Elliott Sharp

Elliott Sharp
Background information
Birth name	Elliott Sharp
Born	March 1, 1951 (1951-03-01) (age 58)
Origin	Cleveland, Ohio
Genres	Contemporary classical, Experimental, Improvised music, Blues
Occupations	Composer, Musician, Producer
Instruments	Guitar, Tenor Saxophone, Bass Clarinet
Years active	1980s – present
Labels	SST, Tzadik, Clean Feed, Intuition, Homestead, Atavistic, Intakt, Extreme, Knitting Factory, zOaR
Associated acts	Terraplane, Carbon, Orchestra Carbon
Website	www.elliottsharp.com

Elliott Sharp (b. Cleveland, Ohio, March 1, 1951) is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, and performer. ^[1]

A central figure in the avant-garde and experimental music scene in New York City since the late 1970s^[2][3], Sharp has released over eighty-five recordings ranging from blues, jazz, and orchestral music to noise, no wave rock, and techno music. Classically trained in piano from an early age, he took up clarinet and guitar as a teen. He pioneered the use of a lap top computer in live performance with his Virtual Stance project of the 1980s^[4] and more recently has used algorithm and fibonacci numbers in experimental composition.^[5] He has cited literature as an inspiration for his music and often favors improvisation.^[5] He is an inveterate performer, playing mainly guitar, saxophone and bass clarinet. Sharp has led many ensembles over the years, including the blues-oriented Terraplane and Orchestra Carbon.^[6]

Biography

Sharp attended Cornell University from 1969 to 1971, studying anthropology, music, and electronics. He completed his B.A. degree at Bard College in 1973, where he studied composition with Benjamin Boretz and Elie Yarden; jazz composition, improvisation, and ethnomusicology with trombonist Roswell Rudd; and physics and electronics with Burton Brody. In 1977 he received an M.A. from the University at Buffalo, where he studied composition with Morton Feldman and Lejaren Hiller, and ethnomusicology with Charles Keil.^[7]

From the late '70s, Sharp established himself in New York's music scene. His compositions have been performed by the Symphony of the Hessischer Rundfunk, the Ensemble Modern, Continuum, the Orchestra of the SEM Ensemble, Kronos Quartet, Zeitkratzer, the Soldier String Quartet, the JACK Quartet, and the Quintet of the Americas. His work has been featured at festivals worldwide, including the 2008 New Music Stockholm festival, the 2007 Hessischer Rundfunk Klangbiennale, and the Venice Biennale 2003 and 2006. He releases music under his own label (zOaR music) as well as punk label SST and downtown music labels such as Knitting Factory records and John Zorn's Tzadik label. Guitar Player magazine's 30th anniversary issue included Sharp among their list of "The Dirty Thirty - Pioneers and Trailblazers".

He has collaborated regularly with many people, including Christian Marclay, Eric Mingus, Zeena Parkins, Vernon Reid, Bobby Previte, Joey Baron, David Torn, Nels Cline, and Frances-Marie Uitti, as well as qawaali singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, blues legend Hubert Sumlin, jazz greats Jack DeJohnette and Sonny Sharrock, pop singer Debbie Harry, and Bachir Attar, leader of the Master Musicians of Jajouka. He was curator of the sound-art exhibition Volume: Bed of Sound for P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center in 2001, which featured the works of 54 artists including Vito Acconci, Tod Dockstader, John Duncan, Walter Murch, Muhal Richard Abrams, Laurie Anderson, Chris & Cosey, Survival Research Laboratories, Ryuichi Sakomoto, Sonic Youth, and Butch Morris.^[8] He also curates the State of the Union CD compilations of one-minute tracks by experimental musicians, and produces records for numerous artists. Sharp describes himself as a lifelong "science geek"^[9] having modified and created musical instruments since his teen years, and frequently borrowing terms from science and technology for his compositions.

He was a 2009 Master Artist-in-Residence at the Atlantic Center for the Arts. In 2003 he was awarded a grant from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists Award.^[10]

Sharp lives in lower Manhattan with designer/video artist Janene Higgins and their two children.

Discography

^[11]

Solo

• Concert In Dachau (2008)
• Octal Book One (2008)
• Solo Beijing (2007)
• Sharp? Monk? Sharp! Monk! (2006)
• Quadrature (2005)
• Velocity of Hue (2004)
• Tectonics - Errata (1999)
• Tectonics - Field and Stream (1997)
• Sferics (1996)
• Tectonics (1995)
• Westwerk (1992)
• K!L!A!V! (1990)
• Looppool (1988)
• Rhythms And Blues (1980)
• Resonance (1979)

Elliott Sharp live at Jazz Festival in Saalfelden, 2009

As a leader

• War Zones (2008)
• Radio Hyper-Yahoo (2004) with Tracie Morris, Eric Bogosian, Sim Cain, Maggie Estep, Steve Buscemi, Lisa Lowell, Jack Womack, Eszter Balint, Edwin Torres, Eric Mingus, Steve Piccolo, Gak Sato
• Raw Meet (2002) with Melvin Gibbs, Lance Carter
• Autar (2000) with the Bedouin Musicians of Muhammad Abu-Ajaj
• Arc 3: Cyberpunk & the Virtual Stance (1998)
• Arc 2: The Seventies (1998) with, Steve Piccolo, Geoff MacAdie, Stewart Gilbert, Kunda Magenau, Denis Williamson, Murry Kohn, Donald Knaack, Bobby Previte, Jim Whittemore, Chris Vine

• Arc 1: I/S/M (1996) with Art Baron, Michael Brown, Al Diaz, Olu Dara, Bill Laswell, David Linton, Diana Meckley, M.E. Miller, Charles K. Noyes, Bobby Previte, Philip Wilson
• Boodlers - Counter Fit (1997) with Fred Chalenor, Henry Franzoni, Joseph Trump
• Boodlers (1995) with Fred Chalenor, Henry Franzoni
• 'Dyners Club guitar quartet (1994) with Roger Kleier, David Mecionis, John Myers
• Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Yahoos (1992) with Samm Bennett, Alva Rogers, Anthony Coleman, Victor Poison-Tete, Eugene Chadbourne, Sussan Deihim, Shelley Hirsch, Barbara Barg, K.J. Grant, Lee Ann Brown
• In The Land of the Yahoos (1987) with Christoph Anders, Sussan Deihim, Elizabeth Fischer, David Fulton, Paul Garrin, Shelley Hirsch, Shigeto Kamada, Christian Marclay, Jane Tomkiewicz
• I/S/M:R (1982) with Michael Brown, Al Diaz, David Linton
• Nots (1981) with Art Baron, Olu Dara, Bill Laswell, Diana Meckley, M.E. Miller, Charles K. Noyes, Philip Wilson

with Carbon

• Serrate (2009)
• Interference (1995)
• Amusia (1994)
• Autoboot (1994)
• Truthtable (1993)
• Tocsin (1991)
• Sili/contemp/tation (1990)
• Datacide (1989)
• Monster Curve (1982)

with Orchestra Carbon

• Radiolaria (2001)
• SyndaKit (1999)
• Rheo~Umbra (1998)
• Spring & Neap (1997)
• Abstract Repressionism: 1990-99 (1992)
• Larynx (1988, 2007)

String Quartets

• Elliott Sharp String Quartets 2002-2007 (2008) with The Sirius String Quartet
• Elliott Sharp String Quartets 1986-1996 (2003) with Soldier String Quartet and The Meridian Quartet
• A Modicum of Passion (2004) with (vocals) Devorah Day, Ben Miller, Eric Mingus, Joan Wasser; and (strings) Stephanie Griffin, Conrad Harris, Amy Kimball, Garo Yellin
• XenocodeX (1996) with Soldier String Quartet
• Cryptid Fragments (1993) with Margaret Parkins, Michelle Kinney, Sara Parkins, and Soldier String Quartet
• Twistmap (1991) with Soldier String Quartet
• Hammer, Anvil, Stirrup (1987) with Soldier String Quartet and Carbon

Orchestral

• Racing Hearts, Tessalation Row, Calling (2003)

with Terraplane

• Terraplane - Forgery (2008)
• Terraplane - Secret Life (2005)
• Terraplane - Do the Don't (2003)
• Terraplane - Music For Yellowman (2002)
• Terraplane - Blues for Next (2000)
• Terraplane (1994)

Duos

• Protoplasmic (2009) with Boris Savoldelli
• Scharfefelder (2008) with Scott Fields
• BASE (2008) with Antoine Berthaume
• pi:k (2007) with Charlotte Hug
• Duo Milano (2007) with Nels Cline
• Hums 2 Terre (2007) with Franck Vigroux
• Feuchtify (2006) with Reinhold Friedl
• Tranz (2006) with Merzbow
• Volcanic Island (2005) with Yasuhiro Usui
• Tongue (2004) with John Duncan
• The Prisoner's Dilemma (2002) with Bobby Previte
• Anostalgia (2002) with Reinhold Friedl
• High Noon (1999) with Christian Marclay
• Rwong Territory (1998) with DJ Soulslinger
• Poverty Line (1997) with Ronny Someck
• Revenge of the Stuttering Child (1997) with Ronny Someck
• Improvisations (1997) with Frances-Marie Uitti
• Hoosegow: Mighty (1996) with Queen Esther
• Psycho~Acoustic - Blackburst (1996) with Zeena Parkins
• Psycho~Acoustic (1994) with Zeena Parkins
• In New York (1994) with Bachir Attar

Collaborative groups

• TECK String 4tet (2007) Carlos Zingaro, Elliott Sharp, Ken Filiano, Tomas Ulrich
• In the Tank (2006) Natsuki Tamura, Elliott Sharp, Takayuki Kato, Satoko Fujii
• Beyond (2001) Joey Baron, Elliott Sharp, Roberto Zorzi
• GTR OBLQ (1998) Vernon Reid, Elliott Sharp, David Torn
• Downtown Lullaby (1998) John Zorn, Wayne Horvitz, Elliott Sharp, Bobby Previte
• Bootstrappers - GI=GO (1992) Elliott Sharp, Thom Kotik, Jan Kotik
• Bootstrappers (1989) George Hurley, Mike Watt, Elliott Sharp
• Semantics - Bone of Contention (1987) Elliott Sharp, Ned Rothenberg, Samm Bennett

As a compilation producer

• Timebomb: Live at the Clocktower Gallery (1997)
• Real Estate (1990)
• Island of Sanity (1987)
• State Of The Union (1981, 1987, 1992, 1996, 2001)
• Peripheral Vision (1981)

Recorded film scores and score compilations

• Q-Mix (2009)
• Soundtrack for the film What Sebastian Dreamt (2005)
• Soundtrack for the film Commune (2005)
• Suspension of Disbelief (compilation) (2001)
• Figure Ground (compilation) (1997)

Film appearances

• Elliott Sharp: Doing the Don't (2008 DVD documentary)
• The Old, Weird America: Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music (2007 DVD)
• Elliott Sharp: The Velocity of Hue. Live in Cologne (2007 DVD)
• April in New York with Bobby Previte (2007 DVD)
• Roulette TV: Elliott Sharp. Roulette Intermedium Inc. (2000 DVD)

Music for film

• Commune (2005)
• The Time We Killed (2004)
• What Sebastian Dreamt (2003)
• Daddy and the Muscle Academy (1991)
• Antigone/Rites of Passion (1990)
• The Salt Mines (1990)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Elliott Sharp

• Elliott Sharp official site
• Trailer for Elliott Sharp: Doing the Don't, documentary
• Trailer for Elliott Sharp: The Velocity of Hue. Live in Cologne, concert film

Further Reading

• Interview with Elliott Sharp in Guitar Player magazine (2007)
• Interview with Sharp by Mike McGonigal, published in BOMB magazine (2003)
• No One Said He Makes for Easy Listening by Adam Shatz, New York Times Arts and Leisure, July 2002
• NewMusicBox cover: Elliott Sharp in conversation with Frank J. Oteri, NewMusicBox, March 22, 2006 (includes video)
• Interview with Sharp by the Portuguese journalist Rui Eduardo Paes, September 2004

References