Album Notes

Michel Lambert "Le Passant" (The Vagrant) Music for Orchestra (12 piece) and four improvisers + A collection of Improvisations by Michel Lambert With the participation of: Malcolm Goldstein, violin -Ellery Eskelin, tenor sax -Dominic Duval, bass -Michel Lambert, drums Notes about Le Passant My work on Le Passant (The Vagrant) started in January of 1992 after a performance of another of my works (Extraits du Journal des Episodes) by the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra at its annual New Music Festival. That older work was realized in the form of a diary, where I wrote one symphonic excerpt a day, a total of 366. In so doing, I wanted to demonstrate that continuity was not a matter of intellectual or theoretical procedures, but one that occurred out of the composer's day-to-day life. With Le Passant, I followed an opposite procedure which was to write everything in a continuous short time span (about two weeks). In the late nineties, however, I reduced the original symphonic score to the present instrumentation. Slowly, the idea of adding improvisers to the music grew. The goal of this work was not to achieve a blend between the orchestra and its written score with the four improvisers. It is about the meeting of two forces, the contact but mostly the resulting energy. Unique in its own way, Le Passant is a confrontation between the worlds of through-composed music and free improvisation. In it, players of various backgrounds and experiences co-habit with each other in a series of complex relationships of varying scope. The very life of this piece is prefaced on balancing out the compositional and improvisational elements at play here. In the original score, I provided some composer notes in French, which roughly translate as follows: "Le Passant. Triptych for Symphonic Orchestra. A wanderer for some, a traveller for others, the vagrant is an individual of differing appearances, but wherever he goes he leaves traces that inspire those alert enough to follow in his footsteps". Throughout my formative years, I always considered it paramount to find my own means of self-expression, and to do so in the name of that truth, even at the risk of challenging accepted norms, or to question it as I see fit. Michel Lambert "Le Passant" Artist Biographies Michel Lambert (1959) Drums, percussions - composer Raised in a musical family, Michel has pursued studies in a number of institutions including the Berklee School of Music in Boston in the late 70'. He has worked with a host of players in jazz and improvised music, including Misha Mengelberg, Paul Bley, Barre Phillips, Milcho Leviev, Gary Peacock, Uri Caine, Bobo Stenson, Mat Maneri among others. Aside from his current project " Le Passant", he is preparing a recording of duos with fellow drummers Daniel Humair, Sven Ake Johansson, Rakalam Bob Moses and John Heward. Most recent recording: "Out Twice" (482 Music, Chicago) Malcolm Goldstein (1936) Violin An established musician on the international scene, Malcolm is a consummate virtuoso highly respected in both contemporary and improvised musics. Early in his career, he came in contact with the seminal composers of the New York School (Cage, Feldman, Brown) as well as Varèse. Unlike most performers in that field, he has extensive experience as an improviser, both in group and solo performances, the latter he calls "Soundings". He has worked all over Europe in many special projects involving dance, theatre and audio art. Since 1992, he has been a resident of Montreal, but spends his summers in Vermont. Most recent recording: "Hardscrabble Songs" (In Situ Records, France) Ellery Eskelin (1959) Tenor saxophone A tenor saxophonist on the cutting edge of today's contemporary jazz scene, Ellery has not only developed a very unique style on his instrument, but an original approach to music, as demonstrated by his own group with drummer Jim Black and accordionist/sampler player Andrea Parkins. A product of the 1980's New York Downtown scene, he has played with a wide range of musicians from all continents, amongst these Satoko Fujii, Rabih Abou Khalil, Han Bennink, Dave Douglas, Joe Lovano, Dave Liebman.. He is based in New York City. Current recording: Ten (hatOLOGY Records) Dominic Duval (1944) Double bass A veteran of the American improvised music scene, Dominic has been one the busiest musicians on that circuit for more than a decade. When he is not touring with Cecil Taylor, he performs regularly (and records prolifically) with the likes of Joe McPhee, Mark Whitecage, Jay Rosen, Michael Bisio. Few musicians can rival him in terms of output, as witnessed by numerous albums issued on the CIMP, Drimmala and Leo Records. Dominic currently resides just outside New York City, in Long Island. Current recording: All the Notes (Cecil Taylor Trio) Cadence Records Information and contact Michel Lambert www.michellambert.com