2026.01.19 Mazz Swift on Butch Morris - 3 of 3

2026.01.19 Mazz Swift on Butch Morris - 3 of 3

Author: Small Media Large 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 participating musicians.  It was an unprecedented musical spontaneity.    Butch Morris died in 2013, but Conduction is still making new breakthroughs in the hands of successive generations of musical thinkers.  Violinist/composer Mazz Swift, who worked with Butch Morris, is one of them.  New forms and ideas continually emerge, and Butch Morris endures as a shaping influence.     This Monday (Jan. 19), Mazz Swift joins host Mitch Goldman for a Deep Focus on Butch Morris.  Do the vast WKCR archives contain live, unreleased recordings of Butch Morris?  We certainly hope so!  Tune in to find out.   Deep Focus this Monday (Jan 19) from 6p to 9p NYC time on WKCR 89.9FM, WKCR-HD, or wkcr.org.   Or join us when it goes up on the Deep Focus podcast on your favorite podcasting app or at https://mitchgoldman.podbean.com/.  Subscribe right now to get notifications when new episodes are posted.  Just like WKCR, it's ad-free, sponsor-free, all free, totally non-commercial.  We won't even ask for your contact info.  Learn more about Deep Focus at https://mitchgoldman.com/about-deep-focus/ or join us onInstagram @deep_focus_podcast.  Photo credit: Butch Morris - photo by Anthony Barboza - nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2014.157.7 fair use under Section 108 of the U.S. Copyright Act.   #WKCR #DeepFocus #ButchMorris #LawrenceButchMorris #MazzSwift #JazzRadio #JazzPodcast #JazzInterview #MitchGoldman   Deep Focus is a production of Small Media Large. 

Mitch Goldman, from Small Media Large, sits down with a different working musician each week for Deep Focus. The premise is beautifully simple yet endlessly revealing: together, they dive into rare archival recordings-bootlegs, demo tapes, lost studio sessions-of an artist the guest deeply admires. This isn't a standard interview format. Instead, you're listening in on a shared, intimate listening session between two knowledgeable fans. The conversation flows from technical dissection of a guitar tone to personal stories about how a particular live bootleg soundtracked a pivotal life moment. You'll hear the crackle of a vintage tape as Mitch and his guest pause, rewind, and marvel at a forgotten vocal take or an experimental arrangement that never made the official album. This podcast lives in the spaces between the famous tracks, uncovering the raw, unpolished moments that often reveal an artist's true process and passion. It’s for anyone who believes the magic isn't just in the finished product, but in the journey of how it got there. Each episode of Deep Focus feels like being invited into a private club where the sole entry fee is a genuine love for music's hidden corners.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Deep Focus
Podcast Episodes
2025.09.29 Vernon Reid on James Blood Ulmer - 1 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:37
What is the great lesson of a James Blood Ulmer for fellow guitarist/composer/bandleader Vernon Reid? Find out this Monday (9/29) when Vernon Reid and host Mitch Goldman plunge into the WKCR archives in search of rare, l…
2025.09.01 Ben Tyree on Spectrum Road - 3 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:11
Who came up with the idea that the middle of the road is the right place to be? Regular listeners to Mitch Goldman's Deep Focus know that it's those shadowy corners, those Edge Cities, where new things start to happen. A…
2025.09.01 Ben Tyree on Spectrum road - 2 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:29
Who came up with the idea that the middle of the road is the right place to be? Regular listeners to Mitch Goldman's Deep Focus know that it's those shadowy corners, those Edge Cities, where new things start to happen. A…
2025.09.01 Ben Tyree on Spectrum road -  1 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:31
Who came up with the idea that the middle of the road is the right place to be? Regular listeners to Mitch Goldman's Deep Focus know that it's those shadowy corners, those Edge Cities, where new things start to happen. A…
2025.08.18 Bob Dee on Jef Lee Johnson - 3 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:12
How is it possible that you have never heard guitarist Jef Lee Johnson? He was as incendiary and as nakedly original as any soloist you have ever heard (absolutely any!). But his greater distinction might have been his s…
2025.08.18 Bob Dee on Jef Lee Johnson - 2 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:39
How is it possible that you have never heard guitarist Jef Lee Johnson? He was as incendiary and as nakedly original as any soloist you have ever heard (absolutely any!). But his greater distinction might have been his s…
2025.08.18 Bob Dee on Jef Lee Johnson - 1 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:25
How is it possible that you have never heard guitarist Jef Lee Johnson? He was as incendiary and as nakedly original as any soloist you have ever heard (absolutely any!). But his greater distinction might have been his s…
2015.08.03 Eric Person on Ornette Coleman - 3 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:51
Ornette Coleman, one of our brightest lights, died in June of 2015. Here is a Deep Focus from August of that year, with Eric Person as my guest, remembering Ornette. This show features a beautiful live recording from 197…
2015.08.03 Eric Person on Ornette Coleman - 2 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:02
Ornette Coleman, one of our brightest lights, died in June of 2015. Here is a Deep Focus from August of that year, with Eric Person as my guest, remembering Ornette. This show features a beautiful live recording from 197…
2015.08.03 Eric Person on Ornette Coleman - 1 of 3 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:18:34
Ornette Coleman, one of our brightest lights, died in June of 2015. Here is a Deep Focus from August of that year with Eric Person as my guest, remembering Ornette. This show features a beautiful live recording from 1978…