Gotta admit, barring the Minimalism of Steve Reich and Philip Glass which generally relies upon played instruments, I like my Avant-Garde music to be electronic. Failing that as experiments with magnetic tape. All yer Morton Feldman, Nancarrow, Ligeti, Nono, Pierre Boulez, and Cage is OK, but this is the stuff that excites me.
I set myself the task of putting together only ten of my favourite Avant-Electronic tunes. As crass an endeavor as was ever undertaken; but something like a primer for someone who may have never heard this stuff before. Naturally there's cool stuff that I left out: Karlheinz Stockhausen, Tod Dockstader, Richard Maxfield, Ilhan Mimarglu, Roland Kayn and Jacques Lejeune - but as far a greatest hits from my own perspective this works.
In no particular order.
Terry Riley: Poppy Nogood and the Phantom Band
A North African reverie.
Michael Czajkowski: People The Sky
Everything Morton Subnotnik nearly delivered. Very nice piece by The Seth Man here.
Michel Redolfi: Immersion
Shades of head music. As fun as concrète ever got.
Laurie Spiegel: Patchwork
Electro-Reich.
Harrison Birtwistle: Chronometer
Chiefly a vehicle for EMS's Peter Zinovieff.
Basil Kirchin: Emergence
Stone tablet of UK Avant-garde. Liner notes by Eno.
Bernard Parmegiani: Dedan Dehors
Hands down my fave by Ol' Hornblower.
Francois Bayle: Erosphere
His most seductive.
Iannis Xenakis: La Légende d'Eer
Overpowering. The ultimate.
Folke Rabe: Was??
Beautiful.
