Idiom, by Anna Webber

Idiom

by Anna Webber

supported by

Jonathan Pryor I knew from the first four measures that I was going to ABSOLUTELY DIG THIS ALBUM! Another incredible creation by Anna Webber. Favorite track: Forgotten Best.

jiristepan I wonder if it's jazz or classical music. The answer is yes. And where are the limits of improvisation and composition? But it doesn't really matter... because it's great music.

Sitter mållös och lyssnar! Vilket album! Heja Anna och gänget! Favorite track: Idiom VI - Movement I.

H.F. Extraordinary boundary-pushing music!

maxfrantz Idiom VI is a masterpiece! Favorite track: Idiom VI - Interlude 2 and Movement III.

more...

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Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
Two CD release in beautiful gatefold digipak.

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1.	Idiom I 11:17	buy track
2.	Idiom IV 07:47	buy track
3.	Forgotten Best 08:39	buy track
4.	Idiom V 04:48	buy track
5.	Idiom III 10:01	buy track
6.	Idiom VI - Movement I 08:41	buy track
7.	Idiom VI - Interlude 1 03:34	buy track
8.	Idiom VI - Movement II 09:10	buy track
9.	Idiom VI - Interlude 2 and Movement III 12:19	buy track
10.	Idiom Vi - Movement IV 07:06	buy track
11.	Idiom VI - Interlude 3 & Movement V 11:27	buy track
12.	Idiom VI - Interlude 4 & Movement VI 09:33	buy track

about

Idiom by composer/saxophonist/ flutist Anna Webber is the follow-up to her critically-acclaimed release Clockwise, which the Wall Street Journal called "visionary and captivating" and NPR described as “heady music [that] appeal to the rest of the body.” Idiom is a series of six pieces, each of which is based on a specific woodwind extended technique -- a broad term meaning any non-traditional way of producing sound on an instrument, including the use of multiphonics, alternate fingerings, key clicks, overblown notes, and the like -- that she has taken from her own improvisational language. The works are the upshot of her belief that jazz composers/performers are in a privileged position to create the perfect vehicles for themselves as improvisers. As a frequent user of extended techniques in her own playing, Webber set out to create a continuum between her compositional and improvisatory vocabulary, orchestrating these effects across the ensemble, and applying them to different instruments. They are also used to generate chords and scales and, overall, gave license to utilize other naturally occurring sounds, opening up whole new worlds of mysterious sonic combinations and orchestrations.

“Idiom II” from this book of compositions appeared on Clockwise, while the new project – spread out over two volumes – comprises the other five “Idiom” pieces. The first four of these feature her Simple Trio – Webber with drummer John Hollenbeck and pianist Matt Mitchell – which has been her primary working group for the past eight years. The hour-long “Idiom VI” is performed by a twelve-piece ensemble that brings together a mix of musicians equally split between improvisors and new music specialists. With Idiom, Webber has created a singular sonic world, a bold magnum opus that paves a new path for the amalgamation of cutting-edge composition and improvisation.

credits

released May 28, 2021

Disc One
Simple Trio
Idiom I (11:18)
Idiom IV (7:47)
Forgotten Best (8:40)
Idiom V (4:48)
Idiom III (10:02)

Anna Webber - tenor saxophone, flute
Matt Mitchell - piano
John Hollenbeck - drums

Disc Two
Large Ensemble
Idiom VI
Movement I (8:40)
Interlude 1 (3:35)
Movement II (9:08)
Interlude 2 & Movement III (12:29)
Movement IV (9:34)
Interlude 3 & Movement V (11:25)
Interlude 4 & Movement VI (9:34)

Anna Webber - tenor saxophone, flute, bass flute
Nathaniel Morgan - alto saxophone
Yuma Uesaka - tenor saxophone, clarinet, contra-alto clarinet
Adam O’Farrill - trumpet
David Byrd-Marrow - horn
Jacob Garchik - trombone
Erica Dicker - violin
Joanna Mattrey - viola
Mariel Roberts - cello
Liz Kosack - synthesizer
Nick Dunston - bass
Satoshi Takeishi - drums
Eric Wubbels - conductor

license

about

Anna Webber

flutist, saxophonist, composer, and improvisor.

shows

Jun 23

Bar Bayeux

Brooklyn, NY
Jun 27

Pioneer Works

Brooklyn, NY
Jul 07

Loft

Cologne, Germany
Jul 08

Rotterdam Ahoy

Rotterdam, Netherlands
Jul 15

The Owl Music Parlor

Brooklyn, NY

discography

Idiom

May 2021
Rectangles

Jul 2020
Clockwise

Feb 2019
Binary

Oct 2016
Refraction

Jan 2015
SIMPLE

Sep 2014
Percussive Mechanics

Apr 2013
Third Floor People

Oct 2010

contact / help

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