The Sounds of VTech

Last Saturday was a big night for music. At the Garage in Highbury and Islington, many gathered to celebrate and enjoy the wicked performances from this year’s Worldwide Awards 2010. The line-up boasted names such as Robert Glasper (who has worked with Bilal, Mos Def, Common, Talib Kweli, Q-Tip, Slum Village, J Dilla, Jay-Z,, and many more.), Sbtrkt & Sampha, Theophilus London, and more.

It was an evening for celebrating as the WWA announced some very familiar names as winners. We’ve had the privilege to work with three winners of this year’s WWA through special shows, screenings, and our unforgettable Timeless Concert Series.

Congrats to Mulatu Astatke & The Heliocentric: Inspiration Information Vol.3, Quantic and his Combo Barbaro: Tradition in Translation, and last but not least, Carlos Nino and Miguel Atwood-Ferguson: Suite for Ma Dukes.

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The Sounds of VTech / Suite For Ma Dukes: Take Notice

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The Sounds of VTech / Memoria de Justinho by Quantic and his Combo Barbaro

List of Winners:

Track of the Year 2010
1. Joy Orbison – Hyph Mngo [Hot Flush]
2. Floating Points – Vacuum Boogie [Eglo]
3. Zed Bias feat. Tawiah – Further Away [CDR]
4. Shafiq Husayn feat. Fatima – Lil’ Girl [Plug Research]
5. Darkstar – Aidy’s Girl Is A Computer [Hyperdub]

Album of the Year 2010
1. Mulatu Astatke & The Heliocentrics – Inspiration Information Vol. 3 [Strut]
2. Martyn – Great Lengths [3024]
3. Lee Fields – My World [Truth & Soul]
4. Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro – Tradition in Transition [Tru Thoughts]
5. Mos Def – The Ecstatic [Downtown]

Jazz Album of the Year 2010
1. Robert Glasper – Double Booked [Blue Note]
2. Matthew Halsall – Colour Yes [Gondwana]
3. Miguel Atwood Ferguson & Carlos Niño – Suite For Ma Dukes [Mochilla]

4. Harry Whitaker – Thoughts (Past and Present) [Smalls Records]

5. Build An Ark – LOVE Part 1 [Kindred Spirits]

Maida Vale Session of the Year 2010
Floating Points Ensemble

John Peel Play More Jazz Award 2010
Four Tet

Lifetime Achievement Award 2010
Gil Scott-Heron

Timeless describes moments outside of time— moments that exist so deep inside history that they break through that finite grid. Timeless: The Composer/Arranger Series is an homage to the composer-arrangers that have influenced hip-hop in the most literal and profound ways.

The creative center of popular music today is the beatmaker-producer. Whether it is Timbaland, Dilla, Dre, or Madlib, these musicians have an uncanny sense for voicings, a penchant for unusual sounds and catchy rhythms and a magical ability to manufacture a good performance. Today’s beatmakers are the direct descendants of yesterday’s composer-arrangers. Their processes—whether it be writing a memorable line for background singers or finding the appropriate moment for a baritone harmonica — mirror those of today’s musicians. The composer-arranger creates music through the frame of the bigger picture, often more concerned with how things sound together than individually. Similarly today’s beatmakers produce music on a grand scale, but through automation and sampling.

Timeless brings these two seemingly unlike worlds together. The series honors the musical legacies of some of the greatest composer-arrangers ever.  Timeless celebrates the work of the composer-arranger in the context it should be seen—with full orchestras.

From Mulatu Astatke to J. Dilla to Arthur Verocai, the Timeless Concert Series touched upon the works of three musical giants. Mochilla is proud to announce the March 30th, 2010 release date of the Timeless Concert Series, a 3 DVD box set with a special downloadable audio portion. The box set will be an extremely limited and numbered edition of 4,000, which will include full liner notes, a free poster exclusive only to the box set, extra features, songs, and slideshows of images used in the presentation. To mark the launch of the DVD, there will be a series of events scheduled around its release, including a SXSW screening. Stay tuned here to The Sounds of VTech for more.

Mulatu Astatke:

Headlining the first concert in the Timeless series was the beginning of a big year for Mulatu Astatke. His recent collaboration with the Heliocentrics has made it on many people’s “Best of List,” for 2009. The anthology of his work, New York-Addis-London: The Story of Ethio Jazz 1965-1975, the first comprehensive collection of his work was a big success for Strut Records. On February 1^st, he blessed the Luckman Auditorium with an amazing show. He shared the stage with Los Angeles jazz scene veterans Bennie Maupin, Azar Lawrence, and Phil Ranelin. The performance is beautiful, showcasing many classics as well as some new material. The music was mixed by Los Angeles engineer Benjamin Tierney and UK producer/musician, Will “Quantic” Holland.

Mulatu is currently touring Europe with the Heliocentrics and is still talking about the Timeless concert. 

 Suite For Ma Dukes:

Timeless II celebrated the music of hip-hop producer, James “J. Dilla” Yancey. Composed and arranged for a 60-piece orchestra by Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, the concert featured special guests Bilal, Dwele, Posdnuos (De La Soul), Talib Kweli, and more. This premiere performance is still buzzing in the minds of many, unable to shake the magic of that evening.

The music was mixed and mastered by legendary Grammy award-winning producer/mixer Bob Power. Power is the man behind hundreds of pop and jazz recordings. He’s worked with such artists as Erykah Badu, D’Angelo, India.Arie, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, and even more significantly, with Dilla.  Bob rarely works on smaller independent projects like this, but was so impressed with Miguel’s music that he blessed this collaboration with an epic mix.

We are premiering “Take Notice” today with Bob’s mix.

In related news, on February 6^th, 2010, the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony will be perform four of Miguel’s arrangements of Dilla in a tribute to great American composers. Dilla will be honored right along side George Gershwin, William Grant Still, and Duke Ellington. Only Timeless could have made this happen. Deepest congratulations to Miguel and Dilla.

 Arthur Verocai:

Timeless III saw Arthur Verocai make his very first trip to Los Angeles to perform his seminal 1972 record for a capacity audience at the Luckman. The performance brought the crowd to a stand still. According to Verocai, “I never played the record, alive or dead!” and hid the record from his family because “of his disappointment at its failure during the 70s.” His utter delight at the opportunity to play this music in its complete form can be seen in the DVD. He has subsequently been offered an opportunity to do the concert again in London. Stay tuned. 

The music was mixed by Verocai himself in Rio de Janeiro. He was so excited with the final result that he held a private screening of the concert at the beginning of December and invited the Carioca music community.

Three different shows with three different producers/arrangers and three different styles of extraordinary music presented. For those who attended, the Timeless Series was that of magic, love, and music that penetrated the soul. With the box set, those who weren’t able to attend will now understand what everyone has been talking about. And for those who have, a chance to relive music history all over again. 

 

FULL SCREEN
The Sounds of VTech / Suite For Ma Dukes: Take Notice

Right Click To Download: Take Notice (Bob Power mix)

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From our friends over at Superfly Magazine in Italy, a list of their favorite albums, ep’s and reissues from 2009. Take a look, any of the names below ring a bell?

Superfly Magazine’s Top 25 of 2009

SA-RA CREATIVE PARTNERS - Nuclear Evolution: The Age Of Love
*MULATU ASTATKE + THE HELIOCENTRICS - Inspiration Information
MOS DEF - The Ecstatic
RAEKWON - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II
*QUANTIC AND HIS COMBO BARBARO - Tradition In Transition
HARMONIC 313 - When Machines Exceed Human Intelligence
EL MICHELS AFFAIR - Enter The 37th Chamber
*EXILE - Radio
BLAKROC - Blakroc
MR. CHOP - For Pete’s Sake
SHAFIQ HUSAYN - En A-Free-Ka
NAOMI SHELTON AND THE GOSPEL QUEENS - What Have You Done My Brother?
SHAWN LEE & CLUTCHY HOPKINS - Fascinating Fingers
J RAWLS & JOHN ROBINSON - 1960’s Jazz Revolution Again
LEE FIELDS - My World
MAYER HAWTHORNE - A Strange Arrangement
FLYING LOTUS & DECLAIME - Whole Wide World (EP)
*MIGUEL ATWOOD-FERGUSON & CARLOS NINO - Suite For Ma Dukes (EP)
24 CARAT BLACK - Gone The Promises Of Yesterday
BETTY DAVIS - Is It Love Or Desire?
JOYCE - Visions Of Dawn
DEATH - For The Whole World To See
THE WHITEFIELD BROTHERS - In The Raw
THE LARGE PROFESSOR - The LP
Q-TIP - Kamaal The Abstract

* Download: HEAR THE WORLD, to get a taste of Mulatu, Quantic, Exile, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, and more.

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The Sounds of VTech / Where Do You Wanna Go.. with Exile

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The Sounds of VTech / Memoria de Justinho by Quantic and his Combo Barbaro

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

Though it may have seemed to some that the Timeless series was left “incomplete” with the cancellation of the Axelrod show, it was far from it. Culturally and musically, Timeless became a homing beacon for Los Angeles. Inspiring a city by providing a cultural anthropology via music. Bringing composers of such caliber into a formal setting with current beat makers and young musicians to show a vast continuum  of music, not limited by national boundaries, social groups or age. “Placing Los Angeles back on the map as one of the cultural hubs of the States…and rightfully so considering our rich ethnic make up and diversity,” according to Sylvia Adams, Editor-in-Chief of Evil Monito. It was sheer magic. “An absolute gift and dream come true”, proclaimed Bryan Younce, a VP from Columbia Records. “I saw Mulatu, Ma Dukes and Verocai and each of them was a total joy. All three reached lofty musical heights. The three best shows I’ve seen this year (and I see a lot of shows).”

 

VTech and MOCHILLA collaborating.

As a long time marketing veteran, Tom Bacon, VTech Vice President of Marketing, has sponsored and participated in his fair share of music events. So when the concept behind Timeless was first presented he was “stoked and a bit blown away”. “I had heard bits and pieces over beers but when it was laid out for me as a proper proposal my first thought was YES,” recalls Tom. “My second thought was, this will be larger than any of us think, and probably more work as well.”

For photographer Brian Cross “B+” and the members of Mochilla, their discussions and ideas for the ultimate series of shows is what sparked the notion for Timeless. “It was through a kind of frustration with the limited ways people had been thinking about the music,” explains B+. “ Programmers here (in Los Angeles) are seriously lacking in new ideas. The Festival Circuit here is filled with a lot of the same old, same old. Why shouldn’t we be able to celebrate bigger music from the perspective of those brought into music through hip hop?” When narrowing the field of composers and arrangers to showcase in the series, according to B+, “it came down to people who had been celebrated the least, but who influenced the most. Mulatu is phenomenal, Verocai is an anomaly, Axelrod is the king, and Dilla… Well, Dilla is one of ours. That had to happen.”

 

When one thinks of Los Angeles as vanguard for culture and music, it sometimes seems a bit inconceivable. Los Angeles is rarely regarded as a cultural epicenter. With well-known concert venues constantly rebooking the same names year after year, musical pulses hardly race. But for Tom, it was relevant and apropos to have it here of all places.  “I figured if there was ONE place to do it, it would be LA.” To Arthur Verocai who had never performed in Los Angeles till the Timeless Series, this was a new horizon. “This (Timeless) can interest young people with the best quality music, from the past and present, which is still lingering on.”
 
Above and Beyond: Timeless exceeded expectations. This series was everything everyone had hoped for and more. For Sylvia, the Mulatu show (first in the series) was “a poignant moment to watch the master of Ethio-Jazz get up and with much gratitude and decorum lead a group of both young and old musicians from Los Angeles.” It expanded beyond anything anyone thought was possible. Arthur Verocai, the third composer/arranger in the series was beyond thrilled. “As a participant in the concert series I must say I was very happy with the public homage and recognition of my songs quality.” But the real surprise for him was the crowd. “I didn’t fancy having so many fans in Los Angeles!” Ma Dukes is still riding high on her cloud. “It was so special and so wonderful, I can’t thank everyone enough. It was magic.”

One of Tom’s greatest joys of the series was seeing the effect of the event on those involved. “We seem to have been able to provide a platform for so many to take advantage of and quite a few achieved their dreams if you will,” states Tom. Though this didn’t play into his initial decision when agreeing to sponsor Timeless, it was something that occurred during the series. “You had to be there to understand,” says Tom “but it was one of my proudest moments professionally and personally. We (VTech) had the easiest job, providing the support for a vision that came from Mochilla. My history doing events with them left very little uncertainty that this series would be epic, but to the end it was more than I could have imagined. Humbling.” In the end, seeing how happy and excited the musicians were to play made it all worthwhile for B+.  “That was it for me, the looks on the faces of the musicians.” LinYee Yuan, Associate Editor at Theme Magazine, who flew out from New York for the Verocai show, couldn’t contain her excitement. “This is amazing. I can’t believe I’m here. I love Arthur Verocai.”

On stage, the old met the new in a harmonious melding of musical minds and souls. Mulatu was quiet and powerful, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson was simply amazing, with his heart and soul poured out for us all, and Verocai was left honored and humbled. Everyone who came to perform were phenomenal.

The Second Coming of Timeless- With Timeless returning in late Summer 2009, we’ll be looking forward to Mochilla and VTech expanding on the foundation that was created during the first series. More discoveries, more incredible music and visuals are what we’ll have in store. Many have unanimously agreed that this was a beautiful and moving experience to put so much thought into the history of music and pay homage to some incredible individuals that have left an impressive oeuvre in their lifetime. Arthur Verocai said it best. “If you’re going to have the series again next summer, don’t forget to call me please!” Without a doubt, this series will continue to explore new musical horizons and open eyes, hearts and souls to all those fortunate enough to be a part of it. 

  

Though the series has received numerous press reviews from the LA Times, Filter Magazine, Digital Dazed, Theme Magazine.com, LA Daily News.com, NPR, Pitchfork.com, LA Weekly, and more, here are a few words from some of our Timeless fans/supporters:

“This is a historic event, not just for us, but for all of Ethiopia.”

-Mulatu Astatke, Producer/Composer/Arranger: Timeless I

“The Timeless series has been hands down the most exciting series of anything I have been part of in my entire life. I am forever grateful to all of those that worked so incredibly hard to put it on. Los Angeles is truly a great place as an artist to live right now, and this magnificent series is one of the greatest testaments to that. The vision and integrity of Mochilla is unparalleled and my hat is completely off to them.  I know they are just getting warmed up and I cannot wait until they unleash their next wave of love, creativity and empowerment upon us!”

-Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Composer/Arranger: Timeless II

“Festival Timeless- joining generations together around the same music”

-Arthur Verocai, Producer/Composer/Arranger: Timeless III

“Connecting legendary composers and their inspiration on contemporary producers, and the notion of those producers being as influential as the composers they’re inspired by is an awesome ideal. To bring that into effect with such scale, beauty and respect is an inspiration in itself. I guess Timeless is an all-out, inspirational love-in, and one that can be felt from Los Angeles to London.”

 -Terence Teh, Dazed and Confused 

“Wow….thats just about the most powerful thing I’ve heard in a long time sir! Brilliant…any chance of getting some music to me to play on the radio…”

Gilles Peterson Host of Worldwide – BBC Radio 1, Founder of Brownswood Recordings

(after watching Hoc n Pucky from Suite for Ma Dukes on Youtube)

 

“Timeless was as culturally edifying experience for Angelenos that inspires greatness in us all and an overwhelming pride in our metropolis’ own long-standing history of ethnic diversity.” -Sylvia Adams, Editor-in-Chief, Evil Monito 

“History was made. All three shows were dizzyingly beautiful. I can already tell that years down the road, all of us who were lucky enough to be there will be recalling these performances as a profound moment in time.”

-Bryan Younce, VP Video/Content Production, Columbia Records 

“Wow this is amazing…. Has Quincy (Jones) seen it??”

 -Herman Leonard, Jazz Photography Legend

 

“The Arthur Verocai set was groundbreaking and revelatory. I only wish I could see it again.” -Brian DiGenti, Editor, Wax Poetics

 

The Future for VTech and Mochilla:

Mochilla will be finishing up a film for DJ/producer Will Holland “Quantic” and a film about the scene in Recife in the Northeast of Brazil. They’ll also be busy gearing up for the Timeless Series, returning in Summer 2009.

VTech will be focusing on promoting their new Internet radio. The blog will continue to grow and additional labels will be pulled in to work side by side with the company. This summer will present unique dates with Madlib and Karriem Riggins and also a possible collaboration with Hockey, a Portland based Indie band on Capital Records. Also work with Frank Nitty of Frank and Dank on a new mix tape series and even Rhettmatic may have some cool things in store.

Come back and visit our blogs, we’ll keep you posted.

*photos by Azul 213

March 23, 2009

 Verocai triumphant, Axelrod cancelled – Timeless to return late Summer, 2009.

 It is with saddened hearts that we must announce today that Timeless, the extraordinary musical series, has ended without its fourth installment.

 Due to unforeseen circumstances, the David Axelrod concert scheduled to take place on April 5, 2009 is now cancelled. Pre-concert ticket purchasers for the show will be automatically refunded via credit/debit cards. Patrons who purchased tickets at the Harriet and Charles Luckman Fine Arts Complex box office should return to the theater for a refund.

On a personal note, I don’t really know what to say – my arduous attempts to make this event a reality did not work out as planned. We had luminaries from as far away as Ethiopia and Brazil grace the Timeless stage; and to have to cancel a local legend in the end has been very difficult. Those of you who know me and know my personal relationship to David will know the enormity of my disappointment.  Though we are unable to present our series in its entirety, it was still an undeniable success. From the composer-arrangers to our special guests to the incredible orchestra, we made history and breathtaking magic.

 I would like to extend our complete gratitude to VTech - more personally Tom Bacon for taking this chance with us and sticking with it.  Tom isn’t one to want to be in the limelight but I can say that none of this would have been possible without him, his wisdom and patience.

 Worth revisiting, here is our take on last Sunday’s show:

 It isn’t often that the cosmos align as perfectly as they did on Sunday to bring Arthur Verocai to L.A. for the first time. Though some people in attendance may have been familiar with his work through hip-hop’s skillful integration of his epic sound, there was no mistaking that Verocai’s symphonic artistry extends beyond the confines of sampling. With a 36+ piece orchestra – including Brazilian heavy hitters Ivan “Mamao” Conti, Aloisio Aguiar, Jose Bertrami and Airto Moreira – Verocai made his fabled 1972 self-titled album unfold before a “timeless” group of admirers.

 Leading his troupe through cascading horns and soaring string arrangements, Verocai looked like an elegant prophet sent to take us on a journey to an unknown heavenly destination. Without hesitation, he opened the night with the intense “Karina (Domingo no Grajau),” dominated by an all-pervading horn section and the soulful twangs of Woody Aplanalp’s purposeful electric guitar.

 Sultry classic “Dedicada a Ela” was given new life by Justo Almario’s saxophone, while soon after, the mestre himself took the microphone to sing his futuristic lament “Caboclo.” The most anticipated song of the evening was the larger-than-life “Na Boca do Sol,” which serves as an emblem of Verocai’s decidedly Brazilian approach to his visionary fusion of soul, jazz and psychedelic funk. Sung exquisitely by Clarisse Grova, Diana Booker and the recording’s original vocalist, Carlos Dafe, it was only fitting that the concert ended with a stepped-up encore of it.

 The momentous night ended too soon, but we hope this is not the last time our city’s humble ears will be graced by this living legend’s brilliance. Obrigado, Arthur ­– we love you!

 And indeed, thank you, Los Angeles.  It has been an astonishing journey – one that has proven to be a learning curve for all of us at Mochilla and ArtDontSleep. It has raised the bar for all concert goers in this city, and hopefully, institutional programmers will finally come to comprehend that with their budgets, they can make bigger and better things happen in this city. We’ve broken the mold, and there’s no turning back.

 

With total gratitude…

B+  (Mochilla)

 

VTech and Mochilla offer you a brief glimpse back at the first two events of the Timeless Series.

On February 1st, 2009, VTech and Mochilla started the Timeless composer/arranger series off with a bang. Timeless I: Mulatu Astatke.

Mulatu Astatke, Ethiopian musician and arranger, father of the Ethio-jazz sound, performed to a sold out crowd at the Luckman Fine Arts Complex with special guests, Bennie Maupin, Azar Lawrence and Phil Ranelin.

Musically trained in London, New York and Boston, Astatke became the first African student at the Berklee College of Music. From there he worked with jazz artists such as Duke Ellington and brought back Jazz to his native Ethiopia. 

Already beloved for his Ethio-jazz sound, Mulatu has continued his work in different realms of the music world. He continues to work on the modernization of traditional Ethiopian instruments, served as an Abramowitz Artist-in-residence at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and  produces songs for many artists from East Africa. In 2005, Jim Jarmusch’s Broken Flowers brought Mulatu Astatke’s music to a new level of sheer appreciation, solely using Mulatu’s music in his film.

On his signature instrument, the vibraphone, Mulatu’s sound reverberated throughout the crowd.

 

On Sunday, February 22nd, 2009, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson and Carlos Nino, brought J.Dilla to the stage in a fitting tribute, Timeless II: Suite For Ma Dukes.

“The concert is a celebration of J Dilla’s life, what he loved and what inspired him. It is a show of support, appreciation and love for his incredible mother Maureen Yancey, whom I recently had the sincere pleasure of meeting and sitting down with. It is very exciting for everyone, there is a real crisp freshness pervading everything on all levels. This is celebrating the infinite possibilities always before us.” - Miguel Atwood-Ferguson

J Dilla, born James Dewitt Yancey, is regarded by many of his peers as one of the greatest hip hop producers. Coming on to the scene in the early 90’s, by 1995, he became the go to man for many of hip hop’s elite. Working with such artists as Madlib, Pete Rock, Common, Busta Rhymes, Mos Def, Pharrell, 9th Wonder, A Tribe Called Quest, The Pharcyde, Kanye West, Karriem Riggins, Questlove, and more. 

Though Dilla passed February 10th, 2006, due to complications stemming from Lupus and blood disease TTP, those who knew and loved him continue to keep his music alive. 

Timeless II: Suite For Ma Dukes  brought the sold out audience  at the Luckman Fine Arts Plaza to their feet as the power of Dilla’s music, love, and energy  overwhelmed their very senses. It was indeed a magical evening.