Bartalk Large Ensemble Double Live Album Download + CD + Video Streaming link

During the pandemic lockdown, people suffered an unprecedented sense of isolation - whether through quarantine, loneliness, solitude, confinement, seclusion, isolation, retreat, separation or detachment. The pandemic has led us all to a greater understanding of isolation

Bartalk Large Ensemble Double Live Album Download + CD + Video Streaming link

During the pandemic lockdown, people suffered an unprecedented sense of isolation - whether through quarantine, loneliness, solitude, confinement, seclusion, isolation, retreat, separation or detachment. The pandemic has led us all to a greater understanding of isolation - and its consequences. 

Bartalk itself – a cross-genre monodrama for speaking drummer and large ensemble - is an intimate performance by drummer and composer Sean Noonan, who has himself experienced isolation and entrapment. The work expresses those experiences by combining new music, free improvisation and ‘rhythmic storytelling’, the term Sean himself uses to describe his audacious, genre-defiant artistry, which steals and stretches the responsibilities of both drummer and narrator, merging them into one and allowing the drummer's four limbs and voice to unify the forces of rhythm and storytelling.  Adding his voice as part of the drum kit, Sean provides an extra layer - or a fifth limb - to the fully-coordinated four-limbed practice.  Bartalk will reflect aspects of what Sean described in 2006 as the ‘wandering folk theory’, as he travelled the world, collecting and adapting stories and folklore from diverse cultural traditions, passing them through the prism of his own singular worldview. As a modern-day ‘sonic griot’, he combines the most ancient of traditions with forward-seeking experimentation. His music is informed by an eclectic variety of influences: rock opera, avant-garde chamber music and harmolodic jazz-rock.

Throughout Bartalk, Sean will act as the 'unknown’, gradually succumbing to the effects of isolation and solitary confinement, articulated through a series of soliloquies. The ensemble expresses the auditory hallucinations heard by the 'unknown'. The work treats the ensemble as an extension of a drummer's limbs by orchestrating a polyrhythmic, polytemporal and polymetric language derived from the drum kit.    The text of Bartalk was written in collaboration with Guenter Janovsky.  Malcolm Mooney is the lyricist on ‘Moonwalk’ and the ending of ‘Cruel and Usual’.  Very special thanks to all the fabulous musicians being featured in tonight’s performance of Bartalk.  Sean is so grateful to be able to collaborate and perform with all of these dear musicians!

Ligeti Quartet Freya Goldmark and Salomé Rateau (violins) Richard Jones (viola) Val Welbanks (cello) Helen Vidovich (flute) Alex Ward (clarinet, guitar) Matthew Bourne (Fender Rhodes / church organ) Otto Willberg (bass) Sean Noonan (drums, voice and composer)

Producer Sean Hargreaves Engineer Seb Truman Assistants Justin Gartry and Ned Roberts Videographer Panos Agamemnos

Also a very special thanks to: Matthew Whiteside Guenter Janovsky Malcolm Mooney Aled Pedrick Haydn Corrodus Ashley Valentine Silo Studios Monika Figel Russell Occomore and the Crypt Sean Hargreaves and TYE London

Please note that this concert is being multi-track recorded.  Please refrain from using mobile phones or talking during the performance, as there are microphones installed throughout the church.  This recording will be later released as an album in 2023.

The concert is the first Jazzlive event in the church itself and all profits will be donated to ‘AllSwell’, the Camberwell Organ project. This performance was only made possible thanks to public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England and PRS Music Foundation.

Part 1  Bartalk Overture Let’s Walk Below The Aqua Diva To Strip Wrinkles of Time Crossroads Cruel and Usual New Ways  

Part 2  Love Meltdown A Reluctant Astronaut Chant of the Unknown Deliverance Lost in the Wald Moonwalk Real Deep Real Slow Winter Inside Staring at Nothing Rite of the Unknown Purge Portrait of a Heartless Lover  We’re Younger Now

Expected release: February 21, 2023

Zappanation Furthers Expands the Scope of the Eclectic Musical Offerings From the Drummer, Composer, and Rhythmic Storyteller

The world of Zappanation, is a particularly outrageous one even for Sean Noonan, whose past works have related tales of a street-smart boxer and of an Irish gambler trapped inside a wall. Here, the story refracts Mozart’s

Zappanation Furthers Expands the Scope of the Eclectic Musical Offerings From the Drummer, Composer, and Rhythmic Storyteller

The world of Zappanation, is a particularly outrageous one even for Sean Noonan, whose past works have related tales of a street-smart boxer and of an Irish gambler trapped inside a wall. Here, the story refracts Mozart’s brothel-set opera The Abduction from the Seraglio through the bawdy humor and musical inventiveness of Frank Zappa and the percussive abstractions of Edgar Varèse.

Zappanation (whose title mashes together Zappa’s name with the title of Varèse’s most well-known composition “Ionisation”) was commissioned by Italy’s Sant’anna Jazz Festival and had its Italian premiere in 2016. Noonan had never met the members of the vocal quartet prior to the festival, so he was thrilled when he discovered their vocal abilities and willingness to experiment.

From the drum kit, Noonan plays a young boy abandoned by his embittered war veteran father to grow up in a swingers’ club. As he pays back the old man’s debts by playing in the club orchestra, the boy meets a variety of zany characters portrayed by a virtuosic and fearless Sardinian a cappella choir: soprano Alice Madeddu, mezzo-soprano Eva Pagella, tenor Matteo Siddi, and bass Manuel Cossu.

“It’s fun to collaborate with musicians that come from a different place and tradition,” Noonan states, “These singers have done everything from opera to musical theater to rock music and folk singing. As a drummer it gave me absolute freedom to express myself, and as a composer I could take various kinds of risks and they, in turn, enjoyed the challenge.”

Ironically, Noonan had never been a Zappa acolyte, despite parallels between the two iconoclastic and self-sufficient composers. “I never really checked out Frank Zappa extensively until Zappanation was commissioned,” the drummer admits, “but especially when I play in Germany and England, people always tell me that I’m just like Zappa. The connection I feel to him is really because, like me, he did everything on his own. He was really a workaholic.”

Zappanation will be released both on CD and digital and includes a bonus video performance of the entire German premiere concert of Zappanation, which took place on May 12, 2018, at Alte Kaserne, Landshut, Germany.

Zappanation is a surreal rock opera composed in the provocative and inventive spirit of Frank Zappa and Edgard Varèse. It began in 2016 at the Sant’Anna Arresi Jazz Festival in Sardinia. The story refracts Mozart’s brothel-set opera The Abduction from the Seraglio through the bawdy humor and musical inventiveness of Zappa and the percussive abstractions of Varèse.

Norbert Buerger as "Evil Papa" (guitar/beat box) Alice Madeddu as “Bubbles” (soprano) Eva Pagella as “Butterflies” (alto) Matteo Siddi as "Jesus" (tenor) Manuel Cossu as "Tad, aka The Aqua Diva”
Mandhira de Saram (violin 1) Patrick Dawkins (violin 2) Richard Jones (viola) Val Welbanks (cello) Harry Saltzman (saxophone) Johnny Richards (keyboards) Michael Bardon (bass) Sean Noonan as "The Boy" (drums/vocals/composer)

Sandy Sokoloff original painting Archangel Chamiel’ Malcolm Mooney art advisor malcolmmooney.com Matthias Gleixner graphic design Michal Kupicz CD mixing/mastering engineer

Studio Recording at TY Studios London September 4, 2016 Video on May 12, 2018 at Alte Kaserne, Landshut, Germany

Watch video of Zappanation live in Germany in 2018 Here https://seannoonanmusic.com/zappanation Password: WelcometoZappanation

All compositions and lyrics by Sean Noonan SPNoonan ASCAP Noonanmusic - NM1010

Drummer/composer and rhythmic storyteller Sean Noonan releases Knott Tones features new compositions for drumkit and strings featuring the U.K.-based Ligeti Quartet

Drummer and composer Sean Noonan has long preferred the term “Rhythmic Storyteller” to describe his audacious, genre-defiant artistry. As a modern-day sonic griot he combines the most

Drummer/composer and rhythmic storyteller Sean Noonan releases Knott Tones features new compositions for drumkit and strings featuring the U.K.-based Ligeti Quartet

Drummer and composer Sean Noonan has long preferred the term “Rhythmic Storyteller” to describe his audacious, genre-defiant artistry. As a modern-day sonic griot he combines the most ancient of traditions with forward-seeking experimentation; as a kind of post-modern wandering minstrel he gathers irreverent folk tales and offbeat inspirations from various cultures and translates them through his own singular worldview.

Knott Tones is a collision of new music composition and free improvisation, written for string quartet and drum kit and inspired in part by comedy legend Don Knotts.

“I always want to take a listener or an audience on a journey into new worlds,” Noonan says of his always-unpredictable output. “I try to constantly explore different topics and new places.”

Knott Tones features the U.K.-based Ligeti Quartet. An acclaimed string ensemble devoted to modern composers and innovative programming, the quartet features violinists Mandhira De Saram and Patrick Dawkins, violist Richard Jones, and cellist Valeria Welbanks (with guest violinist Alicja Pilarczyk stepping in for De Saram on Knott Tones).

Knott Tones, meanwhile, is an outgrowth of “Don Knotts,” a Noonan composition originally recorded on Drumavox. A self-described “member of the Three’s Company generation,” Noonan composed the piece based on a 12-tone row and dedicated to the late comedian – an unlikely inspiration for such intricate music, but perhaps Noonan recognized the stellar grace and timing essential to any successful physical comedian.

The five pieces on the album employ polytemporal rhythmic ideas from composer Conlon Nancarrow’s “Studies for Player Piano,” a key source of inspiration for Noonan. “Nancarrow is one of one of my favorite American composers,” Noonan says. “I spent a lot of time studying his output of music for player piano.”

The unconventional instrumentation on Knott Tones – drumkit and string quartet – allowed Noonan to reimagine the narrative and melodic potential of his rhythmic ideas. “I treat the quartet like it's an extension of the drum kit,” he explains. “My two legs and two arms are almost like the cello, viola and two violins. So I tried to visualize ways that the quartet’s playing could come out of what I would be naturally playing on the drum set. Sometimes that means transcribing my rhythmic language, though often it’s more abstract than that.”

NOONWARD is the duo of Sean Noonan and Alex Ward, two composer/performers working at the intersections of rock, jazz, improvised music and contemporary classical composition. The duo’s collaboration began in informal improvised meetings, but when the chance to play a whole evening’s worth of music in public arose, both musicians elected to bring

NOONWARD is the duo of Sean Noonan and Alex Ward, two composer/performers working at the intersections of rock, jazz, improvised music and contemporary classical composition. The duo’s collaboration began in informal improvised meetings, but when the chance to play a whole evening’s worth of music in public arose, both musicians elected to bring along some pieces from their extensive books of compositions to include as well. Inspired by how well this worked, Noonan and Ward then each began writing new pieces intended specifically for the duo. The results of this evolution can heard on this, their debut CD - which, as anyone familiar with Noonan and Ward’s individual bodies of work would expect, covers a wide and constantly surprising stylistic terrain, bound together by the utter distinctiveness of the musicians’ instrumental approaches. Pieces like Ward’s “Packed” and Noonan’s “Circle Of Willis” burst out of the starting gate with explosive rock energy; whilst by contrast Ward’s “Leaf Count” and Noonan’s “Funnel Weaver” establish in their opening sections a subdued and evocative melodicism. The improvisational rapport and exploration that provided the first point of contact for the musicians is fully on display throughout, but is equally fully integrated into the compositional structures - the pieces eschew head-solos-head predictability in favour of rich multi-part forms frequently carrying strong suggestions of an underlying narrative, to which Noonan’s vocal contributions on three pieces provide tantalisingly cryptic clues.

Alex Ward - Multi-instrumentalist British clarinet/guitarist (Thurston Moore Sonic Youth/Eugene Chadbourne/Derek Bailey)

Clarinet, Electric Guitar – Alex Ward (5) • Design [Cover Design], Layout – Alex Ward (5), Luke Barlow • Drums, Percussion, Vocals – Sean Noonan • Mixed By, Mastered By – Alex Ward (5) • Photography By – Jacek Mójta • Producer [Produced By] – Alex Ward (5), Sean Noonan • Recorded At – Resolution Way, London • Mixed At – Stowaway Studios • Mastered At – Stowaway Studios

Recorded on October 24th 2019 at Resolution Way, London.

Rhythmic storyteller Sean Noonan brings together his eclectic drumming with a Sardinian a cappella choir on his adventurous and mesmerizing new album

Drumavox finds the “sonic griot” melding ancient traditions and folk tales with experimental techniques and irreverent songwriting in a whirlwind of folk and avant-jazz, offbeat rock and vocal

Rhythmic storyteller Sean Noonan brings together his eclectic drumming with a Sardinian a cappella choir on his adventurous and mesmerizing new album

Drumavox finds the “sonic griot” melding ancient traditions and folk tales with experimental techniques and irreverent songwriting in a whirlwind of folk and avant-jazz, offbeat rock and vocal harmonies

Drummer and composer Sean Noonan has long preferred the term “Rhythmic Storyteller” to describe his audacious, genre-defiant artistry. As a modern-day sonic griot he combines the most ancient of traditions with forward-seeking experimentation, gathering folk tales and traditional songs from various cultures and translating them through his own irreverent and thoroughly modern worldview.

With his latest project, Drumavox, Noonan once again bridges past and future with his trademark combination of musical exploration, offbeat humor, and eclectic vision. Bringing together Noonan’s drumset wizardry with a virtuosic and fearless Sardinian vocal quartet, Drumavox comprises the earliest musical instruments in the human arsenal – voice and percussion – in ways that our evolutionary ancestors could never have anticipated – and that will even surprise the most open-eared of contemporary listeners.

Out via the composer’s own Sean Noonan Music imprint, Drumavox features a gifted a cappella choir from the Mediterranean island of Sardinia: soprano Alice Madeddu, mezzo-soprano Eva Pagella, tenor Matteo Siddi, and bass Manuel Cossu. The relationship began in 2016 at the Sant’Anna Arresi Jazz Festival in Sardinia, as part of the premiere of “Zappanation,” Noonan’s outrageous rock opera dedicated to the spirit of Frank Zappa and Edgard Varèse.

Noonan had never met the members of the choir prior to the festival, so he was thrilled when he discovered their vocal abilities and willingness to experiment. Each brought novel elements of their own to the mix. Siddi in particular boasted a rock-star falsetto to rival Axl Rose, coupled with viral fame as the “Gesù di Cagliari” – an irreverent Jesus Christ impersonation that he’s performed in a variety of jaw-dropping contexts, including a send-up of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” video.

“It’s fun to work with musicians that come from a different place and tradition,” Noonan raves. “These singers have done everything from opera to musical theater to rock music and folk singing. As a drummer it gave me absolute freedom to express myself, and as a composer I could take different kinds of risks and they enjoyed the challenge and never complained.”

Excited by the possibilities glimpsed during the “Zappanation” performances, Noonan culled pieces from throughout his diverse catalogue that could be adapted to the unusual format of drums and vocal quartet. While he has often narrated the stories behind his songs from behind the drumkit, Noonan found the collaboration opened up stunning new opportunities to exercise his gifts as a Rhythmic Storyteller and a collector of tales from any number of traditions.

“I’ve embraced what I call the wandering folk theory,” he explains. “I take stories and songs from different parts of the world and different places in history and I adapt them from my perspective as a drummer. I redevelop them as someone who comes from my specific musical background and allow them to evolve on their own so that I can present them through my own voice.”

The characters that populate Noonan’s madcap songs range from mythological dwarves that populate the salt mines of Eastern Europe to shape-shifting sea creatures to a beloved character actor imprinted on his brain from the popular TV shows of his childhood. All of these influences get tumbled together along with provocative humor and classic lullabies to create a singular and compelling sound that defies categorization, kaleidoscopically juggling elements of punk rock, avant-garde jazz, mutated folk traditions, contemporary classical music and off-kilter show tunes.

The four voices whirl dizzyingly around Noonan’s frenetic drumming to open “As the World Spins,” a tune that reflects on our tumultuous global crises from the perspective of the Sun speaking to a troubled Earth. (As this is written, that encompasses perennial worries like climate change along with pressing concerns like a contentious election cycle and a spreading pandemic, but the song is open-ended enough to deal with whatever troubles face us as you read these words.)

The whimsical “He Skarbnik He,” originally penned for “Zappanation” and recorded on Noonan’s 2017 album Man No Longer Me, pays homage to the mythical creatures that dwell in the salt mines of Poland, protecting the miners from danger. Intended to depict a descent into the claustrophobic mines, the piece gradually takes on a tribal, ritualistic tone. “Krasnoludki’s On My Mind” draws inspiration from another diminutive being from Poland mythology, showcasing the Sardinians’ brilliant ability to transform into fantastical characters.

“Silkie From the Sea,” named for the shape-shifting “seal people” of Scottish mythology, finds the vocalists conjuring whale sounds as the tune sinks us deep under the ocean’s wave, Noonan’s light tough on the drums suggesting the shimmer of sunlight on water. A more realistic but no less legendary character is the subject of “Don Knotts,” a challenging yet celebratory piece based on a 12-tone row and inspired by the iconic comedian.

Noonan’s sly sense of humor comes to the fore on “Pussy Cat’s Gone Wild,” written for “Zappanation” and sharing the titular composer’s love of eyebrow-raising innuendo. “Where Could I Go,” meanwhile, showcases a more tender and heartfelt side, as the choir’s rich harmonies evoke the folk tune “Wayfaring Stranger” as well as medieval vocal arrangements. Finally, the haunting “Bia” is based on a Russian lullaby for the wintertime, Noonan’s crashing percussion and soaring harmonies summoning a crystalline, frost-covered landscape.

Gorgeous and playful, provocative and soulful, traditional and adventurous: Drumavox pairs contrasts as startlingly and harmoniously as it pairs percussion and voice. Despite its limited palette, Noonan has discovered a rich and versatile vocabulary that he utilizes to weave vivid and striking tales.

soprano Alice Madeddu, mezzo-soprano Eva Pagella, tenor Matteo Siddi, and bass Manuel Cossu drums Sean Noonan drum Lilly Wallis artwork Michal Kupicz mixing Sean Hargreaves tracking

The Aqua Diva Sean Noonan rhythmic storytelling Alex Marcelo piano Peter Bitenc bass

Beyond Jazz (Creative Avant Jazz Storytelling)

Bassist Peter Bitenc and Alex Marcelo—jazz legend Yusef Lateef’s pianist of choice—who were featured on the 2016 release Memorable Sticks, once again join Noonan on his new release The Aqua Diva, which is rooted in a

The Aqua Diva Sean Noonan rhythmic storytelling Alex Marcelo piano Peter Bitenc bass

Beyond Jazz (Creative Avant Jazz Storytelling)

Bassist Peter Bitenc and Alex Marcelo—jazz legend Yusef Lateef’s pianist of choice—who were featured on the 2016 release Memorable Sticks, once again join Noonan on his new release The Aqua Diva, which is rooted in a wide spectrum of American musical, cultural, and lyrical themes. Noonan recasts a tune named for the iconic TV personality “Don Knotts” with experimentalist composer Conlon Nancarrow, in a 12-tone additive rhythm composition. “Where Would I Go” is a folk song adaptation of “Wayfaring Stranger,” and “Elijah Rocks” is a traditional spiritual. Noonan, an Irish-American drummer with a theatrical bent, scripts tracks 1, 4, 8, and 10 like the plot of a soap opera series. T.A.D. (The Aqua Diva) is stalked by Butterflies, who is jealous of Bubbles for having an affair with T.A.D. The saga ends with Butterflies murdering them in a swingers club’s swimming pool. Noonan’s original story has a direct correlation with his Zappanation Rock Opera, which was inspired by Frank Zappa and Edgard Varèse; it recently premiered in Germany.

Alex Marcelo piano Peter Bitenc bass Sean Noonan drums Recorded April 22, 2017 at Atlantic Sound Studios; Brooklyn, NY Mixed by Michal Kupicz Photography by Kaja Gwincinska Design Matthias Gleixner