SEAN BAXTER

Sean Baxter (drums/percussion/household audio equipment) has been involved in improvised music for over a decade.

He is a founding member of bucketrider (with David Brown and Tim O'Dwyer).

Other permanent groups he is involved with include:

Lazy, a free improvisation duo with Brown specializing in extreme noise from both ends of the volume spectrum; Krayniy Grokhot Terror, a trio with Brown and O'Dwyer who experiment with 'unpleasant' sounds and extended techniques produced from conventional instruments;

Western Grey, a trio with Brown and electronic composer, Philip Samartzis who meld ambient acoustic noise with real-time processing and sound-environment manipulation;

and The Crowded Foxhole, a quartet with Brown, O'Dwyer, and eleven-year old drummer, Louis Peake, who focus on naïve-brut improvisation.

He is one of the original members of the Greg Kingston Big Band, a project based on John Zorn's improvisational game piece, Cobra, which plays regularly at the What is Music? festival in Melbourne and Sydney.

In 2000 he was involved in DADA Cabaret (recipient of two Green Room awards for their performances during Melbourne's 2000 Fringe Festival), with Eric Griswold (piano), Vanessa Tomlinson (percussion), Ernie Altoff (found instruments), Mark Shepherd (contrabass), and Tim O'Dwyer (alto saxophone).

In November 2001 he co-founded (with Sydney actor Erick Mitsak-The Navigator, the "Milk Ad") LaBasta!, an avant garde theatre company which fuses experimental dramatic methods and improvised music.

As an individual performer he has played with a range of prominent Australian and International improvisers in duet and small group situations including Max Nagl (Austria), KK Null (Japan), Steve Heather and Alex Waterman (Netherlands), Robbie Avenaim (Sydney), Jim Denley (Sydney), Greg Kingston (Hobart), Tom Fryer (Melbourne), Philip Samartzis (Melbourne), and Philip Brophy (Melbourne).

As a soloist, he has begun performing no-fidelity plunderphonics under the guise of DJ Arsecrack, subversively fusing the likes of A### C### and Destiny's Child. He regularly performs at the What is Music? festival (Sydney and Melbourne) and the Make it Up Club (Melbourne).

He is also First Year Co-Ordinator with the Centre For Ideas at the Victorian College of the Arts, teaching cultural theory, performance theory, aesthetic philosophy and improvisation.

DAVID BROWN

David Brown (basses, guitars) has recently completed an MA in Performance (RMIT) focussing on the application of studio technology and computer assisted improvisation.

David has been involved in the local improvised, experimental, and avant-rock music scenes since the mid 70s with such influential groups as Signals, False Start and Dumb and the Ugly. His current projects include bucketrider, Lazy, Krayniy Grokhot Terror, The Greg Kingston Big Band, Terminal Hz (with Japanese noise guitarist KK Null), Philip Samartzis' Windmills project, and The Crowded Foxhole.

In addition, he is active as a solo improviser, and has been commissioned to compose music for various installation, theatrical and performance projects, the most recent of which was his contribution to the 2002 Virtuosic Visions series at the Melbourne Museum (March, 2002).

His skills have been regularly highlighted at the What is Music? festival since 1996, and the Immersion festival. Under the guise of Candlesnuffer, David recently released his first solo CD (Dr Jim's, 2001) to great critical praise.

Tim O'Dwyer (reeds) was born in 1971 and is a composer and saxophonist/ bass clarinettist who works in a wide range of contexts including contemporary classical, installation, punk rock and improvisation.

Graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts in 1993 he furthered his studies in 1995-6 in Amsterdam and London with composer Richard Barrett and saxophonist Evan Parker.

He has been a recipient of numerous Australia Council and Arts Victoria funding for overseas study, recording, touring and commissions.

Tim has been involved with some of Australia's leading contemporary music ensembles including Libra Ensemble, David Tolley's THAT and Elision Contemporary Ensemble.

His current projects include an electro-acoustic duo with laptop musician Newton Armstrong (N.Y.) , Tasmanian guitarist Greg Kingston and his European based trio pUPPy with percussionist Steve Heather and cellist Alex Waterman.

He has been a featured artist at Adelaide, Melbourne, Perth, What Is Music? and the Brisbane Asia Pacific Triennial festivals.

Tim has regularly toured Europe since 1995 playing at improvised/electronica and contemporary classical festivals, most recently appearing at the Ultima Contemporary Music Festival in Oslo and dOek festival at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam- appearing with Paul Lovans, Wilbert De Joode and Cert Jan Prins.

In May 02 he recorded his second solo c.d. commissioned by the prestigious Radio Bremen in Germany.

In November 02 Tim will commence a three month residency at Seian College of Visual Art in Kyoto, Japan as part of an Asia Link program to work with the renowned sculpture Katsushige Nakahashi.

ADAM SIMMONS

Adam Simmons (reeds) is a VCA graduate (BMus Performance, 1992).

He has been involved in the local jazz, punk and experimental scenes for the past decade performing with groups as diverse as the Edward York Quartet, Christbait, The Mavis' and the Barry Veith Big Band.

Current Projects include bucketrider, the Adam Simmons Quartet, New Blood (free jazz trio), Oynsemble Melbourne, and various free jazz and improvised music groups.

He has toured extensively throughout the Pacific performing at festivals like Noumea's Jazz in August festival (New Caledonia, 2000).

With his free jazz group, New Blood, Adam successfully toured Europe in 2000.

More recent career highlights include receiving and artist fellowship to attend the residency program at ArtOmi, near Hudson, NY, and solo performances at The Knitting Factory and Downtown Music Gallery, New York City (2001).

JAMES WILKINSON

James Wilkinson (trombone, electronics) is a VCA graduate (BMus Improvisation, 1996).

Current projects include bucketrider, High Pass Filter (dub-rock-improv-electronica), Snuff Puppets (for whom he is the musical director) and a forthcoming solo electro pop album.

In addition, James regularly performs as a solo improviser and with a myriad of improvisers from various traditions.

He has been a regular performer in the What is Music? festival since 1997, and has toured internationally with Snuff Puppets (Japan 1999, 2001, 2002. Singapore and England 2002), Desoxy Theatre (Japan 2001)and High Pass Filter (New Zealand 1998).

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