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Jackson Mac Low

LINEbreak Radio Recording Session, New York, 1995


PoemTalk #46, discussing Jackson Mac Low's "Words nd Ends from Ez," October 13, 2011

Listen to the complete recording and read program notes for the episode at Jacket2.

Jackson Mac Low, Dick Higgins, Petr Kotik, Joseph Kubera, and Chris Nappi perform Emmett Williams's Cellar Song for Five Voices

This piece was written in 1960. The recording here was made of a performance in 1990, presented by the S.E.M. Ensemble, recorded by Mikhail Liberman at Paula Cooper Gallery, 2/6/1990. MP3 (12:22)

Reading in New York, February 25, 1964

Complete recording (39:14): MP3

Includes voice of Paul Blackburn and Robert Kelly reading “First Biblical Poem” (1955); and ends with Mac Low reading “Presidents” poems and “Alarm Clock".

Reading on the Gathas, New York City, 1970s

  1. Discussion of the Gathas (18:23): MP3
  2. Call Me Ishmael (0:52): MP3
  3. Pattern Recognition by Machine (3:22): MP3
  4. excerpt from The 8-Voice Stereo-Canon Realization of "The Black Tarantula Crossword Gatha" (10:49): MP3
  • Complete Recording (33:39): MP3

The Eight-Voice Stereo-Canon Realization Of "The Black Tarantula Crossword Gathas", published by S-Press as tape #33

8-Voice Stereo Canon (The 4 over-laid performances begin on channel one about 20 seconds after they begin on channel two: a "4-against-4" canon.) "The Black Tarantula Crossword Gatha" was written (drawn) 8/25/73 & after. Realized and recorded at NYU Composers' Workshop N.Y. on November 25, 1973. Note: "The Black Tarantula" is one of Kathy Acker's pseudonyms. Originally published as a cassette by S Press Tonbandverlag, Dusseldorf/Munchen, West Germany, 1975.
  • Complete recording (32:42): MP3

Reading from the Naropa Institute, August 11, 1975

Complete Recording (46:49): MP3

  1. The Peter Innisfree Moore Poems (18:27): MP3
  2. 36th Light Poem (4:02): MP3
  3. Phoeneme Dance for John Cage (5:11): MP3
  4. Joseph Conrad Poem (5:45): MP3
  5. 42nd Light Poem (6:40): MP3
  6. Du-fie (3:31): MP3

Recording Courtesy of the Naropa Institute

Recording from the Naropa Institute Archives, August 1975

  • Side A (44:11): MP3
  • Side B (17:18): MP3

Side A includes "The Mantra of Chain Resese", "A Vocabulary for PI Moore", "36th Light Poem", "For and From John Cage", "Donna Rita Joseph Conrad", and "42nd Light Poem" for Paul Goodman. Side B includes "Gloria", "Print Out from the 14 PDP3 Poem", and "Green Tara Mantra".

Appearing on Public Access Poetry with Peter Orlovsky, Steven Hall, Arthur Russell and Sharon Matlin, January 26, 1978

Complete video (59:31): MOV

Video excerpt from above: Jackson Mac Low reads "Phone"

Segue Series Reading at The Ear Inn, New York, October 1978

  1. 1st Milarepa Gatha (5:58): MP3
  2. This Is the Beginning of Something New (9:39): MP3
  3. Larry Rosing Piece for typewriter, video and voice (3:13): MP3
  4. Reading "Objects" from Tender Buttons (6:52): MP3
    prefatory comments (1:19): MP3
    reading "A Carafe, That Is A Blind Glass (Gertrude Stein) (0:49): MP3
    Reading a Selection from Tender Buttons (Language No. 6) (4:40): MP3
  5. On Strangeness (17:18): MP3
  6. Asymmetry 1 (0:24): MP3
  7. Asymmetry 4 (2:33): MP3
  8. Asymmetry 12 (0:56): MP3
Complete Reading (49:00): MP3 (There is a five-second pause around 45:00 when the tape was turned over.)

Performance recorded at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, Baltimore, MD, December 2, 1978

Anthologized in E. no 3, 2020

The First Sharon Belle Matla Vocabulary Gatha (10:53): MP3

Reading with Bob Cobbing and Tom Leonard at the Sound & Syntax International Festival of Sound Poetry, 1978

Watch on Media.sas

Reading for Emily Dickinson's Birthday Celebration, St. Mark's Church in the Bowery Poetry Project, December 10, 1979

  • Jackson Mac Low (03:51): MP3

Segue Series Reading at The Ear Inn, New York, January 30, 1982

  1. Introduction by Alan Davies (0:49): MP3
  2. Hereford Bosons (7:48): MP3
  3. Wall Rev (0:36): MP3
  4. Inkling Allegretti (8:38): MP3
  5. Baltimore Porches (8:31): MP3
  6. Regular Clerestories (8:28): MP3
  7. Megrose Trinity Sixfold (1:10): MP3
  8. Filial Simples (1:27): MP3
  9. White Tara (1:03): MP3
  10. Sermon Quail (1:38): MP3
  11. Anxious Calm (1:06): MP3
  12. Ten Weeks (2:22): MP3
  13. A Lack of Balance But Not Fatal (2:31) (cuts off midway in poem): MP3
Complete Reading (46:34): MP3

Segue Series Reaing at the Ear Inn, New York, March 3, 1984

Complete reading (46:32): MP3

St. Mark's Talks, October 24, 1984

"Politics and Language"

Q&A, Residency at New Langton Arts, San Francisco, c. 1984

First voice after Mac Low is Barrett Watten. Tom Mandel can also be heard.

  • Part 1 (47:38): MP3
  1. On philosophy of humanism (2:40): MP3
  2. On human value (8:43): MP3
  3. On identification (9:15): MP3
  4. On self-perception (6:40): MP3
  5. On control (3:04): MP3
  6. On language (2:52): MP3
  7. On metonymy and metaphor (3:36): MP3
  8. On discussion (2:53): MP3
  9. On context (1:39): MP3
  10. On correctness (5:59): MP3
  • Part 2 (45:26): MP3
  1. On experimentalism (1:42): MP3
  2. On writing well (1:08): MP3
  3. On stability (4:07): MP3
  4. On politics (4:50): MP3
  5. On choice (8:08): MP3
  6. On political poetry (5:40): MP3
  7. On connection (6:23): MP3
  8. On consciousness (5:13): MP3
  9. On America (5:13): MP3
  10. On roundtable (1:29): MP3

Reading at the Living Theater, NYC, with Charles Bernstein and Nick Piombino, March 28, 1990

  • Free Gatha 1, performed with Bernstein and Piombino (5:36): MP3
  • Twenties, 1-15 (22:34): MP3

Charles Bernstein poetics seminar, Wednesday @ Four Plus, SUNY Buffalo, October 11, 1990

  1. Reading a selection from Tender Buttons by Gertrude Stein and his L=A=N=G=U=A=G=E #6 essay on the book (7:02): MP3
    reading "A Carafe, That Is A Blind Glass" (Gertrude Stein) (1:58): MP3
    Reading A Selection from Tender Buttons (Language No. 6) (4:59): MP3
  2. Discussion of opening section of Stein's "Objects" (2:42): MP3
  3. Discussing function of prefaces and introductions to poems (4:25): MP3
  4. Discussing use of notation in creating a poetic collage (3:23): MP3
  5. Discussing close reading of MacLow’s poetry vs. Gertrude Stein’s poetry (6:41): MP3
    Stein as perceiver-centered (1:50): MP3
    close connection between Stein's writing and the kind Mac Low and many other Language writers do (0:34): MP3
    CB on Mac Low's procedure-based work as it relates to Stein's writing (1:06): MP3
    rejecting the notion of a unitary Stein, and discussing the way she composed and her manuscripts (3:10): MP3
  6. Role of “chance generation” (1:32): MP3
  7. Influence of John Cage’s chance-composed music and Buddhism (5:50): MP3
  8. Influence of Freud and psychoanalysis (2:11): MP3
  9. Serialism and 12-tone music (6:29): MP3
  10. Discussion of Mac Low’s methodologies (6:07): MP3
  11. Discussion of entropy (1:26): MP3
  12. Meaning in language and sound (3:24): MP3
  13. Cultural construct of language (1:30): MP3
  14. Discussion of voice (3:05): MP3
  15. Segmentation of poetry by sound (6:33): MP3

Complete reading (1:02:50): MP3

Segue Series Reading at The Ear Inn, New York, February 1, 1992

  1. Introduction (1:08): MP3
  2. Forties 8 (5:20): MP3
  3. Forties 19 (10:21): MP3
  4. Forties 17 (4:52): MP3
  5. Forties 16 (5:13): MP3
  6. A Lagoon Elucidation (7:48): MP3
  7. Hop Tempestuous (a poem for Mei-mei Berssenbrugge) (2:08): MP3
  8. Taking the Doctor's Suggestion (2:19): MP3
  9. Duchamp (3:03): MP3
  10. Rebus Effort Remove Government (2:35): MP3
  11. They Didn't Whir He Gave No Advice (2:49): MP3
Complete Reading (48:01): MP3 (There is a five-second pause around 45:00 when the tape was turned over.)

The Radio Reading Project Session at New York University, 1992

  1. Introduction (2:18): MP3
  2. From "Armand's Storehouse 3" (2:17): MP3
  3. On methods (13:27): MP3
  4. On influence (5:19): MP3
  5. Forties (6:34): MP3
  6. Rebus Effort Remove Government (5:40): MP3
  7. On changes (4:23): MP3
  8. He Never Relaxe99:d for a Moment (3:43): MP3
  9. Canto Z Part (9:45): MP3