WKCR New Music Playlists: Live Constructions

An hour of electronic music, improvised live in the studio. Visit Brian's website for more info.

Host: Marlow Davis

WKCR's New Music Programs

Afternoon New Music
Monday-Wednesday, 3-6pm

Acting upon the wisdom of composer and educator Bill Dixon, our daytime new music programming presents "a constant examination of the best examples". Seminal new music works are featured as part of a focused thematic program, or of an eclectic mix of sounds.

Transfigured Night
Tuesday and Thursday, 1-5am, and Saturday, 2-6am

Our infamous overnight explorations into the world of new music, Transfigured Night rewards our late night listeners with a wide range of sounds. The department's longest show (4 hours), it also provides an opportunity to hear extended pieces in their entirety.

Live Constructions
Sunday, 10-11pm

This weekly program features a live in-studio performance or a performance pre-recorded specially for the show. Past guests / featured artists include: Merzbow, Solmania, Terry Riley, Flux Information Sciences, Farmer's Manual, Pita, William Hooker, John Zorn, Lois V Vierk.

Visit the Live Constructions archive.

About WKCR's New Music Department

The term 'new music' dates back at least to 1925, when The New Music Society of California, organized by Henry Cowell, held its first concert. The announcement bill for this concert contained a statement of the society's aim: "To present musical works embodying the most progressive tendencies of this age, and disseminate the new musical ideas". Although situated over seventy five years in the future and on the other side of the continent, WKCR's New Music department is, nonetheless, aptly served by this statement of purpose. The New Music department presents alternative approaches to music, with or without reference to a familiar tradition (such as jazz or classical music).

Over the years, the New Music department has presented several groundbreaking festivals, radio marathons of considerable duration which pay tribute to and carefully examine specific artists, movements, or schools. We hope that by listing these festivals we will aid your understanding of our concept of new music.

Fred Frith - 1983

Karlheinz Stockhausen - 1984

Harry Partch - 1985

John Cage - 1992 (N.B. In 1987, Cage used WKCR's studio as his extended musical instrument. Station DJs passed him opera records from which he played random excerpts while manipulating all the other sound variables controllable from the studio.)

Evan Parker - 1994

Noise - 1997

Electronic Music - 1998

Peter Kowald - 2002

Luciano Berio - 2003

Harry Partch / Terry Riley - 2003

Derek Bailey - 2006

Even as far back as the 1950's and 60's, WKCR had links to the world new music, through the pioneering electroacoustic composers of the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center -- men such as Vladimir Ussachevsky and Otto Leuning. It was not until the 70's, however, that WKCR's commitment to new music crystallized. The efforts of the late Taylor Storer in creating the New Music Distribution Service helped to create a synergistic relationship between avant-garde performance and recorded artifact. The scene had been created, and WKCR's New Music Department was part of the back bone of its distribution channel to the listening public.

The New Music department also played a role in the establishment of what is known today as the New York Downtown Scene consisting of such composers/performers as John Zorn and Zeena Parkins. Many of Zorn's early compositions, indeed the majority of his Games works, which exhaustively explored the possibilities of improvised music, were recorded in the studios of WKCR. To this day, an interdependence exists between the new music scene and the radio station. Through live performances and interviews, artists are able to share their latest work with the listening community. Through special broadcasts and focus programs, the history of the new music as well as its most current incarnations are constantly on display for the curious and the connoisseur alike. In essence, the New Music department is a lifeline for the community.

Inspiring artists - Philip Glass used to tune in during his stint as a taxi driver - as well as exposing them, informing listeners as well as challenging them, WKCR remains a unique source for the consistent and focused examination of musical innovation in and beyond New York City.

WKCR New Music Playlists

Sunday, June 24, 2007

Live Constructions - An Hour With Brian Kane

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WKCR's New Music Programs

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