Center for Contemporary Music, Improvisation, and Experimentation

06/18/2025

Next week (June 22nd to June 29th) is institute at the The Irving S. Gilmore School of Music at Western Michigan University. There are public events each night in the Dalton Center, typically a presentation at 5 pm each night and a concert at 7:30 pm. We are excited to welcome over 70 participants and our wonderful SPLICE Institute faculty, including special guests Anne La Berge and Ted Moore , who will give concerts and presentations. Details of all the public events can be found here:

SPLICE Institute is an online, week-long, intensive summer program for performers, composers, and composer-performers interested in music that combines live performance and electronics.

10/25/2024

RELEASE DAY FOR "DARK JOURNEY"

Streaming everywhere:
https://music.apple.com/us/album/dark-journey-the-music-of-andrew-rathbun/1767547718

https://open.spotify.com/album/74pzd65ogaqfNRjmBTPpLo?si=22EtqfQHQ8Cr1n7hMVqBlg

https://amazon.com/music/player/albums/B0DGL21YZT?marketplaceId=ATVPDKIKX0DER&musicTerritory=US&ref=dm_sh_67WBWgJ2JHZn8Nxzi55aOU74I

Please check it out and share!

Origin Records

WMU Jazz Studies
WMU College of Fine Arts
The Irving S. Gilmore School of Music

Scott Cowan
Matt Landon
Keith Hall
Matthew Fries
Greg Jasperse

Album · 2024 · 9 Songs

10/22/2024

First review of "Dark Journey" from Thierry De Clemensa at Paris-Move.

Release date is this Friday, Oct 25th!

https://www.paris-move.com/reviews/western-jazz-collective-dark-journey-the-music-of-andrew-rathbun/

WMU Jazz Studies
WMU Saxophone Studio
WMU College of Fine Arts
The Irving S. Gilmore School of Music
Matthew Fries
Keith Hall
Matt Landon
Scott Cowan
Greg Jasperse

Western Jazz Collective - Dark Journey: The Music of Andrew Rathbun. Andrew Rathbun’s compositions are elevated by great musicians.

10/11/2024

This Sunday, October 13th at 1:00pm Eastern I am doing a composers spotlight on music from the new record "Dark Journey" (Origin Records) hosted by the fantastic Erica Seguine. I'll be playing some examples from the record and talking about small group orchestration and some post-production that went into this record. I will also be taking questions live from JazzComposersPresent members.

The new recording is released on Oct 25th.

Please consider joining this amazing community and having access to the wealth of resources on:
www.JazzComposersPresent.com/membership

WMU Jazz Studies
WMU Saxophone Studio
WMU College of Fine Arts

10/07/2024

"National Nightmare" from the new WJC CD is featured on All About Jazz as "Song of the Day." Pop on over and have a listen!
Release Date: OCT 25th!

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/media/track-national-nightmare

Origin Records
Matthew Fries
Keith Hall
Greg Jasperse
WMU Jazz Studies
WMU College of Fine Arts

10/02/2024

I recently did a Mini-Lesson for www.JazzComposersPresent.com regarding music from "Dark Journey" on Origin Records

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDcUsosSHw4

Please check it out!
WMU Jazz Studies
WMU College of Fine Arts

Composer Andrew Rathbun explores abrupt tempo changes, going beyond double time and half time, as ways to unsettle or startle the listener using his piece “R...

09/24/2024

THIS SATURDAY!
Come on out. CD Release of Dark Journey
Dalton Center Recital Hall, 7:30pm
Tickets: https://wmumusic.ludus.com/index.php?show_id=200462763
with
Scott Cowan
Greg Jasperse
Matt Landon
Matthew Fries
Carlo De Rosa
Keith Hall

WMU College of Fine Arts
WMU Jazz Studies
Center for Contemporary Music, Improvisation, and Experimentation

09/06/2024

NEW RELEASE!
Dark Journey - Origin Records
Western Jazz Collective.
with
Greg Jasperse - voice
Scott Cowan - trumpet
Matt Landon - guitar
Matthew Fries - piano/keyboards
John Hébert - bass
Keith Hall - drums
Carlo De Rosa -bass (playing with the WJC!)

CD Release Event SAT. SEPT 28th, 7:30 pm
Dalton Center, Western Michigan Univ.
tickets: https://wmumusic.ludus.com/index.php?show_id=200462763

Streaming everywhere October 18th.

Very happy to have this out in the world. It took awhile to get it out there, but it was worth the wait.
The sound of this recording is unlike anything I've done in the past, and I am very pleased with the results. Everyone brought their A game to the music I brought in. There are colors and textures and production values that were completely new to me. There is even some WX7, which I pulled out of cold storage during the pandemic.

Hope you can join us for the CD release!

WMU College of Fine Arts
WMU Jazz Studies
Center for Contemporary Music, Improvisation, and Experimentation
WMU Saxophone Studio

06/07/2024

I am looking forward to JCP's Listening Session on Sunday, June 9th at 1:00pm Eastern with a dear friend and someone whose music and playing a deeply admire, Frank Carlberg (Frank Carlberg Large Ensemble, Frank Carlberg's Word Circus, New England Conservatory). Frank will be sharing and discussing recordings that have inspired and intrigued him throughout his career as a composer and pianist. A live Q&A will conclude the event.

Members can access Masterclasses, Listening Sessions, Roundtables, Group Lessons, Artist Q&As and our Past Event Archives. The resources at JCP are incredible! Join today!
www.JazzComposersPresent.com/membership

COME HANG!

05/23/2024

Late breaking review of the Speed of Time from Minneapolis:

"A listen that’s focused on metric manipulation and harmonics, there’s a nice smattering of abstractness present that makes this listen both creative and timeless."

The Speed Of Time Steeplechase, 2023 8/10 Listen to The Speed Of Time The Canadian saxophonist and composer Andrew Rathbun has two decades under his belt in the area of recording music, and here along with Gary Versace, John Hébert and Tom Rainey he turns in 8 songs that revolves around how th

05/09/2024

Monday May 13th
8pm
Bell's Eccentric Café & General Store
AR Trio w/ Keith Hall and Carlo De Rosa
Opening for James Brandon Lewis and The Messthetics.
Should be an energetic night!

03/25/2024

Coming up SATURDAY APRIL 6th
Rare performance of Phil Nimmons "Atlantic Suite" with the WMU Jazz Orchestra and Western Jazz Collective!
Dalton Center Recital Hall
7:30 pm.
TICKETS: https://wmumusic.ludus.com/
WMU College of Fine Arts
WMU Jazz Studies