May 2007, WM issue #3: Paul Bailey Ensemble Lloyd Rodgers Group and Brother Mallard at Dangerous Curve May 20, 2007

Tired of going to the opera house? Tired of the concert hall setting? Don’t like to dress up nice and act pretentious? Do you like artsy experimental but are tired of John Zorn wannabes?

If you answered yes, then this show is for you. Come out and spend a late Sunday afternoon with your friends at the Dangerous Curve art gallery in Los Angeles and enjoy new and inspiring contemporary/cutting-edge music from

Southern California ’s most exciting new music ensembles: the Paul Bailey Ensemble, Lloyd Rodgers Group, and the newly formed ensemble Brother Mallard. 

Like most people, you probably associate contemporary art-music with tasteless, intellectual fodder. However, the music of these ensembles is highly accessible and still intellectually and aesthetically pleasing. Their style is considered by local artists as part of the Cartesian School because of its roots in the Southern California based ensemblle, The Cartesian Reunion Orchestra, who performed through the 80’s and whose motto was to spread joy and happiness to the musical world (recordings of CRO’s music can be found at http://www.lloydrodgers.com/).

The Paul Bailey Ensemble and Brother Mallard will both be premiering new works at the Sunday concert: the world premiere of the vocal spectacle, Life’s Too Short and the west coast premiere of David Borden’s work, The Continuing Story of Counterpoint.

The Paul Bailey Ensemble was formed in 2002 “as a d.i.y forum outside the usual and limited channels of art music presentation,” says Bailey. The group is a la scratch orchestra with electric bass guitar, electric guitar, clarinet, trombone and keyboards.

The libretto takes an irreverent look at life, religion and motivational speaking. It is a pastiche libretto based on the writings of John Sinclair,

Los Angeles based writer, and Friedrich Nietzsche, a 19th century philosopher. Beside an all-star ensemble of locally trained musicians, the piece will also feature LA Master Chorale vocalists, Nicole Baker (alto soloist), Sean McDermott (tenor) and Paul Cummings (bass).

The Lloyd Rodgers group is headed by critically acclaimed composer-performer Lloyd Rodgers, a

Southern California based composer with 30 years experience performing and composing new music. The group is made up of two vibraphones, bass guitar, keyboard and, occasionally, an electric violin. Rodgers’s music is a dazzling mixture of counterpoint and distorted rock elements which come together through his acute sense of form and tendency toward aesthetic indulgence.

The new kids on the block, Brother Mallard, are led by composer-performer John Marr, a former member of the Illustrious Theatre Orchestra. Marr’s music is said to draw upon the music of David Borden (a contemporary of Steve Reich) who made a name for himself in the 70’s with an all synthesizer ensemble called Mother Mallard.

The show is this Sunday, May 20, 2007 at 4pm at Dangerous Curve,

 http://www.dangerouscurve.org/calendar.html