Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Hartmut Geerken & The Art Ensemble Of Chicago: Zero Sun No Point

Hartmut Geerken & The Art Ensemble Of Chicago: Zero Sun No Point

By Mark Corroto
February 1, 2002
Sign in to view read count

Hartmut Geerken & The Art Ensemble Of Chicago: Zero Sun No Point

For over thirty years the band known as The Art Ensemble of Chicago has been practicing the art of sampling. Sampling has, until very recent history, not been an accepted musical form. As a listening public, we now find general acceptance with cut and spliced sounds in popular music and television. The AEC has practiced this art form for well over thirty years. Theirs is not tape and digital sample as much as it is samples from the African experience in America. The AEC’s history is one of music, coupled with their precious performance art. Theirs is as much a visual as well as a sound experience, with costumed musicians and a musical warehouse of instruments.

These recordings, made in October 1996 in Munich with Sun Ra-ologist and musician Harmut Geerken, are dedicated to Herman Sonny Blount and philosopher/poet Salomo Friedlaender/Mynona. While not specifically scripted, disc one has the AEC reacting to audience members who (unknown to the band) were preselected to read sentences into a microphone. The back and forth adds to the flavor of the experience as well as the performance aspect. This session was pre-programmed also to include pieces of Mynona’s poetry and Sun Ra’s distinctive voice. Lester Bowie reads a poem written by Amiri Baraka and the band falls into and out of melodic passages. The inclusion of recorded spoken samples, some in German and some English, recall DADAist and Fluxus performance art. Highlights include Sun Ra-inspired sections and spontaneous call-and-response poetry between the musicians. The AEC experience is one of real time and real sound sample. Their old school is new school all over again.

Track Listing

Disc 1

Personnel

Hartmut Geerken

Lester Bowie

Album information

Title: Zero Sun No Point | Year Released: 2002 | Record Label: Leo Records

< Previous
Opium

Next >
Ben Monder: Le Monde du Monder

Comments

About Hartmut Geerken

Tags

For the Love of Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help

To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.