christof kurzmann / burkhard stangl “neuschnee” compact disc

• las hijas de nieve (0:39)
  
• in the global snow of things (15:43)
  
• gredler (14:09)
  
• homeless dogs (5:22)
  
• song songs (18:28)

erstwhile press release...

christof kurzmann / burkhard stangl neuschnee erstpop 002 total time: 54:20 christof kurzmann lloopp, vocals, clarinet, rubber band burkhard stangl guitars, vibraphone, piano, background vocals guests: manon-liu winter piano (track #2) edén carrasco saxophone (track #4) nicolás carrasco electronics (track #4) burkhard stangl and christof kurzmann began their duo 'schnee' in 1999, finally working together after many years of a non-collaborative friendship. their first album, released in 2000, combined stangl's acoustic guitar with kurzmann's electronic sound manipulation. this was an unusual approach at the time, although it quickly became widely copied and very influential. since the duo was so well-received, they continued their work, playing concerts throughout europe, as well as tours in china and japan. at the same time they began experimenting with another fairly unique approach within this area of music, incorporating song structures and pop vocals into their compositions. these efforts led to the recording of a second album, schneelive, an elongated and meticulously structured version of a prince song, as performed in the amplify 2004: addition festival at ausland in berlin. while schneelive was a snapshot of their approach on a single night, neuschnee is more complex, recorded on three continents in five countries over four years. kurzmann has been a prominent part of both the vienna and the berlin scenes over the past decade. as an organizer, he cofounded the phonotaktik festival, helped begin the prominent rhiz club in vienna, and ran the prestigious charhizma label. since moving to berlin in 2001, he has organized countless shows, including the berlin half of amplify 2004: addition. kurzmann has been an essential part of many erstwhile-related live events, in tokyo, berlin and nyc, and was the first to work at amann studios for an erstwhile release, beginning a crucial relationship for the label. neuschnee is his fifth release for erstwhile, following a s o (with ami yoshida), the magic id-till my breath gives out, and the two previous schnee releases. stangl explores the full range of the guitar, from quiet, melodic plucking to atonal walls of noisy drones. this range and adaptability allowed him to be extremely prolific from 1999-2004, in the collective projects polwechsel, efzeg, and sssd, in duos and trio with christof kurzmann and taku sugimoto, as well as many others. neuschnee is also his fifth release for erstwhile, following wrapped islands (with polwechsel and fennesz), eh (with dieb13), and the two previous schnee releases. stangl also has a duo album with kai fagaschinski in the works for erstwhile, scheduled for fall 2009 release. these two cds mark his first new work in some years. the five tracks on neuschnee form an ambitious meta-song suite, with the various lyrics and musical styles combining to create a whole greater than the sum of its parts. the design is again from berlin designer marion gerth, previously responsible for the magic id-till my breath gives out on erstpop. the front cover juxtaposes a satellite picture of snow with the mao zedong poem 'snow', which the musicians discovered in a book bought while on tour in beijing. after a long phase of experimental and avant-garde work, which inscribed itself in our hearts and still grounds any musical activity, the collection of experiences in originally non-western cultures such as japan, south africa or latin america - each with their own fascinating music - played an important role, too, when we started to think about songs again in a new way and started to integrate them slowly into our delicate musical architecture. the songs or even their fragments are meant as reconciliation: a reconciliation of experiment and tradition, of thoughtful silence and expressive celebration of each moment, of worlds of noises and clearly defined harmonies. - burkhard stangl

the magic i.d. “till my breath gives out” long playing record

• true holiday (6:25)
  
• feet deep (4:59)
  
• wintersong (6:14)
  
• martin fierro (3:02)
  
  
• from the same road (8:13)
  
• loopstück (12:57)

erstwhile press release...

the magic i.d. till my breath gives out erstpop 001 kai fagaschinski clarinet (right) margareth kammerer vocals & guitars christof kurzmann vocals, g3 and lloopp michael thieke clarinet (left) the magic i.d. is a berlin-based quartet exploring the juncture of song forms with abstract music. the band, consisting of margareth kammerer, christof kurzmann, kai fagaschinski and michael thieke, formed in summer 2005 after previously being connected via smaller groupings and projects. till my breath gives out is their debut release, and consists of six intricately constructed gems, each with its own individual shape, painstakingly sequenced to form a record that becomes more than the sum of its parts. kammerer was born in italy and moved to berlin in 1994. she is deeply involved in the worlds of both theatre and music, and has a lengthy resume in both areas. her mostly solo album to be an animal of real flesh was released on charhizma in 2004, featuring collaborative tracks with axel dörner, chris abrahams and tatusya yoshida, as well as remixes from fred frith, philip jeck, bernhard fleischmann and kurzmann. her unique, distinctive voice has been underdocumented previously, but is showcased on till my breath gives out to riveting effect. kurzmann has been a prominent part of both the vienna and (more recently) the berlin scenes over the past decade. as an organizer, he cofounded the phonotaktik festival, helped found the famous rhiz club in vienna, and runs the prestigious charhizma label. kurzmann has been an essential part of many erstwhile-related live events, in tokyo, berlin and nyc, and was the first to work at amann studios for an erstwhile release, beginning a crucial relationship for the label. his duo with burkhard stangl, schnee, is one of the core projects of erstwhile, with a third release for the label currently in preparation for release, and his duo with ami yoshida, a s o, is an underappreciated gem. fagaschinski has leapt to prominence in the improv world over the last few years, with well-received duo projects such as los glissandinos (w/klaus filip), the international nothing (w/thieke) and kommando raumschiff zitrone (w/kurzmann). his music is rooted in abstraction, but with an increasingly insidious melodious element. this is his first erstwhile release, and his second is already in the works, a duo disc with stangl. thieke was born in düsseldorf and moved to berlin in 1993. he works in a wide range of styles in the jazz and improv worlds, from a mingus tribute to a collective trio on ayler records (w/christian weber and michael griener) to his own unununium project on charhizma to the aforementioned the international nothing w/fagaschinski, ranging from free blowing to sparse, pointillistic abstraction, from fully improvised to fully composed. the six pieces contained here are precise collective compositions, three by the full quartet, and one from each of the three potential “duos” (the two clarinets form one twinned instrument). till my breath gives out expands song forms through the prism of experimental sensibilities and meshes the two remarkably fluidly. the design has been sourced from a photograph taken by gianmarco bresadola in alexanderplatz, berlin, and stunningly reconceived by berlin designer marion gerth. till my breath gives out is being released simultaneously in two formats: foldout digipak cd and gatefold 180g vinyl. the content and the running order are identical; the lp version was mastered slightly differently to better fit the format. the lp is an edition of 500 copies; the cd is unlimited and inexpensive.

the magic i.d. “till my breath gives out” compact disc

• true holiday (6:25)
  
• feet deep (4:59)
  
• wintersong (6:14)
  
• martin fierro (3:02)
  
• from the same road (8:13)
  
• loopstück (12:57)