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Bill Gilliam

Experimental & New Music
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Recordings

Uncountable Spheres – Marbyllia

Record Details

Artist
Margaret Maria & Bill Gilliam
Release
2023:11
Uncountable Spheres Bandcamp 1400 x 1400

Uncountable Spheres is a journey from our earth’s core gravitational forces and our troposphere where we live impacted by climate change, and further up into our distressed stratosphere. Our experimental cello and piano free improvisations continue to imagine a passage through the wonderful ethereal nature of the different levels of our atmosphere’s protective mesosphere and thermosphere until we reach the very edge of the exosphere where atoms and molecules escape into space and satellites orbit the earth. As we encounter the weightlessness of space we begin our search for unexplored worlds.

Here on our fragile sphere for only a tiny fraction of the immense universe, our atmospheric cello and piano free improvisations are both a sliver and an eternity of hope; radiating through a moment in time.

Listen to Uncountable Spheres on Bandcamp

PERSONNEL/CREDITS:

Marbyllia:
Margaret Maria – cello
Bill Gilliam – piano

All compositions and production by Margaret Maria & Bill Gilliam
© ℗ Marbyllia, 2023 SOCAN
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Gary Honess at Khul Muzik, Toronto

MEDIA QUOTES & REVIEWS (JAN, FEB 2024)

“the masterfully meticulous Uncountable Spheres” – Mark Druery, Indie Shark
indieshark.com/music-reviews/marbyllia-uncountable-spheres-lp/

“I don’t think you’re going to hear anything like Uncountable Spheres no matter how far and wide you scan the underground section of your local record store this month.” – Trace Whittaker, Popicon
popiconmagazine.com/music/marbyllia-release-uncountable-spheres/

“Simply put, this is top-notch listening for experimental fans of all stripes”. Heather Savage, Top Buzz Magazine
topbuzzmagazine.com/music/marbyllias-uncountable-spheres/

“This duo is the real article, which isn’t easy to come by anymore on either side of the pop music universe” – Mindy McCall, Indie Pulse Music
indiepulsemusic.com/2024/02/18/margaret-maria-and-bill-gilliam-marbyllia-record-new-music/

“For those of us who demand quality that’s a cut above in our ambient beats, this is a sound arriving at the perfect moment this late winter. I love what I hear in this album, and something tells me you will too.” – Garth Thomas, Hollywood Digest
thehollywooddigest.com/uncountable-spheres-by-canadas-marbyllia/

“The two improvisors push the limits of each other: Gilliam’s extensive range of sounds from his piano and Maria’s extended cello technique and unusual sound makers. The track Stratosphere in Distress is a solid representation of this dynamic team”. – Cheryl Ockrant, TheWholenote
www.thewholenote.com/index.php/booksrecords2/jazzaimprovised/33233-uncountable-spheres-goddess-of-edges-margaret-maria-bill-gilliam

 

About Bill

Bill is a Toronto based composer / pianist who creates and improvises new music compositions blending contemporary harmony and jazz idioms with his unique style of piano and prepared piano playing.

Originally from London UK, he studied jazz and film composition at Berklee College of Music. His diverse compositions, performances and recordings, with support from the Ontario Arts Council and Toronto Arts Council, have been showcased at Canadian venues as well as in London, UK and the USA.

He is active in Toronto as a composer, improvisor and presenter of innovative performances combining composed and improvised music, spoken word and visuals.

Upcoming Concerts

Date
October 19, 2025 Oct 19
What Is Freedom In Times Like These?
Annette Studios, 566 Annette St, Toronto, M6S 2C2
Note

Sunday Oct 19th, 8pm
Annette Studios
566 Annette St, Toronto

$20/PWYC

"What Is Freedom In Times Like These?" a spoken word & music performance featuring actor/musician Rod Campbell & cellist Margaret Maria & myself .

Set 1: Actor / musician Rod Campbell and pianist Bill Gilliam perform poems and excerpts by authors Constantine Cavafy, Adrienne Rich, Rabindranath Tagore, Samuel Beckett, Zbigniew Herbet, Rumi and Gilliam, expressing the difficult paths we take to preserve our rights and freedoms and the need to celebrate their continuation.

Set 2: The Marbyllia duo — cellist Margaret Maria and myself — will chart a new direction, exploring the freedom of musical expression through Portalz landscapes, performing cello and piano improvisations with spacious electronic sounds and rhythms. Rod will join us for the finale to enrich our textures of sound and poetry.

More
View All Gigs

Recent PostsFeed

  • Marbyllia – Uncountable Spheres – Media Quotes & Reviews
    March 4, 2024
  • Marbyllia – Margaret Maria & Bill Gilliam release “Uncountable Spheres”
    November 18, 2023
  • “Outside The Maze” – media comments & album reviews 2023
    August 18, 2023
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