Retrace Our Steps (2008)
(download Graphic Libretto and Mp3’s)
NEWS AND REVIEWS
John Schaefer, WNYC/EMusic Review
“Composer Paul Bailey winningly describes his ensemble as an “alt-classical garage band.” With 4 singers (two of whom also speak), strings, winds, piano, electric guitar, vibes, and electric bass, it’s as good a description as any. Retrace Our Steps is his “secular oratorio in 4 acts,” and while the opening notes of Act I and of Act IV sound like they might have come from Arnold Schoenberg’s Transfigured Night, the dominant musical references are to Philip Glass and Michael Nyman. Bailey’s pulsing, tonal chamber music is married to texts by Gertrude Stein, Guy Debord and Jenny Bitner. All four acts are highly rhythmic affairs, but each has its own character: Act I insistent, Act IV a more reflective cousin (a neat trick since the rhythm seems to be the same); Act II with a stinging electric guitar part leading the way; Act III with an elegant combination of vibes and rocking strings and guitar. Rather than providing a narrative in a traditional oratorio sense, Bailey gives us a series of aural snapshots dealing with isolation, alienation, and the irony of modern communication (that when it is so easy to communicate, it is still so hard to communicate effectively). A further irony is that this message is carried by some immediately accessible music; if the message is that instrumental rock and new classical music are not so far apart, that message comes through loud and clear.”
WNYC CD Pick of the Week 050808 and CD Picks of the Year 122208
(Retrace Our Steps EP)
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Ensemble’s Mix Is A Classic Alternative
Reviewed by Josef Woodard, Los Angeles TimesJanuary 21st, 2005
(Copyright (c) 2005 Los Angeles Times)
“…This program’s main attraction came after intermission, with the world premiere of Bailey’s ambitious “Retrace Our Steps,” ostensibly written for mezzo-soprano Nicole Baker. She sang key parts in the four-movement work, with text that included cryptic poetics by Gertrude Stein and socio-philosophical tracts by Guy Debord and Jenny Bitner. But Baker ultimately became a team player and folded into the democratic mesh of the ensemble’s conjuring of nine instrumentalists and four additional vocalists.”
THIS MUSIC IS ALSO AVAILABLE AT:
rhapsody.com
amazon.com
napster.com
CREDITS
recorded, edited and mixed by marlon luna and paul bailey (released jan, 2008)
mastered by johnathan marcus (opharion recordings)
musicians:
nicole baker, mezzo-soprano soloist and speaking parts, karen hogel, soprano, nike st. clair, alto,
sean mcdermott, tenor and paul cummings bass
sam formicola and sam fischer violins, victor lawrence, cello, sean ferguson, electric guitar, matt menaged, electric bass, kyoko kamei and carl stronach vibraphone, eric hendrickson, keyboard, scott mcintosh, bass clarinet.
(commissioned by the cerritos center for the performing arts)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
This music free to share under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License.
Music From Summerland (2002)
NEWS AND REVIEWS
WNYC Soundcheck “The Pulse of Minimalism” June 09, 2009
(which features Music from Summerland CD)
“The pulsing rhythms of minimalism, as heard in the music of English composer Michael Nyman, and fellow Brit Jeremy Peyton-Jones. Plus there’s music from trombonist/composer Paul Bailey and the “alt-classical garage band” Paul Bailey Ensemble. It’s possible that we’ll also hear from guitarist Dominic Frasca and his takeoff of music based on Philip Glass, and more.”
Ensemble’s Mix Is A Classic Alternative
Reviewed by Josef Woodard, Los Angeles TimesJanuary 21st, 2005
(Copyright (c) 2005 Los Angeles Times)
“…In the concert’s first half, instrumental pieces from Bailey’s suite “Summerland” and guitarist Sean R. Ferguson’s “Chopping Tool” offered their rhythmically chugging energies, more about ensemble machinery than melodic or thematic development. These fed directly from the inspirational trough of such classic Minimalist recordings as Steve Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians” and Philip Glass’ “Glassworks.” The inclusion of electric guitar ( Ferguson ) and bass (Matt Menaged) nudge the sound more toward a rock aesthetic, thanks to our associative connection with those tools.”
THIS MUSIC IS ALSO AVAILABLE AT:
rhapsody.com
amazon.com
napster.com
CREDITS
musicians:
sam formicola, violin
andy greybill, violin
fernando vela, viola
sean ferguson, electic guitar
bruno cilloniz, vibraphone
nelson ojeda, keyboard
matt menaged, bass guitar
chris searight, baritone sax
paul bailey, trombone
recorded summer 2002 @the bakery in north hollywood, ca
engineered, glen fujiwara
mixed, paul bailey
mastered, j. marcus (orpharion recordings)
