Vijay Iyer has been giving a series of performances over the past couple of weeks. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to seem him perform a duet with koto player Miya Masaoka. The koto is a 13 string Japanese instrument (similar to a zither), which is played on a horizontal plane (kind of like vibes). It wasn't quite as exhilirating as the performance with Mahnthappa, but it was immensely enjoyable. Masaoka is a first rate free improvisor who has worked in many different avant-garde and other contexts. She is also involved in various kinds of performance art. She is classically trained in both Japanese and Western traditions (I believe she teaches at SF State) and she is quite well versed in jazz. On the 2 occasions I've seen Masaoka, she has displayed her more experimental side.
The duo performed 2 50 minute sets that included some lengthy semi-free form (without obvious pre-set structures) improvisational pieces as well as some compositions by Iyer and a couple of Monk tunes, including a very pretty Round Midnight. Much of the evening's music was devoted to improvisation in sound and textures. Masaoka is a master at coaxing an enormous range of electronic and acoustic effects from the koto. The koto's pickups were wired (similar to an electrified upright bass) and connected to a series of pedals and a digital midi-interface (of sorts). She used the electronic effects in the appropriate measure (that is to say not too much). She also had a sampler which she used on a couple of occasions. Masaoka also employed numerous acoustical implements including bows of varying size (the koto is normally finger plucked), drum sticks, and devices for dampening the strings. She used all of them with great skill. She can also create sounds by waving her hand above the strings (kind of like a theramin).
Iyer, an extremely skilled and inventive pianist in both mainstream and avant-garde jazz, is a little less experimental in his approach. Although, he employed a range of effects, including sliding a glass over his piano strings or using it to dampen the strings, creating a very interesting effect. He would also use sheets of paper and rub them across the strings. The end result was a really enjoyable performance and much more musical than you might think. At it's best, the effects were framed by musical figures and used to elaborate on musical motifs. Both Masaoka and Iyer are superb musicians. I can't say, I fully understand this kind of free improvisation, but I really did enjoy it.