Ms. Chang is...an extraordinary, dynamic percussionist.”

Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG

Chang maintains an incisive but freewheeling flow, instantly responsive to her partner and sharing a keen sense of dynamics.”

John Sharpe, New York City Jazz Record

New York City Jazz Record, August 2018:

"In the search for new and striking forms of expression, it’s always refreshing to encounter an original voice. Flutist Robert Dick sounds unlike any other practitioner of his instrument, or rather instruments, as he explores the whole range of the flute family and especially the lower end. Dick’s discography boasts over 30 entries from the ‘80s onwards; he has authored instruction manuals; and he continues to perform. Dick met drummer Tiffany Chang when she subbed in an ensemble he coached at NYU in 2011 and recognized something in her inventive unfettered playing that would complement but not constrain his own. Dick marshals novel, often percussive, timbres to fulfill determinedly musical ends, particularly the combination of conventional sonorities, vocalizations and overblowing to reveal the harmonics inherent in his flutes. Chang maintains an incisive but freewheeling flow, instantly responsive to her partner and sharing a keen sense of dynamics. Importantly, she knows when to allow space for the flute to breathe and when to hustle, illustrated from the off in “Thieves” with its gusty bass flute and conversational pacing. On “Swedge”, she alternates between brushed patter and loping canter behind Dick’s swirling microtonal swoops facilitated by his trademarked Glissando Headjoint. Many of the pieces possess a spontaneously generated structure. That’s most obvious on the title track, which begins with Dick’s throaty staccato voice/ bass flute amalgam, matched by spiky percussion. After a churning unaccompanied drum interlude, breathy interplay holds sway, before a return to the opening gambit, but this time with Dick’s voice gradually becoming the dominant element. “This Once”, with its exotic mix of thumb piano and flute creating an elegiac feel, provides a pleasing contrast to the predominantly textural adventures elsewhere, as does “Pirarucu” with the Latin tinge to Chang’s rhythmic tracery and Dick’s dancing piccolo. On “Recovered Memory”, Dick’s solemn contrabass flute sustains meet Chang’s rustling accompaniment to fashion a suitably valedictory finale for a disc brimming with astonishing interplay." - John Sharpe, NYCJR

Downtown Music Gallery Newsletter, August 24th: 

"Raise the River (Rogue Art 0080; France) Featuring Robert Dick on bass flute, glissando headjoint flute, contrabass flute & piccolo and Tiffany Chang on drums & thumb piano. Over the past month or so, I’ve caught Robert Dick play in two flutes duos, one with Nicole Mitchell (at The Stone) and the other with “Hefi” Wisnioski (here, at DMG). Both were extraordinary! This duo disc came out a few months ago but I haven’t had time to review it until now. Mr. Dick always chooses his duet partners with great care and he has chosen Ms. Tiffany Chang, originally Bay Area-based and currently living in NYC, after spending time Tunisia and Taipei. This disc was recorded at a studio in Brooklyn and has incredibly clean, warm, well-balanced sound. Mr. Dick has a striking, haunting sound on his bass flute, this is the first thing that stood out. Although I hadn’t heard much about Ms. Chang before now, she is also an extraordinary, dynamic percussionist. When Mr. Dick switches to his unique glissando headjoint slide flute on “Swedge”, Ms. Chang switches to brushes, the two playing their intricate lines together, creating subtle currents, the balance between the percussive cushion underneath and the quick, criss-crossing flute lines, perfectly in sync. I really like when things calm down to the subtle section of “Nine Portions”, with both musicians carefully interweaving their organic sounds together. I like the way Mr. Dick uses odd vocal sounds to add some unexpected spice to his playing. On the title piece, Ms. Chang plays a long unaccompanied section and shows herself to be an incredibly expressive percussionist, telling a story with just the drums. Ms. Chang also plays some enchanting thumb piano on “This Once”, another strong accompaniment to Mr. Dick’s superb flute playing. Each piece here shows a selective balance of various elements: acoustic, organic, subtle, reflective, eruptive, filled nuances and surprising changes in direction. One of my favorite duo discs of the current batch. - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG