| ruby j |
[Nov. 25th, 2009|12:00 am] |
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Cursory internet searches seem to indicate that there's no public consensus on the syntax of Jack Ruby's sentiment that he shot Oswald to show that Jews had guts. I wonder if there's a more direct record of him saying this, it's a quote that fascinates me deeply. |
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| surreal and necessary |
[Nov. 15th, 2009|11:58 pm] |
There was a really moving memorial service tonight for the great Suzanne Fiol. I consider her to be my first boss, and while as such I felt under-appreciated by her some times, she was a completely unique person who defined a community like few others could. I haven't seen her regularly in three years, but I would say she was an important person in my life, a friend, and one of the people that makes you want to do better, make smarter work. I found one of her photo-paintings of artist-mothers just now, cool stuff.
Two interesting points about memorial services that I take away: 1. tasteful, meditative lasers on the ceiling of a cathedral do wonders 2. a parade is necessary. Kenny Wollesen led his marching band, with all invited to join in (me on clari) from Brooklyn Heights to Gowanus, folks looking out their windows, stopping and clapping, dancing, etc. People just yelling and really feeling the spirit of a pretty damn amazing lady. |
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| peut etre |
[Nov. 9th, 2009|06:46 pm] |
Today: some recording, some composing, some editing, some transcribing, some reading. A trip to Peter Pan (whole wheat donut, decaf coffee around 3:30) was special. Perhaps some culture in my future tonight, at the very least, NetFlix or Monday Night Football. I actually worked a lot today, heck, short of playing the clarinet, I've done it all.
I've started a piece called "une bonne semaine", based on the thought that I evaluate my effort as a composer on a weekly basis. Most of the ideas I'm kicking around these days involve open structures with disparate performative things inside: a percussion maze on stage with rotating players who need to play nothing specific, just travel throughout; a series of trios for low instruments in no particular order. I'm skeptical of very ordered things right now.
A fine time at this guy's piece for 100 carpenters last night, I was nominally a carpenter, but there weren't 100 of us, more like 80? Beautiful and a blast. Something like that makes me glad I'm in Brooklyn. My goal for December - February is to play as many shows as possible, I've got one maybe from a venue. Slow going, but steady on. Know of anything? |
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| kale |
[Oct. 26th, 2009|10:56 am] |
I HAVE SO MUCH KALE!
WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH ALL OF THIS KALE?
I COULD EAT A LOT AND THERE WOULD STILL BE A LOT OF KALE!
BUT KALE IS DELICIOUS, THOUGH.
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| off center |
[Oct. 18th, 2009|12:01 pm] |
A good raining day. A day on which I hope to get some composing work done but am realistic enough to not stress out about it. Just practicing would be great. Eating something warm, taking it easy. And throw an hour of two of composing into the mix and everything is freaking peachy. It's still funny to consider my schedule like this, despite being what I would call acclimated.
I've recorded a lot of solo guitar pieces in the past, in part because recording a guitar is much easier. Anyway, two recent clarinet improvisations, in case you're curious...
Solo for Clarinet No. 1 "stabs"
Solo for Clarinet No. 2 "bend-brato" |
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| litany is or is not a form? |
[Oct. 6th, 2009|10:16 pm] |
So the Twins are in the playoffs. Good onya.
I spent the last few innings doing preliminary research for a paper on "Sex Shooter", a favorite topic of mine. I came across the Vanity 6 demo, which I've never checked out before, available here. Very different, very illuminating. Prince's voice saying "come on, kiss the gun/guaranteed for fun". Exactly the same breaks as the official one. Interesting. There's also a dance mix of the Apollonia 6 version out there, similarly interesting, and the A6 single-that-never-was "Blue Limousine" which I quite like.
Got some good kim chi in the fridge from the International Pickle Day festival on the L.E.S. Sunday. Very exciting. Some radishes & veggie sausage tonight. It's a big fun world out there. I get to read about & listen to Cole Porter, Sidney Bechet, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Irving Berlin, Robert Johnson, and good music dudes all the time and write music. And since last Thursday, I've actually had a good work ethic. I tracked down a beautiful Elizabethan round I heard at The Stone in March about musing and a maidenhead being gone, which I played on bass clarinet this morning. It's a great big good time out there. Some crummy news floating around, but all in all, the world has a lot of good things doing.
Also, I made this while the Twins-les Tigres game was waiting to end. |
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| harness that juju |
[Sep. 13th, 2009|12:22 pm] |
In a bag, with a hand in it. They call that mojo. Mojo bag.
What I'm talking about is that I went to Middletown yesterday to enjoy/participate in Michael Pestel's Ponder2. His (& Elise's) place is stunning. Pond, woods, barn, tennis court for making music, everything. Yellow & red berries as viewed from a ladder. Catching six hours of Lafkas/Eubanks/Bullock/Bullock/Rawlings improvising in and out of a barn. That's all nice.
But what perhaps I take out if it was harnessing a little M-town vibes. I'm two weeks deep in an MM at Brooklyn College, and it's tough. There's a lot of internal motivation, which historically I'm not always great with. Many rhythms/internal situations have to be restarted, and that's slow going. In addition to some literal fuel at Udupi and Pho Mai (a two-meal trip; Udupi was on buffet!), I did a little sitting, a little playing, a lot of thinking at the Wesleyan Music Studios, thinking that the way I'd produced confidently there is transferable to Brooklyn. Not that I haven't done anything in NYC in four years, just that my fecundity in writing useful, good music can come with me, it's me and not a place or set of people (not that those things are irrelevant).
I hope this moves forward now. I'm feeling pretty okay. Hope to see a physical therapist for my wrists soon, but good. |
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| (no subject) |
[Aug. 26th, 2009|09:46 pm] |
One time in 2006, I was in a large room at New England Conservatory. It was packed with kids, kids about to sing. My back was to a curtain, there was a mirror right next to me somehow. I noticed a stream of ten or so people filing in next to me, an odd place for people to be streaming in from. I observed more closely: it was Ted Kennedy with some aides, folks, etc. He sort of nodded at me, being the first person in the room, and gladhanded the room a bit. It felt pretty freaking cool, just to be around a guy with a nice big aura like that. Not that I was anybody, not that he did anything, he just was a certain way. So RIP Teddy, he was a certain way that most people are not.
I had Grad Schul orientation today, so I suppose I'm a student again. That's pretty neat. |
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| I wonder a little |
[Aug. 20th, 2009|10:23 am] |
Let's wonder about whether anybody ever drew a comic in which the characters Alison and Veronica, from Elvis Costello songs of the same names, hung out. IT'S NOT THAT I would be particularly interested in reading this hypothetical comic. I'm just mostly wondering about the level of comic-drawing Elvis Costello fandom out there. IN FACT, have I listened closely enough to either of these songs to really know what's up with these ladies? Not really? Alison is being killed by the world and Veronica used to be someone else. Perhaps they're in similar situations. Perhaps the point of the comic would be to illustrate the similarities and differences in Costello's characterizations of titular women from the late 70s to late 80s.
The world exists as a series of theories! Whoa! |
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| did it again |
[Aug. 11th, 2009|12:31 am] |
Hey guys. So I tried to start a twitter feed about my pooping habits. I didn't care for the format. I've got a blogger account now, and that feels better. It lives here:
Doo doo bloggin (mark II, if anyone's counting)
This blog will continue to focus mostly on non-poop. Plus, I'm playing two solo shows in the next week, one at Northeast Kingdom in Bushwick tomorrow, one at my apartment next Monday with friends. It's an exciting time, no doubt. This is a beautiful song about magical Giants. |
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| john something must something |
[Aug. 8th, 2009|12:15 pm] |
I made some barley tea following this recipe, and it's fucking sensational. A finer beverage there might not be. So mellow. So tasty.
The barley ain't bad, neither, with a little milk, a little cinnamon. I'm also pretty pysched about the banana-in-sticky rice I just ate, purchased at Sripraphai last night. There were just like five beans floating around in this particular item, which made it extra special. |
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| older folks with AOL |
[Jul. 30th, 2009|09:49 am] |
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I'm just thinking about how many older creative types, who in our minds probably have totally badass, cutting edge internet accoutrements like super-hidden email addresses end up having AOL accounts. The two examples a friend revealed to me last week were Matthew Barney and David Bowie (both of whom I believe she had contacted for work purposes). Robert Ashley was my revelation. You do something cutting edge with technology or art in a certain technological age, and you use AOL. It's not even that incongruous, it's just lovely. |
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| I can see through time! |
[Jul. 29th, 2009|12:29 am] |
Not really.
But I did pee in the ocean. For the first time in 10 years. I was sort of lying down. It was amazing. Sorry this journal has become so excretion-centric for those of you not down with that sort of thing.
I'll also say that the ocean was the nicest ocean temperature I've encountered in some time. This was Fort Tilden Beach on Rockaway. It was a freaking lovely day.
I've got a big performance coming up on Monday (infor) and I'm pretty jazzed about that, it's a lot of leg work at the moment. Less than a month until school again, which is a bit surreal, and new apartment hunting is happening. A busy, satisfying time. I have thoughts of greater significance, but I have a hard time holding on to them. Daubs of whoa. |
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| pleasant libraries |
[Jul. 20th, 2009|10:48 pm] |
I'm at home. Not in CA. I made some nice beet-white bean-beet green action this evening, buffeted by lemony tofu and crispy brussels sprouts. Which reminds me to remind you to consider tofu-apricot pie should you ever encounter it. I ate about 1/3 of one in CA. Olive oil crust. Yum city (brand)!
Also a notable mint salad was made in there and some eggplant. Ate a lot of venison (a deer was killed on the farm we were working on, and then a German restaurant in SF happened). Feel pretty satisfied with myself, although a slightly dead left arm. Isn't everything slightly dead. Wow, that was really heavy, as a thought.
I have no work schedule, but I am busy because I'm putting on a piece at the Tank on August 3rd, which involved co-ordinating six other people. It's fun, but it's a lot. Tomorrow, I go to Home Despot and get materials for constructing the cardboard bird involved in this piece, not dissimilar to my camel of years past.
Happy times.
Love,
Dave |
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| formats |
[Jul. 1st, 2009|11:13 pm] |
So the format of Twitter I think is not for me. Too short. Too focused on outside activity. I can sustain writing one, but I really can't sustain interest in anyone else's, which to me is kind of the point of having one about my own excrement. I'll keep it up, but I've got reservations.
I realized tonight in Prospect Park (free mgmt concert) that I've definitely done something. No more work. School is pretty much set. Going to a farm for two weeks. Yup. I made some decisions. Pleased about that, but it sure does exist, huh? |
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| not answers but something tangent |
[Jun. 28th, 2009|09:47 am] |
Last week I discovered Chris White's brilliant The Frugal Buffet. It, to me, is everything great about a blog, even if the concept (these are what groceries I've been buying) if a ridiculous extreme. It's a compelling read.
I was struck by an idea after reading the whole back log that I would enjoy writing the other end of this blog - a poop blog. I thought about it, and the ridiculous extreme of a poop blog (which surely have existed well before my humble attempt) seemed to me better suited to Twitter than it is to, say, this institution or Blogger or what have you. I should disclose that up to this point, my opinion of Twitter has remained pretty low - I've never been able to bring myself to follow another person's feed. Anyway, I've given it a try, the Doo Doo Bloggin project is now operational, and I link to it with the following thought/caveat:
"if the particulars of your own life aren't absorbing enough, why not read doodoobloggin"
Context is always nice. And having a little space in which to stretch out is always nice. So a bit more: I played a very satisfying solo concert at Goodbye Blue Monday last night as part of a really well-curated day of solo shows. Dave Kadden was the curator. Surprised Dave and Night Market DJ Crew (aka DJ America Bambaataa aka Adam) with my own heartfelt version of a Popocatepel tune, playing clarinet and guitar at the same time and losing myself in some bellowy singing. I did more singing than I've ever done in a solo show, which is great. A trend, not an isolated event. Other great music that exists: Turner's music and Wes's music.
Gonna be in Norther California for two weeks towards the beginning of July with Lynn, farming on a grape & olive farm. Very much looking forward to it, following the excellent sheep herding and chicken bagging at Owen's farm last weekend. It's snap pea and sour cherry season! I stuck my hand in a bag of fertilized chicken yolks last week and it was actually a very positive experience!
Hope things, whenever & wherever you are reading this, are feeling just nice.
From,
Dave |
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| three takes |
[Jun. 8th, 2009|11:16 pm] |
1. First concert tonight: Steve Lehman Octet. First thought: TYSHAWN SOREY FOR PRESIDENT! GOOD GRIEF! I hear he's going to Wes. Second: a-ha, I get this I think - let the horns deal with the micro-harmonic interactions in hits and pyramids (rather than in composed lines), let the drums let you how crazy the rhythm is with the bass, tuba, and vibes just highlighting, and when everything comes together hold on. Amazing.
2. Robert Ashley show at Merce Cunningham Studios that I just found out about today. Made it over there in 13 minutes from first show (Le Poisson Rouge, which I don't really dig that much). Selections from a part of Atalanta (the Max Ernst section) I'd never heard and some new stuff from Quicksand, what he's working on now. As usual, what can I say? A whole lot. Rather than run on, I'll just say that in the second half, he used a long Elmore Leonard quote to illustrate what I take as marveling at the creation of a voice. This interchange is repeated six times (half by audience volunteers):
Joyce: I think Gloria forget her bag.
Rayland: You bet she did.
And I think he's in love with the idea that you can imagine these two voices (there's a gun in the bag), this mundane thought about something vital. And you get to imbue with everything. That's my take, anyway. That guy is full of life.
3. marble cruller at Donut Pub, with a glass of milk. yes. |
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| jameson |
[May. 31st, 2009|11:00 am] |
I'm sad the Cavs lost. I'm sad because if there's one thing that's more important in sports than loyalty, it's parity. It's not even that everybody deserves to win sometimes, it's that things are more compelling when everybody wins sometimes.
As a fan, there are not many teams I care about. The Mets, sure. The Steelers, maybe. The Penguins, eh. Was I pleased during the Super Bowl when the Cardinals, a team that has never won, were about to pull off a huge late upset? You bet. Was I also pleased when the Steelers came back? Sure. It's complicated.
When the Rockies made it to the World Series against the Red Sox in 2007, I was excited about the match up. I was a Sox fan, sure enough, but the Rockies were just so improbable. A great underdog. A team that had never done anything before (albeit in only 14 years). The Sox winning in 2004 was amazing. The Sox winning in 2007 transformed them into something else. I would probably be displeased if they won again this year, or anytime soon. They've had their turn for a while, and I will root accordingly (not that the Yankees are due, like, ever again).
You can't argue with the Phillies, a team that has lost over 10,000 games, getting their second championship last year. Second. In what, 125 years? Even if "we" are their the arch-enemies. Back to the Cavs, I grew in up Pittsburgh, where next to West Virginia, Cleveland is by far the most dumped-upon locale. I have no love for the place, and neither do I have pity. (Incidentally, these are brilliant) To boot, LeBron James is about the farthest thing from an underdog as you can produce. But there's something righteous about him winning in Ohio before us Big City Industrials snatch him away in 2010. A story line unique throughout sports, even if it's completely over-hyped. I want Cleveland to win, perhaps because then it's okay for my clubs to win again (guilt of Sox over Indians from '07?), but I also want the redemptive power of something one has an emotional stake in succeeding (winning!) for millions of people who have lacked it for 45 years. There is the catharsis of winning after 86 years, but isn't 45 or 25 just as powerful and without the culture of self-doubt and self-loathing? |
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| plane landings |
[May. 5th, 2009|05:42 pm] |
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I’d like it if every month, a review of the top five airplane landings (of that month) were emailed to me. It would be nice if this were like a three minute YouTube clip with video, narration, and maybe an expert in the field telling me why this landing demonstrates perfect form or how these particular pilots overcame inclement weather or bad runway surface or vodka haze or what have you. |
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