Recording history and tape provenance
The quartet – Holland on bass, Sam Rivers on tenor sax, flute, and clarinet, Anthony Braxton on alto sax, flute, and clarinet, and Barry Altschul on percussion and marimba – holds a specific place in jazz history beyond the record itself: this was the only time Rivers and Braxton, two of the most strikingly original saxophonists of their generation, ever recorded together. The entire 40-minute album was completed in a single six-hour session.
All six compositions are Holland's own, built on what's often described as an "open form" or "time, no changes" principle: each piece states a melodic theme to establish key, tempo, and mood, then opens into free improvisation before the theme returns to signal a shift in direction. Jazz historian Stuart Nicholson has described the result as a return to "the rugged discipline of early 1960s free improvising," using melodic foundations to achieve a more controlled version of freedom than pure free jazz typically allows. DownBeat gave it a five-star review on release, and the Penguin Guide to Jazz later selected it for its "Core Collection" of essential jazz recordings. Holland's own liner note explains the title: while living in London, he'd watch birds gather one by one in his small garden around dawn, "each declaring its freedom in song," and wanted to share that same spirit with the musicians on the record.
This is worth understanding clearly before assuming "reissue" automatically means "remastered." Multiple detailed owner reviews on Discogs independently confirm that the 2017 ECM 180-gram reissue was pressed from the same metal stampers cut in 1973 for the original release – not a new lacquer cut from tape, but literally the same physical parts used to press original copies decades earlier. One reviewer specifically frames this as an "AAA guarantee" in the fullest sense: since nothing was recut, there's no possibility of a digital step or different mastering chain being introduced, and reviewers describe the resulting pressing as dead quiet, with one going as far as rating it above comparable Acoustic Sounds or Tone Poet audiophile reissues from other labels. This is a genuinely different kind of "reissue" than most titles on this site get – closer to a very late pressing from the original production run than a modern remaster.
Sound quality by pressing
The ECM 1027 (1973 original) is the true first pressing, on ECM's original yellow cover design with green labels, pressed at Pallas in Germany. At least one edition of the original release included die-cuts on the back cover allowing the sleeve to stand up like an oversized photo frame – a design detail worth knowing about if you're evaluating cover condition on a specific copy.
The 2017 ECM reissue (original 1973 stampers) isn't a new mastering, but a fresh pressing from the same stampers used for the original release, giving it an unusually direct claim to sonic identity with a genuine original.
The 1976/77 German reissue is identifiable by "Urheber- Und..." text in the label rim and a specific label code (LC 2516) not present on the earliest pressings – a legitimate, still-vintage-era alternative to a true 1973 first pressing.
Buyer's guide by budget
$$: A 1976/77 German reissue, identifiable by the label rim text described above.
$$$: The 2017 ECM reissue – same stampers as the 1973 original, praised by owners as exceptionally quiet.
$$$$: A clean original 1973 ECM 1027 pressing, condition-dependent.
Pressing tier summary
| Tier ⇅ | Pressing | Cat# | Year ⇅ | Format | Source / Mastering | Notes | Market ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | ECM reissue, original 1973 stampers | ECM 1027 | 2017 | Stereo, 33⅓, 180g | Same physical stampers as the 1973 original – not a new mastering | Praised by multiple owners as exceptionally quiet | – |
| A | ECM 1027 (original) | ECM 1027 ST | 1973 | Stereo, 33⅓ | Tony May / ECM lacquer; pressed at Pallas (Germany) | First pressing; yellow cover, green labels | market data pending |
| B | German reissue | ECM 1027 | 1976/77 | Stereo, 33⅓ | Not independently confirmed | Identifiable by "Urheber- Und..." rim text and label code LC 2516 | market data pending |
References
- Discogs (master, all versions): https://www.discogs.com/master/71747
- Wikipedia, "Conference of the Birds (Dave Holland album)": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conference_of_the_Birds_(Dave_Holland_album)
- Jazz History Online, "Dave Holland: 'Conference of the Birds' (ECM 1027)": https://jazzhistoryonline.com/dave-holland-conference-of-the-birds-ecm-1027/
- ECM Records, official product page: https://ecmrecords.com/product/conference-of-the-birds-david-holland-quartet/