Dither:
Taylor Levine
Joshua Lopes
James Moore
Gyan Riley
Dither presents a raucous program of compositions for electric guitar quartet, featuring original pieces from the four members of the group and music from Dither plays Zorn, their recent album of John Zorn’s improvisatory game pieces on Zorn’s own label Tzadik.
Much of the Dither’s repertoire explores malleable forms and elements of improvisation within a written composition. Dither was originally inspired by Fred Frith’s quartet from the 1990s, which incorporated improvisatory elements in the way of solos, flexible forms, and openness of orchestration. As Dither expanded it’s repertoire, the group sought pieces that explore these possibilities further, especially those that use the decisions of the performers as building blocks of the composition itself. John Zorn’s game pieces in particular take this idea to an extreme: virtually all of the material is improvised, but through a distinct form and a meticulous set of rules, each piece preserves an unmistakable compositional identity.
Supported by US Embassy, Oslo.