★Tzadik
Eye To Ear III
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Fred Frith continues to be one of the most important composer/performers of his generation—a groundbreaking, genre busting musical master whose work ranges from improvisation to rock, classical, folk and more. The third volume of his film soundtrack music is his most diverse and accomplished work to date, and includes studio work from the past six years. Features some of the greatest musicians in the Bay Area music scene.
Eye To Ear II
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* With a career spanning over three decades, Fred Frith continues his fruitful relationship on Tzadik with this, his fifth release in as many years. Always breaking new ground, Eye to Ear II, the second volume dedicated to his work for films, is an adventurous voyage into unexplored territory. Four amazing sound collages, improvisations and lyrical dance music from one of the most consistently original composer/performers working today.
Live In Middelheim 1999
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Crossing the Atlantic to meet in Belgium for the first time in almost six months, and going their separate ways less than twenty hours later, Masada’s concert in Middleheim was under pressure from the beginning. Reaching full-out intensity in the first thirty seconds of their very first piece, this is Masada at their wildest—simultaneously out of control and yet intensely focused like a laser beam. "I felt like a squirrel being dragged behind a Mack truck." …
Music For Films
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Phillip Johnston has been charming and perplexing audiences for over twenty years with his lyrical music and ascetic wit. The mastermind behind such bands as the Microscopic Septet and the Transparent Quartet, Phillip has spent much of the past five years composing music for films. From silent classics by Georges Mèlies and Tod Browning's The Unknown, to award-winning contemporary features like Music Of Chance, Phillip's film music shows him to be a brillian…
Haborym (Book Of Angels Volume 16)
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* The magical interplay and incredible virtuosity of this exhilarating trio of string masters has made it one of the most beloved and acclaimed of all Masada ensembles. Back now by popular demand for their first studio recording in over five years, their telepathic interplay and endless creativity had never been stronger. Ten more tunes from the rich and inventive Book of Angels featuring moody ballads, hypnotic grooves, intense burners and of course the trade…
Stolas (Book Of Angels Volume 12)
For this very special release in The Book of Angels series, Zorn has brought together five of the most acclaimed musicians in modern jazz to perform nine of his most distinctive and lyrical compositions. Truly a jazz supergroup, these five master musicians explore Zorn's beautiful and exotic tunes with profound melodic and harmonic knowledge and a depth of feeling that is a joy to hear. One of the most breathtaking CDs in the entire Masada series--a touch of the sublime from the beautiful new Ma…
Live In Sevilla 2000
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Live in Sevilla, recorded and released in the year 2000, is arguably the finest document in this extremely prolific jazz quartet's catalog. If there's anyone who still believes that John Zorn is nothing more than an avant-garde screamer, look no further. The interplay between Zorn's alto and the trumpet of Dave Douglas is nothing short of amazing, and each one's soloing is focused and intense. Joey Baron and Greg Cohen are a fantastic rhythm section; Cohen a…
Live In Jerusalem 1994
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Every working band has magical nights – nights when everything fits together and the music takes off into the stratosphere. The Masada Live series documents these unforgettable concerts recorded in venues around the world, bringing these rare special moments to you in beautiful 2 CD packages. This first set presents Masada’s historic visit to Israel, their first appearance at the world famous Jerusalem Festival. A very special moment in the life of one of th…
Masada Anniversary Edition, Vol. 3: The Unknown Masada
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* In the early 90s, John Zorn surprised a lot of people, and considering that he was a composer known for sudden, drastic stylistic shifts and pummeling noise-improv, it was a notable accomplishment. However, rather than shock his audience with sonic terror, Zorn took an alternate route: he grew up. His original Masada Quartet was a markedly different project than he had ever been involved with before: although he'd recorded straight jazz sessions (News for Lu…
Masada Anniversary Edition, Vol. 2: Voices In The Wilderness
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* As John Zorn’s most popular project reaches its tenth year, Tzadik celebrates the Masada songbook with a series of all-star tributes. Following Masada Guitars, Volume 2 is an eclectic and powerful collection of almost two dozen Masada classics artfully arranged by some of the downtown scene’s most creative performers. Zorn’s catchiest and most lyrical tunes performed by rock bands, klezmer groups, vocalists, jazz.
Masada Anniversary Edition, Vol. 1: Masada Guitars
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* In 1993 John Zorn began composing and performing his 208 tunes that now comprise what is known as the Masada songbook. To celebrate the tenth anniversary of this, his most popular musical project, John Zorn has organized a series of CDs, featuring his most illustrious colleagues performing their own unique arrangements of these classics of modern Jewish music. This first release contains three guitarists whose styles are as varied as the compositions they pe…
Mouth=Maul=Betrayer
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Part of the Radical Jewish Culture series put out by John Zorn's Tzadik label, Zeena Parkins' Mouth=Maul=Betrayer perhaps more than any other album lives up to the name of the series. This work is aggressive, energetic, intellectually complex, challenging, and highly structured. At times it reads like the soundtrack to a classic gangster film of the '40s -- the music is often not a stylistic match for that time period, but the feeling of violence and darknes…
Invisible Design
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Tzadik is proud to present a solo album by contemporary music's most adventurous musical terrorist. An indefatigable instigator of countless musical projects, from funk, rock, hip hop and jazz to world music, ambient and a milliard of creative hybrids, Laswell steps here as a composer. Eight tracks showcasing full range of musical obsessions, radical studio techniques and virtuosic bass playing. Invisible Design is a CD of Black magic and spiritual passion. …
Classical Works
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* David Shea's sampling technique manages to be both one of the most innovative experiments in classical music and, at the same time, one of the most conservative uses of pre-recorded music. As the first piece on his Classical Works collection, "Chamber Symphony #1" highlights his unique process. The recording is the result of an original performance by the Brussels-based Ictus Ensemble, a 16-member chamber orchestra. The ensemble contributed to the recording …
Pacifica
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Pacifica is a major new composition by the world-famous guitarist, improvisor and composer, Fred Frith. Over an hour in length and composed for a large ensemble of winds, strings and percussion, Pacifica sets the poetry of Pablo Neruda into a seductive and hypnotizing sound world that slowly metamorphoses into something altogether different. Lyrical written passages, inspired improvisations, sensual vocals and provocative sound effects all come together into…
Music For Violin Alone
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Music for Violin Alone is the debut date as leader for virtuoso violinist Mark Feldman, who has performed as a sideman with countless musicians, in genres ranging from country to avant-garde jazz. Here he performs original, classically styled pieces that exude high drama. The violin arcs over small measures of time, plummets into hurt, soars back up into the air, then lands lightly spinning. Feldman bows out grit and texture with ribbed vibratos, and achieve…
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 1
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* September 2003 marked the 50th birthday of John Zorn, and to celebrate, Tonic hosted a month-long celebration of Zorn's various musical groups and projects. The shows were recorded, and the best of them are being released as a new series on Zorn's "Tzadik" label.
The first offering is the entire early set by the Masada String Trio, recorded on September 4, 2003, with Zorn conducting Mark Feldman on violin, Erik Friedlander on cello, and Greg Cohen, on ba…
Tracing The Magic
*In process of stocking.* "Tracing The Magic" is Ikue Mori's most varied and fabulous CD to date, and an absolute masterpiece. Seven pieces, each inspired by (and dedicated to) women artists whose powerful visions and and creativity led them to create well into the 80s and 90s: Joan Jonas, Louise Bourgeois, Agnes Martin, Judit Reigl, Leonora Carrington, Jakucho Sekuchi, and Toko Shinoda
The ensembles are some of today's most exciting musicians, including new friends (Charmane Lee, Sae Hashimoto)…
Archipelago X
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Laptop wizard Ikue Mori, master keyboardist Brian Marsella and classical percussion virtuoso Sae Hashimoto are Archipelago X, a dynamic new trio born during the 2020 pandemic. Recording at their home studios and exchanging tracks back and forth for months, the music is detailed, evocative and dramatically mysterious, blending electronica, classical, ambient, film soundtrack, pop and jazz into a remarkably original aggregate. Inspiring and engaging music by t…
Obelisk
*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Universally acclaimed as a pioneer in live laptop electronics, Ikue’s signature style is still uniquely her own and has influenced two generations of laptop performers. Her new band project Obelisk is a super-band featuring three of the most acclaimed and original players in the Downtown scene—Okkyung Lee, Jim Black and Sylvie Courvoisier. Ikue’s startling compositions blend gorgeous melodies with hypnotic rhythms and evocative soundscapes. Strange and beaut…