Brooklyn Raga Massive: Terry Riley In C

Rating: ★★★★

Record and Artist Details

Musicians:

Andrew Schantz (v)
Adam Malouf (clo)
Ken Shoji (vn)
Roshni Samlal (tabla)
Lauren Crump (cajon)
Jane Mathis (oud)
Timothy Hill (v)
Michael Gam (b)
Vin Scialla (riq, frame d)
David Ellenbogen (el rhythm g)
Max ZT (hammered dulcimer)
Eric Fraser (bansuri)
Josh Geisler (bansuri)
Neel Murgai (rhythm sitar, overtone singin
Arun Ramamurthy (vn)
Sameer Gupta (tabla)
Trina Basu (vn)
Aaron Shragge (shakuhachi, ‘dragon mouth’, t

Label:

Northern Spy

Dec/Jan/2017/2018

Catalogue Number:

NS094

RecordDate:

11 January 2017

Terry Riley’s landmark of minimalist composition, In C, has been tackled in a number of different ways since its initial unveiling in 1964 – from numerous orchestral settings to the scorched psychedelic madness of Japanese out-rock collective Acid Mothers Temple. Now, from Brooklyn, comes an interpretation that nods to Riley’s own later devotion to Hindustani singer Pandit Pran Nath and North Indian classical music. A brief, languidly uncoiling alap – or introductory improvisation – is followed by just over an hour of Riley’s overlapping melodic cells performed largely on traditional Indian instruments. The piece is rendered fairly faithfully, revealing the genius of Riley’s original conception: even in this entirely novel sound world, the eternally spooling, trance-inducing simplicity of In C is utterly unmistakeable. That said, there are moments throughout when the ensemble loosens just enough to let an individual instrumental personality through, as when a soaring bansuri flute emerges, imparting a mystical tinge, or a violin solo arises from the relentless cycles, conjuring some of the otherworldliness of John McLaughlin’s classic of Indo-jazz, My Goal’s Beyond.

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