"He has been playing the violin for 30 years and in that time has played all genres of music ranging from contemporary music to free jazz and improvised music, live and in the studio.

His main interest shifted towards contemporary improvised and composed music.

The relationship with his instruments is focused in sonic and textural elements.

Electronic music was an early influence on his approach to violin playing, which challenges traditional romantic concepts of the violin/viola through use of preparations and micro tuning.

Active in different settings on the Portuguese scene for free improvised music, both as a collaborator and in leading his own groups.

Music for Dance, Cinema, Video and Performance.

Has created the record label Creative Sources Recordings in 1999, which mainly concentrates on releasing experimental and electro-acoustic music."

"Fred Lonberg-Holm (born 1962) is an American cellist based in Chicago. He relocated from New York City to Chicago in 1995. Lonberg-Holm is most identified with playing free improvisation and free jazz. He is also a composer of concert works. As a session musician and arranger, he is credited on many rock, pop, and country records. Lonberg-Holm currently leads the Valentine Trio, with Jason Roebke (bass) and Frank Rosaly (drums). This jazz trio performs original compositions as well as tunes by both jazz composers (e.g. Sun Ra) and pop songwriters (e.g. Jeff Tweedy, Syd Barrett). The group released its first album Terminal Valentine, in 2007, which was reviewed by AllAboutJazz critic Nils Jacobson.

He coordinates and directs performances of his Lightbox Orchestra, an improvising ensemble with a flexible, ever-changing membership. Lonberg-Holm does not play an instrument in this group, but rather conducts its non-idiomatic improvisations via the "lightbox" and by holding up handwritten signs. The lightbox contains a light bulb for each musician which Lonberg-Holm switches on or off to suggest when they should play. Collective groups of which Lonberg-Holm is a member include Terminal 4 who released an album, in 2003, called When I'm Falling that received four and a half stars, and AMG Album Pick by Allmusic, and it was reviewed by Allmusic's Joslyn Layne, The Boxhead Ensemble, Pillow, the Lonberg-Holm/Kessler/Zerang trio (with Kent Kessler and Michael Zerang), and the Dörner/Lonberg-Holm duo (with Axel Dörner).

Among groups led by other people, he is a member of the Vandermark 5, the Joe McPhee Trio, the Peter Brötzmann Chicago Tentet, Keefe Jackson's Fast Citizens, and Ken Vandermark's Territory Band. When he lived in New York, Lonberg-Holm frequently collaborated with the rock group God Is My Co-Pilot pianist and composer Anthony Coleman as well as multi-instrumentalist Paul Duncan of Warm Ghost. In Chicago, he has worked with Jim O'Rourke, Bobby Conn (on "Llovessonngs" [1999] and "The Golden Age" [2001]), The Flying Luttenbachers, Lake Of Dracula, Wilco, Rivulets, Mats Gustafsson, Sten Sandell, Jaap Blonk, John Butcher, and a great many others.

Lonberg-Holm's concert works have been premiered by William Winant, Carrie Biolo, the Austin New Music Co-Op, Subtropics Ensemble, Duo Atypica, the Schanzer/Speach Duo, New Winds, Paul Hoskin, Kevin Norton, the E.S.P. Ensemble, and others. His scores for dance have been performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and Dance Theater Workshop as well as many other venues. He is a former composition student of Anthony Braxton and Morton Feldman. He performed improvised music in the role of a troubled composer who finds inspiration in the love of a couple he spots on the street in a short film for the Playboy channel."

Flak is an improvising and rock guitarist, best known for the Portuguese rock band Rádio Macau.-Squidco 11/20/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

Joao Madeira: "I was born in Lisboa and I've dedicated most of my energy to the doublebass since I was 12. When I went to study at the Conservatório de Lisboa my role model was doublebassist João Panta Nunes, and lately my studies were oriented by Jorge Lee, at Cascais. I have a degree in Musicology, investigation work on Fado's candidature to World Immaterial Heritage by UNESCO, and coordination of the Music Department at INATEL/FNAT. Since 1999 I have a strong activity (studio and performance) in several styles and genres, but improvised music and original composition (whatever the style...) are the places where my musical language riches its higher satisfaction and plenitude. In the recordings you are about to hear it's me who plays all the instruments. My passion is at the simple act of artistic creation. For me, music is all about musicians and genuine expression! It doesn't matter the genre neither the instrument per si. In theater I have collaborations (musician, composer, actor) with Companhia do Chapitô and Artistas Unidos, amongst others. I also love books (...) I've studied aesthetics and Portuguese literature since I remember, and love to read and write poetry."

"Polivalent artist with conections to the Fluxus movement, José Oliveira is well known, besides music by his "mail art" creations, performance and poetry.

As an improvisor, his aproach to percussion is similar to Paul Lovens, Roger Turner, Lê Quan Ninh and Paul Lytton. He prefers a non conventional "set", where he uses instruments and objects as raw materials to create an improvised language rich in terms of timbre and textures. To this he adds sometimes inside piano manipulations and prepared guitar, in the same way as John Cage: the objects are placed on the strings or in between them in real-time performance, and not according to a previous plan.

He belonged to Sei Miguel collective between 1989 and 1996, played with Carlos Bechegas and Pedro Roxo and has a regular activity with Ernesto Rodrigues."