Pitch
Black
Music for Saxophones by Jacob TV
PRISM Quartet innova 693
to hear audio
samples, double-click the play buttons below
Pitch
Black (1998)
for saxophone quartet and ghettoblaster
PRISM Quartet
Timothy McAllister, soprano saxophone
Zachary Shemon, alto saxophone
Matthew Levy, tenor saxophone
Taimur Sullivan, baritone saxophone
Billie (2003)
for alto saxophone and ghettoblaster
Taimur Sullivan, alto saxophone
Postnuclear Winterscenario
No.10 (1991/2001)
for saxophone quartet
PRISM Quartet
Grab It! (1999)
for tenor saxophone and ghettoblaster
Matthew Levy, tenor saxophone
The Garden Of Love
(2001)
for soprano saxophone and ghettoblaster
Timothy McAllister, soprano saxophone
Jesus Is Coming (2003)
for saxophone quartet and ghettoblaster
PRISM Quartet
The PRISM Quartet celebrates Dutch "avant pop"
composer JacobTV (a.k.a. Jacob Ter Veldhuis, b. 1951)
on this acclaimed Innova disc. Scored for saxophone
and ghettoblaster, the music on "Pitch Black"
features spoken word by jazz icons Billie Holiday and
Chet Baker, death row inmates, and religious fanatics
in Times Square. TV started as a rock musician and studied
composition and electronic music at the Groningen Conservatoire,
where he was awarded the Dutch Composition Prize in
1980. Preoccupied with American media and apocalyptic
moralism, he makes superb use of electronics in compositions
that combine explosive strength and raw energy with
intricate architectural design.
The
title track alludes to Chet Baker’s description
of the prison cell he occupied in 1962. The saxophone
quartet accompanies excerpts from an interview conducted
shortly before his death. “Billie,” for
alto saxophone and ghettoblaster, samples many interviews
given by the singer and highlights the unusual musicality
of her
everyday speech. The somber quartet “Postnuclear
Winterscenario No.10” addresses “speechlessness
about war and devastation.” In contrast, “Grab
It!” is a fast-paced duet between tenor saxophone
and ghettoblaster that explores profound emotional
contrast among men on death row. “The Garden
of Love,” for ghettoblaster and soprano sax,
is composed around a reading of the poem by William
Blake. The final track, “Jesus is Coming,”
for saxophone quartet and ghettoblaster, juxtaposes
recordings of an angry street evangelist and a Salvation
Army choir with rhythmic patterns based on baby talk.
“Pitch Black” forms
the soundtrack to a multimedia production of the same
name that PRISM developed with Philadelphia’s
Miro Dance Theater. In this evening-length performance,
the city’s energy and sounds, from traffic patterns
to playground games, fuel a search for human connection
amid the hustle.
her
everyday speech. The somber quartet “Postnuclear
Winterscenario No.10” addresses “speechlessness
about war and devastation.” In contrast, “Grab
It!” is a fast-paced duet between tenor saxophone
and ghettoblaster that explores profound emotional
contrast among men on death row. “The Garden
of Love,” for ghettoblaster and soprano sax,
is composed around a reading of the poem by William
Blake. The final track, “Jesus is Coming,”
for saxophone quartet and ghettoblaster, juxtaposes
recordings of an angry street evangelist and a Salvation
Army choir with rhythmic patterns based on baby talk.