I was born on October 26, 1971 and raised in upstate New York by my South Indian immigrant parents. Thanks to their guidance and patience, I began violin lessons at the tender age of three. At some later time-- I can't say when, exactly -- I started trying to use the piano to express myself. I learned slowly and gradually, by listening to the radio, trying to mimic what I liked, and learning some basic harmony along the way. Autodidacticism plays a key role in the history of the African-American music known as "jazz," and, inevitably, in my teens I gravitated towards that history.

And just as inevitably, I found myself most attracted to music that lay outside conventional teachings: Ellington, Monk, Cecil Taylor, and other artists in the Pantheon (see overleaf). As a person of color in America, I identified readily with their revolutionary forms of self-expression. To my ears, these artists possess a certain "cry," an incisive, ironic stance towards conventional musical forms, practices, and discourses. Often supporting and enriching this approach is a critical sociopolitical outlook, a desire to change the world that many artists of color cannot help but share. This dimension is of utmost importance to me, and it ought to be heeded generally as a musical reality, a governing concept in the "jazz tradition." This is why I feel strongly about allying myself with the redoubtable forces of the musician-run Asian Improv Records label; the creativity of such venerable artists as Jon Jang, Francis Wong, Glenn Horiuchi, Mark Izu, and Miya Masaoka has that impassioned cry at its core. I am honored to join their ranks with my debut release.

Like many of the Asian Improv artists, I have cultivated an interest in the music of my cultural heritage -- in my case, South Indian classical (Carnatic) music -- in order to connect with my ancestry and ground my own creativity. I also try to understand and pay homage to the African roots of jazz, the significance of which cannot be emphasized enough. Both of these efforts draw inspiration in part from the Afrocentrism of jazz musicians such as Sun Ra, Randy Weston, The Art Ensemble of Chicago and John Coltrane, and from the political music of Jang, Max Roach and Charles Mingus.

In my music, both Carnatic and African elements occur in coded or mediated form, to acknowledge the barriers of history and language that fall between those cultures and my own American frame of reference. Crucial to much of my music is the notion of rhythmic progression -- which has origins in Africa and India, and undoubtedly elsewhere as well -- which readily supports multiple readings, compound states of awareness, internal dialogues, and decentered musical spaces. My harmonic language strives to reemphasize these ideas and to articulate the physical fundamentals of sound.

This recording is graced by the presence of two friends and mentors of mine who happen to be geniuses of modern music. Saxophonist, composer, and musical pioneer Steve Coleman has led the creative movement known as M-Base (Macro-Basic Array of Structured Extemporization) since its inception and is widely regarded as one of the world's greatest improvisers. Trombonist, composer, improviser, installation artist, and philosopher George Lewis is a visionary in the field of computer music, a University of California San Diego music professor, and an important member of AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians). Both of them have initiated momentous changes in my life and thought. I give them my unmitigated gratitude, not just for helping me with this project, but for being so generous with their knowledge and time and for taking an interest in my life's direction. It is significant that this project brings together the AACM, M-Base, and Asian Improv Arts creative movements -- revolutionary, artist-run organizations that seek self-sufficiency, empowerment, and unity through music.

With this collection, I attempt to document my current work in the realm of performance-oriented, improvised music, there are no overdubs or edits on this recording; you hear only "live" performances, captured in the studio. The variety of music situations presented here reflects the variety of creative music in the Oakland-San Francisco Bay Area. The Vijay Iyer Trio (bassist Jeff Brock, drummer Brad Hargreaves, and myself) has served as a laboratory for my often clumsy ideas since the summer of 1994. Jeff who has fallen prey to my whims since 1989, has managed against all odds to juggle music, math, and marriage successfully. Brad is a strong player who has been extremely committed, patient, and quick about learning and expanding the music. I have never worked with more dedicated, sensitive, or respectful musicians than these. We have grown and learned a tremendous amount together. This project only begins to document the trio repertoire; you'll hear more from us!

I brought together the members of Poisonous Prophets solely for the recording of "Peripatetics," but such sparks flew (if I may say so) that we've turned into a regular unit. Bassist Jeff Bilmes is an extremely thoughtful musician, a master of rhythmic subtlety, and, most importantly, a great cook. Elliot Humberto Kavee, besides ranking among the best and most in-demand drummers in The Bay Area, possesses tremendous musical and extra-musical sensitivity and relentless sense of humor. And my good friend Liberty "..or give me death" Ellman stands out in our generation as a guitarist with boundless creativity, artistry, sincerity, and positive energy.

In "March & Epilogue" and "Segment for Sentiment #2," Spirit Complex navigates the sonic terrain that I used to seek with the group Sonocentric Ensemble, an improvising collective co-led by saxophonist Lee Yen and myself. These two tracks boast the unmistakably monstrous tenor saxophone of the great Francis Wong, who occupies a role of great historical significance as one of the original instigators behind Asian Improv Arts, and as its current president. It also features the charisma and drive of cellist, bassist, composer, luthier, and Sun Ra Arkestra alumnus Kash Killion, who's always involved in dozens of great projects, from Delta Blues to our outer realms. I am indebted to this quintet, especially to George, for their painstaking care in helping to transform my eight-bar sketch for "Segment for Sentiment #2" into the beautiful jewel that it became. Since we recorded on August 6, 1995, it was clear to me that the weight of history was upon us -- hence the dedication.

It was only a few months ago that Francis pulled me aside and suggested that it was a good time for me to make a record. I had a well-rehearsed trio, a nice bunch of tunes, lots of great musicians on my side, and even some public recognition; it would have been a mistake to let the moment slip away. Some sleepless nights and crushing debts later, I can say without hesitation that Francis was right! I have been incredibly fortunate to have the resources and support to realize this project. Enjoy, and thanks for listening.

Special thanks to everybody involved in this project, Brother hood of Diaspora, Sonocentric Ensemble, the Sun Ra Tribute bands, Fatty Boom Boom, Substance Theory, the D'Armous Boone Collective, Real Time, Midnight Voices / Frustratino / the Upper Room Revue, Steve Coleman and Five Elements / Metrics / Mystic Rhythm Society / the Secrete Doctrine, Cecil Taylor's Creative Orchestra, George Lewis's Improvisors' Forum, Frances Wong's AIRShop, Mark Izu's Thousand Cranes Ensemble, Donald Bailey's Eight Misbehavin', Robert Rhodes Jr., Graham Connah, Trudy Morse, Mark Wright, ROVA Saxophone Quartet, Peter Apfelbaum, India Cooke, Ben Goldberg, Jason Hwang, J. D. Parran, San Fracisco Gagaku Society, Gina Hotta, Jazz in Flight, the Asian American Jazz Festival, Roberto Morales and the University of Guanajuato, Hertz Hall, East Bay Center for the Performing Arts, CNMAT, U.C. Berkeley Physics, Oakland Bay Area Jazz Preservation Society, Yall, Eastman, FHS, India Currents, India West, Jazz Now, The East Bay Express, The Bay Guardian, The Daily Californian, Cathy Austin, Avotcja, Densic Maunder, Derk Richardson, Larry Kelp, Sam Prestianni, Gamal Awad, Jason Olaine, rec.music.bluenote, and anyone else who has ever helped me out; Derth, Bella, Lorin, Jake, Jeff B (both), Bob B., Shannon, Rob C., Xam, Sylvia, Christine C., Liverty, Tasha, kye, Blake, Ed, Ben H. (our man in Paris), Elliot, JoJo, Suzy &household, Beatriz (con los ojos), Linda, Colleen, Miya, Kevin M., Andrea M., Vytas, Katzenew, David P., Erika S., Anne&Donna&Mercy, Megan T., Steve U., Anjali for their friendship and positivity; my brethren Lee Yen and Justin Flynn, for how far we've come; my professors Leo Falicov, Don Glaser, Erv Hafter, George Lewis, Olly Wilson, and especially the great David Wessel, my friend, mentor, and colleague, for many inspiring interactions, and tons of assistance, advice, and patience; and most of all, my family (Sita, Raghu, Pratima & Kurt) for their immeasurable love and support. Extra thanks to Dad for hte malapropism that named the album!

The Pantheon: Muhal Richard Abrams, Geri Allen, Peter Apfelbaum, Louis Armstrong, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Dondald Bailey, Bela Bartok, Eddie Blackwell, Anthony Braxton, James Brown, Jaki Byard, Don Cherry, George Clinton, Nat King Cole, Ornette Coleman, Steve Coleman, Bootsy Collins, John Coltrane, Anthony Davis, Miles Davis, Eric Polphy, Duke Ellington, Gil Evans, Kito Gamble, John Gilmore, Trilok Gurtu, Herbie Hancock, Coleman Hawkins, Roy Haynes, Jascha Heifetz, Julius Hemphill, Fletcher Henderson, Joe Henderson, Jimi Hendrix, Andrew Hill, Earl Hines, Johnny Hodges, Elmo Hope, Gleen Horiuchi, Sakir Hussain, Abdullah Ibrahim, Mark Izu, Ahmad Jarnal, Jon Jang, Lalgudi Jayaraman, Elvin Jones, Rahsaan Roland Kirck, C.K. Ladzekpo, Olivas Lake, George Lewis, Miya Masaoka, Charles Mingus, Thelonious monk, James Newton, Herbie Nichols, Charles Parker, Maceo Parker, Bud Powell, Public Enemy, T.A.F.K.A. Prince, Don Pullen, Sudha Raghunathan, Sam Rivers, Max Roach, Pharaoh Sanders, Trichy Sankaran, L. Shankar, Sonny Sharrock, Wayne Shorter, Wadada Leo Smith, Billy Strayhorn, L. Subramaniam, Sun Ra, Art Tatum, Cecil Taylor, John Tchicai, Henry Threadgill, Tribe Called Qwest, McCoy Tyner, Rancy Weston, Tony Wiliams, Francis Wong, Reggie Workman... and many others, of course.