Celebratring their 46th season as an ensemble, the Glass Orchestra helped close out this year's X Avant Festival at the Music Gallery. (The group has a long association with the MG, including through the membership of longtime live sound engineer Paul Hodge.) That extended tenure has helped the group in their accumulation of unique glass-based instruments, which are a striking spectacle to see on stage. Incorporating gamelan rhythms (though we were assured that the group draws most from the musical culture of Silconasia) there was also some glass horn squawking as well as some classic fingers-on-wine-glass-rim drones. (Bonus! you can watch the whole set on the archive of the MG's livestream over on youtube!)
*Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
I'm still not entirely sure what I did to deserve such an honour, but somehow I ended up curating a night of this year's X Avant Festival. And not just any ol' night as we were invited to conspire a musical takeover of the Bata Shoe Museum. Thanks to the amazing powers and positive energy of Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, we were able to fill the building with creativity, bringing a grouping of nine musicians to first enfold some sounds in the museum's galleries, then gather them all together for a collaborative improvisation. Best of all, though it was on a grander scale than I'd usually allow myself to imagine, it really felt like it was all done in the spirit of Track Could Bend. And were there shoes? Oh yes, there were shoes.
After spreading the musicians out in the galleries, the conclusion gave everyone a chance to find ways to work together in a large ensemble. The featured performers here were electronic musicians Laura Dickens (a.k.a. Leucrocuta) & Hex-A-Deximal, who were processing incoming sounds from the mics and from Tegan Dietsch's tap board. Around that centre, horn players and percussionists had a chance to wander some more — one of the most delightful moments was when trumpeter Lina Allemano and trombonist Tom Richards headed up the stairs and out of sight, only to pop out of the elevator behind the audience a few minutes later! With everyone putting, ah, their best foot forward this was a satitisfying way to gather all the threads shoelaces together.
For the record, the full ensemble was:
Tegan Dietsch (tap)
Lina Allemano (trumpet)
Tom Richards (trombone)
Why Be Normal [%%30%30 & James Bailey] (found percussion)
Annie Elgie (voice)
Yang Chen (percussion/processing)
LD & Hex-A-Deximal (electronics)
You can check out the full set over on youtube:
[The Bata's new exhibition Dressed to Impress: Footwear and Consumerism in the 1980's is now open. Track Could Bend will be back in its regular first-Tuesday-of-the-month incarnation at Wenona Lodge on December 5th, with sets from kat estacio and Alma.]
I'm still not entirely sure what I did to deserve such an honour, but somehow I ended up curating a night of this year's X Avant Festival. And not just any ol' night as we were invited to conspire a musical takeover of the Bata Shoe Museum. Thanks to the amazing powers and positive energy of Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, we were able to fill the building with creativity, bringing a grouping of nine musicians to first enfold some sounds in the museum's galleries, then gather them all together for a collaborative improvisation. Best of all, though it was on a grander scale than I'd usually allow myself to imagine, it really felt like it was all done in the spirit of Track Could Bend. And were there shoes? Oh yes, there were shoes.
When I saw the "In Bloom" exhibit on the first site visit to the museum I made a mental note that it would be a perfect spot for vocalist Annie Elgie. And indeed, in between a couple benches at the far end of the room she settled right in between flowers and footwear to conjure up some spirits. This section, from the end of the event's first half up in the galleries, was one of my favourite parts of the whole night — you can hear horn players Lina Allemano and Tom Richards circling around like the sampled seagulls that are calling out.
You can check out another segment of this performance, with tap dancer Tegan Dietsch joining in (and much more!) over on youtube:
[The Bata's new exhibition Dressed to Impress: Footwear and Consumerism in the 1980's is now open. Track Could Bend will be back in its regular first-Tuesday-of-the-month incarnation at Wenona Lodge on December 5th, with sets from kat estacio and Alma.]
I'm still not entirely sure what I did to deserve such an honour, but somehow I ended up curating a night of this year's X Avant Festival. And not just any ol' night as we were invited to conspire a musical takeover of the Bata Shoe Museum. Thanks to the amazing powers and positive energy of Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, we were able to fill the building with creativity, bringing a grouping of nine musicians to first enfold some sounds in the museum's galleries, then gather them all together for a collaborative improvisation. Best of all, though it was on a grander scale than I'd usually allow myself to imagine, it really felt like it was all done in the spirit of Track Could Bend. And were there shoes? Oh yes, there were shoes.
I've seen percussionist Yang Chen in a variety of settings and I knew they could provide some musical secret sauce in an adventure like this. Setting up shop in the upper part of the permanent collection (dedicated to giving a "Glimpse into Artefact Storage") they were at a crossroads for audience members and other wandering performers, generating a variety of close-mic'ed textures and subtle feedback (feet-back?) hums — plus, you can hear some sonic bleed from Why Be Normal on the lower level and some passing horns here.
You can check out some other zones from this set's conclusion over on youtube:
[The Bata's new exhibition Dressed to Impress: Footwear and Consumerism in the 1980's is now open. Track Could Bend will be back in its regular first-Tuesday-of-the-month incarnation at Wenona Lodge on December 5th, with sets from kat estacio and Alma.]
I'm still not entirely sure what I did to deserve such an honour, but somehow I ended up curating a night of this year's X Avant Festival. And not just any ol' night as we were invited to conspire a musical takeover of the Bata Shoe Museum. Thanks to the amazing powers and positive energy of Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, we were able to fill the building with creativity, bringing a grouping of nine musicians to first enfold some sounds in the museum's galleries, then gather them all together for a collaborative improvisation. Best of all, though it was on a grander scale than I'd usually allow myself to imagine, it really felt like it was all done in the spirit of Track Could Bend. And were there shoes? Oh yes, there were shoes.
This pairing of found percussionists Colin C. (who performs as %%30%30) and James Bailey (who also brought his trombone along on this occasion) came together at TCB some months back and their joyful junk spectacle called out for a bigger canvas. Taking over one end of the lower level of the museum's permanent collection, this was indeed a widescreen adventure, with all sorts of bricabrac spread around.
You can check out the pair interacting with tap dancer Tegan Dietsch (and more!) over on youtube:
[The Bata's new exhibition Dressed to Impress: Footwear and Consumerism in the 1980's is now open. Track Could Bend will be back in its regular first-Tuesday-of-the-month incarnation at Wenona Lodge on December 5th, with sets from kat estacio and Alma.]
I'm still not entirely sure what I did to deserve such an honour, but somehow I ended up curating a night of this year's X Avant Festival. And not just any ol' night as we were invited to conspire a musical takeover of the Bata Shoe Museum. Thanks to the amazing powers and positive energy of Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, we were able to fill the building with creativity, bringing a grouping of nine musicians to first enfold some sounds in the museum's galleries, then gather them all together for a collaborative improvisation. Best of all, though it was on a grander scale than I'd usually allow myself to imagine, it really felt like it was all done in the spirit of Track Could Bend. And were there shoes? Oh yes, there were shoes.
The phrase "shoe horns" was one of the first things on the idea board when brainstorming for this show began, and I had this vivid mental image of a horn player using a shoe as a mute. No surprise then that the first person I thought of in that scenario was trumpeter Lina Allemano, who tends to bring a variety of ad hoc resonators to use as mutes. Trombonist Tom Richards is equally imaginative in expanding the possibilities of his instrument, and the pair had a tremendous time riffing off each other in the "Obsessed" exhibit — plus, of course, using their mobility to find chances to interact with the other performers.
You can check them out in their "home" gallery and visiting some others over on youtube:
[The Bata's new exhibition Dressed to Impress: Footwear and Consumerism in the 1980's is now open. Track Could Bend will be back in its regular first-Tuesday-of-the-month incarnation at Wenona Lodge on December 5th, with sets from kat estacio and Alma.]
A sure sign of fall's full arrival, The Music Gallery's X Avant festival is back next week. Last year's edition was a cautious (but most welcome) return to live events, and this year's is a scaled-up party to release some of the pent-up desire for community and spectacles. Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar has used the concept of the remix as a central motif in assembling four nights exploring the tensions and affinities between global and local cultures and between traditional approaches — "dreams of a world where we can hold the past, present, and future at the same time."
Here's what to expect in the festival's four nights:
Night 1 – Rebetika (Wednesday, October 12): Andy Moor (of The Ex, and someone you should never miss seeing when you have a chance) and Netherlands-based, Cyprus-born composer Yannis Kyriakides join together to add a post-punk edge to classic Rebetiko songs with explorative tendencies. Quatuor Bozzini join them for a collaborative piece, and neo-soul producer M.I.Blue opens things up.
Night 2 – Namamahay (To Dwell) (Thursday, October 13): local hero kat estacio curates this "multi-room unpacking of diasporic Filipin* art-making through sound, visuals, performance and food that explores where, when and with whom do we consider home" with works by works by April Aliermo, Patrick Cruz, Kristina Guison, Victoria Fard-Young, Krēme Inakuchi, Megan Arnold, and Standpartners.
Night 3 – Bijuriya (Friday, October 14): A much-anticipated Ontario premiere from Montréal’s Gabriel Dharmoo, Bijuriya (Dharmoo's drag alter ego) "explores her cultural roots by representing the diversity of South Asian female identities. Code-switching between drag performance, vocal improvisation, original songs, experimental sound design and the porosity between singing and lip-syncing".
Night 4 – Big Family House Party (Saturday, October 15): Bringing everything together for one big blow-out, this closing night (co-presented with Lula Lounge and Labyrinth Ontario) is set "to transform the entire 918 Bathurst venue into a family house party with multiple levels and rooms, a kitchen full of free food, music at every corner, and art installations." The floor-to-ceiling action includes live sets from NPNP Trio [Jackson Darby, Evelyn Charlotte Joe, James Goddard], JER, Labyrinth Ensemble and Rick Sacks.
TICKETS + MORE INFO
You can fine all the information you need over at the MG's website, and ticket info is here. Nightly tickets are $10 to $20, and there's a Festival Pass available as well. All of the events are all ages.
CONTEST
Courtesy of the Music Gallery, I am giving away a pair of tickets to the Big Family House Party on Saturday, October 15th!
To enter, shoot me an email to mechanicalforestsound@gmail.com, with "contest" in the title and your name in the body. I'll randomly draw a winner on Tuesday, October 11th at noon.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
The day was bookended by a pair of trios drawn from the larger Labyrinth Ensemble, joining musicians of different backgrounds together in deepening their understanding of modal traditions. This final grouping saw Labyrinth's Artistic Director Araz Salek (tar) joined by Amely Zhou (erhu) and Yang Chen (percussion). (The latter was a special delight, especially in the overlapping transition from the previous set that saw a two-note synth pattern matched by bowed vibraphone tones.) This was a quiet set to ease out the long day's droning (because of which my recording is accordingly a little lo-fi, by the way), and perhaps the most formally meticulous — exploring small incremental changes within a rigourous rhythmic framework. A reminder that "drone", so casually used as a catch-all musical category, has deep, deep roots in many musical traditions, based on centuries of joyful experimentation in how to keep humans entranced.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
This duo of ZONES' Derek McKeon and Doomsquad's Jaclyn Blumas brought out the serious synths and keybs to head straight for the heart of the planetarium – a move known in the drone game as "bringin' the Tange".
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
With an automated voice in the background listing off data like the ghost of a reference librarian (perhaps some of Sinha's "machine learning generated audio"), this set found a woozy digital equilibrium, leavened by the analog breath of a harmonium. (You can hear Sinha's own recording of his set over at his soundcloud.)
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
Synth-drift shared space with bowls and gongs in this set — and those latter percussive elements were trance-ified into lurching mantras when loop-locked with a beat repeater. Mixed with swirling visuals overhead, this was arguably the day's trippiest set.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
This artist was one on the new discoveries for me at this show, and a perusal of his soundcloud indicates that his sonic zone extends into more beat-driven house and synth-pop territory. This set showed admirable restraint, however, stripping things back into meticulous ambient oases. There were some guitar-driven melodic sections, but this opening salvo just used a two-note riff to create some gliding Enoesque atmospherics.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
Colin Fisher might not, by his own admission, be a drone musician, but that doesn't mean he can't let his musical explorations settle into a shimmery haze — and then add a bit of sonic grit to create a clarifying contrast. This extended zone sees him creating a lush pad with guitar and effects from which to launch the saxophone section of his set.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
Heidi Chan's solo modular synth project can sometimes extend into a pricky bit-crushed haze (as excellently demonstrated on the recent Sprawls album), but this set saw her stretching with her flute. Sometimes that moved into purely atmospheric territory, such as when the flute was stretched out into creamy, cello-like tones — but this section saw a flute loop being chopped and resequenced and spread around the four corners of the room.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. Day Three ("Process") was "dedicated to the global thread of sustained tone as a healing modality" — by way of an eight-hour drone zone, letting the audience lay back on 918 Bathurst's sanctuary floor and watch projections planetarium-style on the high-arched ceiling.
The day was bookended by a pair of trios drawn from the larger Labyrinth Ensemble, joining musicians of different backgrounds together in deepening their understanding of modal traditions. This first grouping saw Naomi McCarroll-Butler (reeds), Pedram Khavarzamini (tombak) and Scott Peterson (double bass) ease the crowd into the dronespace, taking a steady pulse and slowing it down in smaller solo/duo explorations.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. The first night was presented in collaboration with RISE, who also put on their own smashing community-oriented shows at 918 Bathurst.
The night's second set brought some hip-hop energy from Eyeda Sophia and Nathan Baya, both of whom seemed delighted to be spitting fire to a live audience. And while each brought their own material, the set was collaborative all the way with both hyping up the crowd and adding backing vocals to the other's raps. This thematically on-point number from Baya maybe best encapsulated the set's infectious energy.
The Music Gallery's annual X Avant Festival felt like a return and a renewal in all the right ways. Although these weren't the first events presented by new-ish Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar, they were the first ones in person, with performers and audience sharing space — a long-awaited return from all sides. Each of the nights played off the festival theme "You in Mind", looking for ways to amplify and support the overlapping communities being drawn together. The first night was presented in collaboration with RISE, who also put on their own smashing community-oriented shows at 918 Bathurst.
Both of the night's live sets were hightly collaborative in nature, the first pairing spoken word poet Nasim Asgari with singer-guitarist Moël. The latter provided instrumental backdrops for all of Asgari's pieces, and in turn she added some vocal accents to some of the songs, each finding their own path to cathartic release.
*Does anyone know the titles to these? Please leave a comment!
In the absence of concert listings, my regular Monday dispatches have fallen off. After bringing some life to the blog with the "bumping into" series, I figure I should get back in the groove. I'm guessing that this will be a bit like what used to get shoved into the end of the post when I was doing listings — some bandcamp suggestions, nods to a few livestreams, and sundry community notes (email me if you have anything that needs broadcast in the latter category!). Plus maybe a look back through the MFS archives.
Community notes:
Building on the theme and vibe of this year's X Avant shows (see below!), The Music Gallery has unveiled a new community-building initiative. "Following the theme for this year’s X Avant Festival, You In Mind, the Music Gallery is hosting a series of five events from November through March dedicated to artists whose projects or organizations are not supported by public funding or otherwise do not have the means to present in venues of our scale." Unleash your dreams for filling the space at 918 Bathurst with sounds and click here for more info.
X Avant:
Taking tentative steps into appraising Where Things Stand, the first X Avant festival curated by Artistic Director Sanjeet Takhar is about renewal and reconnection, "to listen, process, and artistically empower the diverse communities in Toronto." These four nights offer limited, safely-distanced in-person seating as well as a Name-Your-Price livestream option. There's a lot to experience over four nights:
X Avant XVI: Listen (Thursday) Music and spoken word co-presented with RISE Edutainment. Spoken Word Artists: Eyeda Sophia, Nathan Baya, Nasim, and Moël. Musical & Visual Producers: Nathan Smith and Vanese Smith.
X Avant XVI: Reasoning (Friday) A free screening of a new documentary from Bonjay's Alanna Stuart, launching a new solo project. (Also streaming free on Thursday on the MG's Twitch channel.)
X Avant XVI: Process (Saturday) An eight-hour drone, suitable for sonic washing. Featuring: Labyrinth (Araz Salek, Amely Zhou, Yang Chen), Bachelard, Colin Fisher, Short Bloom, Kat Estacio, Debashis Sinha, LordAUK & Zones, and Labyrinth (Naomi McCarroll-Butler, Pedram Khavarzamini, Scott Peterson).
X Avant XVI: Embody (Sunday) A co-presentation with Native Women in the Arts, in celebration of Indigenous communities and the lessons they have to share. Featuring Oneida Nation group The Ukwehuwe Connection.
In the mix:
Speaking of drones, there's a new Drone Brunch mix posted — drift along with some sounds from YlangYlang, Badge Epoch, Nurse With Wound, Stenorette, Witxes, pä, Jakob Rehlinger, and zakè & marine eyes.
It happened this week...
While X Avant is at the front of our minds, here's a couple sonic samples from the festival's first years at 918 Bathurst:
...on October 11, 2017 at 918 Bathurst (The Music Gallery's X AVANT XII – Night 1)
A frequent visitor to the city and frequent inspiration for local musicians, percussionist Sarah Hennies returned to town with this recent large scale/small scale work, where she was joined by cellist Nick Storring. "The Reinvention of Romance" is expansive in the durational sense (running about ninety minutes) but minimal in the musical sense, being based around repeated series of small gestures. Hennies explained that the content was inspired by the intimacy of mundane repetition, the title hence hinting not at the dramatic newness of falling in love but rather the constancy of being in love.
Having toured to Japan and back a few times now, it was exciting to see Sound of the Mountain's Elizabeth Millar and Craig Pedersen getting an opportunity to play host to some of the kindred spirits they'd encountered there. Corresponding with a new recording, Toshimaru Nakamura (no-input mixing board) and Tetuzi Akiyama (guitar) joined Pedersen and Craig to expand the SOTM template with some new clonks and whirs — that left more space for them to just play trumpet and clarinet instead of the motors, fans and other electroacoustic interventions that have joined their aresenals. That said, instruments were still disassembled mid-set and contact mics were dragged across their surfaces as the quartet created an enchanting soundfield, pushing the audience to lean in closer to try and figure out just from which musician some of those sounds were emerging.
Founded as a blog about one curmudgeon's love affair with the em dash, Mechanical Forest Sound has grown to become a community-based archive of local musical culture. Assuming that "independent music" isn't just boys with guitars and "culture" isn't just some sort of pageant, MFS is an investigation of a wide range of artists, reflecting on concerts as shared experiences, acts of citizenship and a chance to get down — fuzzy photographs and clear-sounding original live recordings a specialty.
Current manifestations of this project include Track Could Bend, a monthly concert series featuring "improvised music and weird rock offshoots", presented in a casual environment.
At one point I wrote full-on concert reviews, and for longer I thought I would catch up and write about shows in the past. But these days, because of, y'know, life, do not expect much in the way of full show reviews — but live recordings with blurbs will be posted as quickly after the fact as is feasible.
You can also check out full sets uploaded to the Live Music Archive. [not currently active]
N.B.: All recordings should be available & playable. If you come across any broken links, invisible or non-functioning players, etc, please leave a comment and I will tend to it ASAP.
ALSO N.B.: I'm perpetually on the lookout for a new place to stash my MP3's online. If you know of any place that allows a couple gigs of stuff to be openly linked to for streaming, drop me a line!
All MP3's on this blog are audience recordings shared as a reminder of the excitement of seeing live music. If you are an artist who doesn't want their music shared in this way, please contact me and I shall remove it forthwith.
Is your show missing from this list? Submit it via this form!
Ministry of Phonic Services presents: Back to School Field Trip ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. Vampire John Coltrane / Bee Solomon / Cows in Rain) / "Porch" 2026-09-07 (Monday). $pwyc. [more info]
More Noise Please! presents Manic Monday (feat. The Nausea / SEHKTOR8 / Crude Flame / Mountain of Woe / Pursuit Grooves / Writhing Deceiver) / BSMT254 2026-09-07 (Monday). $17.31 or pwyc. [tickets + more info]
Not Dead Yet presents (feat. Otto Benson / Potions) / Monarch Tavern 2026-09-08 (Tuesday). $27.82, 19+. [FB event]
Rondo Projects #4 ["the final part of Ehsan Sadigh’s Septet IV/IX"] (feat. Bea Labikova/Chris Pruden/Dhaivat Jani/Ehsan Sadigh) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-08 (Tuesday) [more info]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents: Back to School Field Trip ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. J.Vulgare / Colby Richardson / Fan Wu / Mariana Medellin) / "Mall" 2026-09-09 (Wednesday). $pwyc. [more info]
Alex Lukashevsky ["solostrumsinging + a guest or two"] / Water to Wine 2026-09-09 (Wednesday). $pwyw
Never Was [Brandon Davis/Bea Labikova/Racha Moukalled/Patrick O'Reilly/Adrian Russouw/Joe Sorbara] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-09 (Wednesday). [more info]
ESP Free Jazz Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Allison Cameron/Gloria Ksimuniv/Blake Howard) / Water to Wine 2026-09-10 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]
Kurt Newman presents (feat. Isla & The Sorry Brothers) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-10 (Thursday). $pwyc
Ministry of Phonic Services presents: Back to School Field Trip ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. Brian Abbott's Tone Cathedral / Mani Mazinani & Marilyn Yogarajah / Bea Labikova) / "Creek" 2026-09-11 (Friday). $pwyc. [more info]
Audiopollination (feat. Andrew Kobus to go/Xukasia/Janel Jones / flower club/Rohee Uberoi / Noah Campbell/Neal Armstrong/Aisha Sasha John / The Not Michael Lynns) / Array Space 2026-09-11 (Friday). $pwyc/$10 (notaflof). [more info]
Musica Universalis (feat. Colin Fisher / William Hunt / Jack Johnston / Cal Adam) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-11 (Friday) [more info]
William Hunt [solo piano live recording] / Sellers and Newel 2026-09-12 (Saturday). $15 minimum donation. [more info]
Lucid Lounge Saturdays (feat. Ryan Driver/Andrew Downing/Blake Howard) / Water to Wine 2026-09-12 (Saturday). $pwyc. [more info]
Toronto Improvisers Orchestra / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-13 (Sunday – noon). $pwyc. [more info]
Marilyn & Friends (In the style of Ayal) (feat. Sporesong [Adwoa & Marilyn] / Will Hunt / Nick Flanagan / A Hectic Space [Nilan/Roya/Vic/Marilyn]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-13 (Sunday – 2:30 p.m.). [FB event]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents Back to School Field Trip: Installation Garden ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. various artists) / "Ravine" 2026-09-13 (Sunday). $pwyc. [more info]
Josh Cole: new works for improvising musicians ["solo and duo double bass"] (feat. Evan Palmer & Josh Cole) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-14 (Monday). $10 or pwyc. [more info]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents Back to School Field Trip: BPM (Big Percussion Meeting) ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. Amiel Ang / Brian Ruryk / Raf Wilcot / Victor O / Caleb Clawson) / "Playground" 2026-09-15 (Tuesday). $pwyc. [more info]
Body Help with Hugh Marsh / Pamenar (patio) 2026-09-15 (Tuesday). [more info]
Music Hosted by Karen Ng (feat. Matthew Cardinal / Vicki Venti / Pantayo) / Wenona Lodge 2026-09-15 (Tuesday). $pwyc. [more info]
Green-House (Masahiro Takahashi) / The Baby G 2026-09-16 (Wednesday). $25.03, 19+. [FB event]
Altered States Artist Showcase (feat. Scott Thomson/Brent Tanemura/Max Stover/William Hunt/Mateos Labbé-Phelan) / Water to Wine 2026-09-16 (Wednesday). $pwyc. [more info]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents: Back to School Field Trip ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. Brandon Auger / Ben Grossman / Fahmid Nibesh) / "Dome" 2026-09-17 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]
Andrew Downing & Dan Pitt / Sellers and Newel 2026-09-17 (Thursday). $20 minimum donation. [more info]
ESP Free Jazz Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Lauchlin Wood/Jake Bikay/Mason Wallington/Colin Fisher) / Water to Wine 2026-09-17 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]
Toronto Makam Music Forum (feat. Naomi McCarroll-Butler & Sam Shalabi / The Folios of Iranian Dastgāh [Sadaf Amini/Ava Rostamian/Soheil Sadeghi/Sasan Salaseli/Araz Salek]) / East End United 2026-09-18 (Friday). $30 general admission, $20 student/arts worker. [FB event]
Rob’s 60th Birthday (feat. Rob Clutton/Karen Ng/Chris Pruden/Germaine Liu) / Sellers and Newel 2026-09-18 (Friday). $20 minimum donation. [more info]
Whitetails (Chapel of Ease / The Cross Sea / LeBarons) / The Garrison 2026-09-18 (Friday). $25, 19+. [FB event]
Glenn Jones (Liam Grant / Colin Fisher) / Le Monde 2026-09-18 (Friday) [more info]
Chanoyu (feat. New Tendencies [Matt Nish-Lapidus] / Germaine Liu & Masahiro Takahashi) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-09-18 (Friday). [more info]
The Mike Milligan Trio [Mike Milligan/Nick Fraser/Brodie West] / Sellers and Newel 2026-09-19 (Saturday). $25 minimum donation. [more info]
Toronto Makam Music Forum (feat.Sami Abu Shumays’ Umm Kulthum Music Group) / East End United 2026-09-19 (Saturday). $30 general admission, $20 student/arts worker. [more info]
Roger C. Miller (Storey Littleton) / BSMT 254 2026-09-20 (Sunday). $27.36, 19+. [FB event]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents: Back to School Field Trip ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. HAHAHAHAHAHA / shemona / quivering / Emergency Euphoria) / "Highway" 2026-09-23 (Wednesday). $pwyc. [more info]
Mike DeiCont Trio feat. Eric West & Leland Whitty / Sellers & Newel 2026-09-24 (Thursday). $20 minimum donation. [FB event]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents: Back to School Field Trip ["a festival of outdoor experimental sounds and actions"] (feat. SlowPitchSound / Fleshtone Aura & Sandro Perri / Gayle Young & Reinhard Reitzenstein / tête à tête [Philippe Melanson & Matthew Pencer]) / "UFO" 2026-09-25 (Friday). $pwyc. [more info]
Burn Down The Capital presents (feat. Picastro [Double on Time album release] / Bernice / Granny Smith) / Gloves Up Boxing Gym 2026-09-26 (Saturday). $28.27, all ages. [FB event]
Maggie Keogh/Ryan Driver/Max Donaldson/Blake Howard / Sellers and Newel 2026-09-27 (Sunday). $20 minimum donation. [more info]
Soundstreams Encounters: Nagoya Marimbas [featuring Steve Reich’s "Mallet Quartet" and "Nagoya Marimbas", plus works by Ann Southam and Juri Seo (feat. Kairos Percussion Quartet with Aerin Cho) / Hugh's Room 2026-09-29 (Tuesday). $free with reservation. [more info]
Jane Siberry / Sellers and Newel 2026-09-30 (Wednesday). $35 minimum donation. [more info]
Project Nowhere × Burn Down The Capital presents (feat. Horse Lords / Common Earth Mineral / Stefana Fratila) / The Garrison 2026-10-01 (Thursday). $32.31, 19+. [FB event]
Liquid Architecture: Guitar Night (feat. Lex Feathers / Aranya Khurana / Colin James Gibson / Ryan Kinney) / St. Matthew's Clubhouse 2026-10-03 (Saturday). $10 (cash or e-transfer). [FB event]
Steve Reich at 90! (feat. Soindstreams) / Koerner Hall 2026-10-06 (Tuesday). $35-$94.75. [more info]
Soundstreams Encounters: Violins Unbound [works by André Ristic, John Beckwith, Chris Paul Harman, Parisa Sabet, Ana Sokolović] (feat. Judith Fliedl & Roan Ma) / Hugh's Room 2026-11-02 (Monday). $free with reservation. [more info]
Not Dead Yet presents (feat. Weird Nightmare [Hoopla record release shows]) / Osler Records 2026-11-18&19 (Wednesday & Thursday). $24.94, 19+. [tickets + more info]
Mike DeiCont & Dan Fortin / Sellers and Newel 2026-11-25 (Wednesday). $20 minimum donation. [more info]
Marilyn Lerner & Matt Brubeck / Sellers and Newel 2026-11-26 (Thursday). $20 minimum donation. [more info]
Soundstreams Encounters: Orison [a new music theatre work-in-progress featuring the ondes Martenot] (feat. Daniel Áñez & James O’Callaghan) / Hugh's Room 2026-11-30 (Monday). $free with reservation. [more info]
Musica Universalis (feat. C'est la fête Large Ensemble) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-05-08 (Friday)
Ayal Senior & Friends (feat. Ayal Senior & Kurt Newman / JOYSHAPE / Ryan Dugre / Nick Flanagan) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-05-10 (Sunday)
Cosmic Homeostasis XXXII / The Tranzac (Living Room) 2026-05-17 (Sunday)]
Playscape Emporium: Paint, Play (feat. Duo Cichorium/Constant Yen/ Rowan Campbell/Charlee Wielgoz/Fahmid Nibesh/Joe Strutt/Mira Martin-Gray) / Array Space 2026-05-21 (Thursday)
Wenderly Park (Colin Fisher / Isla Craig) / Le Monde 2026-05-22 (Friday)
Ministry of Phonic Services presents (feat. Ben Rempel & Justin Gunter / Not the Wind, Not the Flag / Doug Tielli & Mike Gennaro) / Bickford Park 2026-05-24 (Sunday)
Life Drawing (feat. Cosmic Homeostasis) / Riverdale Park 2026-05-31 (Sunday)
Prepare the Ground Festival (feat. William Basinski) / Trinity-St. Paul's Centre 2026-05-31 (Sunday)
Track Could Bend #117 (feat. saucering / Colin Fisher/William Hunt/Jack Johnson/Cal Adam) / Wenona Lodge 2025-06-02 (Tuesday)
Ayal Senior & Friends (feat. Ayal Senior/Nathan Yell/Marilyn Yogarajah / David Sait / Nick Flanagan / Nathan Yell) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-06-14 (Sunday)
Andre Ethier (Cows in Rain / Eliza Niemi) / Dina's Tavern 2026-07-05 (Sunday)
Track Could Bend #118 (feat. Ubersuck / Mike Gennaro / Wilderness Adventure Ride) / Wenona Lodge 2026-07-07 (Tuesday)
Toronto Improvisers Orchestra / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-12 (Sunday)
Ayal Senior and Friends (feat. Country Phasers / Meggie Remy / Nick Flanagan / Heraclitus Akimbo) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-12 (Sunday)
Rebecca Hennessy's Singer-Songwriter Circle (feat. Rebecca Hennessy/Michael Herring/Felicity Williams/Patrick O'Reilly) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-19 (Sunday)
The Fiver Trois (Isla & The Sorry Brothers) / Dina's Tavern 2025-07-24 (Friday)
Jennifer Castle (Potions) / The Garrison 2025-07-25 (Saturday)
Heraclitus Akimbo (Hoover Party / Del Stephen / Hex-A-Decimal × Leucrocuta) / The Sun Room at 918 Bathurst 2025-07-26 (Sunday)
Kathryn Merriam with Bea Labikova/Raphael Roter/Heather Saumer / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-29 (Wednesday)
The Ryan Driver Sextet With Thom Gill As Ryan Driver / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-31 (Friday)
Track Could Bend #119: An Evening of Graphic Scores co-presented with Public Library (feat. Public Library with Roa Lee and Alison Melville) / Wenona Lodge 2026-08-04 (Tuesday)
Humbucker Music Residency (feat. Humbucker Music / Sandy Ewen) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-07 (Friday)
new works for improvising musicians (feat. Josh Cole/Lina Allemano/John Oswald/Nick Storring/Owen Kurtz) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-10 (Monday)
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