They don't make the Grammy's like they used to

Check out this truly amazing clip from 1985. When I was 15, this was pretty much all I needed to be happy. I was a HUGE Thomas Dolby fan (still am). If you've only heard She Blinded me with Science you are really missing out. Check out One of our Submarines, Windpower, or Europa and the Pirate Twins. They're all from the same era. You can actually find a few Dolby videos on youtube.com

Anyway, enjoy this crazy mash-up (from before there were "mash-ups"). Oh, and cut them all some slack (especially Dolby). It was the 80's, after all. And, yes, the ending is bizarre.

Voltaire's still got it

"I have never made but one prayer to God, a very short one: 'O Lord, make my enemies ridiculous.' And God granted it."
- Voltaire

Sex Pistols turn down Hall of Fame honor - Yahoo! News

I think that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame should be even "punkier" and induct them anyway.


Sex Pistols turn down Hall of Fame honor - Yahoo! News: "http://www.thefilthandthefury.co.uk"

Excerpt in Danger???

A "new" version of Porgy and Bess?

Symphony gives Gershwin last word on 'Porgy and Bess' - Sunday, 02/19/06: "But get this: It turns out that Gershwin, during rehearsals for the New York premiere at Broadway's Alvin Theatre, made extensive cuts and additions to his 700-page score. Since the composer died only two years later, in 1937, that edited but unpublished version represents, in effect, his final word on the subject."

I wonder if he said "You know what? That xylophone part just doesn't work very well...let's take it out."

Suddenly my life gets a lot easier.

In the meantime, we had better all go practice our alternate stickings. And don't forget the version that starts on E. (if you're not a percussionist, just ignore that last part)

Fab Four

More magic of youtube.com

I have loved The Beatles since I "discovered" them back in 6th grade. I really enjoy these early clips. Remember, we can probably hear them much better than they can hear themselves due to the constant wall of screams hitting them in the face.

Anyway, these clips make me feel quite happy. I hope they don't get taken down anytime soon.

Monk

Another great clip from youtube.com. Thelonious (not my cat, the piano player) and friends showing you how it is done.

Great shot of Monk's hands on the solo. Got to love the pinky ring!

What_College_Now

Here's an insightful article by my friend Ted Rounds. It's full of good advice for those of you that are about to audition for admission to a college music program. It's also good information for those going on to graduate study.

What_College_Now

Music Review - Alarm Will Sound - New York Times

Alarm Will Sound just received a great review in the NYT. And special congrats to my fellow Payton MacDonald Ensemble(scroll down) member Courtney Orlando for her "extraordinary" playing. Very exciting!

Music Review - Alarm Will Sound - By Allan Kozinn - The New York Times - New York Times: "And now Alarm Will Sound is about as close to being a rock band as a chamber orchestra can be. It is the Kronos Quartet writ large.

John Cale's score for 'Kiss,' the Andy Warhol film, drew on Mr. Cale's art-rock work, as well as on Indian music and Anglo-American folk traditions. Its highlight was a pair of extraordinary violin solos by Courtney Orlando and Caleb Burhans."

A good point about the "games"

Those NBC announcers (and others) just won't shut up about it. Lindsey Jacobellis didn't win a gold medal, but she's still better than you! Some day, if I have opened up a huge lead in the Marimba Olympics, and I try a behind the back double vertical stroke, and I get a mallet caught under the string, and I wind up coming in second place...I'll still be second in THE Marimba Olympics. Not so bad, huh?

(This is of course hypothetical, since I made the difficult decision to give up my amateur status years ago)

Anyway, the NYT editorial page makes a good point this morning.

You Go, Lindsey - New York Times: "'I was having fun,' she said. 'Snowboarding is fun. I was ahead. I wanted to share my enthusiasm with the crowd. I messed up. Oh, well, it happens.'"

"...Ms. Jacobellis had an amazing race, built a huge lead, got exuberant and went splat. What did she think these were — Games?"

All State Breath

I'm off to enjoy the Arkansas All State Band and Orchestra Festival in Hot Springs. When you go sometwhere like that, it's important to have nice fresh breath. You meet a lot of new people and you don't want their first impression of you to be linked with a horrific odor.

This year, I'll be going with the Crest Vanilla Mint, but next year I may have to step it up a notch. Breath Palette is making it possible to break away from the mint and cinnamon that has dominated our lives for so long. Look out for me at next year's All State. I think I'll go with "bitter chocolate"

Breath Palette

Marimba Madness

I've seen this clip before on archive.org, but youtube.com has made it much easier to access. Sit back, relax and enjoy Reg and his beautiful marimba orchestra (and one crazy bass player).

For those of you wondering why you feel a little dizzy watching this...the print is backwards, so left is right, right is left, high is low and low is high.

Funky Drummer

Check out Clyde Stubblefield with James Brown. The Godfather is givin' the drummer some!



If this link breaks, please let me know.
BT

War on Grease

I just saw this the the NYT. I always appreciate it when someone protests without ever seeing, reading or hearing what they have decided they are against.

In Small Town, 'Grease' Ignites a Culture War - New York Times: "One letter, from someone who had not seen the show but only heard about it, criticized 'immoral behavior veiled behind the excuse of acting out a play.'

Dr. Enderle watched a video of the play, ultimately agreeing that 'Grease' was unsuitable for the high school, despite his having approved it beforehand, without looking at the script. Hoping to avoid similar complaints in the future, he decided to ban the scheduled spring play, 'The Crucible' by Arthur Miller.

He called 'The Crucible' 'a fine play,' but said he dropped it to keep the school from being 'mired in controversy' all spring."

'That was me in my worst Joe McCarthy moment, to some,' Dr. Enderle said.

Mark Miller, a 26-year-old graduate student, said he was moved to complain after getting an e-mail message about the show from Terra Guittar, a member of his church. Her description of the pajama party scene offended him, he wrote, adding that one character should have worn a more modest nightgown. Mr. Miller did not see the play.
-------------------------

OK, here's the deal...I saw Grease when I was 8 years old, and then I saw it again and again. I loved it! I had the soundtrack album and listened to it A LOT for a loooong time. And Olivia Newton John helped me understand why girls were not as icky as I had thought. Despite these things I have NEVER smoked a cigarette, NEVER had an alcoholic drink (I did take some Nyquil once), NEVER danced my way through a high school carnival, NEVER drag raced anyone, etc... And, let's not forget the important "stay in school, kids!" message of Beauty School Dropout.

Please remember...if kids do bad things, Grease isn't the reason. And, for goodness sake, neither is The Crucible.

Invasion of Privacy?

I always feel a little dirty when I'm reading through Beethoven's letters. Even though they are now published in numerous wonderful translations and have been read by the general public for many years, I still think that LvB would not be completely comfortable with me pouring over the minutae of his daily life. It's fascinating, but those of us who do so should not pretend that we're better than the readers of the National Enquirer(well, not much better).

I mention Beethoven, because once again a "complete" box set has been released. This time it includes all of the outtakes, bad takes and mistakes of Miles Davis' Cellar Door Sessions.

Would Miles Davis want us listening to these recordings? In the Guardian, John L. Walters seems to think the answer in NO. That's probably true. Still, those who want to sit through the recordings might learn a thing or two (like why Miles didn't use these takes and why he didn't think people would pay money for them).
Link to article

Audio Developing in 1 hour or less.

Have you ever had to get the pictures of your vacation developed so that you could have a look...while you are still on vacation? Then this is the the concert for you. Listen to some Mozart, and then pay more money and listen to it again.
Here's the link...
Guardian Unlimited | Arts news | Look sharp: chance to buy live CD straight after the concert

Cage on BBC

4'33" doesn't work very well as a joke, although many people don't seem to realize that. They can't quite be serious about it, but it's worth a look (and listen).

here it is...

The Stones

I watched the Rolling Stones Superbowl halftime show tonight. I thought it was great, although many at the party disagreed. I love that those guys are out there with no botox and no microdermabrasion (is that how you spell that?) still performing like they mean it after all these years. And here's to Charlie Watts! His technique sometimes puzzles me, and I admit I do a double take everytime I see those black dot heads. And he really loves crashing that china cymbal. But, by golly, he sounds pretty good. I also like that he never pushes too hard to try and match the intensity of what's going on in front of him. He lays back and keeps it real. Those guys are a pretty interesting team and I don't think I know enough about them. I think I'll try to find a good book about the band.

CSU Percussion Studio

I'm back from Colorado. Here's a pic of me with the CSU Percussion Studio. Also, on the left, is the honorable professor Eric Hollenbeck.

Thanks to everyone in the CSU Studio for being so kind and helpful to me while I was there.