dj sniff & Keir Neuringer, 2009
Recorded in STEIM's Studio 1 by dj sniff and Keir Neuringer in 2009. Myself and Keir Neuringer both lived in the Netherlands during a significant moment in our careers, trying to establish our musical direction. One of the common themes that we were dealing with was how to reference our musical influences within our own music. We had both worked for years to develop a distinct style on our instruments (Neuringer on sax and me on turntables). But for this particular session we tried to sound like our favorite records – we wanted to embody and reflect on our musical history in a more direct way.

Jaap Blonk & Tomomi Adachi, 2009
Jaap Blonk and Tomomi Adachi voice duo recorded at STEIM's concert series in 2009 celebrating the institution's 40th anniversary. The night opened with each performing a solo set, which included their usual repertoire of electro acoustic compositions and readings of classic sound poetry. However, as they stepped on stage for their duo, they immediately delved into 20 minutes of pure voice ecstaticism.

Jérôme Noetinger & Lionel Marchetti, 2007
Revox reel-to-reel tape recorder duo by Jérôme Noetinger and Lionel Marchetti recorded at STEIM's concert series in 2007. This was a mind blowing concert for me where I saw real-time sampling – a main staple at STEIM since the invention of their live sampling software LiSa, done on analog machines. The musicians skillfully played the ancient Revox altering pre-recorded sounds and adding new sounds to the same tape. The physical presence of both the performers and the sounds has had a lasting impact on me.

Joel Ryan & Sparks (Tom Blancartet and Peter Evans), 2008
Joel Ryan with Sparks (Tom Blancartet and trumpeter Peter Evans) recorded live at concert in STEIM's Studio 3, 2008. Peter and Joel had met through working in Evan Parker's Electro Acoustic Ensemble. I remember at the time Joel coming into my office saying "There is this amazing trumpet player touring Europe that we can't miss the opportunity to bring in!" So we invited Peter and Tom for a residency to work with Joel in the studio for a couple of days and hosted a concert at the end of their stay.

Laetitia Sonami, 2008
Laetitia Sonami live at STEIM Studio, 2008. STEIM's long-time friend Laetitia Sonami flew in from Oakland, California to play in a concert we organised to rally against the Dutch government's intention to cut STEIM's funding. She also came to visit see STEIM artistic director Michel Waisvisz who was extremely ill at that time. Sonami played a pure electronic set with her Lady's Glove, a gestural controller/instrument made at STEIM in the late 90s. Akira Sakata, Tarek Atoui, Raed Yassin among others played that night as well. The concert space that usually seats 70 people was packed with more than 150 people, and the whole building was filled with a wonderful feeling of warmth and support. Waisvisz passed away that same evening.

Martin Brandlmayr, 2009
Martin Brandlmayr solo recorded live at STEIM's monthly concert series celebrating the institution's 40th anniversary. I was very familiar with Brandlmayr through his work with Radian, Trapist, and collaborations with Otomo Yoshihide, but had never heard him play solo. I proposed the idea to him, and he told me that it was a direction that he wanted to pursue further. His set combined multiple percussion instruments with tape, executed with extreme precision. It was a perfect act to close our 12 month celebratory concert series.

Michel Waisvisz live in Toronto, 1978
Taken from Michel Waisvisz’s cassette tape archive. Although Waisvisz performed vigorously throughout his life, very little of his live performances have been published. This recording is from his first North American tour in late 1978 which followed a residency at EMS studios in Stockholm. The EMS sessions were released as CRACKLE on FMP in 1979, but in this recording we get to hear another side of his work from that period, which combined sound poetry-esque vocal techniques with analog synth sounds. He abandoned both of these styles in his later career.