Tune in to Afternoon New Music, on Monday, May 25th from 3 to 6PM to hear an interview with bassist and composer Mark Dresser. Dresser has played in a variety of jazz and avant-garde contexts, having recorded records with John Zorn, Anthony Braxton, Anthony Davis, and many others. He has also released a number of records as a leader, as well as several explorations into the limits of solo bass performance. Dresser came in to our station last week to talk about his music and his upcoming residency at the Stone. Listen!

Mark Dresser has been actively performing and recording solo since 1983. At the core of his music is an artistic obsession and commitment to expanding the sonic and musical possibilities of the double bass through the use of unconventional amplification and extended techniques. His solo works include the DVD/CD/booklet triptich Guts: Bass Explorations, Investigations, and Explanations (2010) and CDs UNVEIL (2006) and Invocation (1994) feature the music evolving out of this research. A chapter on his extended techniques, “A Personal Pedogogy,” appears in the book, ARCANA (Granary Press). Dresser has written two articles on extended techniques for The Strad magazine: “Double Bass Harmonics” (October 2008) and an “Introduction to Multiphonics” (October 2009). Dresser presented a lecture/demonstration titled “Discover, Develop, Integrate: Techniques Revealed” at the 2009 International Society of Bassists convention, where he curated a New Music Summit featuring lectures, performances, and panel discussions on improvisation and contemporary music performance. Dresser’s lecture is available as a download on Mike’s Masterclass, http://www.mikesmasterclasses.com