Coming soon: Catherine Sikora, Han-earl Park and François Grillot’s Tracks in the dirt (Clockwork Mercury Press 003). Recorded September 26, 2012 at 56 Kitchen, New York. More to follow…
Elewhale Music Productions releases ‘coma duo’ with Michael Lytle and Han-earl Park. [Bandcamp page…]
Michael Lytle (bass clarinet) and Han-earl Park (guitar)
part one (19:44), part two (11:26). Total duration: 31:10.
All music by Michael Lytle and Han-earl Park.
Recorded June 9, 2013 at ABC No Rio, New York.
Performance presented as part of COMA: Citizens Ontological Music Agenda curated by Blaise Siwula.
Recorded and mixed by Michael Lytle.
© 2013 Elewhale Music Productions.
℗ 2013 Michael Lytle and Han-earl Park.
Dunmall-Park-Sanders (Birmingham, 02-15-11) [details…]
Performers: Paul Dunmall (saxophones and bagpipes), Han-earl Park (guitar) and Mark Sanders (drums).
(cc) 2013 Paul Dunmall/Han-earl Park/Mark Sanders.
Gargantius Effect +1 +2 +3 (Nor Cal, 08-2011) [details…]
Performers: Murray Campbell (violins, oboe and cor anglais), Randy McKean (saxophone, clarinets and flutes) with Han-earl Park (guitar), plus Gino Robair (energized surfaces, voltage made audible) and Scott R. Looney (hyperpiano).
(cc) 2012 Murray Campbell/Randy McKean/Han-earl Park/Gino Robair/Scott R. Looney.
Park+Murray (Cork, 07-29-10) [details…]
Performers: Han-earl Park (guitar) plus Marian Murray (violin).
(cc) 2012 Han-earl Park/Marian Murray.
Jin-Park-Weeter (Cork, 01-24-11) [details…]
Performers: Jin Sangtae (electronics), Han-earl Park (guitar) and Jeffrey Weeter (drums and electronics).
(cc) 2012 Jin Sangtae/Han-earl Park/Jeffrey Weeter.
Park-Schroeder (Cork, 03-26-09) [details…]
Performers: Han-earl Park (guitar) and Franziska Schroeder (saxophone).
(cc) 2012 Han-earl Park/Franziska Schroeder.
Sikora-Smith-Park (Cork, 04-04-11) [details…]
Performers: Catherine Sikora (saxophone), Ian Smith (trumpet) and Han-earl Park (guitar).
(cc) 2012 Catherine Sikora/Ian Smith/Han-earl Park.
Just a summary of the updates that have been accumulating in my scrapbook since the last overhaul. Here’s some of the more recent additions. Enjoy! All music and audio recordings © + ℗ their respective owners.
Eris 136199 (Nick Didkovsky: guitar; Han-earl Park: guitar; and Catherine Sikora: saxophones).
Numbers: Richard Barrett (electronics) and Han-earl Park (guitar).
Ingrid Laubrock (saxophone) and Han-earl Park (guitar).
Han-earl Park (guitar), Catherine Sikora (saxophones) and Josh Sinton (clarinet and saxophone).
Michael Evans (drums), Louise Dam Eckardt Jensen (saxophone and flute) and Han-earl Park (guitar).
Mark Trayle (electronics), Gascia Ouzounian (violin), Chris Brown (piano), Paul Stapleton (percussion), Dan Goren (trumpet), Don Nichols (percussion), Simon Rose (saxophone), Gustavo Aguilar (percussion), Han-earl Park (guitar), Ulrich Mitzlaff (’cello), Tasos Stamou (zither), Dominic Lash (double bass), Christopher Williams (double bass), Nuno Rebelo (guitar), Richard Scott (synthesizer), Steven Davis (drums), Pedro Rebelo (piano), Justin Yang (saxophone) and Franziska Schroeder (saxophones).
The fractured phrases that erupt throughout this disc often sound like just one musician playing…. Completely unique, exciting and engaging. [More…]
— Bruce Lee Gallanter (Downtown Music Gallery)
How many performers can you hear in this clip? Taken from the track ‘tricav,’ this is the fourth, and final in the series, of audio except from Richard Barrett and Han-earl Park’s CD, ‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) released by Creative Sources Recordings. [About the recording…] [About this duo…]
Audio clip courtesy of Creative Sources Recordings.
Music by Richard Barrett and Han-earl Park.
Audio ℗ 2012 Creative Sources Recordings. Please do not distribute audio file, but instead share the link to this page.
Try loading the original post, and playing back from there. Please contact me if you have further problems.
frantically jagged (audio clip: Numbers: Richard Barrett + Han-earl Park)
an intricate web (audio clip: Numbers: Richard Barrett + Han-earl Park)
lively, relevant, dizzying (audio clip: Numbers: Richard Barrett + Han-earl Park)
‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) [details…]
Performers: Richard Barrett (electronics) and Han-earl Park (guitar). [About this duo…]
© + ℗ 2012 Creative Sources Recordings.
I don’t expect my approach to real-time, interactive play and improvisative noise overlaps much with Richard Pinnell’s tastes, but Pinnell takes time to write a short overview of some of my download releases in the July issue of The Wire:
Four ‘name your price’ downloads from… guitarist Han-earl Park in various improv formations situated at the more traditional, loquaciously active end of the spectrum…. The sense of energy and joy in Park’s playing spills over into this flurry of online activity… fans of the talkative brand of improvised music will find something of value.
Traditional? Talkative? Vague? Relentless? Claustrophobic? What do you think?
Recommended price: $8+
Recommended price: $8+
Recommended price: $5+
Recommended price: $8+
Park+Murray (Cork, 07-29-10) [details…]
Performers: Han-earl Park (guitar) plus Marian Murray (violin).
(cc) 2012 Han-earl Park/Marian Murray.
Jin-Park-Weeter (Cork, 01-24-11) [details…]
Performers: Jin Sangtae (electronics), Han-earl Park (guitar) and Jeffrey Weeter (drums and electronics).
(cc) 2012 Jin Sangtae/Han-earl Park/Jeffrey Weeter.
Riffing on ‘morality,’ ‘heresy’ and music, Stanley Zappa, in the July issue of The New York City Jazz Record, reviews download releases by Han-earl Park with saxophonist, performer and theorist Franziska Schroeder; and with electronic artist Jin Sangtae, and drummer, composer and computer artist Jeffrey Weeter.
Recommended price: $5+
About the the duo recording with Franziska Schroeder, Zappa writes:
Though short, percussive, hard-to-notate sounds dominate Han-earl Park’s sound, he does utilize the totality of the guitar’s sonorities—just not in the proportions demanded by the nostalgic (retrospective, reactionary, etc.) owners of major media. Towards the end of “Nova” on Cork 3-26-09, Park even plays chords with voices that lead. Franziska Schroeder’s… saxophone is an excellent counterpoint to Park’s electric guitar, mostly because her post-tonal sensibilities are conceived and executed so well. Very simply, contemporary improvisation has grown beyond the 12-note chromatic division of the octave. Buh bye! It is this extended tonal consciousness by which Schroeder achieves the elusive by keeping the narrative aspects to a minimum without regressing to that childish, abnegating HVAC morality holding hostage the imagination of so many wind and reed players in our improvising community. [Read the rest…]
Recommended price: $8+
Meanwhile, citing the recording as an “equally, if not more convincing, aspect of Park’s musicality,” Zappa describes the ensemble with Jin Sangtae and Jeffrey Weeter as a context of:
…Minimal tonal or harmonic sticking points to derail the listening experience—an experience not to be missed by Park agnostics and believers alike. Jeffrey Weeter on percussion and Jin Sangtae on what are most likely hard drives in varying states of repair… could very well be the perfect counterpoint to Park’s active, strident departure from the last 100 years of the prevailing guitar morality.
Sangtae’s post-human sonic contribution makes Park’s departure seem less heretical…. Here is unanimity of method and likeness of function. Motility of gesture and dynamics of phrase are celebrated with sound, neither antiquated harmonic stricture nor pre-Civil-Rights-era tropes. There is a directness, a paucity of fluff, which, more than any other quality or attribute, is what separates jazz from music that emerged from and ultimately supplanted it as the ‘art music’ of our day. Sangtae deserves special mention for his vision (as does Park for including scripting him in to the group). While likely not the first to use the staccato grrrr of a hard drive for musical gesture, none have used it with as much imagination or in a setting as sympathetic as Cork 1-24-11. Sangtae’s contribution underscores the collective nature of improvisation and creates a feeling of want, where and when he is not present. Without question, Cork 1-24-11 is a conceptual and aural high-water mark few will ever reach. [Read the rest…]
All recordings released under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported Licenses. Please attribute the recordings to the respective performers. All recordings available as ‘name your price’ albums. Although you can download the recording for free (name $0 as your price) with certain restrictions, please consider paying at least the recommended price. Your generosity will help support the performers and their work.
Dunmall-Park-Sanders (Birmingham, 02-15-11) [details…]
Performers: Paul Dunmall (saxophones and bagpipes), Han-earl Park (guitar) and Mark Sanders (drums).
(cc) 2013 Paul Dunmall/Han-earl Park/Mark Sanders.
Gargantius Effect +1 +2 +3 (Nor Cal, 08-2011) [details…]
Performers: Murray Campbell (violins, oboe and cor anglais), Randy McKean (saxophone, clarinets and flutes) with Han-earl Park (guitar), plus Gino Robair (energized surfaces, voltage made audible) and Scott R. Looney (hyperpiano).
(cc) 2012 Murray Campbell/Randy McKean/Han-earl Park/Gino Robair/Scott R. Looney.
Park+Murray (Cork, 07-29-10) [details…]
Performers: Han-earl Park (guitar) plus Marian Murray (violin).
(cc) 2012 Han-earl Park/Marian Murray.
Sikora-Smith-Park (Cork, 04-04-11) [details…]
Performers: Catherine Sikora (saxophone), Ian Smith (trumpet) and Han-earl Park (guitar).
(cc) 2012 Catherine Sikora/Ian Smith/Han-earl Park.
lively, relevant, dizzying electroacoustic music; music that seems to be daring us to try and catch it. [More…]
— François Couture (Monsieur Délire)
Third audio except from Richard Barrett and Han-earl Park’s CD, ‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) released by Creative Sources Recordings. This clip is from ‘tolur,’ the track that opens the CD. Does it dare you to “try and catch it”? [About the recording…] [About this duo…]
Audio clip courtesy of Creative Sources Recordings.
Music by Richard Barrett and Han-earl Park.
Audio ℗ 2012 Creative Sources Recordings. Please do not distribute audio file, but instead share the link to this page.
Try loading the original post, and playing back from there. Please contact me if you have further problems.
frantically jagged (audio clip: Numbers: Richard Barrett + Han-earl Park)
an intricate web (audio clip: Numbers: Richard Barrett + Han-earl Park)
‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) [details…]
Performers: Richard Barrett (electronics) and Han-earl Park (guitar). [About this duo…]
© + ℗ 2012 Creative Sources Recordings.
With the release of the recording with Paul Dunmall and Mark Sanders, I’ve completed the current series of download albums, and I’ve been taking a break from releasing new recordings. The albums so far—all Creative Commons licensed, and free or ‘name your price’—are collated here and on the downloads page. With a break in the release schedule, I’ve taken the opportunity to overhaul the downloads page; the most significant update since I started, in September 2010, formally offering complete concert recordings online.
One notable update to the downloads page is the addition of the recommended Bandcamp albums that accompanied the current series. As I wrote previously, there are some very fine and inspiring creative, improvised and experimental music on Bandcamp, but it isn’t always easy to find the recordings. Here’s my small contribution to help people get started. Enjoy, download, share—support creative musicians!
Keywords: improvised music, creative music, jazz, free jazz, free improvisation, experimental music, electronic music, electroacoustic.
Two non-stop sets of improvised music. This live recording juxtaposes the formidable creativity and muscular technique of veteran improviser-saxophonist Paul Dunmall, the imaginative cyborgian virtuosity of guitarist Han-earl Park, and the ever inventive playing of Mark Sanders, arguably the most sought-after improviser-drummer of his generation. [More info…]
Recommended price: $8+
The Gargantius Effect is the brainchild of Murray Campbell and Randy McKean. This album documents Gargantius Effect’s August 2011 tour of Northern California with special guest and fellow Sonologist Han-earl Park, plus Bay Area veteran improviser, composer and electronic artist Gino Robair, and hyperpianist Scott R. Looney. [More info…]
Recommended price: $8+
A solo performance by guitarist-constructor Han-earl Park exploring, with feedback and resonant buzzes, the complex, cavernous acoustics of the Lewis Glucksman Gallery, and the interactions between artifact (guitar) and the body (guitarist). For ‘Strokes and Screwballs,’ Park is joined by violinist-improviser Marian Murray for a conversational improvisation. [More info…]
Recommended price: $5+
A stark, real-time evolution of on-stage relations. The performance took place during Seoul-based experimental electronic musician Jin Sangtae’s European tour. Featuring clanking hard drives, buzzing electronics, noisy guitars and machine gun percussion, this recording captures Jin’s meeting with guitarist-improviser Han-earl Park, and composer, drummer and intermedia artist Jeffrey Weeter. [More info plus the 24-bit edition…]
Recommended price: $8+
“Sounds reverberate and carry in unexpected ways, and music improvised here [The Glucksman Gallery] runs the risk of losing all definition. That [Han-earl] Park and his co-improviser Franziska Schroeder gracefully avoided this testifies to their alertness, sensitivity and experience working together in other spaces…. Indeed the evening had the feeling of conversation, with the instrumentalists demonstrating the improvisatory give-and-take of a convivial exchange of ideas.” [More info…]
Recommended price: $5+
A performance by Catherine Sikora, a saxophonist with a striking, compelling sound. She has been described as “a free-blowing player’s player with a spectacular harmonic imagination and an evolved understanding of the tonal palette of the saxophone”. Sikora was joined by cofounder of the London Improvisers’ Orchestra, trumpeter Ian Smith, and guitarist Han-earl Park. Smith and Park had just come off the tour as part of the power-trio Mathilde 253 (with Charles Hayward) with Wadada Leo Smith. [More info…]
Recommended price: $8+
For those that don’t know, I founded Stet Lab, a space for improvised music based in Cork. I curated the Lab between 2007 and 2011, and during that time, also wrangled its online presence. In August, I will be removing some of the audio recordings of Stet Lab’s first year (prior to the November 2008 event) from its website. Read more to find out how to save your favorite recordings. [More…]
“Amplified Derek Bailey meets Thomas Lehn”? “A lively and sizzling session of fierce interplay… between… two boxing kangaroos”? Ed Pinsent of The Sound Projector reviews Richard Barrett and Han-earl Park’s ‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd):
[Han-earl] Park is one of those scary polymath guys who seems to have a tremendous facility for music, both improvising and composing it, and he has played in many groups and at many festivals, appearing around the globe in seemingly ubiquitous fashion. Scariest of all is his intense and speedy guitar technique, which on parts of this album presents a rush of tangled information that would require a bank of dedicated computers to solve it…. Never too “glib” in his phrasing and throws in multiple fishhooks and other barbs to snag our ears, otherwise we might be tempted to switch off in the face of his effortless glides and spiky dense riffs. It’s also good to find him in this duo set-up where the detail of his playing can be more clearly heard than in Mathilde 253. The Englishman Barrett is also a composer, like Park sometimes situated in an academic and teaching context, and is no stranger to using electronics in the live situation having formed the FURT duo with Paul Obermayer as long ago as 1986…. Regardless of whatever intricate and dazzling shapes are thrown at him like crystal spears by his sparring partner, he responds in kind with impossibly twisted gurgles, shrieks and salivated electronic utterances. Throughout album, a lively and sizzling session of fierce interplay is staged between these two boxing kangaroos, with sqwawks and yelps a-plenty as another blow is landed on the respective muzzle or snout. The striking thing is that neither player appears to be breaking into a sweat at any time, and I have the abiding mental image of two unfazed chess players sitting in a deep-freeze unit, weaving complex theorems while remaining almost immobile in large leather armchairs. The music has that degree of rigid control, of brittle precision, even when the structure appears at its maddest and the musical data is flying wildly beyond the point of interpretation. The value of this music as a form of invented language is emphasised by the odd titles, ‘tolur’, ‘tricav’, ‘ankpla’, ‘uettet’… as if counting upwards in Venusian. [Read the rest…]
‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) is available from Creative Sources Recordings. [More info…] [All reviews…] [Get the CD…]
In a review that spans Richard Barrett’s Dark Matter and Han-earl Park’s io 0.0.1 beta++, Tim Owen (Dalston Sound) praises Barrett and Park’s ‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) for its “multifarious attractions” found in a “wealth of microscopically teeming detail”:
Numbers is a complex melange of retro/futurist synth sounds, glitch electronica, guitar-sourced whammy-bar pitch-bending and hard-scrabble picking over bridge and pickups: a volatile stream of fractal note-data and complex electro-acoustics, all slippery switchbacks and other such abrupt transitions.
This makes for kaleidoscopic music, a rubato flux of superimposed noises in which lightning-fast progression from one galvanising sound event (noise thru silence) to another, and the musicians’ constant attention to overall form, carry far more weight than developmental foresightedness or melodic thrust: it’s music of the moment, a process of constantly tweaked evolutionary recombination.
The duo are tenacious in their work of sonic abiogenesis, and the six Numbers pieces are all longish…. The sound events comprised by tracks like “Ankpla” and “Uettet” are as disjointed as they are contiguous, but the overriding sense impression is that each whole flows nicely, and the album as a whole rewardingly absorbs attention. [Read the rest…]
‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) is available from Creative Sources Recordings. [More info…] [All reviews…] [Get the CD…]
‘Numbers’ (CS 201 cd) [details…] [all reviews…]
Performers: Richard Barrett (electronics) and Han-earl Park (guitar). [About this duo…]
© + ℗ 2012 Creative Sources Recordings.
io 0.0.1 beta++ (SLAMCD 531) [details…] [all reviews…]
Performers: io 0.0.1 beta++ (itself), Han-earl Park (guitar), Bruce Coates (alto and sopranino saxophones) and Franziska Schroeder (soprano saxophone). [About this project…]
© 2011 Han-earl Park.
℗ 2011 SLAM Productions.
The construction of io 0.0.1 beta++ has been made possible by the generous support of the Arts Council of Ireland.
Eris 136199 (Nick Didkovsky: guitar; Han-earl Park: guitar; and Catherine Sikora: saxophones) are recording this evening at NYU. Expect special things from this special ensemble.
Depending on how things go with the recording session (and depending on the traffic in New York), Catherine and I may be at Gowanus Company later tonight at Douglass Street Music Collective. Regardless of our presence, the evening, with performers including Kyoko Kitamura, Dominic Lash, Ingrid Laubrock, Dan Peck, Louise Dam Eckardt Jensen, Patrick Breiner, Tom Blancarte, Sara Schoenbeck, Will McEvoy, Josh Sinton and Aryeh Kobrinsky, promises to be a fun one. Maybe see you there. [DSMC page…]
