"Bricolage"
Conrad Tao & The Westerlies
The Westerlies and Conrad Tao present Bricolage, a program of improvisations and experiments created in a small cabin in rural New Hampshire in June 2019. True to the definition of the title, the music finds its form in the unscripted conversation of the instruments and imaginations at hand, uncovering new sonic worlds to both performers and listeners alike. For two weeks, the collaboration between The Westerlies and Tao came to life as they embarked on a daily practice of improvisation, pairing brass and keyboard with digital processing and extended techniques, erasing the lines of genre in the process. Tao’smusical dynamism emerges as both a fearless performer and spontaneous composer, while The Westerlies subvert the natural timbres and tendencies of their instruments to unearth new sonic terrain and compositional cohesion. Bricolage features nine pieces drawn from the session tapes, humbly captured with a few microphones and minimal editing. Amidst the chirping birds of rural New Hampshire and creaky cabin floors, a musical narrative is woven in a patient but deliberate fashion, encapsulating what is at the core of this album: an exploration of beauty in its raw, messy, and unvarnished state.
