Radio France interviewed me for a broadcast about the influence of Luciano Berio’s Sequenze on composers. I thought of my ongoing fascination for those singular works and remembered his kindness when I worked with him so many years ago.
Recording Sequenza IX for clarinet for MODE RECORDS gave me particular insight into the piece.
In July, Rhodri Davies and I had the great pleasure of recording Éliane Radigue’s OCCAM RIVER XVI; 53 minutes of stunning music for birbyne and harp. Working with Christophe Hauser at the excellent Studio Sextan near Paris was bliss. The recording will be released on shiiin in 2026.
Broadcast on France Musique Sunday, June 15 at 9pm (Carrefour de la Création)
A l’Improviste with Violaine Gestalder / Loris Pinot, then the trio Carol Robinson / Charlotte Testu / Serge Teyssot-Gay.
Carol Robinson – composition, text, bass clarinet
Serge Teyssot-Gay – electric guitar
Christophe Hauser – recording, mixing & mastering
Charles Bascou – computer sound design
Ivana Boris – cover photo
Accueil en résidence et enregistrement au GMEM — Centre national de création musicale (Marseille)
Just released !! Stop Killing Us is a totally unclassifiable hybridization of contemporary music and rock, where the sounds of bass clarinet and electric guitar are intertwined by live electronics. Carol Robinson’s strangely beautiful words add an extra dimension. This essential recording transports us into a personal and pertinent fantasy world
Available in stores and on Bandcamp. https://carol-robinson.bandcamp.com/album/stop-killing-us
OCCAM DELTA XXIII (Radigue / Robinson) was premiered at Wigmore Hall as part of the London Contemporary Music Festival. It was beautifully played by Erik-Jan de With – baritone saxophone, Anton van Houten – trombone and Joey Marijis – percussion. Completely tragically, Erik-Jan suddenly passed away less than a month later. His subtle gorgeous playing can be heard on this brief excerpt.
https://soundcloud.com/user-642511384/occam-delta-xxiii
The 31’ piece was recorded and broadcast by the BBC Radio 3, Peter Thresh – producer. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0027c0b
photos©Dawid Laskowski
Thanks to director Szuhwa Wu, Ensemble POTE premiered L’illusion des étangs II (2024) 14′ – (2 flutes, clarinet, 2 cellos, violin, double bass and glockenspiel) at the very cool POTE Festival in Besançon. These musicians are really great!
There is a new Radigue & Robinson work in the making, OCCAM DELTA XXIII for baritone sax, trombone, and percussion played by the fabulous Erik-Jan de With, Anton van Houten and Joey Marjis from Ensemble Klang. The premiere will be at Wigmore Hall in London, January 2025. What a pleasure to work with them again.
Recently, several people have performed the original version of Le fond de l’air. This piece, for flute and electronics, dedicated to Clara Novakova, was the inception of my cycle The Weather Pieces. I particularly liked how the Brazilian / American flutist Thomaz Tavares played it. Here is a video of his performance.
