Denman Maroney Quintet - The Air-Conditioned Nightmare (2024)

Taking John Cage’s prepared piano and Conlon Nancarrow’s rhythmic innovations to new musical territories, Maroney’s performances have long occasioned reactions such as Fred Frith’s: “I was on the edge of my seat, breathless, agog.”

“There are few minds as agile and inquiring as that of pianist, composer and educator Denman Maroney. …He has managed to rethink the piano’s vocabulary, creating a readily identifiable language on the instrument. He calls his contribution “hyperpiano”, a method of playing inside the piano that is characterized by a dizzying and diverse pallet of sonorities that make the instrument into an orchestra. He has also developed an equally unique compositional language involving combined pulses, employing the phrase “temporal harmony” to describe it. Yet, there is a directness, at times almost a simplicity, in his music. With his playing and in his compositions, Maroney combines musical genres and transforms sounds we think we understand, adding depth and color, often at great speed, while never sacrificing clarity.” - Mark Medwin.

This new release is in two parts; the same group, with – and without – vocalist. In 2020, Maroney made a band with Scott Walton (bass), Samuel Silvant (drums) and Robin Fincker (tenor saxophone and Bb clarinet). After eight months, they recorded Covid Variations, an album of nine works by Maroney and one by Thelonious Monk.

In 2022 Maroney asked singer Emilie Lesbros to join the band. Together they recorded The Air-Conditioned Nightmare, an album of eight works by Maroney, including six with words by him, Henry Miller, W.B. Yeats, and T.S. Eliot. True to form, Maroney’s songs “meld words and music in subtle, thoughtful ways.” (- Fred Cisterna)

For Denman Maroney, music and life are not easily separated:
“Music is the healing force of the universe,” said Albert Ayler. This music promotes healing through multiple tempos and canonic rhythms. We all keep our own time. Like all humanity, all our times are related. Hear them together, and maybe we can live in harmony. “Can’t we all just get along?” said Rodney King. This music says yes.