Amp/AL
Richard Craig + Rodrigo Constanzo
“Amp/AL”
Richard Craig (amplified alto flute and bass flute) & Rodrigo Constanzo (amplified snare drum).
AMP/Al is a series of works that thrives on the constraints of the equipment and the potential of feedback within, across, and through the instrument. I composed a new work for the album entitled ialreadyforgotyourpussy.com, which is specifically for feedback snare drum with feedback flute. I had been developing the idea of feedback and snare ever since iminlovewithanothergirl.com. This new work, featuring Richard, is the second in the series, which will come to conclusion in a third work still in development.
The disc was released as part of a Distractfold concert in the IABF on the 29th of August.
All artwork on each package was hand done by Angela Guyton.
Duration: 32 minutes over 7 tracks
Released: 2013 independently
Available for £8
A Greater Horror
Rodrigo Constanzo, Mauricio Pauly, Alex Tod
“A Greater Horror”
Rodrigo Constanzo (keys and electronics), Mauricio Pauly (electric bass and electronics), and Alex Tod(drums and electronics)
A Greater Horror is mostly loud but then it is delicate – it is as solid as it is vertiginous. The trio focuses on the performance of original music which oscillates between detailed through-written scores and free improvisation. Constanzo’s rhythmic puzzles and textural approach stem from his Cuban-American origins and his vast experience as a multi-instrumentalist free improviser and experimental luthier. Pauly’s harmo-dynamic, hyperarticulated songs result from merging his experience as a chamber music composer active across Europe and the US, with his work as a songwriter and performer of art-pop music in his native Costa Rica. Tod, the young Leeds virtuoso, brings as much order to the blend as he creates space for the unpredictable to spill in. The overall sound is that of a post-jazz piano trio incorporating elements of free-jazz, math-rock, contemporary classical, and experimental electronics into something altogether different and altogether exciting.
The CD comes in a full color card wallet with all artwork done by Angela Guyton.
Duration: 19 minutes over 4 tracks
Released: 2012 independently
Available for £4
16 Figures
Rodrigo Constanzo, Ray Evanoff, & Iain Harrison
“16 Figures”
Rodrigo Constanzo (amplified strings & electronics), Ray Evanoff(amplified cymbal), and Iain Harrison (saxophone) are about as diverse a trio of musicians as could be. With a collective background ranging from DIY instrument building to Brazilian music to big band, the three bring a lot to bear on the act of making music. This eclectic range of musical influences and experiences gives rise to improvisations which highlight both the unavoidable conflicts and the common ground which emerge as a result of their distinct backgrounds and outlooks.
The CD comes in a hand stamped cardboard package with all artwork done by Angela Guyton.
Duration: 46 minutes over 16 tracks
Released: 2011 independently
Available for £6
I Am Your Density
I AM YOUR DENSITY is a composition written for a group of improvisers. It is loud. It is noisy. It is long.
The instrumentation ranges from voice, to didgeridoo; from circuit-bent drum machine, to acoustic drums, all manners of ruckus are celebrated.
The CD comes in a DVD case, with the graphic score included as a DVD booklet.
Duration: 17 minutes over 6 tracks
Released: 2010 on The Noise Upstairs Records
Drum & Bass: And The Horse You Rode In On
Rodrigo Constanzo + Pierre Alexandre Tremblay
“Drum & Bass : And The Horse You Rode In On”
“Drum & Bass” began as a mutual admiration. PA and I shared a stage in 2008 and after a few e-mails decided to meet up and ‘have a session’. I showed up with my ‘drums’ (using the term loosely) and PA setup his 6-string fretless bass + Laptop setup.
What followed spanned more textures, genres, and sound-worlds than I can describe, but the terms textural laptop-scapes, to grimy stutter-hop, to some smooth jazz
The CD comes in a hand silk-screened cardboard package with all artwork done by Angela Guyton.
Duration: 60 minutes over 13 tracks
Released: 2009 independently
Available for £6
Two Point Owe
Two Point Owe is the answer to the timeless question. That is, if the timeless question is “What do you get when you juxtapose (not so) simple folk songs with electronic dysfunction?”.
Over a year in the making, Two Point Owe began as a series of folk songs, each with a compositional twist, to serve as ‘lead sheets’ to be interpreted. True to form, each one was recorded with unique instrumentation, and approached differently. The electronic half comes from laptop/DIY electronics improvisations created to counterbalance the acoustic nature of the initial songs.
The end product represents the background music at a social mixer that no one wanted to go to, but can’t seem to find a way out of. The fire exit is blockaded shut, but the punch is spiked, so drink up.
The physical release is also a unique artifact, each one being a limited edition hand-made, hard cover book made by Rodrigo Constanzo with the scores to the acoustic pieces inside, along with illustrations by Angela Guyton.
Duration: 60 minutes over 11 tracks
Released: 2009 on Concrete Moniker
Limited edition, hand-made, hardcover book version available for £6.50. Also available as flexi-pay download. Click here to order
The Beatles White Album
The Beatles White Album is the culmination of several years worth of relatively independent projects, recordings, compositions, and improvisations. Tracks range from a solo prepared piano improvisation, to a through composed guitar trio, to a plagiarized sound collage, to data file to sound noisefest, to a CD skipping rendition of a Bach Prelude.
Duration: 41 minutes over 12 tracks
Released: 2007 independently