ROOTS to SHOOTS opens with a rollicking, surging La Fiesta recorded live at Catskill, NY’s Bridge Street Theatre within the summer heat wave of 2022. Right from the downbeat, Moss’s soprano saxophone joyously exclaims Chick Corea’s melody built into a samba of grand proportions. Tireless drummer/percussionist Ismael Baiz, hailing from Caracas, explodes all over this track along with pianist Alexis Marcelo, and bassist Adam Lane. The rhythm section, essential artists all, are woefully under-feted within New York’s overstuffed, varicose jazz scene. Only senior luminaries such as Michael Moss have the informed vigilance to recognize such immediate brilliance within a sea of mastery. Happily, you the listener, will get to enjoy such “sidemen” again and again in this collection.
QUANTUM BUTTERFLY
VOLUME 1 ROOTS to SHOOTS
La Fiesta (Chick Correa), Bridge Street Theatre, 7.23.2022 10:39
Michael Moss (soprano saxophone), Alexis Marcelo (piano, synthesizer), Adam Lane (contrabass), Ismael Baiz (drums, cajon, percussion)
- Coal Sack (Michael Moss), Little Island, 9.8.2021 9:19
Michael Moss (soprano saxophone), Warren Smith (vibes), Adam Lane (bass), Ismael Baiz (drums), Michael Wimberly (djembe, African bells, African percussion, djembe)
- Come Sunday (Duke Ellington), Saint John’s in the Village Revelation Gallery, 10.23.21 10:38
Michael Moss (bass clarinet), Warren Smith (vibes), Adam Lane (bass)
- Sa La’am Mi/My Peace (Michael Moss), Little Island, 9.8.2021 9:23
Michael Moss (soprano saxophone), Warren Smith (vibes), Adam Lane (bass), Ismael Baiz (drums), Michael Wimberly (djembe, African bells, African percussion, djembe)
- Goodbye Pork Pie Hat (Charles Mingus), Saint John’s in the Village Revelation Gallery, 10.23.21 8:29
Michael Moss (tenor sax), Alexis Marcello (Steinway piano), Warren Smith (vibes), Adam Lane (bass), Ismael Baiz (drums)
- AmithabaWarren Smith Drum Solo , Little Island, 9.8.2021 12:42
Amithaba (Michael Moss), Michael Moss (soprano saxophone), Warren Smith (vibes), Adam Lane (bass), Ismael Baiz (drums), Michael Wimberly (djembe, African bells, African percussion, djembe),
Warren Smith drum solo (Warren Smith, drums)
I Don’t Want No Trouble at the River (Margaret Douroux), Little Island, 9.8.2021 7:38
Michael Moss (flute), Bobby Harden (vocals), Michael Wimberly (piano), Warren Smith (drums), Ismael Baiz (bongos, cajon)
. What Do You Call It? I Call It Love (Bobby Harden), Little Island, 9.8.2021 6:03
Bobby Harden (vocals), Michael Moss (tenor saxophone), Michael Wimberly (piano), Warren Smith (drums), Ismail Baiz (cajon, bongos)
74:51
VOLUME 2 ENSEMBLE BOWS FOR STRINGS, PIANO AND REEDS
Michael Moss, Composer, Conductor, Artistic Director
- Abyss (Michael Moss), Westbeth Home to the Arts, 5.5.2023 19:06
Michael Moss (Bb Clarinet), Rosi Hertlein (Violin), Sunjay Jayaram (Violin), Melanie Dyer (Viola), Lenny Mims (Cello), Ken Filiano (Bass), Anthony Coleman (Piano)
- Far Away (Sorin Lerescu, Op. 89, 2023). World Premiere. Commissioned by Michael Moss. Westbeth Home to the Arts, 5.5.2023 11:08
Michael Moss (Bb Clarinet), Rosi Hertlein (Violin), Sunjay Jayaram (Violin), Melanie Dyer (Viola), Lenny Mims (Cello), Ken Filiano (Bass), Anthony Coleman (Piano)
ENSEMBLE BOWS FOR STRINGS, PIANO AND BASS CLARINET
Michael Moss: Composer, Conductor, Artistic Director
Saint John’s in the Village; Family Threads Performance 10.22.2022
- Elegy for Danny – (Daniel Canner 1950—2004), (Michael Moss), Saint John’s in the Village; Family Threads Performance , 10.22.2022 8:26
- Ain Soph (Michael Moss), Saint John’s in the Village; Family Threads Performance , 20:21
Michael Moss: Bb Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Snake Charmer; Violin: Rosi Hertlein, Sana Nagano, Trina Basu, Liz Taub; Viola: Alexandra Honigsberg, Jon Kass; Cello: Lenny Mims, Jake Charkey; Contrabass: Ratzo Harris; Piano: Alexis Marcelo
59:01
VOLUME 3 QUANTUM BUTTERFLY
- Amithaba (Michael Moss), Saint John’s in the Village, Revelation Gallery, 10.23.2021 10:59
Michael Moss (tenor saxophone), Alexis Marcello (Steinway piano), Warren Smith (vibes), Adam Lane (bass), Ismael Baiz (drums)
Recording engineer—Ismael Baiz, Mastered by Ismael Baiz, Latino Experimental Records
- Samson’s Walk (Michael Moss), Bridge Street Theatre, 7.23.2022 9:23
Michael Moss (tenor saxophone), Alexis Marcelo (piano, synthesizer), Adam Lane (contrabass), Myron Cohen (drums)
Recording engineer—Ismael Baiz & Rafael Urbina, Latino Experimental Records
- Quantum Butterfly Adjacent Possibles (ATMOS, Headphones), Bridge Street Theatre, 5.1, 7.1 24:52
70:06
Michael Moss (tenor saxophone, bass clarinet), Alexis Marcelo (piano, synthesizer), Adam Lane (contrabass), Ismael Baiz (drums, cajon, percussion)
Quantum Butterfly/Adjacent Possibles is an electroacoustic collaboration of composers James Dashow(electronics) and Michael Moss. Quantum Butterfly/Adjacent Possibles is in stereo for hifi systems in the stereo soundfile, and in the ATMOS version 5.1 stereo, 7.1 stereo, binaural (best for earphones), and ATMOS, a revolutionary sound enveloping environment placing the listener in the center of the aural environment.
To clarify, the ATMOS soundfile will configure itself to the sound system of the purchaser automatically so there is no need to purchase a different version for each system. ATMOS is the preferred listening preference with this piece as it features the electronics in six channels/speakers with the audience seated in the center, making the sounds come from all around, over and under the listener. Also, the ATMOS version is a very large file which will play only on the platform (iTunes, Bandcamp, Spotify, etc.), while the stereo version is a smaller file which is available for all stereos. ,
VOLUME 4 ROOTS TO SHOOTS AT WESTBETH September 5, 2025
- Left Alone (Eric Dolphy), Michael Moss (flute) 9:01
- Afro Blue (John Coltrane, Mongo Santa Maria), Michael Moss (soprano saxophone) 5:55
- TTTT (Bill Evans), Michael Moss (soprano saxophone) 8:31
- Equinox (John Coltrane) Michael Moss (tenor saxophone) 12:03
- Syeeda’s Song Flute (John Coltrane), Michael Moss (tenor saxophone) 10:31
- Transitions (John Coltrane) Michael Moss (tenor saxophone) 10:23
- March On (Michael Moss), Michael Moss (tenor saxophone) 7:58
Michael Moss (reeds), Alexis Marcelo (piano, synthesizer), Adam Lane (contrabass), Jackson Krall (drums)
The helix: a recurrent spiral that returns to the place of origin but never repeats itself; a spiral of creativity. The helix is a metaphor for revisiting and developing past musical ideas, inventions and pieces I want to expand (or contract) so I can grow as a musician, a composer and a performer. Helical structures include ribonucleic acid, deoxyribonucleic acid, the two fundamental organic molecular protein-like folded life-giving nucleotides–RNA and DNA.
A helix, in this case HELIX, gives life to beautiful music from a distant future and a primitive past all in the moment, all in the now. The Accidental Orchestra brings new life to the old metaphorical truths of justice and injustice where justice is the note-choice and injustice the same note-choice heading from the future into the past just as particles and anti-particles interact–the particle is going into the future and the anti-particle is heading in the opposite temporal direction, all on the quantum time level. That’s how fast the music is and how fast our quantum brains are operating to play this music, and how quickly your quantum brains instantly understand the music even if it’s unfamiliar to you. It is like a circle where there is no end but you eternally return to the same place but in a different temporal dimension.
The NEW YORK FREE QUARTET JUST RELEASED ITS FIRST CD: FREE PLAY.
Check it out and download individual tracks or the entire CD. Go to: https://michaelmoss.bandcamp.com/releases
The opening offer is just $1.00 a track or $7.00 for the entire CD.
“Incredible, intense cutting-edge jazz” (John Sowle, Co-Director, Bridge Street Theatre)
FREE PLAY, 4TH STREAM RECORDS, Copyright ERG PUBLISHING 2015
NYFQ:
Michael Moss (shofar, ekthara, khean, Bb and bass clarinet, soprano and tenor saxophone, flute),
Steve Cohn (piano, shakuhachi, shofar, percussion),
Larry Roland (bass, poet),
Chuck Fertal (drums)
Here’s what Gregory Applegate Edwards says about FREE PLAY:
Open-form extended group improvisation as practiced today has become a highly evolved art. It is as hard to do right, without a safety net, in the full public eye, as anything humanity has taken on in its history. It takes decades of dedication to come together and really play, to make all the difference between a good record and one that is truly transcendent, beyond the given and into a higher plane.
The New York Free Quartet does it–some prime examples of the art, as set down on a live recorded gig (cd entitled FREE PLAY to be released in 2015) in the heart of New York, on a summer day, July 29, 2014.
When you hear the results in all subtlety and expression, it should come as no surprise that these four artists have put in significant time, both together and in a myriad of similar playing situations. Reedist Michael Moss has been interacting with pianist and multi-ethnic instrumentalist Steve Cohn and bassist Larry Roland for some time now. And Steve’s association with drummer Chuck Fertal goes back 30 years. They all have been musical gladiators in the fight to make improvised music anew for a long time. Mike’s key experience in the early loft scene in Manhattan is only a part of the involvement of all in the music of the trenches. So that by now they well know who they are and how they can channel the experience of the history of improvisation, the wide world of musics, the musical heritage of the eternal Afro-diaspora, the world slipstream that we all still participate in. The music you hear is the culmination of all that.
Then there are the poetic utterances that we get an excellent taste of here, with Larry’s evocative recitations. Like the music it is about being there, becoming in the spirit of creation, surviving a world mostly disposed to have you “eat, lay eggs and run,” to live like roaches, with no room for what else there can be unless like the NYFQ you insist on a repeating soundings of the depths. In spite of it all.
But most of all this is about totality, total sound generation. You can hear them speak with the sure vocabulary and eloquence of masters long apprenticed, chained to the lodestone of woodshedding, gigging, communicating in the classroom, on the stage, in the streets. It all leads up to this moment in July when the New Free Quartet gives out with definitive individuality-in-togetherness. Check Michael Moss on bass clarinet or any instrument in his reed arsenal, flowing out with the very together freedom that takes years to reach. Steve Cohen as the pianist who by touch and thought brings significance into sound like very few pianists alive can do. Larry Roland on bass, never wasting a note, making it all mean something. Chuck Fertal on drums, a master of tone, everything hit in just the right place, with second-splitting soul science.
And the more of it, the totality of collectivity. You don’t get what the NYFQ achieved that day in July without all the jousts of life in alleys and cold-water flats combined with the extended free-thinking togetherness of group playing that comes only with much time, talent and perspiration. It’s all here. All on this recorded set. Just sit back and listen!
– Grego Applegate Edwards
CONTACT: Michael Moss, 646-691-4330, m2moss11@gmail.com
INTERVALS: Michael Moss Billy Stein Duo
