On Leap of Faith: "Alien yet familiar, bizarre yet completely fascinating. Expanding, contracting, erupting, settling down, always as one force..." - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG

2 Audio CDs                                              Evil Clown 9152


Leap of Faith Orchesta & Sub-Units - Differentiations
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Disk 1:

   1) Sub-Unit 1: Chain Rule (15:35)
   2) Sub-Unit 2: Power Rule (17:41)
   3) Sub-Unit 3: Rate of Change (16:37)
   4) Sub-Unit 4: Higher Orders (15:02)

Disk 2:
​   5) Leap of Faith Orchestra: Differentiations (50:09)

PEK - clarinet & contraalto clarinet, sopranino, tenor & bass saxophones,

     bassoon, contrabassoon, tarota, sheng, tromboon, daxophone, aquasonic,

     metal, hand chimes, crank siren, crotales, cymbells (1,4,5) ​
Glynis Lomon - cello, aquasonic, voice (3,4,5) 

Charlie Kohlhase - alto, tenor & baritone saxophones, metal (1,4,5) 

Bob Moores - trumpet, metal, crotales, cymbells, hand chimes, crank siren

     (2,3,5) 
John Baylies - tuba, sousaphone, hand chimes (1,5) ​

Zack Grass - bass trombone, tuba, hand chimes (1,5) 

Eric Zinman - piano, metal (2,5) 
Grant Beale - guitar, electronics, metal, crotales, cymbells, wood, hand chimes

     (2,5)

Drew Wesely - guitar, electronics, hand chimes (2,5) 

Silvain Castellano - bass (3,5)

Yuri Zbitnov - drums, balafon, glockenspeil, metal, hand chimes, crotales, 
     cymbells (3,4,5) 



Audio CD                       Evil Clown 9235

Sub-Unit No. 1 - Potential & Kinetic Energies

Outpost 186, Cambridge MA
16 November 2019

bandcamp:  streaming, downloads and CD mail Order

1. Potential Energy - 28:33
2. Kinetic Energy - 40:32

PEK - alto, tenor & bass saxophones, clarinet & contralto clarinet, contrabassoon, tarota, tromboon, sheng, melodica,  accordion, gongs, bells, wood, metal, theremin

Eric Zinman - piano, piano interior, synthesizer, floor toms & cymbals​

Audio Double CD                    Evil Clown 9160

Leap of Faith Orchestra & Sub Units - Power Series Expansions 

Third Life Studios, Somerville MA - 28 October 2017

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Disc 1

    1) Sub Unit 1: Interval |X| - 15:28
    2) Sub Unit 2: Term by Term - 15:20

    3) Sub Unit 3: Partial Sums - 15:10
    4) Sub Unit 4: Radii of Convergence - 15:18
Disc 2
    5) Orchestra: Divergence to Infinity - 51:27

Audio Double CD                    Evil Clown 9141


Leap of Faith Orchestra & Sub Units

     - Surface of Revolution

Third Life Studios, Somerville MA

13 May 2017
streaming, downloads and CD mail Order
​​

Audio 2 CDs                                              Evil Clown 9121

Turbulence Orchestra & Sub Units - Encryption Schemes
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CD 1 - Sub-Units:

     1) Sub Unit 1:  Stream Ciphers - 20:27

     2) Sub Unit 2:  Hash Functions - 20:34

​     3) Sub Unit 3:  Key Encapsulation Mechanisms - 20:04

CD 2 - Turbulence Orchestra

     4) Turbulence Orchestra - Efficient Probabilistic Public Keys -

              51:22


Composer and multi-instrumentalist, PEK, set his sights on something bigger with the Leap of Faith Orchestra's Supernovae. The previous incarnation of the LOFO expands from the fifteen musicians on The Expanding Universe (Evil Clown, 2016) to twenty-one players on this new outing. Another noteworthy element of this project is PEK's use of Frame Notation where the score is seen in written descriptions and straight-forward symbols within Duration Bars. The system provides the musicians with immediate understanding of their own parts and the higher-level arrangement of the music. 

Supernovae consists of a single track composition running just under eighty minutes. The digital download includes a bonus track. Though the extended piece is not broken out by formal movements, there are clear delineations within the score. PEK's ensemble—not surprisingly—includes enough non-traditional and weird instruments to compete with a Dr. Seuss orchestra. Though they are not playing in a vacuum, that group of instruments dominates the first ten minutes before strings and reeds make themselves more clearly heard. Forty-five minutes in, we have the first case of prolonged melody, darker and more subdued than the overall tone of the first half. 

Supernovae gives way to free improvisation overlaying the melody. Eventually the piece introduces a brilliant percussion passage before it reintroduces the non-traditional music elements, but here in a more refined manner. As with all of PEK's compositions, there is—behind the scenes—a painstaking amount of organization that is not always evident in the listening. That is part of the beauty of this album; the non-traditional approach to instrumentation and the lack of adherence to Western structure continue to make the various iterations of Leap of Faith consistently interesting. And interesting look at the written score can be viewed at http://www.evilclown.rocks/lofo-supernovae-score.html.

Review:

Leap of Faith Orchestra performs

Supernovae by PEK

by Karl  Ackermann, AllAboutJazz.com

Evil Clown 

2

Sub Units - Recordings

Audio CD                       Evil Clown 9240

Sub-Unit No. 1 - Main Sequence

Evil Clown Headquarters, Waltham MA
16 February 2020

bandcamp:  streaming, downloads and CD mail Order

​Main Sequence 
1.  Natal Clouds 19:40
2.  Core 04:32
3.  Gas & Dust 15:27
4.  Main Sequence 05:12
5.  Life Cycle 18:10

PEK - clarinet & contrabass clarinet, alto, tenor & bass saxophones, guanzi, contrabassoon, sheng, melodica, game calls, gongs, brontosaurus & tank bells, rattles, crotales, windsiren, wood blocks, balafon, orchestral chimes, glockenspiel 

Eric Zinman - frame drum, vintage gypsy tambourine, basket of rocks, dan mo, waterfilled mason jar, vintage billiards triangle, abacuses, gong, temple blocks, antique sheep shears, antique glass leg rest furniture carpet protectors, African circumcision rattles, Spooky World noise makers, LP udder, sistrum, vintage fisher price bumble bee, Asian palm frond rattles, assorted other percussion​

Lilypad, Cambrdige MA
10/9/2016

PEK ‐ clarinet & contra-alto clarinet, sopranino, alto & tenor

     saxophones, oboe, piccolo oboe, dulzaina, shenai, contrabassoon,  

     sheng, metal, game calls, aquasonic, fog horn, taxi horn, goat horn,

     siren, slide whistles(1-4)
​Dan O'Brien  - clarinet & bass clarinet, alto & tenor saxophones, flute,

     piccolo (2, 4) 
Bob Moores - flugelhorn (2, 4) 
Dave Harris - trombone (1, 4)
John Baylies - tuba, electronics (1, 4)
Silvain Castellano - bass (1, 3, 4) 
Kevin Dacey - drums, daiko, metal, wood, crotales, bells (2, 4) 
​​Yuri Zbitnov - drums, metal, wood, crotales, bells (3, 4)

Audio CD                                              Evil Clown 9100

Leap of Faith Orchestra Sub Units ‐ Probabilistic Analogues V1
Lilypad, Cambridge MA - ​3/23/2016 
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1) Sub Unit 1: Applications to Reliability Theory - 22:02 
Steve Norton - soprano and sopranino saxes,bass and contra-alto

     clarinets 
Bob Moores - trumpet, electronics 
Yuri Zbitnov - drums 
 
2) Sub Unit 2: Latent Semantic Indexing - 19:55 
PEK - tenor sax, clarinet, contra-alto clarinet, piccolo oboe, shenai, 
     bamboo flute, game calls, aquasonic, metal 
Tony Leva - bass 
Kevin Dacey - drums, metal, crotales, vibes, siren 
 
3) Sub Unit 3: Hyperpyramidal Generalizations - 20:54 
Glynis Lomon - cello, aquasonic, voice 
Andria Nicodemou - vibes, crotales 
Sara Honeywell - trombone


2 Audio CDs                                              Evil Clown 9136

Leap of Faith Orchesta & Sub-Units - Helix
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Disk 1:

   1) Sub-Unit 1: Arc (15:34)
   2) Sub-Unit 2: Torsion (15:26)
   3) Sub-Unit 3: Curvature (15:15)
   4) Sub-Unit 4: Tendril Perversions (15:29)

Disk 2:
​   5) Leap of Faith Orchestra: Helix (51:19)

PEK - tenor & bass saxophones, clarinet, contra-alto clarinet,

     dulzaina, tatora, guanzi, contrabassoon, sheng, tube-o-phone, slide

     whistles, melodica, hand chimes, game calls, crotales, cymbells,

     bullroarer, wind & crank sirens, aquasonic, kazoo, taxi horn, clown  

     horn, fog horn, metal, wood, voice (1,4,5)
Glynis Lomon - cello, aquasonic, voice, wood (1,5)
Yuri Zbitnov - drum set, daiko, dan-mo, crotales, cymbells,

     glockenspiel, hand chimes, balafon, metal, wood, voice (3,4,5)
Dan O’Brien - piccolo, flute, tenor sax, clarinet, bass clarinet, wood

     (3,5)
Zach Bartolomei - soprano & alto saxophones, clarinet, melodica, slide

     whistle, crotales, cymbells, metal, wood, voice (2,5)

Matt Samolis - flute, metal, wood (1,5)
John Baylies - tuba, glockenspiel, wood (3,5)
Steve Provizer - trumpet, baritone horn, hand chimes, tube-o-phone,

    daiko, metal, wood, voice (4,5)
Matt Scutchfield - violin, metal, wood (1,3,5)
Grant Beale - guitar, wood (2,5)
Chris Florio - guitar synthesizer, wood (2,5)
Eric Zinman - piano, kazoo, slide whistle, wood (4,5)
Kevin Dacey - drum set, dan-mo, glockenspiel, hand chimes, metal,

     wood (2,5)

​Disc 1
    1) Sub Unit 1: Toroids - 15:44
    2) Sub Unit 2: Hyperboloids - 15:28
    3) Sub Unit 3: Generatrixes - 15:49
    4) Sub Unit 4: Zone of the Spheres - 15:40
Disc 2
    5) Orchestra: Surface of Revolution - 50:28


​​PEK - clarinet, contraalto clarinets, tenor & bass saxophones, dulzaina,

     tarota, contrabassoon, tromboon, sheng, tube-o-phone, melodica,

     slide whistles, metal, wood, aquasonic, crotales, wind siren, kazoo,

     hand chimes (1,4,5) 
Glynis Lomon - cello, aquasonic, voice, slide whistle (1,5) 
Yuri Zbitnov - drums, glockenspiel, danmo, metal, crotales, cymbells,

     melodica (4,5) 
Dan O’Brien - flute, piccolo, clarinet, bass clarinet, tenor saxophones,

     crotales, cymbells, melodica (2,5) 
Zach Bartolomei - soprano & alto saxophones, clarinet, melodica,

     crank siren, melodica, balafon, wood, kazoo, metal, hand chimes (3,5) 
Charlie Kohlhase - alto, tenor & baritone saxophones, slide whistle (2,5) 
Bob Moores - trumpet, shofar, wood flute, melodica, daiko, crotales,

     cymbells, hand chimes, crank siren, metal (2,5) 
Steve Provizer - trumpet, baritone, crotales, cymbells, daiko, metal,

     melodica (3,5) 
Eric Zinman - piano, metal, slide whistle (4,5) 
Grant Beale - guitar, slide whistle, crotales, cymbells (1,3,5) 
Silvain Castellano - bass (1,4,5) 
Kevin Dacey - drums, danmo, glockenspiel, balafon, metal, wood,

      crotales, cymbells, melodica (2,3,5)

​​PEK - (1,4,5) clarinet, piccolo & contraalto clarinets, tenor &

     bass saxophones, tarota, contrabassoon, guanzi, metal,

     wood, crank siren, sheng, aquasonic, folk whistle, cymbells,

     crotales, melodica, fog horn, glockenspiel, hand chimes,

     crank siren, voice 
Glynis Lomon - (5) cello, aquasonic, voice
Yuri Zbitnov - (1,4,5)  drums, percussion, metal, wood,

     cymbells, crotales, glockenspiel, daiko, hand chimes. voice 
Dan O’Brien -  (2,5) tenor sax, clarinet & bass clarinet, flute 
Bob Moores - (3,5) trumpet, wood flute, hand chimes, wood, metal, percussion 
Kat Dobbins - (4,5) trombone
Grant Beale - (2,3,5) guitar, metal, wood

Eric Zinman - (4,5) piano, metal 
Silvain Castellano - (3,5) bass 
Kevin Dacey - (1,2,5) drums, percussion, metal, wood,

     cymbells, crotales, glockenspiel, hand chimes

Audio CD                                              Evil Clown 9104

Leap of Faith Orchestra Sub Units ‐ Quadratic Reciprocities V1
Lilypad, Cambridge MA - 4/12/2016
streaming, downloads and CD mail order

Sub Unit 1: Latice Points (20:10)
PEK - baritone saxophone, clarinet, contra-alto clarinet, piccolo oboe,

     sheng, aquasonic 
Charlie Kohlhase - alto, baritone saxophones 
Glynis Lomon - cello, aquasonic, voice 
Mimi Rabson - violin

Sub Unit 2 (Turbulence): Ring of Polynomials (20:27)
PEK - sopranino, tenor & baritone saxophones, oboe 
Charlie Kohlhase - alto, tenor, baritone saxophones 
Forbes Graham - trumpet 
Bob Moores - flugelhorn

Sub Unit 3: Permutation Signatures (20:14)
PEK - alto saxophone, piccolo & contra-alto clarinets, gaunzi, metal, 
     aquasonic 
Forbes Graham - trumpet 
Eric Zinman - piano 
Yuri Zbitnov - drums, crotales, metal

On Metal Chaos Ensemble: "... ​using unique strategies to yield densely active and eerily surreal music, an incredible excursion through experimental improvisation."   - Squidco website staff