2026.01.19 Mazz Swift on Butch Morris - 3 of 3

E443 - 2026.01.19 Mazz Swift on Butch Morris - 3 of 3

Published: March 8, 2026

Duration: 1:01:39

Improvisation is considered a high art form for an instrumentalist, but what about for a composer?  Is it even possible to create a piece of music for an ensemble, and to hear it performed in real time?  How would you go about that? You would have to have an entire group imagining together.  Lawrence "Butch" Morris did it by creating a compositional language that allowed him to convey musical ideas using physical gestures.     His system, which he called "Conduction," was immediately transformative.  He created compositions in real time that were shaped by the musical language and the performances of the partici...