Brassiosaurus
Plundered Basquiat - Djll

Legend tells that the mythical Three-horned Brassiosaurus could muster over 300 decibels of fire-breathing sound. However, ear-protection is not needed for today's audiences; the post-Postmodern Brassiosaurus prefers to mutter and squeak just as much as roar. Nor is ritual blood-sacrifice necessary to coax the beast into singing its sweetest songs; a simple offering of valve oil/slide cream will do. Expect music that evolves organically from a tiny, burbling embryo, hatches into squawking, scratching honks, cannonades into explosions of melodious grunts, roaming freely the rocky territory between Scelsi, Stalling and Sousa, and finally expires in a fusillade of sighs.

Upcoming Brassiosaurus  events:

 

  • March 5, 2005 - 8:00 pm Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana Street between Bancroft Way & Durant Avenue in Berkeley, California. Here are the posters (click on each one to get te full-size .pdf file):

    For this concert, Brassiosaurus premiers works written for them by Chris Brown, Wendy Reid, Pauline Oliveros and Phillip Greenlief as well as original pieces by the group.

     

    Brassiosaurus was on the road last year!
    <<<<<<<<<<<<< Stomping The Love Tour - 2004 >>>>>>>>>>>>
    here's the .PDF Tour PROGRAM (<--click)

  • May 16th: SFAlt Festival, San Francisco.  Was a GREAT Success!  We invited Dina Emerson as our guest artist.  There are  pictures here and the program that Tom designed here (in .PDF format)..
  • May 29th We performed individually at the Big Sur Experimental Music Festival at the Henry Miller Library on Highway One in Big Sur, CA
    which was, as usual, a huge amount of fun!  We all played at different times on Saturday's concert - including Dina.
  • June 20: Brassiosaurus performed as part of Jacopo Andreini's big ensemble at the Jazz House, Berkeley CA. It was loud, stomping, and wild!
  • June 21st: Tom, Ron and Toyoji performed with The Mills College Didjeridu Ensemble at the Garden of Memory event at the Chapel of the Chimes Columbarium, Oakland. (Program)
  • June 24th & 25th: 10th Annual Olympia Experimental Music Festival, at Traditions Cafe, 300 Fifth Avenue, Olympia WA.  Brassiosaurus premiered a new calligraphic score by member Ron Heglin. On Thursday the 24th, we again made up the brass section for Jacopo Andreini's big band project, with the Billy Tipton Sax Quartet for the reeds. What a blast! Kudos to festival organizer/major domo Arrington De Dionyso for putting together a fantastic collection of acts, and packing the venues full of appreciative PNW listeners.
  • June 26th: Disjecta Gallery - 116 NE Russell Street, Portland, Oregon (local media announcement here)
  • July 12th: Matthew Sperry Memorial Concert, 21 Grand, Oakland CA. A wonderful, heartfelt event consisting of eighteen acts, involving over forty musicians from the Bay Area and elsewhere, including the East Coast and Europe. The concert raised money for the late bassist's daughter's education fund. (link to Matthew's page: http://www.matthewsperry.org/)

     Jean Cocteau once said, "I want someone to build  me music I can live in,
    like a house. . .." Brassiosaurus (Toyoji Tomita, trombone; Ron Heglin,
    trombone, tuba, voice; Tom Djll, trumpet) does just that. Incorporating
    thick textures, masses of nearly inaudible thrum, and joyously menacing
    groundbursts, these three inhabit an intense, engaging quonset hut of
    endless musicality that subverts any gimcrack, oompah-expectations you
    might have about a brass trio. All longtime players in the Bay Area
    avant-g/new music/jazzosphere, they worry, tickle, and coax notes and
    tones that will startle the ears-"like whips of sex in the Sousa-filled
    night."
    Tim DuRoche, Willamette Week     (June 23, 2004 pg. 79 Portland, OR)
     

    Appendages of the Beast:
    Tom Djll
    		 Ron Heglin Toyoji Tomita

    Repertoire:

    We're commissioning new compositions from:

    Website questions should be sent to:

    Last updated: 03/08/2005 10:27:00 tt