The reissue of Ferrante and Teicher's pricey 1958 album
Blast Off! with four additional tracks is a welcome one. The piano duo was not originally budgeted for a full orchestra for the recording of its third album for ABC-Paramount. Undaunted, the pair experimented and created the necessary sounds through modifications to their concert grands. Strategically placed pieces of rubber, wood, metal, and wads of paper achieved the desired instrumental effects. Unlike
John Cage, who was performing similar modifications for art's sake, Ferrante and Teicher were doing it for the masses.