Recording: Scallions

Artist: Scallions

Song: [2nd piece]

Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Track Could Bend #114), March 3, 2026.

Scallions - [2nd piece]

This paid have been making explorations in improvised shredding for a little while now, but this was their first time out with their tangy band name.

You can check out some more from this set over on youtube:

[Track Could Bend is back at Wenona on Tuesday, May 5th with sets from the rest (Joe Sorbara & Jonathan Kay), Wobbly + John Oswald, and Red Trillium (Andrew Finlay Stewart, Matt Nguyen and Justin Caporuscio).]

Recording: Holger Schoorl & Mark Zurawinski

Artist: Holger Schoorl & Mark Zurawinski

Song: [1st section]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination), May 9, 2025.

Holger Schoorl & Mark Zurawinski - [1st section]

Holger Schoorl's ongoing public embrace of the shreddier side of his guitar craft continues to dazzle, with some postpunk kachunk rolling along to Mark Zurawinski's rattles.

You can watch the archive of the full evening's livestream over on Audiopollination's youtube channel.

[Holger Schoorl will be showing off a different facet of his sounds at Array Space next Wednesday (May 28th) with a performance of his opera Dinner Party, where he'll be joined by Liz Lima, Scott Gabriel, and Randi Helmers. Audiopollination is back at Array Space on June 13th with sets by David Sait/Marilyn Yogarajah/Magick, cheryl o + Neil Wiernik, Heraclitus Akimbo/Laura Swankey/Judy Zhu and Mickle32 + Rod Campbell. It'll also be the last show hosted by Michael Lynn before handing things over to new hosts Marylin and Yasmine, so please come down to help celebrate the thirteen years he has been running the series.]

Recording: Holger Schrool & Mark Zurawinski

Artist: Holger Schoorl & Mark Zurawinski

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Music Hosted by Karen Ng: A fundraiser show for Earlobe), February 18, 2025.

Holger Schoorl & Mark Zurawinski - unknown

This pairing opened up this night at Karen Ng's Wenona residency with surprising intensity — Holger Schoorl may not play as insistently quietly as he once did, but I don't think I've previously ever seen him rock the heck out.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Ancient Egypt

Artist: Ancient Egypt

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Track Could Bend #83), September 9, 2023.

Ancient Egypt - [excerpt]

When not making music that's as quiet as it is abstract, Holger Schoorl is often extending songforms with both arranged embellishments and improvisatory drift. This group (usually a trio alongside bassist Pete Johnston, but on this night in duo formation alongside trombonist Scott Thomson) hews to the latter m.o., ambling along with folk music melodies stretched out and decorated with wordless vocals.

You can check out some footage from this set over on the TCB youtube channel:

[Track Could Bend is back at Wenona Lodge on Tuesday, November 7th, with sets from Ben Grossman and Derek McKeon's Ozone. Holger Schoorl will be playing (a "brand new piece tentatively called 'explaining myself to my in-laws'") at the Southern Cross' late set on Sunday, Ooctober 22nd alongside Tania Gill and Tomasz Krawowiak.]

Recording: Holger Schoorl Music

Artist: Holger Schoorl Music

Songs: two unknown songs^*

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), July 30, 2023.

Holger Schoorl Music - [track 5]

Holger Schoorl Music - [track 7]

An intriguing set of chamber works from Holger Schoorl, performed by an ensemble that saw his voice and guitar joined by Kayla Milmine (soprano saxophone), Scott Thomson (trombone), Tania Gill (piano) and Mark Zurawinski (percussion). A series of shorter pieces were played continuously as a suite, often with linking segues in solos or duos. Occasionally melancholy, and occasionally working like off-kilter beer-hall songs, this sounded suitable as soundtrack material for a black-and-white art film set in a mysterious European village.

You can check out some more from this set over on youtube:

[Holger Schoorl will be bringing some different music to Track Could Bend on September 5th, alongside Pete Johnston and Scott Thomson in the trio Ancient Egypt.]

^* Does anyone know the titles to these? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Holger Schoorl Ensemble

Artist: Holger Schoorl Ensemble

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Tranzac's Main Hall (Somewhere There Creative Music Festival – Show 5), February 25, 2018.

Holger Schoorl Ensemble - unknown

My previous experience of Holger Schoorl was mostly in the context of seeing him playing some really quiet guitar, so it was quite a revelation to see him performing with a large brass ensemble. (The full group was: Jonnie Bakan, saxophone; Chantal Cornu, tuba; Emily Denison, trumpet; Bea Labikova, soprano saxophone; Paul Newman, tenor saxophone; Patrick O'Reilly, guitar; Heather Saumer, trombone.) The set included a couple instrumentals, like this melancholy opener (complete with jaunty oompah coda), but the real heart of the set were School's darkly-comedic and disarmingly-witty lyrics — "mean-spirited" as he himself admitted. In the grips of a cold at this show and raspier than he wanted to be, I'm certainly waiting for another opportunity to hear that material.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Tomasz Krawowiak & Holger Schoorl

Artist: Tomasz Krawowiak & Holger Schoorl

Song: [excerpt from an improvisation]

Recorded at Ratio, January 22, 2015.

Tomasz Krawowiak & Holger Schoorl - [excerpt from an improvisation]

In the lead-up to this duo set with percussionist Tomasz Krawowiak, Holger Schoorl wrote a twitter essay that'd probably capture the mood of the thing better than I could, so let's just quote his words: "It should be said to those who haven't hear[d] before him or myself or him and myself together that things can be pretty quiet. [...] In fact Tomasz hangs out perhaps too often in those practically inaudible areas of with fingertip drum rubbing. [...] It is true I play the guitar quietly. I was for some time and perhaps still am fond of Morton Feldman's music (and some other things) [...] Which lead me to enjoy listening to and making sounds that are hard to hear. This is actually quite nice: That listening to music would be a little harder, would require a little more cooperation from the audience, that one would be asked to do [...] More than merely show up. [...] That the music projects itself only so far into the space. [...] Forcing listeners to listen a little harder to make up for the lack of volume. An increased level of attention is therefore required."