Leap of Faith (2015 to Present)
Cyclic Models
“A larger ensemble for the Boston-area collective Leap of Faith of David Peck on clarinets, saxophones & flutes, and Glynis Lomon on cello, aquasonic & voice, here extended with two horns, three strings, and drums including Cecil Taylor bassist Albey OnBass, plus John Fugarino on trumpets & brass, Tor Snyder on guitar and Eric Rosenthal on drums & percussion.”
Excerpt From Liner Notes by PEK
“… A common Leap of Faith configuration includes horns, strings, and drums. The trio core unit with Yuri was the simplest version of this configuration. Recently, we have had some larger versions of this concept with 6 or seven players. The Leap of Faith edition for Cyclic Models includes two horns, three strings, and drums. We were originally going to have a third horn, Hillary Noble, an Evil Clown newcomer recommended by Albey. Hilary had a late conflict and did not make the set, but we had a terrific performance as a sextet.…”
Cyclic Models:
Leap of Faith
Evil Clown Headquarters, Waltham MA – 9 December 2023
1) Eternal Series – 1:58
2) Cyclic Models- 1:10:05
3) Self-Sustaining Cycles – 5:40
PEK – clarinet, contralto & contrabass clarinets, alto & tenor saxophones, piccolo oboe, bass tromboon, melodica, goat horn, theremin with moogerfooger, syntrx, ms-20, moog subsequent, novation peak, Linnstrument controllers, almglocken, brontosaurus & tank bells, Englephone, danmo, wood blocks, log drums, cow bells, gongs, plate gong, [d]ronin, 17 string bass, crotales, glockenspiel, flex-a-tone, Tibetan bells and chimes
Glynis Lomon – cello, aquasonic, voice
John Fugarino – trumpet, slide trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, almglocken, orchestral anvils, xylophone, balafon, seed pod rattle, spring & chime rod boxes, Englephone
Tor Snyder – guitar, signal processing
Albey onBass – electric upright bass, gong, log drums, wood blocks, temple blocks, gong, brontosaurus bell
Eric Rosenthal – drums, percussion
Joel Simches – live to 2-track recording, real-time signal processing
Bandcamp | Squidco | YouTube 1 | YouTube Shorties | Soundcloud
Full Video
Video Shorties
Liner Notes by PEK
Leap of Faith is the core duet of the Leap of Faith Orchestra (LOFO) comprised of PEK on clarinets, saxophones, clarinets & flutes, and Glynis Lomon on cello, aquasonic & voice. The ensemble is based in Boston and dates back to the early 90s. We utilize a huge arsenal of additional Evil Clown instruments to improvise long works featuring transformations across highly varied sonorities. At times, the core unit has been a trio or even a quartet. The longest running core unit was comprised of PEK, Glynis and drummer Yuri Zbitnov, who played for the last couple of years of the archival period and the first 5 years of the reboot starting in 2015. The ensemble has always been highly modular, and our many recordings (well over 100) feature the core unit in dozens of configurations with a huge list of guests and occasionally as only the core unit with no guests. Currently, the core unit is the duet of PEK and Lomon and we are regularly presenting LIVESTREAMs to YouTube from Evil Clown Headquarters with other guest performers.
A common Leap of Faith configuration includes horns, strings, and drums. The trio core unit with Yuri was the simplest version of this configuration. Recently, we have had some larger versions of this concept with 6 or seven players. The Leap of Faith edition for Cyclic Models includes two horns, three strings, and drums. We were originally going to have a third horn, Hillary Noble, an Evil Clown newcomer recommended by Albey. Hilary had a late conflict and did not make the set, but we had a terrific performance as a sextet.
Tor Snyder, a great guitar player who I played a lot with in the 90s, makes his second Evil Clown appearance despite a long commute from NYC. Glynis, Tor, and Albey are a great string section. I also played in the 90s a lot with John Fugarino, trumpets & trombone, who has been a frequent performer in the last couple of years. It’s very cool to play these solid musicians after each of us has had decades of development. Rounding out the unit is Eric Rosenthal, a great area drummer, who performed on several of the graphic score performances for the Leap of Faith Orchestra. Eric was excited to come to Evil Clown Headquarters and test out the very nice house drum set in the studio.
Anyway, I enjoyed this set, and I’m sure you will too!! Check it out.
PEK 12/10/2023
Video Screen Grabs
