Turner Williams Jr. plays the shahi baaja, an electrified chordophone from the zither family that uses typewriter keys to alter the pitches of its strings. Invented in Japan, evolved in India, and sold secondhand in Alabama, this instrument is a transcultural mutation, merging Asian, European, and American roots with modern mechanical interventions. Turner rips and tangles these roots with a raw, embodied practice that entwines the physical and narrative through improvisation. Turner's work refracts hybridity through an unhinged and intuitive practice, haptic and cybernetic as it is hectic and syncretic.
He has been invited to perform at festivals including Le Guess Who? in Utrecht, Kraak Festival in Antwerp, Non Jazz in Paris, Improtech in Uzeste, Tokyo & Paris, Oh Les Beau Jours in Marseille, Festival de Guyenne, HORS SOL, SETU Festival in Elliant, Les Instants Fertiles in Athenor (CNCM — St Nazaire), and regularly collaborates with the REACH project at Ircam.
His new solo LP vipérine is out 6 March 2026 via his new label:
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He has been invited to perform at festivals including Le Guess Who? in Utrecht, Kraak Festival in Antwerp, Non Jazz in Paris, Improtech in Uzeste, Tokyo & Paris, Oh Les Beau Jours in Marseille, Festival de Guyenne, HORS SOL, SETU Festival in Elliant, Les Instants Fertiles in Athenor (CNCM — St Nazaire), and regularly collaborates with the REACH project at Ircam.
His new solo LP vipérine is out 6 March 2026 via his new label:
click ︎ on video to view playlist
Les Disques Omnison, 2023
LP edition of 100 (SOLD OUT)
WORLD OF ECHO -----------------︎
ALL NIGHT FLIGHT --------------︎
MUSIQUE-JOURNAL ---------------︎
Feeding Tube, 2023
LP edition of 350 (SOLD OUT)
BANDCAMP
FEEDING TUBE / FORCED EXPOSURE
STREAMING
REVIEWS :
NPR-----------------------------︎
AQUARIUM DRUNKARD---------︎
BRAINWASHED------------------︎
RAVEN SINGS THE BLUES-------︎
RECORD CRATES UNITED-------︎
PEDAL MOTEL-------------------︎
© TURNER WILLIAMS JR. 2026