francisco | $25-35

Saturday, March 3, 7:30pm
The Alameda Public Library presents Sssshhhh Live Music Series , with Thomas Dimuzio and Cloud Shepherd. Thomas Dimuzio is a true sonic alchemist moving from electro-acoustic and noise to glitch, dark ambient, improv and drone. He’ll be playing solo electric guitar. Cloud Shepherd are an East Bay improv group specializing in the pasturing of ever-changing, nonlinear cumulations of sound. Their instrumentation includes Theremin, bass/tapes, flutes/reeds, and percussion.
Alameda Public Library, 1550 Oak St., Alameda | Free

Saturday, March 3, 8pm concert, 7pm Panel Discussion
Other Minds 17 concludes with a newly commissioned work by Ken Ueno for Del Sol String Quartet and interactive video by Johnny DeKam; plus Magik*Magik Orchestra performs music by John Kennedy and Finland’s Lotta Wennäkoski. John Kennedy and Finland’s Lotta Wennäkoski offer new takes on the chamber ensemble: Kennedy, who each spring conducts the Spoleto Festival’s contemporary music programs, presents the world premiere of a new work for mixed chamber quartet, plus a percussion duo for recycled materials. He also appears onstage conducting the Bay Area’s collective Magik*Magik Orchestra in Wennäkoski’s touching Nosztalgiaim for chamber orchestra. Tyshawn Sorey returns to the stage for a solo set on both drumset and percussion. His skills as both a composer and performer have led to collaborations with Steve Coleman, Muhal Richard Abrams, Joey Baron, Butch Morris, Vijay Iyer, Dave Douglas, and Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith, all by the age of 30, to studies with Anthony Braxton at Wesleyan, and now to the PhD program at Columbia University in New York. Recent Rome Prize and Berlin Prize winner and UC Berkeley professor Ken Ueno presents the premiere of Peradam, a new work for Del Sol String Quartet with video, commissioned by Other Minds. Ueno’s stated mission is “to champion sounds that have been overlooked or denied so that audiences reevaluate their musical potential.” His remarkable vocabulary of beatings and overtones combines here with scratches, whispering bow scrapes, and vocalizations by the quartet members, to evoke the eponymous stone—first used in the French Surrealist novel Mount Analogue, a curved crystal so clear that it is only revealed to those who seek it “with sincere desire and true need.”
Jewish Community Center SF, Kanbar Hall, 3200 California St. (@ Presidio Ave.), San Francisco | $25-35

Saturday, March 3, 8pm
The Temescal Arts Center brings THE UNCOMFORTABLE ZONES OF FUN. Frank Moore, world-known shaman performance artist, will conduct improvised passions of musicians, actors, dancers, and audience members in a laboratory setting to create altered realities of fusion beyond taboos. Bring your passions and musical instruments and your senses of adventure and humor.
Temescal Arts Center, 511 48th St., Oakland | Free, donations encouraged

Sunday, March 4, 7:30pm
OutSound presents the SIMM series At Musicians Union Hall. Featured at 7:30 is Pacific Sticks Ensemble performing 8 Trios For Percussion by Oszkar Balazs. At 8:30pm, Noertker’s Moxie Quintet will perform, featuring Annelise Zamula (tenor saxophone, flute), Amber Lamprecht (oboe, flute), John Vaughn (baritone sax, flute), Bill Noertker (contrabass), and Dax Compise (drums).
Musicians Union Hall, 116 9th St. (@ Mission), San Francisco | $8-10

Sunday, March 4, 8pm
San Francisco Community Music Center, in association with San Francisco Cinematheque, presents virtuoso Dutch vocalist Jaap Blonk, performing solo and with sfSound, including John Cage’s “Aria” with “Fontana Mix”. On the program will be: Jaap Blonk – Dr Voxoid’s Next Move (2011); John Cage – Aria (1958 – featuring Jaap Blonk) with Fontana Mix (1958 – sfSound’s new realization); Jaap Blonk/sfSoundGroup – Improvisation (2012); John Cage – Composition for 3 Voices (1934); Matt Ingalls – False Awakening (2008) amplified instruments and electronics. The performers include Jaap Blonk (voice), Kyle Bruckmann (oboe), Tom Dambly (trumpet), Matt Ingalls (clarinet), John Ingle (saxophone), Ben Kreith (violin), Michelle Lou (guitar), Hadley McCarroll (piano), Monica Scott (cello), Andy Strain (trombone).
Community Music Center, 544 Capp St., San Francisco | $15 [$8 underemployed]

Sunday, March 4, 8pm
As part of the Jewish Music Festival, the Freight & Salvage brings the world premiere of “Orphic Machine,” primarily commissioned by Chamber Music America, clarinetist and composer Ben Goldberg leads an amazing ensemble in a song-cycle based on the poetical writings of Allen Grossman. Internationally renowned musicians help Ben bring this extraordinary project to life, including vocalist and violinist Carla Kihlstedt (of Tin Hat), guitarist Jeff Parker (of Tortoise), saxophonist Rob Sudduth, percussionist Ches Smith (of Secret Chiefs 3), pianist Myra Melford, trumpeter Ron Miles, percussionist Kenny Wollesen, and bassist Greg Cohen (of Masada).
Freight & Salvage, 2020 Addison St., Berkeley | tickets $23 advance / $26 at the door, advance tickets available via the Jewish Music Festival Box Office, at 866-558-4253

From FaceBook:

Monday, March 5, 7pm
Nebraska Mondays at Lunas’s Cafe presents Tyson Graf with Crossing The River. Nebraska Mondays is the weekly underground jazz/electronic/poetic/creative music spot, hosted by Ross Hammond.
Luna’s Cafe, 1414 16th St., Sacramento | $5-20 sliding

From Bay Improviser:

Monday, March 5, 8pm
The Monday Makeout presents a triple bill, featuring: NATHAN CLEVENGER GROUP, featuring Aaron Novik + Kasey Knudsen + Sylvain Carton + Evan Francis (winds), Nathan Clevenger (guitar), Sam Bevan (bass), and Jon Arkin (drums); JOHN SHIURBA’S 3-3 featuring John Shiurba (guitar), Kyle Bruckmann (analog synth), and Gino Robair (drums); DISTANT INTERVALS, featuring Sheldon Brown (saxophones), Andrew Joron (theremin, poetry), Dave MacNab + Noah Phillips (guitars), Michael Wilcox (bass), and Vijay Anderson (drums).
Makeout Room, 22 St. at Mission, San Francisco | Free

From CCRMA Stanford:

Wednesday, March 7, 5:15pm
CCRMA presents Colloquium with Jaap Blonk (born 1953 in Woerden, Holland). Blonk is a self-taught composer, performer and poet. Many compositions and performances are examples of sound poetry, making use of words and phonetic snippets as well as clicks, hisses, and other vocal manipulations. Jaap visits CCRMA this week for a Colloquium (March 7) and a CCRMA Cabaret concert (March 8).
Stanford University, CCRMA Classroom, Stanford | Free