Free improvisation.

4 MP3 Songs
JAZZ: Free Jazz



Details:
Mike Hansen, record players, electronics
Tomasz Krakowiak, amplified drum table, electronics, minidisc live sampling


Hansen/Krakowiak attack and disseminate both the turntable and the drum. Their improvisations are built through layers of sound where the instrumentation interpolates becoming musical coitus. Hansen/Krakowiak constuct new waves of contemporary sound, influenced by experimental and electroacoustic practices. This duo walk roads yet travelled. Creating sound art for our times.




What the critics are saying;

Both electronic and acoustic instruments get a workout here as steady thunder from a kettle or upright bass drum first complement intonations that could be made by a fan belt slipping off a motor, then are amplified through a piano's internal speaking length. Minidisks and live sampling provide the subsequent rumble and buzz, as if overloaded circuits have been surmounted by unidentified items rotating on a turntable."
Ken Waxman, JazzWeekly.com




Does Canadian politeness reside even in the worlds of sound art? Relay would seem to indicate so. Following last yearâs collaborative release with saxophonist John Butcher, the Toronto duo of Hansen and Krakowiak offer up four long tracks of turntables, amplified percussion, mini-disc and miscellaneous electronics. Immediately evident is the impression of an outer space surrounding the generated noises. The sounds are initially familiar enough to mistake for room ambience, eventually they are overtaken by more obviously manipulated segments of quiet feedback and looped metal tapping. The pieces undulate, at times gaining more kinetic energy and volume, then dropping back into a trough of near-silence. The duo play well together, not excessively fussy about overcrowding the sound space, but mindful of maintaining an engaging rate of dynamic change. By employing a more physical relationship with their instruments, they also manage to charge their quiet (polite) works with an energy that similar laptop improvisation often lacks.
Eric Hill, Exclaim.

Mike Hansen

Hansen approaches the record player as an instrument, needles cut through vinyl, Harsh ticks, scratches and distorted bits of information are put forth. Records are being replaced by the players themselves now used to generate sound that is processed through a series of lo-fi electronics, haunted by samples. Sounds are chosen at random, slowed down and ripped apart.

Hansen, in duos with Tomasz Krakowiak, has performed and recorded with John Butcher, Kaffe Matthews, Gert Jan -Prins, Michael Snow, John Oswald and Sook Yin Lee.

Tomasz Krakowiak


Krakowiak's sound ranges from post-minimal explorations of barely audible phenomena to drone, overtone density. His music is characterized by intense and detailed sonic events, which often seem more electronic than acoustic in their nature.

Krakowiak, in duos with Mike Hansen, has performed and recorded with John Butcher, Kaffe Matthews, Gert Jan -Prins, Michael Snow, John Oswald and Sook Yin Lee.