ARTIST...: Charles Ditto
TITLE....: Basso Continuo. Cyberdelic Ambient and Nootropic Soundscapes (1987-1994)
YEAR.....: 2018
LABEL....: Passat Continu
CAT.NO...: PC002
GENRE....: Ambient
TIME.....: 55:40
SIZE.....: 107.22 MB
QUALITY..: 269kbps/44.1kHz/Joint Stereo
ENCODER..: LAME
SOURCE...: WEB
RLS.DATE.: 2020/01/31
WEBSITE..: https://passatcontinu.bandcamp.com/album/charles-ditto-basso-continuo-cyberdelic-ambient-and-nootropic-soundscapes-1987-1994
TRACKLIST
01) (03:15) Pop
02) (03:47) Tunis, Two Legs (Adam's March)
03) (04:14) Horsefeathers
04) (04:21) The Walkabout
05) (02:14) Eastern
06) (05:08) Rock
07) (03:29) 28-23 Cleveland
08) (04:03) Slave Waltz
09) (03:46) Urban
10) (09:20) Basso Continuo
11) (02:37) Ayaats'iin
12) (09:26) Snarkdanz (Long version)
I was born in Houston, Texas in 1954 into a musical family: my mother played piano,
organ, and clarinet, and my father played guitar and sang. I took piano and guitar
lessons starting around 7 years old, and later added clarinet to the regimen. As a
family, we would sing 4-part harmonies early on, singing hymns around the piano and
alternating parts with each other. Got a scholarship to the University of Houston in
1972 where I got a BM in composition. Enjoyed composing very much, but couldn't find
my voice. Got the itch there to play music professionally in bands. Moved to Austin
in 1981 and began that life: full-time road musician with gigs around the US, Mexico
and Texas also for almost 20 years. Additionally, during this 30+-year stretch, I
worked with Broadway vet Peter Lobdell (and the theater department at Amherst
College) and artist Thom Haxo, composing music for live theater. These opportunities
allowed for the continuation of my MIDI-based experimental music.
In 1992, had a notion to go back to music school. Got a MM and DMA, both in
composition, from the University of Texas, while supporting myself playing in bands,
as house pianist and working at Strait Music in Austin selling keyboards and pianos.
A year after graduating from UT, 1998, I received an offer to teach music theory at
Texas State University, down the road in San Marcos. Discovered that I loved the
classroom/performance setting and that I was weary of the full-time live music
lifestyle. Went full-time in 2003 at TXST and that is where I am today. I only
occasionally play live music anymore just with friends and mostly for the fun of it.
The space music of my two LPs came about in the mid and late-80s when MIDI technology
hit. I acquired some MIDI-capable instruments, learned the sequencing/software and
played live in Austin with my Mac, and managed to record and press the two LPs. I
could only afford 500 copies of ôIn human termsö and 1000 copies of ôTexas Electric.ö
I sent about 150 each to public and college radio stations. About 200 copies were
lost in a fire, and the rest I've been giving away to anyone who wanted.
The music of these records is not as much space/ambient like Eno or Stearns, but more
deconstructed, minimalist pop structures. I was listening to lots of Eno, Residents,
Cluster, Moondog, Steve Tibbetts, etc. Also, I have always listened to traditional
folk music from all over. Indian raga, middle-Eastern, Celtic, Scandinavian,
Mongolian and Chinese music, this is probably my favorite music to listen to. I also
fell hard under the spell of the minimalists: Steve Reich, Philipp Glass, and J.
Adams. Still love their music. My scored music is influenced by these guys. I
continued to create music on the MIDI ensemble, even when the space music gigs in
Austin dried up.
Charles Ditto, winter 2017
Released September 28, 2018
"Pop", "Eastern", "Rock", "Urban", "Slave Waltz" and "Basso Continuo" from the LP "in
human terms" (Ditto Records, 1987)
"The Walkabout" is an update of "Bush" from the LP "in human terms" (Ditto Records,
1987)
"Horsefeathers", "28-23 Cleveland" and "Ayaats'iin" taken from the LP "Texas
Electric" (Ditto Records, 1989)
"Tunis, Two Legs (Adam's March)" and "Snarkdanz" taken from "The Way of All Peach"
(released on cassette, Ditto Records, 1992)
"Snarkdanz" from the score "The Hunting of the Snark," commissioned by Amherst
College for live theater created by Peter Lobdell and Thom Haxo
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