Canadian composer/guitarist Tim Brady crosses the genres of electroacoustic composition, dance scores and improv. Based in Montréal, he’s drawn more to New York downtown than French musique concrète tradition, though Music Box Bell Curves on Twenty Quarter Inch Jacks was commissioned by Ina-GRM. That piece and Sauchiehall Street on the same disc use the now traditional if inflexible technology of live performer plus tape. The title track originated as instrumental music theatre for 20 young guitarists, but this is a multitrack studio recording by the composer. Sadly, Brady’s brand of domesticated Jimi Hendrix offers technical mastery without too many fresh ideas. Though there’s a raw energy to the saxophone quartet title track of Unison Rituals, performed by Quasar, this disc of compositions mostly for his ensemble Bradyworks is no more inspiring, and you wonder whether the composer really deserves his academic support network.

For Twenty Quarter lnch Jacks, Brady reclaims his guitarist hat with a joyful vengeance. (The composer cap is still on his head, but noticeably askew.) The title selection is an eight-movement homage to the six-stringed beast, or rather, twenty of the things (see article Twenty Quarter Inch Jacks in Musicworks 85). Originally composed for and performed by a group of student guitarists, this version has Brady supplying all of the voices himself through the wonders of multi-track recording. His own physical voice provides occasional commentary and intones an alphabetical honour roll of guitar greats. The music pays homage to Steve Reich’s seminal 1987 work, Electric Counterpoint, yet is uniquely and compellingly Brady. Musk Box Bell Curves, (Hello Paris…), and Sauchiehall Street are scored for guitar and tape, and Brady manipulates the elements of each piece into a seamless whole. The former offers moments of transcendental beauty amid studied washes of sonic colour, although I find occasional vocal injections (Hello Paris…) to be intrusive at best. More eloquent is Sauchiehall Street, which captures Brady doing what he does best: creating vivid, imaginative soundscapes into which his own fluent guitarisms blend effortlessly.

Fans of Tim Brady’s guitar work may enjoy Twenty Quarter Inch Jacks, but others might be wise to start with his earlier Justin Time releases Scenarios, Imaginary Guitars, and Strange Attractors.

Transfuge du label Justin Time sur lequel il a produit huit CDs le compositeur et guitariste canadien rejoint le collectif Ambiances Magnétiques.

Deux facettes de son travail nous sont livrées à quelques mois d’intervalles. Twenty Quarter Inchs Jack reflète son travail de compositeur/guitariste, tandis que Unison Rituals s’attache davantage à la composition, l’interprétation des œuvres (5) y étant dévolue a un quatuor de saxophones, un ensemble et un big band, Tim Brady lui-même n’y officiant que sur un titre.

L’œuvre principale du premier enregistrement, qui lui donne son titre, fut à l’origine une création pour une vingtaine de guitaristes ados, dans le but implicite de décloisonner leur(s) approche(s) de l’instrument. L’enregistrement a cependant été réalisé en studio par Tim Brady. Cette suite en huit sections aborde donc différents styles musicaux propres à la guitare, passant de nappes harmoniques a des murs sonores que ne renieraient ni Rhys Chatham, ni Sonic Youth, ainsi que différentes techniques: glissando, accords, répétitions, grattages… Au passage (section 6 an alphabet of guitarists), il évoque les mânes de quelques guitaristes.

Les deux autres pièces relèvent davantage d’une approche électroacoustique de l’instrument, la guitare y étant associée à des bandes magnétiques. Music Box Bell Curves (“Hello Paris!”) fut présentée au festival Présence de Radio France en janvier 2001: elle met en jeu une guitare un peu plaintive, évoquant parfois quelques ambiances floydiennes de l’époque More, traversée par des effets électroniques variés et fortement rythmés, créant une ambiance inquiétante. Plus courte, Sauchichall Street est une pièce d’une facture plus courante: progression d’une interaction guitare/bandes d’abord sur un mode calme, presque atmosphérique puis peu à peu plus rythmé, voire agressif pour s’achever à nouveau dans la quiétude.

On one movement of his suite Twenty Quarter-Inch Jacks, Tim Brady name-cecks an almost-complete alphabet of influences that ranges from obvious choices like Bill Frisell and Jimi Hendrix to unusaal pickers like Mike Nesmith. That list tells you everything you need to know about bath Brady’s love of guitar and his eclecticism. Those twin loves characterize his music, which is full of sweeping waves of sound, jump-cut juxtapositions and sudden transitions to exquisite guitarplaying.

The title suite is a guitarist’s fantasy— composed for 20 players, but performed here solely by Brady. Over its half-hour length he explores the sonic possibilities of 120 vibrating strings and no small amount of feedback. Ranging from the ringing waves of Harmonic Fields to the fuzzed-out crunch of the aptly named Metal the piece is richly textured and intriguing, like a huge maze of sound caves. Music Box Bell Curves (Hello Paris!) has all the earmarks of a Brady composition, but the disparate tonal episodes and bursts of noisy dissonance don’t hang together as well as they might. A second piece for solo guitar and tape — an eight-minute excerpt from his composition Public space/private music — is more succesfull as a sonic streetscape.

Le guitariste et compositeur Tim Brady fait le saut chez Ambiances Magnétiques. Twenty Quarter Inch Jacks regroupe trois œuvres très différentes. La pièce-titre, de 30 minutes, est une suite pour 20 guitares électriques, toutes jouées par Brady (contrairement au concert, évidemment). Pot-pourri stylistique qui se veut un regard sur l’histoire de l’instrument, elle roule avec la pédale ludique bien enfoncée. Elle rejoint un public plus large avec ses accents rock et demeure d’une écoute agréable et intrigante, mais ce n’est pas le grand Brady des 10 Collaborations (chez Justin Time, 2000). Les deux autres pièces sont beaucoup plus solides, surtout Music Box Bell Curve (Hello Paris!), 14 captivantes minutes d’art électroacoustique croisé avec les rythmiques d’Art Zoyd.3/5

Guitar player and composer already well known for his works for ensemble and his frequent concerts performances, Tim Brady presents his first Ambiances Magnétiques album, the dazing Twenty Quarter Inch Jacks. 20 multitracked guitars, sampled musical toys and even the sounds of the streets of Glasgow!