The Common Sense Ensemble: Patti Monson, flutes; Jennifer Yeaton-Mellits, flutes; Libby Van Cleve, oboe; Matthew Sullivan, oboe d’amore; Michael Lowenstern, clarinets; Neil Mueller, trumpet, flugelhorn; Julie Josephson, trombone; David Spies, tuba; Sara Laimon, piano, keyboards; Gregor Kitzis, violin; Danny Tunick, percussion; Bradley Lubman, conductor; Jeannine Wagar, conductor
The Common Sense Composers’ Collective is characterized by an optimistic, energetic American pragmatism. Arriving after the great ideological debates of the late twentieth century have receded into mere historical curiosities (modernism/- minimalism versus post-modernism, etc.), the composers of the collective remind us again that new music survives simply because people need to make it and to listen to it.
The composers of the collective, trained in the academies and the streets of urban America, ask the obvious question, so hard to grasp because so close at hand—how shall we engage ourselves and our listeners with the best new music we can make?
Leaving the metaphysics to the metaphysicians, they concentrate on the processes of creation—from the composer to the performer and back again in a self-regulating feedback loop. If the music works it will play and be played. If not, fix it and try again. These composers’ aesthetic choices are not (as with so many other new groups) their manifesto. What music delights and intrigues the composer, performer, and listener is itself their statement, their credo.
This title, originally issued on the CRI label, is now available as a burn-on-demand CD (CD-R) or download in MP3/320, FLAC or WAV formats. CD-Rs come in a protective sleeve; no print booklet or jewel case included. Liner notes are accessible via the link above.
Common Sense
| MP3/320 | $9.99 | |
| FLAC | $9.99 | |
| WAV | $9.99 | |
| CD-R | $9.99 |
A *.pdf of the notes may be accessed here free of charge.
Track Listing
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Gridlock
Dan Becker
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accomodating commonplaces
Ed Harsh
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Sage
Carolyn Yarnell
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Structural Adjustment
John Halle
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Polysorbate 60
Marc Mellits
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Solstice
Melissa Hui
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Over and Out
Belinda Reynolds
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My Insect Bride
Randall Woolf
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