Vijay Iyer is one of the most significant contemporary composers and performers on the piano. This manuscript represents a compilation of small group compositions by Iyer during a period from 1999 to 2008.The bulk of thepieces were originally written for Vijay's quartet with altoist Rudresh Mahanthappa bassist Stephan Crump and drummers Marcus Gilmore Tyshawn Sorey and Derrek Phillips and are documented on the albums Panoptic Modes (2001) Blood Sutra (2003) Reimagining (2005) and Tragicomic (2008).The music features experimentation on rhythmic techniques harmony orchestration soloing structures and macro-form with an overriding focus on sound andfeel. This volume contains contrasting compositional approaches so as to give the reader an insight into the broad spectrum of compositional language and devices employed by Iyer.
