w00t. (2007) w00t is a free, internet-only release composed entirely from fragments of music from video games. [free download / additional info]

Recordings
Now that this page is not just a list of CDs but a collection of free downloads that many people who are not very familiar with my music are using, I thought I should make a short guide for new visitors who are interested in downloading music.

SOONER OR LATER, of all my pieces, has received the most critical attention. It is another favorite, and also requires sustained and concentrated listening (actually all my music does).

LIKE A MELODY, NO BITTERNESS. My first volume of solo electronic improvisations, this would be the place to begin if you are interested in my work as an improviser, or in electronic music per se.

PANTYCHRIST. This is probably the strangest thing on the whole list. Normally I don’t get too excited one way or the other when critics say things about my work, but I admit I was pleased when Q.U.E.E.R. zine said, "To say that this has made me radically rethink my use of the word ‘queer’ is an understatement." The featured vocalist is Justin Bond, who sold out Carnegie Hall as Kiki in the Kiki and Herb show, and recently starred as him/her/self in John Cameron Mitchell’s film Shortbus. PantyChrist is twisted, funny and very obscene.

SAY NO MORE: The 4 Say No More CD’s are the total recorded output of my quartet project where I composed for the group by making audio collages of fragments of the group’s own playing. CD’s 1 and 3 are the audio collages, while 3 and 4 are the live ensemble performances based on the collages. The notes associated with the CD’s explain the process in more detail. The first track of the first CD “Say No More” has been downloaded far more times than any other track available on this site. It is very aggressive and in-your-face. The second track, “Tongue-Tied,” is much more introspective. The live version of “Say No More” on the second CD suffers from the fact that we had to change drummer – Joey Baron plays on the collaged version, and Gerry Hemingway joined the group just after. Gerry played one the both the collage and live version of Tongue-Tied, and the band members actually prefer the lives version (Track 2, CD 2).
          The third CD in the series, Verbatim, is probably my favorite of all my recordings, but to really hear it requires sustained and concentrated listening.

VOICE OF AMERICA. Released in 1982, this features live improvisations with myself, guitarist Fred Frith, and vocalist Phil Minton, recorded in the aftermath of Ronald Reagan becoming US president. I like the music a lot, and the CD also documents use of found recorded sound in a musical and political way that has become commonplace with Hip Hop but was completely unknown at the time.

Of course, I hope you listen to and enjoy all the music here, these are just suggestions of where to begin.

Living Cinema Presents Between Science and Garbage. (2004) Recording of live cinema performance with film maker Pierre Hébert. [Tzadik DVD Edition 3002] [ additional info / purchase ]

Say No More Project CDs 1 & 2. (2002) Originally released separately as Say No More (1993) and Say No More in Person (1994). Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2002. With Joey Baron (percussion), Mark Dresser (bass), Gerry Hemingway (percussion) and Phil Minton (voice). Assembled on computer from fragments of solo improvisations. [Seeland 521] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Say No More Project CDs 3 & 4. (2002) Originally released separately as Verbatim (1996) and Verbatim Flesh & Blood (2000). Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2002. With Gerry Hemingway (percussion), Mark Dresser (bass), and Phil Minton (voice). Third and fourth and final cd from the Say No project. Assembled on computer (3) and recorded live in Gent, Belgium (4). [Seeland 522] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Dear Prime Minister. (1998) With the students of the Hansa Gymnasium. WDR/Hansa Special. Special release through the Hansa Gymnasium and WDR. A UNESCO project to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations Declaration of Universal Human Rights.

All the Rage. (1993) Kronos Quartet plays Ostertag's transcriptions of gay riots in San Francisco. Libretto by Sara Miles. [Elektra-Nonesuch 79332-2] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Burns Like Fire. (1992) Riots, country and western, and gospel. Companion piece to All the Rage. Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2001. [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Sooner or Later. (1991) Solo. Based on a recording of a Salvadoran boy burying his father. RecRec Music (RecDec 37) Re-issued on MVORL/Seeland in limited edition in 2001. [Seeland 514] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

DJ of the Month: Bob Ostertag Solo Volume 2. (2002) Solo improvisations. [Seeland 526] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Like A Melody, No Bitterness: Bob Ostertag Solo Volume 1. (1997) Solo improvisation. Seeland 508. Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2001. [Seeland 508] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

PantyChrist. (1999) With Otomo Yoshihide (dj) and Justin Bond (vocal). [Seeland 510] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Fear No Love. (1995) With Mike Patton, Fred Frith, Justin Bond, Lynn Breedlove, 15 others. [Avant 041] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Twins! (1996) With Otomo Yoshihide (dj). Resampled "twins" of parent tracks by Herb Robertson, Chris Cutler, and Yagi Michiyo. [Creativeman 0030] [ additional info / purchase ]

Attention Span. (1990) With John Zorn (alto sax) and Fred Frith (guitar). Rift Records (Rift 14) and RecRec Music (RecDec 33). Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2001. [ additional info / purchase ]

Voice of America. (1982) With Fred Frith (guitar) and Phil Minton (voice). Recorded in concert in London and NYC. RecRec Music (RecDec 907). Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2001. [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Getting A Head. (1980) With Charles K. Noyes (percussion) and Fred Frith (guitar). Uses unorthodox instrument built from tape recorders and helium balloons. Rift Records. Re-issued in MVORL limited edition in 2001. [Seeland 516] [ download / additional info / purchase ]

Fall Mountain: Early Fall. (1979) With Ned Rothenberg (wind instruments) and Jim Katzin (violin). Recorded at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. [Parachute]

Anthony Braxton: Creative Orchestra (Koln) 1978. (1995) Live performance from 1978 released as 2-CD set in 1995. [hatART 2-6171]

Eugene Chadbourne: The English Channel. (1978) Eugene Chadbourne's large ensemble extravaganza, featuring many young East Village improvisors, including John Zorn, Fred Frith, Wayne Horvitz, LaDonna Smith, many more. [Parachute]

Burdocks. (2001) "For half a century legendary scholar Christian Wolff has created a very personal musical response to John Cage's challenging experiments and three of his most distinctive compositions receive inspiring performances here by a collection of San Francisco and New York's best and most imaginative performers. Fred Frith, Joan Jeanrenaud, Bob Ostertag, Miya Masaoka and Stephen Drury are just a few of the remarkable players percussion virtuoso William Winant has brought together to pay tribute to the fascinating work of this conceptual visionary, who performs at the piano with an all-star ensemble on his most famous composition Burdocks."

Fred Frith/Keep the Dog: That House We Lived In. (2003) 2-CD set of concert recordings of Frith's ensemble from the 1990s. [Recommended Records FRA 3]

John Zorn: Pool. (2003) Re-release of one of Zorn's earliest game pieces first issued in 1979. [Tzadik 73163]

John Zorn: The Parachute Years. (1997) Multi-CD set of Zorn's early game pieces. [Tzadik 7316-7]

House of Discipline (with Mike Patton and Otomo Yoshihide). Included on AngelicA 1997, a compilation of performances at the Angelica music festival in Bologna, Italy, 1997. [I dischi di angelica 3]

Improvisations with John Zorn and Fred Frith. Included on AngelicA 1994, a compilation of performances at the Angelica music festival in Bologna, Italy, 1994. [I dischi di angelica 1]