About Us

We are an independent record label dedicated to releasing work of innovative musicians.

label information

Next Event

May 9
The Trio feat. Muhal Richard Abrams, George Lewis & Wadada Leo Smith
Community Church of NY
New York, NY
event calendar

Pi Conversations

Watch a short video of Pi artists discussing music - featuring George Lewis, Steve Lehman, Rudresh Mahanthappa, and Liberty Ellman.

Small (30 MB) | Large (100 MB) (requires quicktime)

Pi Weblog

Visit our new weblog!

Pi T-shirts

Check out our t-shirts – stylish designs made with quality materials. Get yourself a nice new Spectrus or Kyma T-shirt.

Featured Music

What Am I? - Irrational Remix (Steve Lehman)
Anti-Pop Consortium featuring Pharoahe Monch and L.I.F.E.
Steve Lehman’s remix of this underground hip-hop classic makes use of irrational rhythms and non-repetitive formal devices to create a meticulously crafted sound world that, much like the lyrical content on the track, is at once ominous and highly visceral.
Universal Indians
Marc Ribot
The band puts its stamp on this Ayler tune, an unreleased track from the Spiritual Unity sessions with Roy Campbell on trumpet & pocket trumpet, Chad Taylor on drums, and Henry Grimes on bass.
Hope
Rudresh Mahanthappa
This recording is from Yatra, Rudresh's first CD, recorded in 1994. It includes Larry Kohut on bass and Jerry Steinhilber on drums.

Email List

Join our list and get very infrequent news updates from us.

Latest News

More great press about the AACM and George Lewis's book from Hank Shteamer in
Time Out New York.
For those interested in digging deeper, (well you really should read the book) Hank has put up these great interview transcripts with George and Muhal on his BLOG. Happy reading.
–posted May 8
George Lewis's book
A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music
is now available. Read fine articles about this important work
HERE
and HERE. Of course , if you are in New York, please attend this important EVENT, a panel discussion, book signing, and performance featuring Muhal Richard Abrams, George Lewis and Wadada Leo Smith.
–posted May 7
Pi Recordings is pleased to announce that the Jazz Journalists Association has released their list of finalists for this year's awards and a number of Pi Recordings' artists are prominently featured. Tyshawn Sorey has been nominated for Up & Coming Musician of the Year and Drummer of the Year, while Steve Lehman has been nominated for Alto Player of the Year. Congratulations to both Tyshawn and Steve. Harbingers of things to come for sure.
–posted May 7
Wonderful feature article on the AACM by Nate Chinen in the
New York Times
on the occasion of the release of George Lewis´s "A Power Stronger Than Itself: The AACM and American Experimental Music." It´s really heartening to be reminded how many of the key members of the AACM, some now gone, have recorded for Pi. Chinen goes on to name Fieldwork as an example of a band influenced by the AACM aesthetic. Thanks Nate for helping to draw attention to an organization whose recognition falls well short of it´s influence on the music.
–posted May 2
Just 1 week, April 22nd, till the release of Fieldwork's 3rd recording Door, featuring Vijay Iyer, Steve Lehman and Tyshawn Sorey. To celebrate the release we have designed a Fieldwork tee shirt that will soon be for sale.

In the meantime, you can satisfy your Fieldwork needs with this video from last years Vision Festival. Some of you may remember that excerpts from this performance were aired on BBC Radio. Enjoy.
–posted April 16
We're late in posting this, but it's too good to pass up. Jon Garelick's interview in the The Phoenix with Rudresh before his Boston gig in February produced some notable quotes, "Mahanthappa, now 36, is one of the more celebrated young musicians of his generation, a critics’-poll winner and Guggenheim fellow with an original compositional style rooted in jazz..." or "“I never claimed to be playing Indian music, but it’s a significant part of what I do, as much as Charlie Parker and John Coltrane and Duke Ellington." It's a good read if for no other reason than to find out what inspirations lie behind some of Rudresh's compositions.
–posted March 28
news archive

Featured Articles

Marc Ribot: The Care and Feeding of a Musical Margin

Simulated Progress:
A Conversation

Vijay Iyer & Steve Lehman
A conversation between Steve Lehman and Vijay Iyer about Fieldwork and their new release Simulated Progress.

Mother Tongue:
Do you Speak Indian?

Rudresh Mahanthappa
This is a brief essay explaining the recent Pi release Mother Tongue. Complete with audio files and musical scores, Rudresh explains the concept behind the compositions.


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