The following text is taken from Front Magazine, vol. VII, no. 2, p. 6, November/December 1995:

– Paul Plimley & Robyn Schulkowsky 11/02/95 – piano & percussion

This concert features two improvising giants: Vancouver-based Paul Plimley and U.S.-born Berlin percussionist Robyn Schulkowsky.

Paul Plimley is a passionate, internationally respected pianist. His playing style is irrepressible and vigorous, resonating with warmth and humour. Technically his piano work is outstanding, earning him a well-deserved international reputation in the world of contemporary music.

Paul is a founding member of the New Orchestra Workshop, and has worked with an array of musicians, including Cecil Taylor, Andrew Cyrille, Barry Guy, Phil Haynes. He has recently released a CD on Hat Art entitled Freedom, Now What? with Joe McPhee and Lisle Ellis.

Percussionist Robyn Schulkowsky has focused on contemporary composed music through her career. She initiated and directed the Munich percussion festival Drumming in 1987 and a five-day festival of contemporary music Entgrenzungen in 1989.

– Sam Ashley & Ben Azarm, AA Bee Removal On Happiness and the Virtues of Field Transit 11/03/95

California-based electronic musicians/performance artists Ben Azarm and Sam Ashley present the Canadian premiere of On Happiness and the Virtues of Field Transit, their latest collaborative piece. On Happiness… is a space specific electronic music/performance work designed to exploit the underlying principles of perception, to blur and realign the distinction between the “real” and the “unreal”; a “formal exercise offering an audience an excuse to enjoy the creative potentiality of chaos.” This new work features algorithmically based sound generating/processing techniques, innovative approaches to the human/machine interface and live musical performance; but more than that it emphasizes new approaches to performance and collaboration, and to the representation and presentation of electronic sound.

Ben Azarm holds an MS degree in cybernetics and an MFA in electronic music. His compositions have been performed across the USA and he is a regular contributor to new music magazines and art journals. As well, Ben has been the producer and host of numerous new music radio programs and festivals.

Sam Ashley has been creating performance pieces and electronic music for 15 years and singing professionally for 12. As a professional singer and solo performance artist, he has toured both the US and Europe regularly over the past 15 years.

– Talking Pictures 11/02/95

Talking Pictures is a quartet of Vancouver musicians led by guitarist/composer Ron Samworth. With Bill Clark, trumpet; Dylan Van Der Schyff, drums; and Peggy Lee, cello, the group makes dramatic use of dynamics and textures. Ornette Coleman, Paul Motian, Art Ensemble of Chicago, new music, Jimi Hendrix and Nino Rota align in a compelling montage of musical influences.

Last year the group presented a highly successful presentation of Kurt Weill’s music as part of Timeflies. The band’s debut release, Ciao Bella, is available on Red Toucan. “Their finely detailed and multi-leveled recording is accessible from its shiny post-modern veneer down to its harmolodic roots.” (5/4 Magazine)