Discordance VII is proud to have Jason Kahn who is visiting us all the way from Switzerland. His approach to modular synthesis is very interesting and physical. He’ll be performing some quadraphonic pieces for this one. Up next is local composer Robert Blatt who will be performing some microtonal pieces for classical guitar. Interestingly enough Robert’s work usually involves paper, spoken word, wind, field recordings and stones. Very earthen and cerebral. So this will be an interesting departure. And finally the show will open with a trio which will include an improvisational piece by Caspar Sonnet (lap steel) Lee Elderton (clarinet) and Daniel Surprenant (pump organ, stones) 

IMPORTANT: Doscordance VII will be held at The Ivon House (4005 SE Ivon st, 97202) St. Philip Neri has closed its doors for live performances due to noise complaints, etc. So the series will be held in various areas from here on out, covid consideration included. The Ivon House will also have beverages and snacks outside for guests. Donation based. 

A bit more about Jason:

Born 1960 in New York, Jason Kahn is a musician, artist and writer. He lives in Zürich.

As an electronic musician, guitarist, vocalist and percussionist Kahn collaborates with many international musicians in the context of free improvised music. He has also composed numerous electro acoustic pieces and graphical scores written for specific groups and musicians. His work can be heard on over two hundred solo, collaborative and compilation releases.

Kahn’s installations and interventions have been shown in museums, galleries, art spaces and public sites internationally. These works focus on the idea of space: the conceptual and physical juncture points, its production and dissolution, and our relation to it as a political, social and environmental medium.

Kahn’s written work has appeared in books, magazines and as liner notes to many audio publications. He has published four books: “Infinity Suite” (2020), “Voice and Sky” (2018), “Space Text Sound” (2017) and “In Place” (2015).

Kahn’s other activities include sound pieces for radio, film, dance and theater. He has also designed numerous CD, LP and cassette covers.

Kahn has performed and exhibited work in the United States, Europe, Argentina, Australia, Egypt, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Korea, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Russia, Turkey, Singapore, South Africa and Taiwan.

DISCORDANCE VI

Discordance and Unseen Force is happy to host both EVICSHEN (Victoria Shen) and REDNECK for an unforgettable harsh noise event at the church! Both artists are tops in their game. Local support will include Elastic Energy Ensemble which will include a video collaboration/installation by Jonah Lange. Sparkling beverages and ear plugs to be provided by the house. 

EVICSHEN

Victoria Shen is a sound artist, experimental music performer, and instrument-maker based in San Francisco. Shen’s sound practice is concerned with the spatiality/physicality of sound and its relationship to the human body. Her music features analog modular synthesizers, vinyl/resin records, and self-built electronics. Eschewing conventions in harmony and rhythm in favor of extreme textures and gestural tones, Shen uses what she calls “chaotic sound” to oppose signal and information, eluding traditionally embedded meaning.

REDNECK

In 1996, a strange figure emerged from the backwoods of Kelso, Washington and trudged to Portland, Oregon. This infamous being — who came to be known as REDNECK — soon began appearing at houses, basements, and warehouses all over the area assaulting audiences with the harsh noise of his harsh reality. The sounds rattling around inside REDNECK‘s twisted head come to life at punishing volume, as field recordings of chopping wood and breaking glass are amplified and distorted beyond comprehension. And REDNECK‘s nightmare soundtrack manifests in frighteningly physical performances.

EEE

Elastic Energy Ensemble features duo Derrick Spots:(electronics) and Eren Guney (Tape) delivering analog rips and tears leveling structures into dizzying waste particles and sonic detritus. A noise like nonother. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. 

We’re excited to feature San Francisco sound artist/percussionist Kevin Corcoran. This show will also feature local improvisational artists, Jean-Paul Jenkins and Mark E Kaylor performing as a duo. Opening event will be Joshua Tenenbaum’s interestingly textural project d°rifle.  

Kevin Corcoran works with percussion, field recordings and electronics with an open interest in sound as medium as it moves through contexts of music, art, communication and place.

As a percussionist he is focused on techniques which extend the sonic possibilities of the instrument by emphasizing textural sound, friction, sympathetic vibration, sustained tones and the use of found objects with an interest in freely arranging events in duration rather than marking time by rhythm. Whether working in sparse sound with a single drum and cymbal or frenetic contexts on the drum kit, improvisation is crucial to his practice as a generative method and non-hierarchical exchange of ideas.

Through field recordings he observes and interacts with sites and objects with specific interests in abandoned architecture, urban excess, and intersections of infrastructure and open space. Electronic sound features in his work through the use of cassette tapes, computer software, feedback systems and various means of amplification.

Based in San Francisco, California, he collaborates across disciplines and borders having performed in the United States, Europe, Japan, South Korea, China and Taiwan with musicians, dancers, filmmakers, writers and visual artists. In addition to making live and recorded sound and music, he has exhibited sound installations and experimental video works.

Curated by Rose Moore and Caspar Sonnet. Conducted by Rose Moore:

Myles M., floor tom, Kadi Rae Smith  – voice, Angela S. –  sax/sampler, Seth Wright – bass synth, Adrian Snyder – drums, Caspar Sonnet/Garrett Brown – prepared guitars, John Walsh – acoustic guitar, Vern Avola – synth, Sam Klickner – prepared concert bass drum, Rose Moore conducting. 

1. GUZO is Madelyn Villano. She is a biracial noise musician who works with strings, samples, and electronics living in Portland, OR. Her live performance focus is mostly supporting her own somatic relief with sound — which lately translates into filling up space with loud, intense sonics.
2. Shane Mcdonell uses techniques inspired by musique concrete to produce sounds made from hardware, software, and natural phenomena. 
3. Physical Strength (Ivan Tribuzuio/guitar & Caspar Sonnet/percussion) is a duo exploring the use of gestural playing and impl, emental gravity in affection to sound within an improvised framework. 

St. Philip Neri 2408 SE 16th Ave, Portland, OR 97214
Doors at 7PM, Show at 7:30, $10

December 15th, 8pm
St Philip Neri Church
2408 SE 16th Ave, Portland, OR 97214
w/proof of vaccination.

“Discordance is a series showcasing artists who’s discipline encompasses noise, free improvisation and musique concrète. Artists involved are both regional and afar.”Caspar Sonnet

ABOUT:

Leila Bordreuil is a Brooklyn-based cellist, composer and sound-artist from France. She accesses concepts as diverse as Noise, contemporary classical, free jazz, and experimental traditions but adheres to none of them. Her music mixes deep melancholia with harsh noise-walls at ear-bleeding levels, and was described by the New York Times as “steadily scathing music, favoring long and corrosive atonalities”.

Driven by a fierce interest in pure sound and inherent texture, Leila challenges conventional cello practice through extreme extended techniques and unorthodox amplification methods, to the extent she sometimes seems to be playing the P.A system rather than the cello. Her compositions frequently incorporate sound-spatialization by way of site-specific pieces and multichannel installations, and focus on neurological perception and our physiological relationship to sound and space.

As per the tradition of improvised music, she has maintained a very active concert schedule sharing the stage with a wide range of artists including Marina Rosenfeld, Lee Ranaldo, Eli Keszler, Anthony Coleman, Peter Evans, Thurston Moore, Nate Wooley, SENYAWA, C. Spencer Yeh, Toshimaru Nakamura, Tetuzi Akiyama, Susan Alcorn, Ingrid Laubrock, Zeena Parkins, Weasel Walter, Kim Gordon, Chris Corsano, Aki Onda and more.

Her collaborative projects are notoriously numerous and diverse, and include duos with Bill Nace (Body/Head), Japanoise artist Tamio Shiraishi (Fushitutsa), techno producer Bookworms, bassist Zach Rowden, sound-artist Julia Santoli, saxophonist Michael Foster, and a freely improvised trio with Sean Ali and Joanna Mattrey.

Soft Fantasy (Lo Moran) is a portland based noise and conceptual artist. They have releases through Unseen Force.

Energy Gradient (Eren Guney)

Communes with magnetic tape to investigate & amplify the ruinous consequences of our collective anthropocentric hubris

Caspar Sonnet will be premiering an exciting new composition which include talented players as Sam Klickner and Rose Moore!

Leila Bordreuil is a Brooklyn-based cellist, composer and sound-artist from France. She accesses concepts as diverse as Noise, contemporary classical, free jazz, and experimental traditions but adheres to none of them. Her music mixes deep melancholia with harsh noise-walls at ear-bleeding levels, and was described by the New York Times as “steadily scathing music, favoring long and corrosive atonalities”.

Driven by a fierce interest in pure sound and inherent texture, Leila challenges conventional cello practice through extreme extended techniques and unorthodox amplification methods, to the extent she sometimes seems to be playing the P.A system rather than the cello. Her compositions frequently incorporate sound-spatialization by way of site-specific pieces and multichannel installations, and focus on neurological perception and our physiological relationship to sound and space.

As per the tradition of improvised music, she has maintained a very active concert schedule sharing the stage with a wide range of artists including Marina Rosenfeld, Lee Ranaldo, Eli Keszler, Anthony Coleman, Peter Evans, Thurston Moore, Nate Wooley, SENYAWA, C. Spencer Yeh, Toshimaru Nakamura, Tetuzi Akiyama, Susan Alcorn, Ingrid Laubrock, Zeena Parkins, Weasel Walter, Kim Gordon, Chris Corsano, Aki Onda and more.

Her collaborative projects are notoriously numerous and diverse, and include duos with Bill Nace (Body/Head), Japanoise artist Tamio Shiraishi (Fushitutsa), techno producer Bookworms, bassist Zach Rowden, sound-artist Julia Santoli, saxophonist Michael Foster, and a freely improvised trio with Sean Ali and Joanna Mattrey.