January 30, 8:00 p.m., 1994
	A sound voyage that ranged far and wide, Aboriginal to Avant Garde brought together two different traditions in improvisation. The first half of the evening featured writer/voice artist Paul Dutton and violinist Curtis Driedger in an improvised voice/violin duet. Paul resists the term "voice poet", which has often been applied, contending that what he does with his voice has more to do with music than poetry. At the same time, he uses a much greater range of vocal effects than is customary in vocal music. The interactions between Paul and Curtis were compelling. The second half was turned over to Ali Kushkani, a virtuoso on the santur, a Persian hammered dulcimer. Ali's improvised composition, with its great rolling rushes of sound, unleashed a sound from the santur that was quite a surprise to most of the people in the audience. One of Artword's objectives has been to bring artists together from different realms who might not otherwise encounter each other. That night's combination was particularly satisfying. RW