The gentle and ferociously inventive guitarist Bern Nix (1947-2017), a former Ornette Coleman collaborator, and Egyptian bouzouki/guitar/flamenco/jazz master Ayman Fanous in duos and solos, restored from the Roulette archives. Recorded in concert in November 1996. Nix mastered Ornette’s theory of “harmolodics” and used it in his own practice. He also worked with James Chance and the Contortions, Jayne Cortez, John Zorn, Marc Ribot, Elliott Sharp, Jemeel Moondoc, Ronald Shannon Jackson, and many more. Fanous has forged a synthesis of both Arab tradition and Derek Bailey-style free improv. His collaborators include Frances-Marie Uitti, Tomas Ulrich, Jason Hwang, William Parker, Ned Rothenberg, Mark Feldman, Ikue Mori, and others.

Tracking The Odds: The Roulette Concert Archive is a monthly hour-long radio special produced by Roulette Intermedium (roulette.org) and broadcast in partnership with Wave Farm’s WGXC 90.7-FM and Standing Wave Radio. The broadcasts feature selected highlights from Roulette’s New York experimental music space dating from the early 1980s to the present. Thousands of rare, formative, and often unheard recordings by innovators and adventurous musicians populate the archive. Tracking The Odds airs the third Thursday of each month at 1 a.m. ET and is archived at wavefarm.org.

Founded in 1978, Roulette operates a 400-seat concert hall on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn with a focus on experimental and unorthodox music and performance across all genres and media. It's archive of thousands of audio and video recordings is currently being restored.

Pictured: A screening, reading, and performance for Henry Hills' film "Money" at Roulette (1985) with dancer Pooh Kaye surrounded by (L-R) John Zorn, Tom Cora, Ciro Baptiste, (obstructed, possibly Sally Silvers), Abigail Child, Diane Ward, Susie Timmons, Alan Davies, Bruce Andrews, Ikue Mori, Jim Staley, Butch Morris. Photo: Lona Foote.