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Personnel: Wadada Leo Smith (trumpet); Mikko Iivanainen, Kalle Kalima (electric guitar); Iro Haarla (harp); Terhi Pylkkänen, Niels Thorkild Levinsen (violin); Barbora Hilpo (viola); Iida-Vilhelmiina Laine (cello); Juhani Aaltonen (flute, alto flute, bass flute, piccolo); Fredrik Ljungqvist (clarinet, bass clarinet, sopranino saxophone, tenor saxophone); Mikko Innanen (soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, baritone saxophone); Verneri Pohjola (trumpet, electronics); Jari Hongisto (trombone); Kenneth Ojutkangas (tuba); Kalle Hassinen (horns); Seppo Kantonen (piano); Janne Tuomi (marimba, drums); Ulf Krokfors, John Lindberg (double bass); Mika Kallio, Stefan Pasborg (drums). Audio Mixers: Esa Santonen; Henrik Otto Donner; Nikopetri Paakkuainen. Liner Note Authors: Franz A. Matzner; Wadada Leo Smith. Recording information: Studio MI, Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE), Helsinki (02/19/2012-02/21/2012). Photographers: Maarit Kytöharju; Risto Kuittinen. In 2012, composer and trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith delivered his large-scale, conceptual opus Ten Freedom Summers as well as the bracing duet recording Ancestors with drummer Louis Moholo-Moholo. At nearly 72, he shows no signs of slowing down, as evidenced by Occupy the World, a two-disc package recorded with the 20-piece Nordic ensemble TUMO which features among its ranks trumpeter Verneri Pohjola, flutist Juhani Aaltone, harpist Iro Haarla, saxophonist Frederik Ljungqvist, and drummer Stefan Pasborg. There are numerous winds, strings, electric guitars, vibes, electronics, accordion, brass, piano, and drums. There are five new compositions on offer here, the shortest of which is just under 16 minutes. These new pieces extend out from Smith's composing system that doesn't use transposition of any instrument's natural key; he uses the entire C spectrum as his base. What this means is that there are sections written with carefully designed passages that use an instrument's natural voice and harmonics. His system is also non-metric; it uses proportional relationships to guide the music along his envisioned horizontal flow. In addition to built-in dynamic tensions, widely varying textural elements, and elaborate harmonic constructions, there is considerable freedom built in for players to interact with one another all along his tonal range with varying tempi. While this creates an organic dissonance, it also creates almost limitless possibilities. "Mount Kilimanjaro (Love and Compassion for John Lindberg)" is a concerto written for and featuring the double bassist as prime soloist backed by three drummers. It is a tribute to his instincts as an improviser, attendant listener, and anchor in many of Smith's ensembles over the last 35 years, and is one of the three real treasures here. Disc two contains two truly major new works: "Crossing on a Southern Road (A Memorial for Marion Brown)," an expansive, colorful, yet brooding work that involves multiple ensembles covering various tonal ranges and contains one of S
