tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66214763002460278332024-03-05T12:50:41.786-05:00The And of OneClassical, jazz and experimental music performances in the Central New Jersey region, spiced with issues of the day.Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.comBlogger207125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-5643657338145688962021-05-08T15:33:00.002-04:002021-05-08T15:33:26.928-04:00Pre-composition<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUcEsVzfrTI05Y4GSvKM3wfHoNvLmueF-Z6QgBY1biTx-mB5nWOwqWFNdhCdKD14ygIslxfPNRt_eTzc6e6cA-1vyU9drZQQ5oA2RIjt3md46pBLllSGCASDavTMWxpi-4Pt05jpFKqbQ/s2048/fullsizeoutput_140.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1507" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUcEsVzfrTI05Y4GSvKM3wfHoNvLmueF-Z6QgBY1biTx-mB5nWOwqWFNdhCdKD14ygIslxfPNRt_eTzc6e6cA-1vyU9drZQQ5oA2RIjt3md46pBLllSGCASDavTMWxpi-4Pt05jpFKqbQ/s320/fullsizeoutput_140.jpeg" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p>Found myself this morning shaking my head over the arguments between musicians in the '80s and '90s over "pre-composition." So funny! And so sad, really. </p><p>Pre-composition in those days meant setting up interval sets, integer series, rows of rhythms, structural diagrams and such that would guide the music. The process had become somewhat elaborate in response to the new possibilities opened up by serialism in the mid-century. </p><p>The argument was that such pre-compositional decisions restricted or even denied true musical impulse and left the resulting music chained to a completely logical, rational ideal that had no link to emotional expression. What those who argued against pre-compositional practice were saying was, in effect, your music sucks. Probably it would have been better to simply state it like that.</p><p>I can't think of a way that musical composition can't involve pre-compositional decision making. Even with the idea of found sounds, even setting up a microphone on a street corner or standing in the middle of a crowd and saying THAT is music. That's a choice, it's not a purely intuitive form of expression. An improviser—any worth listening to—will have studied and have reams of such choices in their head before they play a note. They may not know what they're going to play, but what their going to play is to some extent predetermined by their training and their interests and their emotional state and their choice of scales and chords or modes or whatever—and so on.</p><p>The argument was never anything other ridiculous. The use of integer series, interval sets, row forms for any aspect of the music or whatever else, is all a musical process. Perhaps no sound results as you're doing it, but it is musical in its intent and, for a good composer, the result will a unified, highly expressive musical experience. </p><p>I mean really, the things people get upset about .... The argument was never about the practice of composition really. It was about people taking sides over musical aesthetics and trying to "prove" their point with tangible goods. All in vain. Such efforts only make enemies out of friends, needlessly muddying the water of the spirit in which we all swim.<br /></p><p>--C.</p><p>5/8/21<br /></p>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-84802711863717904962018-06-07T15:29:00.002-04:002018-06-07T15:30:10.451-04:00Pierre Schaeffer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2zlHiLqw5CcFnzySl3sm3ulLFcJ_O6zjeboGvBLDYD4Kg-pL18npIDRGPy2sjCfZv1ZahnE8jNZLzpatALoNds4APMoSqv4nqqxuZqk-6B3yFoGOwOTrL-ZgiBkeRPGSf4LRaLzHGqc/s1600/Phonogene.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="406" data-original-width="312" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2zlHiLqw5CcFnzySl3sm3ulLFcJ_O6zjeboGvBLDYD4Kg-pL18npIDRGPy2sjCfZv1ZahnE8jNZLzpatALoNds4APMoSqv4nqqxuZqk-6B3yFoGOwOTrL-ZgiBkeRPGSf4LRaLzHGqc/s320/Phonogene.jpg" width="245" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Each fall, I teach a freshman seminar at The College of New Jersey titled, "Music and the Natural World." TCNJ's freshman seminars are each a semester long, and designed to expose students to interesting research and scholarly pursuits across disciplines. Topics range widely and include lots of topics that might spark the interest of recent high school grads, while giving them an entry to scholarship.<br />
<br />
The course is a gas and I'm looking forward this fall. We read essays and articles in philosophy, musicology, physics and biology, ancient history … And we listen to a wide range of music, most of it outside the Western classical canon.<br />
<br />
One figure we talk about each semester is Pierre Schaeffer and his work in musique concrète. So I was delighted to find <a href="https://thevinylfactory.com/features/introduction-to-pierre-schaeffer/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">this online article</a> posted on the Vinyl Factory site that has an annotated listening guide, with complete works, as well as a good overview of his early career. The line between Schaeffer's work and sampling and hip-hop seems plain and straight to me, but my students have a harder time seeing it. Having this explanation in hand may help.<br />
<br />
Plus there's a lot of stuff here I hadn't heard before. Spending part of my afternoon listening to the creepy and beautiful 1953 opera <i>Orphée 53</i>.<br />
<br />
A separate work by Schaeffer colleague Pierre Henry, written the same year and on the same subject, <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8_fhIKeOX0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Le Voile de Orphée II</a>, </i>features the first recorded use of the <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Pierre_Schaeffer#/media/File:Phonogene.jpg" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">phonogene</a>, shown above. A precursor of the simpler Mellotron, it featured multiple tape heads and a one-octave keyboard controller that could create a wide range of effects using prerecorded tape. The phonogene is mentioned in the Vinyl Factory article as one of the technological innovations created by Schaeffer and Henry in their time at the Groupe de Recherche de Musique Concrète.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
--C.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
June 7, 2018<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a></div>
</div>
</div>
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-85041419724969140492018-01-20T13:55:00.001-05:002018-01-20T15:15:04.393-05:00Coming to terms with ‘Blackstar’<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmm3xNkmr23E63cNVidMlDoL8y5qD-T2-dhjI_rnRAPZX4TnYWUelpBWJt2kS-_b4d4GZ4GbJY4Kx5piFyEbW-FFT6OSUs_eaXsreYW52d92a-1VrZeLs_Lhv3UDVN4Wc3d0UqYXJERjo/s1600/2016_DavidBowie_Press_040116-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="956" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmm3xNkmr23E63cNVidMlDoL8y5qD-T2-dhjI_rnRAPZX4TnYWUelpBWJt2kS-_b4d4GZ4GbJY4Kx5piFyEbW-FFT6OSUs_eaXsreYW52d92a-1VrZeLs_Lhv3UDVN4Wc3d0UqYXJERjo/s320/2016_DavidBowie_Press_040116-3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<i>Blackstar</i> (2016) was David Bowie’s last album, released just two days before he died after years of struggling with heart attacks and a cancer diagnosis. For a long time, listening to it was simply too painful. I would listen, but I wouldn’t hear, exactly – I couldn’t turn on my usual listening skills.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A friend told me once how weeks after a serious car crash, he went to the lot where his now totaled car was. Turned the key and the battery still activated – the cassette that had been playing when he crashed was still on, the same spot, and the whole, horrifying memory of accident came back to him with the sound of the music. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My experience with <i>Blackstar</i> was like that. Overwhelming. Too real.<br />
<br />
Two years on, and I am listening again, attentively – and I get it. What was confusing to me then through that veil of grief is clear now.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Of course, the album is almost exclusively about the experience of mortality, taking the mature recognition of death and personal suffering that we heard in <i>The Next Day</i> (2013) a step further. Where it gets thorny is in the depth of that personal experience and the pastiche of symbols that he uses. Not content to just say “it hurts to leave,” Bowie carves this incredibly rigorous and painful illustration of solipsistic isolation around the final, terminal, individual human experience and the way we recognize it in others through the invention of rituals. <i>It's me that suffers in the only way I can</i>, it seems to say, <i>just like everybody else</i>. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The song “Blackstar” that leads off the album and its accompanying video show us the entire argument. As the “blackstar,” the dying artist is recognized, but unknowable, a blip against the background of dark-space existence. The image was used by one of Bowie's heroes, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0Jkv1cs6PE" target="_blank">Elvis Presley</a>, in the exact same way, as a reference to the individual experience of death.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kszLwBaC4Sw" width="480"></iframe><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
After a vignette of a death ritual in the opening verse (“In the villa of Ormen / stands a solitary candle”), a few lines tie the personal to the universal, merely by emphasizing that he is simply one in an endless chain – “something happened on the day he died / his spirit rose a meter then stepped aside / another took his place and bravely cried, ‘I’m the Blackstar’.”<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the central section of the 10-minute song’s three-part structure, he is the voice of a trickster God who tells us that his purpose is unfathomable, “I can’t answer why / Just go with me / I’m-a take you home / Take your passport and shoes / your sedatives too / you’re a flash in the pan / <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m the great I am!”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the video, he is also a prophet for this isolationist religion, standing alone holding up the bible with a black star on the cover, symbolizing his own isolated experience; or standing at the doorway to a passage where dancers shake in rituals of individual suffering and death – involved in their own experiences. The jewel-encrusted skull that becomes the centerpiece of a new ritual shows how the deaths of other travelers are miracles that speak to us across the gulf that isolates us from one another. (The space suit by the way it is a reference to son Duncan Bowie’s film, “Moon” – such a dad move). The choreography borrows from butoh, the Japanese post-war style of modern dance that trades in suffering, fragility, infirmity.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The song’s free jazz allusions back this up: free jazz is a kind of ultimate individual expression, yet performed together to make a whole sound both predictable and unpredictable, knowable and unknowable. It is the solipsistic experience recognized through ritual as a collective phenomenon. <o:p></o:p>The <i>A-B-a</i> structure itself represents transformation, with the final third (<i>a</i>) a repetition of the opening (<i>A</i>), but inflected by elements of the second third (<i>B</i>).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And there you have it. The rest of the album follows suit, with “Lazarus,” a meditation on his unique life and his legacy-as-a-resonance-as-after-life, the dark murder theme of “Sue,” the self-saturated and vainglorious teenage decadence of “Girl Loves Me” (with lyrics in Nadsat, the made-up slang dialect of Burgess’s <i>A Clockwork Orange</i>), the timeless and darkly threatening, teasingly obscene nonsense of “Tis a Pity She Was a Whore” (based on a 17<sup>th</sup> century play of the same name about incest), the dirty nostalgia and regret of “Dollar Days” (“don’t believe for just one second I’m forgetting you / I’m trying to / I’m dying to”). And of course, the more or less self-explanatory cryptograph “I Can’t Give Everything Away” (it's not just <i>won’t</i> – he really <i>can’t</i>).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the dance of death we are individuals, chained in isolation, but linked together. I should be so lucky if my someday shuffle off this mortal coil could possess half the value, the truth, the grace of this example – it would be worth its weight in gold stardust.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Blessings,<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
--C.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Januay 20, 2018<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a></div>
</div>
</div>
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-2162117317034904132017-09-15T16:17:00.001-04:002017-09-15T16:17:20.584-04:00'Terrible Twos'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXotTY6XWyy9Jf4Q30c0V_2m39GmnGA4JZKVz8dLuk4OeHOzSLq-W3w9hib-_d8FQDr6OC9Mo3YPNYd7QyL3Xq9bnh8f_VbJCt1YEu5A3QjLuBSKGMUoQN6g8D6ySi3j6t4j-XyPL9oJ4/s1600/Terr_Twos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXotTY6XWyy9Jf4Q30c0V_2m39GmnGA4JZKVz8dLuk4OeHOzSLq-W3w9hib-_d8FQDr6OC9Mo3YPNYd7QyL3Xq9bnh8f_VbJCt1YEu5A3QjLuBSKGMUoQN6g8D6ySi3j6t4j-XyPL9oJ4/s320/Terr_Twos.jpg" width="296" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A new work of mine and eight other premieres, duets by
living composers, will be performed at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 18 at William
Paterson University’s New Music Series, on <a href="https://www.blogger.com/"><span id="goog_1835285876"></span>a program titled “Terrible Twos.”<span id="goog_1835285877"></span></a>
The music was commissioned by <a href="http://www.composersconcordance.com/" target="_blank">Composers Concordance</a>, a group
of longstanding currently led by Gene Pritsker and Dan Cooper that regularly
performs commissions and performs works by its members. This concert is the
first event of Composers Concordance 2017-18 season.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The program
is mostly duets, split between performers Gene Pritsker and Greg Baker,
electric guitars; Keve Wilson, oboe, and Kathleen Supové, piano; and Peter
Jarvis, multi-percussion and Michiyo Suzuki, clarinet/ bass clarinet. They’ll
be performing work by Randall Woolf, Gene Pritsker, Peter Jarvis, Greg Baker,
David Saperstein, Dan Cooper, John Clark, and myself. The concert finale will
be “a large semi-aleatoric piece” that will include all three duos performing
as a sextet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
My contribution will be in the
clarinet and percussion duets, along with new pieces by John and Peter. The
title of mine is “Lunatic,” as it was started before the recent total eclipse
that captured the attention of all of North America. The event seemed to
underscore what feels like a surreal time in American life and culture, one
where we’re wrestling with a kind of national psychological complex related to who
we were and who we are as a country and a species. The overlay of that
superficial fixation onto the underlying forces of creation, symbolized by the
eclipse, reveals a colorful, dark landscape of anxiety.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Admission
is free. The concert is in Shea Center for the Performing Arts, William Paterson
University, 300 Pompton Road, Wayne, NJ 07470. I hope everyone can come and
support both the Composers Concordance and the university’s New Music Series.
Both deserve high praise for their relentless efforts to promote new music in
high quality performances.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:DocumentProperties>
<o:Revision>0</o:Revision>
<o:TotalTime>0</o:TotalTime>
<o:Pages>1</o:Pages>
<o:Words>292</o:Words>
<o:Characters>1669</o:Characters>
<o:Company>Brunswick Group LLC</o:Company>
<o:Lines>13</o:Lines>
<o:Paragraphs>3</o:Paragraphs>
<o:CharactersWithSpaces>1958</o:CharactersWithSpaces>
<o:Version>14.0</o:Version>
</o:DocumentProperties>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]-->
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<!--StartFragment-->
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>--C.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p><br />
September 15, 2017<br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span><br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"><br /></span></div>
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-73268135725599136792017-08-15T17:00:00.000-04:002017-08-17T21:01:19.637-04:00Music Machine<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VQi5rcDZHYOt3PHwULBJOjhc0nBZ_-zChXv1S4G_55QHV5jQx1m1T2ouYn7VNd-i0rA41tyhG9ukICFkb9dqaQ8Ani5yrfieNJCvitKumbBcU7fX3w89XHdZNBDLT_A3pVO4-MT3dNE/s1600/hals_view.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="504" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VQi5rcDZHYOt3PHwULBJOjhc0nBZ_-zChXv1S4G_55QHV5jQx1m1T2ouYn7VNd-i0rA41tyhG9ukICFkb9dqaQ8Ani5yrfieNJCvitKumbBcU7fX3w89XHdZNBDLT_A3pVO4-MT3dNE/s320/hals_view.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Reading <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/08/how-google-making-music-artificial-intelligence" target="_blank">this article from AAAS</a>, it suddenly occurs to me that the common argument about machines vs. humans in
music is flawed. As I note <a href="https://theandofone.blogspot.com/2017/08/forest-and-ice.html" target="_blank">in my last post</a> about Liza Lim’s “How Forests
Think,” we naturally hear the sounds of the forests as music – it is a human
response. We turn the sound into music because we’re musical creatures that
come from the forest. That small insight, applied here, provides the key to
understanding our future role with technology and the arts.<br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Music isn’t necessarily in the
making – deciding which notes and rhythms go together – but in the human
response to organized sound, the enjoyment and participation of in the making
and listening. That makes AI seriously less threatening. Will machines make
music equal to that of humans in creativity, complexity, even spiritual depth?
Sure! Will it matter? Nope.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Because, after all, what’s the point?</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">We ultimately will be able to teach
computers how to respond to music like we do. And they will be capable of
making music on par with a human composer or performer. But the musical experience
itself is human and the need for humans to make music and to appreciate the
music that is made, will never, ever go away. Machines are just us – an
extension of us and an extension of that musical impulse.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">This idea actually extends a slim
hope for the economics of music – a weakly floating board to cling to amid the
shipwreck of the music industry. As far back as Marshall McLuhan, students of
culture have noted that it is only when an object’s use becomes obsolete that
we, as a culture, begin to fully appreciate it. The value of paintings and
appreciation for the skill of the illustrator increased with the advent of the
photograph. Tape and LPs became highly prized when that had been eclipsed by
CDs and digital downloads and streaming. We are seeing a rather sudden
appreciation of the physical, printed book, separate from the books we read
online (the scores of George Crumb and the rise of the graphic novel are just
two examples that spring to mind). Once its usefulness is eclipsed, the human
achievement of the old medium becomes the thing itself, a source of admiration
and appreciation.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">That’s where we’re headed with the
use of live performing musicians for entertainment. Already it has become a
kind of status symbol – only the poor wedding will have no live music. Musicians
now can make a living as cover bands, some focusing on famous old acts like Led
Zeppelin and the Beatles, but some just cranking out the tunes at parties, human
juke boxes – whether imitating artists or rendering them in a more personal
style, doesn’t matter, so long as they’re </span><i style="text-indent: 0.5in;">not</i><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
recordings but flesh and blood, communicating the rhythm.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">It is common, too, to see live
performance transcriptions of works never designed for live performance, like
Frank Zappa’s “G-Spot Tornado” at the 1990s Yellow Shark concerts, or the
Beatles’ “Revolution 9” by Alarm Will Sound, or the endless MIDI scores
composed for video games performed by orchestras. The subtext there is clear:
music is </span><i style="text-indent: 0.5in;">better</i><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> with living human
beings making the sound.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Not better because humans do it
better; simply better </span><i style="text-indent: 0.5in;">because</i><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"> human.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">It will be no surprise when a
future sophisticated robot (like Data in “Star Trek: The Next Generation”) can
play Paganini perfectly. But because it’s no surprise, it will also be less
valuable than a human achieving the same goal. A player piano can execute
rhythms and counterpoints impossible for a human to play. The only reason to
care is because a human dreamed up those impossible compositions.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Music is part of our evolution into
the creatures we are now and technology is part of that. But the connection
between our music and our biology is deep, and it exists now with or without
technological aid, offering us immediate union with one another and with the
world. We will carry that forward, come what may.</span><br />
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Let’s admit that the <a href="http://www.turing.org.uk/scrapbook/test.html" target="_blank">Turing Test</a> is
merely a landmark on the horizon, and that there will come a day when we
literally can’t tell the difference between humans and machines, or the part of
us that is human and the part that is machine – no matter how well we know the
hybrid. That day is a long way off, but when it comes, the confusion will be
best expressed in a song.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
--C.<br />
August 15, 2017<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a></div>
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-57393786035056556042017-08-08T20:31:00.001-04:002017-08-08T20:55:43.016-04:00Forests and ICE<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1pdxdoknSKL2F9cghfAOH7vXdkCAiVPCwlP06fXtynRgxw_iTfWqYby3QfPNZQ4FTv6Z9NLWCepuv4T9MmlTRBbOuD4uf6pZzdokfRYf_LBe3Gxcq-TsFR20xNOH4nQHtQD_boCIqUvc/s1600/ICE_smiling_3B_web_lgSmall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="708" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1pdxdoknSKL2F9cghfAOH7vXdkCAiVPCwlP06fXtynRgxw_iTfWqYby3QfPNZQ4FTv6Z9NLWCepuv4T9MmlTRBbOuD4uf6pZzdokfRYf_LBe3Gxcq-TsFR20xNOH4nQHtQD_boCIqUvc/s320/ICE_smiling_3B_web_lgSmall.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<small>ICE, photo taken from the group's website</small></div>
<br />
The International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) performs “How Forests Think,” 7:30 p.m. Monday, August 14 at <a href="http://www.lincolncenter.org/mostly-mozart/show/how-forests-think" target="_blank">Merkin Concert Hall, Lincoln Center</a>. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The program – part of <a href="http://www.lincolncenter.org/mostly-mozart/" target="_blank">Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart</a> summer festival – takes it’s name from a work for 10 musicians by composer <a href="https://lizalimcomposer.wordpress.com/2017/03/15/how-forests-think/" target="_blank">Liza Lim</a>. (Perhaps coincidentally, this is also the title of an interesting book about interconnected rhythms of life experienced by Amazon forest natives.) In addition to Lim’s music, the program includes Pauline Oliveros’s “Earth Ears,” and Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s “Aequilibria.” The ensemble will be conducted by Baldur Brönnimann and musician Wu Wei will perform on the sheng, a Chinese mouth-blown reed organ.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The thread of the program, obviously, is the connection between music and nature, something that is very much on my mind as I prepare for the course, <a href="https://theandofone.blogspot.com/2012/08/music-and-natural-world.html" target="_blank">Music and the Natural World</a>, that I teach each Fall for freshman at The College of New Jersey. The topic runs deep and crosses all lines of human investigation, including biological and physical sciences, philosophy, religion, politics, the visual arts, dance, psychology and sociology. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The reason for this blurring of lines is the root of music is deep in prehistory – it prefigures and shapes many aspects of human activity that reason would typically try to parse into separate channels for analysis. Music doesn't parse. Any part of it interconnects to any other part. (Try defining harmony, for instance, without talking about pitch, time and esthetic impressions.) Music organizes people like . On the one hand it lifts individuality and makes us conscious of time; on the other, it submerges our individual identities into the pool of the communal response, which holds all of the past, present and future in one bowl. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Those realizations are apparent with very little investigation – just an open set of ears and a heart tuned to an old song. Lim's composition uses for its model the life of the forest itself, the activity, growth and structures that define it. We hear forest sounds as music – is that because an ancestral association of good emotions with the sound of the forest? Or are we anthropomorphizing those sounds, turning them into human-style communication, reflecting our humanness back onto the non-human forest? Or is it because our understanding of music emanates from there, so we are ourselves manifestations of the forest? (Answer: yes. Mark this spot on the map in your brain: this is the approximate place where words stop, while the landscape of music keeps right on going.)<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://iceorg.org/" target="_blank">ICE</a> is one of the best new music groups around, so you’re pretty much guaranteed a memorable and probably definitive performance. You can read and watch clips from my <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/story/12006678/1/claire-chase-on-new-music-and-the-dawn-of-the-ice-age.html" target="_blank">2013 interview with founder and former artistic director Claire Chase</a> on TheStreet’s website [The video link in the article isn't working. <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/video/12006215/claire-chase-puts-decade-on-ice.html" target="_blank">Use this one to watch the video</a>.] Tickets to "How Forests Think" are $30 and are available through the Mostly Mozart website (<a href="http://www.lincolncenter.org/mostlymozart">www.lincolncenter.org/mostlymozart</a>) or by calling CenterCharge at 212-721-6500.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:DocumentProperties> <o:Revision>0</o:Revision> <o:TotalTime>0</o:TotalTime> <o:Pages>1</o:Pages> <o:Words>320</o:Words> <o:Characters>1825</o:Characters> <o:Company>Brunswick Group LLC</o:Company> <o:Lines>15</o:Lines> <o:Paragraphs>4</o:Paragraphs> <o:CharactersWithSpaces>2141</o:CharactersWithSpaces> <o:Version>14.0</o:Version> </o:DocumentProperties> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> <w:UseFELayout/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276"> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
--C.<br />
August 8, 2017<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a><o:p></o:p></div>
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-47351154287049301022017-07-13T20:04:00.000-04:002017-07-13T20:04:33.802-04:00Sō Percussion Summer Institute<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhebIAssgQ8LOXYO36p8PmA-aVWid2TT24_DMG03WfWhxpl9Qp56olqYlq5VfO2sVXo4Ous1hDAFbF_kHKK3I1SvNE8XzcPvz9FYid8bmIBj-hZjcWqovIqjMehy69hnJONhMQYV4p6Gnk/s1600/soaction11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="1600" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhebIAssgQ8LOXYO36p8PmA-aVWid2TT24_DMG03WfWhxpl9Qp56olqYlq5VfO2sVXo4Ous1hDAFbF_kHKK3I1SvNE8XzcPvz9FYid8bmIBj-hZjcWqovIqjMehy69hnJONhMQYV4p6Gnk/s400/soaction11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<a href="https://sopercussion.com/" target="_blank">Sō Percussion’s</a> Summer Institute begins Sunday, July 16 in Princeton and continues through the end of the month. The group (shown above in a press photo <a href="https://sopercussion.com/media/photos/" target="_blank">from its website</a>) has eight performances scheduled at various venues on and around Princeton University campus, including a 7:30 p.m. Thursday appearance at Small World Coffee – a typically crowded Witherspoon Street hangout where singer/songwriters and other small ensembles perform. <br />
<br />
In particular, the Princeton Composer Concert, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 22, at Matthews Acting Studio, Lewis Center for the Arts, 185 Nassau St., Princeton, will feature the work of seven graduate student composers. The <a href="http://cgnj.org/">Composers Guild of New Jersey</a> – where I am a board member – has commissioned works by composers selected by Sō Percussion Summer Institute, with the goal of encouraging young New Jersey composers. CGNJ also donated money for other expenses related to the performance, including videotaping.<br />
<br />
Donations of nonperishable food, toiletries, and diapers for the <a href="http://www.trentonsoupkitchen.org/">Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK)</a> will be collected at specific Summer Institute concerts, including the July 22 performance. Audience members may place their donations in the designated boxes outside the performance space.<br />
<br />
For more information, visit <a href="https://sopercussion.com/education/summer-institute/">sopercussion.com/education/summer-institute/</a><br />
<br />
--C.<br />
July 13, 2017<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-72461445538944744372017-07-08T22:31:00.000-04:002017-07-08T22:45:04.121-04:00String Quartet premiere – Locrian Chamber Players, June 2, 2017<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijGHY5DUwauH0IwFnjBe7ANdEOC3fFsbRwBnX9R9Ye_6lP8ijXwoxdWTjRCuYHN5dIEqbqKpbSRAOHtnr-jdg2uZvlRuwTcJNyDWObl_vxa-ccyGptPZEAT3EGFp3XNLsE4Wm-jolR0ws/s1600/Locrian_group_pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="924" data-original-width="1600" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijGHY5DUwauH0IwFnjBe7ANdEOC3fFsbRwBnX9R9Ye_6lP8ijXwoxdWTjRCuYHN5dIEqbqKpbSRAOHtnr-jdg2uZvlRuwTcJNyDWObl_vxa-ccyGptPZEAT3EGFp3XNLsE4Wm-jolR0ws/s400/Locrian_group_pic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I've posted the recording below on Facebook and Twitter already, but I'm putting it here as well. This is the June 2 premiere of my second String Quartet, completed in 2016 and performed by the <a href="http://www.locrian.org/" target="_blank">Locrian Chamber Players</a> at Riverside Church in NYC. (The group's photo, above, is borrowed from its Facebook page. You can also follow @LocrianPlayers on Twitter.)<br />
<br />
The Locrian performs only music of the last 10 years and the group has been around for over 20 years. Since pretty much everything they do is new, they've developed an unusual sensitivity to the interpretation of never-before-performed works. Like mine. I am deeply grateful to the players for their insightful, skilled and disciplined approach:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">Conrad Harris, violin<br />
Calvin Wiersma, violin<br />
Daniel Panner, viola<br />
Greg Hesselink, cello</blockquote>The four movements are in a single soundfile, with brief silences in between, recorded live.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">1. Circle Dance<br />
2. Fantasy<br />
3. Churchyard<br />
4. Drum</blockquote><br />
<iframe frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/332097658&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe><br />
<br />
All four movements play with materials from folk music, pentatonic scales in particular. The Locrian hand out program notes only after the concert – a practice I fully support. The note on this quartet from the concert:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">The four movements are intended as songs of a sort – simple structures, direct language, concise material. Like a dance suite, they are rooted in physical movement. The titles were added long after the quartet was complete. In hindsight, I would say the music reflects an awareness of the way communities express themselves in individual lives, and the way individuals act together. The circle dance could be at a wedding. The fantasy is like a county fair, with doses of joy, sorrow, confusion and weirdness. The churchyard is a stroll among the headstones, the lives lost beneath the grass. The last movement is inspired by a Native American drum team at a pow-wow: the team sits around a large drum, each member has a beater and they keep time together as they sing. </blockquote><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div>The rest of the program featured similarly wonderful performances. I have to shy away from a proper review, since it would be impossible for me to be impartial. I love everything on the program. But as a composer, with my own work on the same program, there were two pieces that stood out as my favorites. The first was "The Gates of Sleep" – a gemstone setting of short text by Virgil by Locrian co-founder David Macdonald, which opened the evening. Unpretentious, meditative, concise and powerful – I heard it once and I wanted to hear it again immediately. I just loved it.<br />
<br />
The other was the 2007 string quartet "Blossoming" by Toshio Hosokawa. It's a dramatic, far-sighted piece that develops materials less from the traditions of classical music and more from the sounds of the natural world, exploiting a tendency that has been present in Japanese traditional music for centuries. Glissando-ing trills that enter gently, like the whispers of birds in flight over and around the listener, are one hallmark – a stunning performance of an important piece. I need to get the score.<br />
<div><br />
</div>Michael Gordon also had a really interesting string quartet on the program, "Clouded Yellow" (2010). Guitarist Stanley Alexandrowicz (who had a recital in Ewing, NJ, recently which I wrote about in my previous blog post) opened the second half with Brian Fennelly's "Prelude and Maverick Tango" (2014); and mezzo-soprano Jacqueline Horner-Kwiatek and pianist Jonathan Faiman played George Crumb's "The Yellow Moon of Andalusia" (2012). The performance of the Crumb had all the dizzying colors, dissolving-into-silence drama and serious whimsy that you expect from him; the score is reminiscent of, but perhaps not equal to, "Ancient Voices of Children." In addition to having a great voice, Jacqueline's acting skills stitched the invisible threads of Crumb's music into a fine carpet.<br />
<br />
Here's the complete program.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha-7aLWY9XLJjK1OgubKw_YbW1NdnT7Bn8FFxpn0d_w5HltwVGke6VzEhRIVOLIxyY2LV1RaSP4Qy30IG4WYgKm0eaJVlzebJkpCKDjzc9uWDBt88weA2ntS2-dZCx-zS5iD3-bXgOW0Y/s1600/Locrian_6_2_17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha-7aLWY9XLJjK1OgubKw_YbW1NdnT7Bn8FFxpn0d_w5HltwVGke6VzEhRIVOLIxyY2LV1RaSP4Qy30IG4WYgKm0eaJVlzebJkpCKDjzc9uWDBt88weA2ntS2-dZCx-zS5iD3-bXgOW0Y/s400/Locrian_6_2_17.JPG" title="Locrian Chamber Players June 2, 2017" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<br />
Love the Locrian Chamber Players – next concert, 8 p.m. August 25, featuring work by Steve Reich, John Luther Adams, Adrienne Albert, Aaron Alter and others.<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
July 9, 2017<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blospot.com/" target="_blank">theandofone.blospot.com</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-57647200201751785782017-07-08T14:37:00.001-04:002017-07-08T18:30:09.398-04:00Guitar and Friends at 1867 Sanctuary<div class="MsoNormal">
Thursday night (July 6) I had the great pleasure of attending a recital by a friend of mine, classical guitarist <a href="http://stanleyalexandrowicz.com/" target="_blank">StanleyAlexandrowicz</a>, at the <a href="http://www.1867sanctuary.org/" target="_blank">1867 Sanctuary</a>, a de-commissioned Presbyterian church in Ewing. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To be accurate, I only heard half of the recital. A family obligation meant I couldn’t get there until 9 p.m. and it started at 8. The bit I missed was some rarely heard 19<sup>th</sup> century repertoire – when I walked in, Stanley was just finishing up the pieces at the end of the first half.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Composer <a href="https://kendallkennison.com/" target="_blank">Kendall Kennison</a> has written a few pieces for guitar and Stanley played two of them on the second half of the program. Kendall is a friend from my Rutgers days when we were both students of Robert Moevs and has for many years now been a professor at Goucher College. He was there with his wife Debbie, also a good friend and a former piano student of mine, and they were celebrating Debbie’s birthday.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRPHddgs9kWA5lce5c2u0WSUFTiLNULgOHEmCLOd8_XmAshCe5BZG2YhZx2mXnz3Ea5FkxHDUW9wvxlXHAJy_VdOGrmlJMCelwofnBICf7X5JzxGtEIOo3bwV-Ko4hW32bDk8faksCTyQ/s1600/Stanley+Alexandrowicz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="917" data-original-width="630" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRPHddgs9kWA5lce5c2u0WSUFTiLNULgOHEmCLOd8_XmAshCe5BZG2YhZx2mXnz3Ea5FkxHDUW9wvxlXHAJy_VdOGrmlJMCelwofnBICf7X5JzxGtEIOo3bwV-Ko4hW32bDk8faksCTyQ/s320/Stanley+Alexandrowicz.jpg" width="219" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The half of the program I heard was worth the trip. Stanley is a excellent player and a thoughtful interpreter of music of all styles. He uses a guitar modeled after 19<sup>th</sup> century types that uses additional bass strings over a second, unfretted neck. These come in handy in both period music and some contemporary pieces written specifically to take advantage of the extra low notes. Guitar builder <a href="http://www.tomsommervilleguitars.com/" target="_blank">Tom Sommerville</a> of Hamilton was also in attendance. [see correction at the end]<br />
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Kendall’s music (we heard the difficult Sonata No. 1 and the short romp, “Backanally”) has a jewel-like geometry – Stanley said some people have heard a darkness and unsettled quality, but I don’t hear that. I hear a kind of logical love – a fluid, sparking architecture.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCZiWrjKssQ3ePKvg2yxQcD7kLKGJiF2shl6q57gvuaHEIndbKvpERGLVHd3ZbVlBmWuwB2vPPh4Uft8eYnpjVN18nJybm40wVi8yQg8JAi1UPOvhGy-j_HyYCtovh2txXkPJIkYkCca8/s1600/Carlton_Stanley_Kendall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCZiWrjKssQ3ePKvg2yxQcD7kLKGJiF2shl6q57gvuaHEIndbKvpERGLVHd3ZbVlBmWuwB2vPPh4Uft8eYnpjVN18nJybm40wVi8yQg8JAi1UPOvhGy-j_HyYCtovh2txXkPJIkYkCca8/s320/Carlton_Stanley_Kendall.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<center>
<small>Carlton Wilkinson, Stanley Alexandrowicz and Kendall Kennison. </small></center>
<center>
<small>Photo courtesy Stanley Alexandrowicz</small></center>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Also in attendance was composer and conductor Robert Butts, director of the Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey [http://baroqueorchestra.org]. Stanley played his “Early Morning Suite.” The style here is so conservative as to verge into historic homage (in styles ranging from Ralph Vaughan Williams to J.S. Bach), yet Butt’s music remains surprising and engaging, robust and beautiful.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The 1867 Sanctuary is a newer space and the managers are trying to increase the audience for it, to make the venue an active, vital community center for the arts. Operating costs are roughly $25,000/year, most of which is insurance, putting pressure on the group that now runs it, Preservation New Jersey, to ramp its activities and its visibility as a statewide arts attraction. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For me – who spent nearly 20 years in Trenton, moving away from there about 20 years ago – coming to the former church was the completion of a full circle: we held both my mother’s and her sister’s memorial services there when they died. My Mom went first, way back in 1982. My aunt, who was held in a kind of saintly esteem by the members of my family and her extensive community of friends, died much later, in 2007. My aunt learned the flute late in life, and got a lot of joy from it, turning it, as she did everything else, into an opportunity to make new friends and explore new horizons. I think she (and my mom) would be thrilled to see the church being developed as an arts venue.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It was great to catch up with my friends, if only for a few minutes at intermission and after the concert, sitting on benches in the old cemetery. I look forward to attending other concerts in the space. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:DocumentProperties> <o:Revision>0</o:Revision> <o:TotalTime>0</o:TotalTime> <o:Pages>1</o:Pages> <o:Words>509</o:Words> <o:Characters>2907</o:Characters> <o:Company>Brunswick Group LLC</o:Company> <o:Lines>24</o:Lines> <o:Paragraphs>6</o:Paragraphs> <o:CharactersWithSpaces>3410</o:CharactersWithSpaces> <o:Version>14.0</o:Version> </o:DocumentProperties> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> <w:UseFELayout/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="276"> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/> <w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
--C.<o:p></o:p><br />
7/8/17<br />
theandofone.blogspot.com<br />
<br />
CORRECTION: This post originally said Stanley's guitar "was built by <a href="http://www.tomsommervilleguitars.com/" target="_blank">Tom Sommerville</a> of Hamilton." That was incorrect and my misunderstanding. See Stanley's note in the comments of this post.<br />
--C. 7/8/17<br />
<br /></div>
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-30299703491618309402017-07-04T11:11:00.000-04:002017-07-04T11:11:58.985-04:00Jimi Hendrix's "Star-Spangled Banner" at Woodstock<i>NOTE: This post was originally published midday July 4, 2009. </i><br />
<i>—</i><i>C. 7/4/17</i><br />
<br />
Apart from the context, Jimi Hendrix's "Star Spangle Banner" is completely straightforward, a cinch to interpret. The context alone is what gives it its emotional and social complexity. That complexity also gives the piece more power than it already has, and it has quite a bit.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwIymq0iTsw" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwIymq0iTsw</a><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MwIymq0iTsw" width="560"></iframe><br />
<br />
Although his is an instrumental version, Hendrix's interpretation remains tied directly to the lyrics. The music divides into large sections, the first being a virtuosic but faithful rendition of the melody for the opening four lines:<br />
<br />
<i>Oh say can you see, by the dawn's early light<br />
what so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming<br />
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight<br />
o'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming</i><br />
<br />
Each pair of lines forms a complete musical phrase in the anthem. In these first two phrases, not much happens in Hendrix's playing in a pictorial sense. The occasional feedback and shifts of timbre, together with Mitch Mitchell's free-form drumming far in the background, feed into the creation of a "perilous" atmosphere, a sense of danger permeates the moment, offering a hint of what's to come. <br />
<br />
I need to point out here that the constantly shifting timbre of the guitar is a hallmark of Hendrix's style. In addition to coaxing feedback--particularly as a kind of punctuation at the ends of musical phrases--he also makes near-constant use of the wah-wah pedal and the tone switch and level controls on the face of the Stratocaster guitar, any of which can instantly or slowly change the sound from a spitting bright sound to a half-swallowed dark sound and everything in between. The so-called "whammy bar", which allows him to loosen or tighten all of the strings at once with a single hand motion, adds to this effect by allowing him a wild vibrato, pitch bends and other effects.<br />
<br />
Hendrix's virtuosic style is also marked by his ability to be anywhere on the neck of the guitar instantaneously. This is a technique that originates with the old Delta blues players, who would have a bass line going on the low frets alternating with a melody on the high frets, leaping back and forth fast enough to make both sound continuous. Hendrix uses this to give his playing a wild character, a sense both of fullness in the arrangement and a sense that you never know where the next sound is going to come from.<br />
<br />
From the perspective of those style characteristics, it's remarkable how plain these two quatrains are. The first is merely the melody, without any decoration other than feedback and the pulsing of what sounds like a stereo vibrato effect. In the second, Hendrix elaborates the melody by sustaining a few notes and by adding some others in a kind of mimicry of a classical music approach. The elaborations add a flamboyant, swelling grandeur that probably has to be interpreted as at least slightly mocking. I say that reluctantly because I don't think Hendrix's version is in any way a satirical rendition. Its heartfelt and of the moment. But the moment included poking a little fun at conventions of the "squares". <br />
<br />
But now, in the second section: this is where the thing really begins to fly. <br />
<br />
<i> And the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air<br />
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there</i><br />
<br />
In the video, you can see Hendrix powering into this section. In the first verse, he's fussing with the tuning keys and the knobs of his guitar, idly watching his fingers or looking out over the audience. Clearly, this kind of playing he doesn't have to think too much about. As he gets close to this verse however, his whole posture changes: suddenly he races up to his pedals, his neck and spine bend forward slightly and he begins to radiate a raw physicality. From this point on, his hands barely leave the guitar, his facial expressions vary from meditative to intensely expressive. The guitar itself now travels up and down, elegantly changing position relative to the player as if partners in a <i>pas de deux</i>. <br />
<br />
Using all the stylistic traits I mentioned above – the whammy bar, feedback, the effects pedals and covering the full expanse of the neck of the guitar – he creates bursts of sound after each half of the first line of this couplet. Repeatedly, he slides up from the bottom of the neck on the low strings, to get a swooping sound, and the open strings of the guitar, to get a smashing dissonant chord. After the second line in particularly he gets momentarily caught up in tightening the whammy bar and letting it out slowly, ending the fall with a crash of open strings. <br />
<br />
These aren't the simple elaborations of the first verse but instead form a full-blown, well-balanced collage, divided in half by the playing of the melody for "the bombs bursting in air." The sounds here describe the text with imitations of the sounds of war: Bombs dropping, searing explosions of various types. Scraps of the earlier melody appear as well, altered but recognizable, as if not to let us forget that where we are is a violent nightmare version of where we came from.<br />
<br />
For the fourth line of this quatrain, Hendrix simply reasserts the melody, immediately resuming his slightly distracted, almost bored physical poster. But before moving on, he pauses to salute the flag with an excerpt from the military bugle call, <i>Taps</i>. Hendrix served in the army and understood that <i>Taps</i> signals the close of day and, as such, is played at funerals to honor the service of the deceased, now at rest. The inserted melody serves as a stark transition into the final couplet.<br />
<br />
<i> Oh say does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave<br />
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.</i><br />
<br />
In the first of these two lines, he uses a mandolin style plucking as a kind of drum roll version of the melody, echoed by an actual drum roll from Mitchell. He also uses this section to reflect back a little on the feedback and collage of the middle section. With a dramatic pause, he launches into the last line, given an appropriate grandeur with some elaboration reminiscent of the earlier section, including a final bomb-drop whammy bar and crash. Three chords then form a dramatic final cadence, a grand ceremonial gesture.<br />
<br />
The complexity of the context is easily apparent to anyone who lived through the era. Hendrix could be both proud and critical of his country at the same time. Many of us were. He could also be using protest as a marketing gimmick, playing to his young hippie audience. All of that at once is probably true. For those who don't get it, I'll try to explain a little in a later post. <br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<br />
<i>UPDATE 2 ON VIDEO CLIP: I updated the link in the body copy so that it works right now. This clip too, could go away, and if it does, see the instruction in last year's update, below.</i><br />
<i>--C. 7/4/17</i><br />
<br />
<i>UPDATE 1 ON VIDEO CLIP: The video I had originally embedded involved one of the camera angles used in the opening composite of shots shown in the final version of the film "Woodstock," by Martin Scorcese. It was a YouTube video which was, unfortunately, subsequently removed</i><i>, probably for copyright concerns</i><i>. The link above is the same clip on Vimeo. If you want, you can still find this alternate camera angle through various sources, including the DVD of Hendrix at Woodstock: it offers a view of the performance from in front of the performer and from his right side, clearly showing the body language I described below. </i><br />
<i> --C. 7/4/16</i>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-68989876272674069032015-12-27T23:25:00.000-05:002015-12-27T23:25:02.071-05:00Merry Christmas Gun Owners<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-hJwnkXHQ3ORwSgzW8VIi21NCdfchGSkUT286UDdYVJmv3HmJeYYhgNhddPN2B0s0ipbQuVyEmL33oLzcg-YL_XtU7FfPzSbg1ndnr_eHh_v91dp2shacKFWLq_S9aqfJ3wgLcHvl1Vk/s1600/gunsketch.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-hJwnkXHQ3ORwSgzW8VIi21NCdfchGSkUT286UDdYVJmv3HmJeYYhgNhddPN2B0s0ipbQuVyEmL33oLzcg-YL_XtU7FfPzSbg1ndnr_eHh_v91dp2shacKFWLq_S9aqfJ3wgLcHvl1Vk/s320/gunsketch.png" width="320" /></a></div>
File this under "more guns make us safer." One week in the USA.<br />
<br />
Let's just run down the list real quick:<br />
<ul>
<li>Last Sunday, Dec. 20, a 24-year-old recent college graduate returns home to Asbury Park and <a href="http://www.nj.com/monmouth/index.ssf/2015/12/athletic_standout_killed_in_asbury_park_shooting_w.html">is shot and killed</a> in his home neighborhood.</li>
<li>Also Sunday, a 17-year-old girl is <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3375146/Missouri-teen-dies-accidentally-shot-father-gun-thought-unloaded.html">accidentally shot by her father</a> in Ohio, who doesn't realize his gun is loaded. (Family takes her off life support Christmas Eve and she dies Dec. 26).</li>
<li>Wednesday, a man with a gun <a href="http://abc7ny.com/news/motive-still-unclear-in-edgewater-murder-suicide-that-killed-parents-child/1136272/">kills his wife and his child and then kills himself</a> in an apartment in Edgewater, N.J.</li>
<li>Christmas Eve, <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/heavy-police-presence-mall-reports-shots-fired-35946064">a man pulls a gun and starts shooting</a> during an argument in a N.C. mall; an off-duty police officer working as mall security shoots and kills him.</li>
<li>Christmas morning,<a href="http://www.kgw.com/news/local/two-year-old-accidentally-shot-in-the-face-in-molalla/8296641"> a 2-year-old girl is shot in the face</a> in Oregon by a relative who accidentally fires his gun while cleaning it in the next room. She is expected to live.</li>
<li>On Saturday, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/12/27/chicago-police-kill-mentally-ill-college-student-55-year-old-woman/">police shoot an emotionally disturbed man</a> charging at them with a baseball bat, (because a gun is the defense of first choice, i guess) and accidentally shoot a 55-year-old mother of five who happened to be in the way. Both are killed.</li>
</ul>
This is just the tip of the iceberg – I list these as examples because they made headlines in my news feed and social media. You can visit <a href="http://www.gunviolencearchive.org/">www.gunviolencearchive.org</a> for a look at just how many are out there. It's my understanding that that website tabulates incidents of gun violence by voluntary submission of verifiable reports -- so a good guess is the real total is much higher than what is listed there.<br />
<br />
I suppose I need to say it again, just to be perfectly clear: more guns do not make us safer. They make us less safe.<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/CarltonTSC">@CarltonTSC</a><br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com/">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<div>
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a></div>
<div>
<small><i><a href="https://www.sketchport.com/drawing/5640929322991616/omg-a-gun">photo from sketchport by thebrotato</a> under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">creative commons license</a></i></small></div>
<br />Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-45571331864937071482012-09-29T15:23:00.001-04:002012-09-30T13:18:57.482-04:00Wilkinson's EdgeMy latest for <a HREF="http://www.asburypulp.com" TARGET="_blank">Asbury Pulp</A> is in a style I haven't really used since college. I had a regular column then in the Trenton State College newspaper, <i>The Signal</I>, called "Wilkinson's Edge." Then-editor John Robinson had invited me to write a couple of articles and from there, encouraged me to step it up into a regular column. I would probably never have tried it otherwise. The column name was his doing and I always liked it. (For the record, I'm not related to the Wilkinson Sword Blade family that I know of.)<br />
<br />
The style of those columns was free and snarky and the words flowed easily, like water out of a clean deep well. It was a joy to write those, to try to make myself laugh out loud as a I wrote them. At my first newspaper job, a small Princeton Packet Publications paper called <i>The Franklin News-Record</I>, I wrote one or two and my editor used the same name, "Wilkinson's Edge." At the <i>Times of Trenton</I>, a few years later, I ran one, toned down a bit, but still in the same vein. (To my knowledge, none of those are available online.) But since then, now writing mostly about classical music, I've restricted myself to a more serious approach, a more conservative style.<br />
<br />
Writing this article on Mitt Romney (see the link below), I came back to that pure happiness, hammering away to make something a little silly and still opinionated and punchy. And I'm pleased with the result. With <I>Asbury Pulp</I> editor Steven Froias' encouragement, we decided to run it and it appeared Saturday morning. <br />
<br />
I'm hoping to make it a regular part of my contribution there. Will be interesting to see how it develops.<br />
<br />
<ul><li><a HREF="http://asburypulp.com/2012/09/commentary-mitt-romney-king-of-comedy/" TARGET="_blank">Mitt Romney: King of Comedy</A></LI> </UL>--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com/">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a class="twitter-follow-button" data-show-count="false" href="https://twitter.com/CarltonOne">Follow @CarltonOne</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-92027837554405444332012-09-18T12:19:00.002-04:002012-09-18T12:19:55.698-04:00Greetings From Asbury Pulp!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://asburypulp.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Asbury-Pulp-Mast-spec-new-copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right;margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="106" width="212" src="http://asburypulp.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Asbury-Pulp-Mast-spec-new-copy.png" /></a></div>In addition to my work with the <a href="http://search.app.com/sp?skin=&aff=1100&keywords=carlton+Wilkinson&sortBy=date" target="_blank">Asbury Park Press</a>, I’ve started writing for the website, <a href="http://asburypulp.com/" target="”_blank”">Asbury Pulp</a>, an writers portal featuring commentary on websites, restaurants, visual arts, music and whatever else the community is talking about. <br />
<br />
Today there’s <a href="http://asburypulp.com/2012/09/come-into-the-upstage/" target="_blank">a great article</a> about Carrie Potter-Devening’s new book on the old Upstage club at Asbury Park, one of Springsteen’s boyhood haunts. <br />
<br />
As that article and the site’s name imply, the principal focus of Asbury Pulp is Asbury Park, but its interests fan out over the region, the nation and the globe. The site was conceived and created by Steven Froias of the local paper TriCity News (the tri-cities being Red Bank, Long Branch and Asbury Park), a highly opinionated tabloid covering news and issues relevant to the region. <br />
<br />
I had approached Steven a couple years ago about possibly doing some work for the TriCity, but obstacles popped up for both sides. So when he started the website, he contacted me again. This time it seemed an easy, natural fit. <br />
<br />
My two articles so far: <br />
<ul><li><a href="http://asburypulp.com/2012/09/the-silence-of-john-cage/" target="_blank">The Silence of John Cage</a> talks about the importance of the composer/philosopher in the centennial year of his birth </li>
<li><a href="http://asburypulp.com/2012/09/a-hymn-of-praise-to-vinyl/" target="_blank">A Hymn of Praise to Vinyl</a> talks about the spiritual importance of 12-inch records</li>
</ul>Less hard news, more literary magazine, Asbury Pulp invites contributions from writers in the community. Visit the site, read and join in the conversation if you’re so inclined. <br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com/">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a class="twitter-follow-button" data-show-count="false" href="https://twitter.com/CarltonOne">Follow @CarltonOne</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-19254408899249400652012-08-29T16:42:00.000-04:002012-08-29T16:45:46.686-04:00'Music and the Natural World'<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK3OAgsjnYYmf5UWAthm_gkWyo_njDNOiDF9Fl4figebhtBrfkC3mxiv7EIkk_xXKeM1qr8I0uPz55cfShFpCUWpvBs6FVidjBKuYOdzxFAWpNnI0t3LYeX26L6o40PtaNzki-NaHeUm0/s1600/beethovencountryside_thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK3OAgsjnYYmf5UWAthm_gkWyo_njDNOiDF9Fl4figebhtBrfkC3mxiv7EIkk_xXKeM1qr8I0uPz55cfShFpCUWpvBs6FVidjBKuYOdzxFAWpNnI0t3LYeX26L6o40PtaNzki-NaHeUm0/s200/beethovencountryside_thumb.jpg" /></a></div>Tomorrow my Fall semester class at The College of New Jersey begins. I'm teaching a Freshman Seminar titled "Music and the Natural World."<br />
<br />
The idea for this course came out of a discussion on the Society of Music Theory email list about five years ago. Some on the list were interested in whether a music theory course could somehow work in ideas related to sustainability -- a hot topic at the time, as the academic world was reacting to mounting pressures to address climate change and environmental issues. The thought was that sustainability was one of the most important issues of our age and we had a responsibility as educators to reflect that concern to our students.<br />
<br />
I was among those theory teachers who said, No, it can't be done. The theory curriculum is already demanding for the students and time allowed for that curriculum is far too brief. Moreover, the link between theory and sustainability is flimsy at best. We can recycle paper. But that's about it. In one way or another, most of theorists agreed with that assessment.<br />
<br />
Out of that discussion, however, the idea arose that a separate course could be designed that focus on repertoire and environment. Composers throughout history have been inspired in many ways by the beauty of the natural landscape and composers today are examining that relationship in everything from traditional "musical landscape" scores to computer models of natural systems and chaos theory. <br />
<br />
My thought was that, in a framework like that, students would be naturally sensitized to issues of sustainability and human responsibility for our changing environment. Putting it in a freshman seminar seemed perfect, as it allowed for a more broad-ranging discussion.<br />
<br />
TCNJ's freshman seminars are intended give students an introduction to scholarship by presenting them with a subject of study, much like a graduate seminar, and then guide them through the process of research and scholarly discussion. The first two years in college are generally spent on required courses, with little other opportunity for this kind of personal scholarship. <br />
<br />
By now, I've taught this particular course three semesters and I grow from the experience each time. We gambol around music history and the musicological spectrum, touching on other disciplines like philosophy, physics, sociology and biology. Since the course is open to students of any major, there are a jungle of approaches popping up in each classroom. Each voice adds to bigger picture. <br />
<br />
We will start with an nature-themed trip through the classical repertoire, introducing some writings of Goethe and others along the way, and then head off into ethnomusicology and topics in semiotics before getting into soundscapes, musique concrete and John Cage. And we wind up with a look into the not-so-distant future of virtual environments -- what of nature, or of ourselves, do we take with us into the wholly digital city?<br />
<br />
It's a mash-up dance, a rough-and-tumble idea playground.<br />
<br />
So here we go. I'm excited. It's going to be a great semester.<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
<a href="https://twitter.com/CarltonOne" class="twitter-follow-button" data-show-count="false">Follow @CarltonOne</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-39719991427502226512012-08-25T18:53:00.001-04:002012-08-25T23:12:19.814-04:00Dvorak's Stabat Mater at Ocean GroveOcean Grove's Great Auditorium hosts its annual Sacred Concert with a performance of Antonin Dvorak's Stabat Mater tomorrow, Aug. 26 at 7:30 p.m. The auditorium choir and orchestra will be directed by Dr. Jason C. Tramm. Soloists will be soprano Monica Ziglar, contralto Martha Bartz, tenor Ronald Naldi and bass-baritone Jeremy Galyon. Organist Gordon Turk, artist-in-residence, will also perform with the ensemble.<br />
<br />
The concert is free with a goodwill offering collected at the door.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYPa38Mt3iiYbEIA7wp7uCQD_Z1R0wON35KCu0SCbnYQ2ffO3Y1Fa2LSwULXKFlv-pMr_XEryp9MVipECnUQ5__LA53N2FkwDrw2agJObEsK_UE6XjlpX8zPyMN5egqj8V3B5oGLYMUNc/s1600/michelangelos_pieta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYPa38Mt3iiYbEIA7wp7uCQD_Z1R0wON35KCu0SCbnYQ2ffO3Y1Fa2LSwULXKFlv-pMr_XEryp9MVipECnUQ5__LA53N2FkwDrw2agJObEsK_UE6XjlpX8zPyMN5egqj8V3B5oGLYMUNc/s200/michelangelos_pieta.jpg" /></a></div>The text of the Stabat Mater is a sacred Latin poem written in the 13th century depicting the grief of Jesus' mother as she watches her song dying on the cross. The poem attracted some of the greatest composers of history, including Pergolesi (whose fame rests mainly on his Stabat Mater and one or two other works), J.S. Bach, Franz Liszt, Giuseppe Verdi and many others.<br />
<br />
Dvorak composed his setting as a way of working through his own grief at the loss of his three children -- his newborn daughter in 1875, followed by his two older children who died within weeks of one another of separate causes in 1877. <br />
<br />
Dvorak's Stabat Mater was widely praised following its premiere in Prague in 1880. It was through this work that the Czech composer was introduced to the English speaking world, where he became a leading musical figure, a success that ultimately led to his invitation to visit the U.S. and the composition of his most famous work, the Symphony "From the New World."<br />
<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
<a href="https://twitter.com/CarltonOne" class="twitter-follow-button" data-show-count="false">Follow @CarltonOne</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-9554995814861199792012-08-15T21:24:00.000-04:002012-08-15T21:35:14.949-04:00Save Charles Ives' Home<a HREF="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com/2012/08/ives-string-quartet-no-2.html" TARGET="_blank">Speaking of Ives</A>, his home in Connecticut is in danger of being torn down. Developers are excited to build on the property -- destroying a historic landmark in the process. <br />
<br />
Here's <a HREF="
http://www.wqxr.org/#!/blogs/wqxr-blog/2012/aug/10/ivess-music-lives-and-many-feel-his-house-should-too/" TARGET="_blank">an article on WQXR's website</A> explaining the situation.<br />
<br />
Below is a link to a petition to save the house that still needs 500 signatures. Please take a moment to sign it.<br />
<br />
<div id="change_BottomBar"><span id="change_Powered"><a href="http://www.change.org" target="_blank">Petitions</a> by Change.org</span><a>|</a><span id="change_Start">Start a <a href="http://www.change.org/petition" target="_blank">Petition</a> »</span></div><script type="text/javascript" src="http://e.change.org/flash_petitions_widget.js?width=300&color=1A3563&petition_id=557901"></script><br />
<br />
Thanks to <a HREF="http://www.sequenza21.com/2012/08/the-unanswered-petition-save-ivess-house/" TARGET="_blank">Christian Carey</A> for passing along this widget.<br />
<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-47700883737439794622012-08-12T15:49:00.000-04:002012-08-15T21:21:06.466-04:00Ives' String Quartet No. 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DEfvYOnUq26c9ugrfG5oniBx1m46c0EeWpzy3i9EMSokhbAQ3hwOW25ZOxY6fQ-jxppq9i3ZKHi9sZT72U1bDrehWFaMJajS7WUZ6nfvmWEJO1xRMmL1KuKdQZTxfj3MX2-xGy4Jr44/s1600/Upshaw_Kalish_CHARLES-IVES-.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DEfvYOnUq26c9ugrfG5oniBx1m46c0EeWpzy3i9EMSokhbAQ3hwOW25ZOxY6fQ-jxppq9i3ZKHi9sZT72U1bDrehWFaMJajS7WUZ6nfvmWEJO1xRMmL1KuKdQZTxfj3MX2-xGy4Jr44/s200/Upshaw_Kalish_CHARLES-IVES-.jpg" /></a></div><br />
I have long had a casual relationship with Charles Ives’ String Quartet No. 2. I was introduced to his music as an undergraduate, using it as a springboard to find my way into contemporary repertoire after having grown up hearing precious little of anything written post-1913 that wasn’t Broadway, mainstream jazz or pop music.<br />
<br />
Ives opened up a whole new way of looking at music for me, a child-like way of toying with the material until it satisfied both child and grown-up sensibilities. No matter how eccentric, the result always seemed rooted in simple “what if” questions: If music can modulate from one key to another, why can't it be it two or more keys <i>at the same time</I>? <br />
<br />
What about two time signatures at the same time? What about two completely different pieces of music at the same time? <br />
<br />
If the harmonic series is a guide to functional harmony, what happens when we extend it to the higher partials? What about intervals smaller than a semitone? <br />
<br />
If stacks of thirds produce triads, seventh and ninth chords, could clusters of notes or oppositions of seventh chords -- which could be realistically described as skyscraper stacks of thirds – be used as functional harmony? What about stacks of fourths? <br />
<br />
What happens when you mix or imitate folk instruments with orchestra instruments? Bel canto and common singing? Does some political or social line get crossed? Is that good?<br />
<br />
I love these questions. They seem a little transparent to me now, but the lesson I learned from them -- that music is not a goal, but a process of seeking -- has remained a vital one.<br />
<br />
<b>The String Quartet No. 2</B><br />
<i>S.Q. for 4 men--who converse, discuss, argue in re 'Politick', fight, shake hands, shut up -- then walk up the mountain side to view the firmament! <br />
– C.I., note from score</I><br />
<br />
In the 1980s, the String Quartet No. 2 was too much for me. Working in the music library as an undergrad, I had recorded the Kohon String Quartert performance onto cassette tape. I remember listening to it, admiring it and putting it away again. That process happened over and over. Finally, as I moved on to late Stravinksy and the music of the European avant garde composers of the 1950s and ‘60s -- the mid-century men -- I put it aside completely.<br />
<br />
Driving across Pennsylvania last month -- my great revelations often happen driving across Pennsylvania -- I pulled that same tape out again and turned it on, thankful that my old car still had a cassette player. Listened to the whole thing twice through. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXXMedu2tIbB0z6R7RgrMCJtCfsQd-YDIjAS5LZhs0ckl5wmC2RGz4m5arLysxaYyBvct49RNlRzx9SrrCXG-RreS6ciWtWlPaLpgRq2szCbqm4YuG6H8p-aahA3guVq4ZbIDkx0-hQ80/s1600/Ives_cassette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXXMedu2tIbB0z6R7RgrMCJtCfsQd-YDIjAS5LZhs0ckl5wmC2RGz4m5arLysxaYyBvct49RNlRzx9SrrCXG-RreS6ciWtWlPaLpgRq2szCbqm4YuG6H8p-aahA3guVq4ZbIDkx0-hQ80/s320/Ives_cassette.jpg" /></a></div><br />
What I found was a tender, visionary work, post-modern at the dawn of modernism, post-Romantic in an era dominated by Romanticism, deeply personal where technology and the shadow of industrialized world war were quickly rendering society as a whole impersonal. <br />
<br />
It shows the versatility of individual imagination, far removed from expectations of genre and style -- the tracings of a free flying mind imprisoned physically and historically by time and place, liberated by imagination. <br />
<br />
Let’s admit that Ives was influenced by other contemporary innovations, that he strove to define himself as an outsider, to outdo deliberately all others in crazy re-imaginings of traditional methods. Let's note that a near-perverse machismo lay near the root of much of his experimentation, particularly so with this string quartet. Let’s even agree, for the sake of argument, that his eccentricity exceeded his control over the score.<br />
<br />
I accept all that. No matter.<br />
<br />
The second string quartet remains a work of remarkable conception, and fluid beauty. It presages Elliot Carter’s fascination with assigning identities to individual voices; its use of stylistic reference and literal quotation has nothing to do with the 19th century and everything to do with the late 20th; it establishes patterns of discontinuity as compositional elements, foreseeing the work of the mid-century; it overlays and juxtaposes in a way that often seems less like traditional polyphonic structure and more like tape-music-style mash-ups; it even lets the instruments step out of character to reveal themselves (with a prescribed imitation of tuning at a critical point), pointing toward the blurring of physical separation between performer and listener that came in the mid-to-late century. <br />
<br />
All of these are, for Ives’ generation, <i>new techniques</I>, all pursued with a ferocious imagination, a playful yet steady loyalty to the material. <br />
<br />
I suppose I will never lose my admiration for Ives, whatever personal and professional failings can be ascribed to him. It is hard to believe that I can return to this work after nearly 25 years and find in it so much that is still (or again) fertile ground for further experiment. <br />
<br />
I wasn’t ready for it in 1988. I am now.<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-11693204115998494652012-07-26T20:54:00.002-04:002012-07-26T20:58:25.095-04:00OperaNJ at the Paramount This WeekendLooking forward to seeing two OperaNJ productions at the Paramount Theatre this weekend. I’ll be reviewing them for the Asbury Park Press to run sometime during the week.<br />
<br />
I’m really hoping at least one of the shows is a sellout crowd. Metro Lyric Opera used to be able to draw well but as I recall they rarely sold out completely. <br />
<br />
But OperaNJ is not Metro Lyric. For all the joy that it brought us here at the Shore -- 50 years of it, in steady summer performances -- Metro Lyric was most remarkable because it was a homemade outfit. Shabby sets and costumes, local music lovers in the chorus, uneven stage direction and musical rehearsals -- all charming as heck, but not the most professional of presentations.<br />
<br />
But even in the most awkward of circumstances, the young professionals in the lead roles could occasionally catch fire. And the community dearly loved “Madame,” the late Era Tognoli, who ran the entire shebang.<br />
<br />
OperaNJ on the other hand is a thoroughly professional company. You’ll find its young singers on major stages all over the world, and the conductors, the set designs, the stage direction, the costumes are all absolutely first rate. <br />
<br />
The New Jersey Symphony Chamber Orchestra plays for all Opera New Jersey performances, a genuinely world-class band.<br />
<br />
Reviews are pouring in regarding these two productions, Gilbert & Sullivan’s “H.M.S. Pinafore” and Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” and they are nearly all positive. <br />
<br />
OperaNJ’s home is the rather fabulous McCarter Theatre in Princeton. Squeezing the productions into the Paramount with its limited backstage area will take some doing, including a few trailers for the singers. <br />
<br />
But the Paramount is in many respects a suitable house, even with the adjustments. A historic theater right on the boardwalk, it has its own tradition at the center of the Shore's rich artistic history. <br />
<br />
Former Princeton Symphony Orchestra conductor Mark Laycock leads the performance of “H.M.S. Pinafore” 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 27. Stage direction is by Michael Unger and the production includes Michael Gets as the Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Porter and Sean Anderson as Captain Corcoran, with Mathew Edwardsen, Sarah Beckham and Jennifer Feinstein. <br />
<br />
Victor DeRenzi conducts “Il Trovatore” 3 p.m. Sunday, July 29. Stephanie Sundine is the director and leads include tenor Rafael Dávila as Manrico, with Erica Strauss as his love interest Leonora. In addition, recent Metropolitan Opera auditions winner Margaret Mezzacappa will sing Azucena. Also featured are baritone Marco Nisticò as Count de Luna and bass Young Bok Kim as Ferrando. <br />
<br />
Tickets and more information can be found at OperaNJ’s website, <a HREF=http://www.opera-nj.org TARGET=”_blank”>www.opera-nj.org</A> or by calling 609-799-7700.<br />
See you there!<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
<br />
<br />Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-26496219320242755302012-07-04T22:30:00.001-04:002012-07-04T22:32:31.858-04:00Asbury Park's Fourth of July FireworksGreat fireworks display at Asbury Park Beach. The fireworks themselves were really good, very exciting, wild colors and no gaping holes in the action. Very professional. <br />
<br />
No music! I'm not a fan of music accompaniment for fireworks in general and loud amplified music in particular. Asbury tried the amplified music one year. No good. This year, no music and a much more satisfying experience.<br />
<br />
My family and I walked the boardwalk, stopped and shopped at a funky T-shirt and jewelry place and bought some ice cream. <br />
<br />
There was a fairly heavy police presence, probably a good idea with the crowd gathered on the boardwalk. The officers were polite and actually shooing skateboarders and dog-walkers off the boards. <br />
<br />
Most of the beach was off-limits except for Fifth Avenue beach, which is traditionally roped off for the blanket-and-chair crowd. My daughter and I sat there, close to the water. With most of the crowd content to watch from the boardwalk, the beach had a healthy crowd but never became mobbed or uncomfortable.<br />
<br />
A blood-red near-full moon rose over the waves just before the fireworks. A stunning view. And then a great fireworks display and comfortable, orderly exit.<br />
<br />
Nicely done, Asbury Park! Makes me proud to live here. A great evening.<br />
<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Follow me on Twitter: @CarltonOneCarlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-56790275096018375722012-07-04T10:54:00.001-04:002012-07-04T11:33:46.106-04:00'Sandy'This Fourth, I'm thinking a lot about the farewell of Bruce Springsteen's song "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" from <i>The Wild, The Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle</I>. <br />
<br />
Funny, the line "the aurora is rising behind us" -- I had always figured "Aurora" was the name of a ferris wheel or roller coaster or something. It just fit. I'm guessing now that he was using it in the generic sense, synonymous with "aura" but implying a solar source -- a bright, bright star radiating light. The star, of course, is the boardwalk itself and the fireworks of the Fourth of July. <br />
<br />
Bruce is leaving in this song, and the boardwalk itself is leaving. This is the early 1970s. Asbury was already headed down the steep incline from its peak in the 1950s and '60s, to bottom out in the late 1990s with the boardwalk especially looking like a shuttered ghost town. Disillusioned and lamenting "our carnival life on the boardwalk," bored with "hanging in the dusty arcades, slamming those pleasure machines," he pleads with "Sandy" to love him tonight "for I may neee-ver see you again."<br />
<br />
"Sandy" is the perfect name for his beloved: the beach, the resort, the magical unreality of the boardwalk's "Palace Amusements" and Madame Marie's mysticism. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY4YqVXdVc073o00Bvq3rjnO7PB6Lrt6rjLGZI57KukZQ7UnpYeHYEZu6-doqVkOtxWGdw1XjPKy_sW0JrNi2cF_oDeKp5XfxaTLjRNVV9Tir9CX6XjpUbFucDsMgv5lBnneD4QQ6BYI8/s1600/asbury-park-palace-night-russ-meseroll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="130" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY4YqVXdVc073o00Bvq3rjnO7PB6Lrt6rjLGZI57KukZQ7UnpYeHYEZu6-doqVkOtxWGdw1XjPKy_sW0JrNi2cF_oDeKp5XfxaTLjRNVV9Tir9CX6XjpUbFucDsMgv5lBnneD4QQ6BYI8/s200/asbury-park-palace-night-russ-meseroll.jpg"/></a></div><small>Photo by <a HREF="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/russ-meseroll.html" TARGET="_blank">Russ Meseroll</A></SMALL><br />
<br />
His next stop would be the grittier reality of <i>Born to Run</I>'s "Meeting Across the River," themes of harsh, wounded souls, flayed, struggling and doomed, that he would develop more fully in "Darkness on the Edge of Town" and his later poetic masterpiece, "Nebraska."<br />
<br />
The line of themes of childhood loss of innocence, desperate struggle, a growing maturity and sense of community that pace Springsteen's long discography are naturally reflected in the man himself. In his philanthropic gifts to Asbury Park, the emphasis has never been heavy on rebuilding the amusements, the carnival life. Instead, his focus was, and is, on schools, community projects, helping the underserved who struggled during the long years of the city's economic stagnation.<br />
<br />
Along those lines it interesting to me that, here in Asbury Park -- and in New Jersey -- we take such pride in "Sandy" and "Born to Run". All those who know these (and that may be just about everybody in the world by now) recognize the sadness, the critical love, even condemnation, and longing after escape in both songs. <br />
<br />
Judging by Springsteen's evolution as an artist and as a human being, it is easy to believe that nostalgia for Asbury Park's amusements is misplaced. It is easy for me to see a resonance with my belief that the town's emphasis on money over community has always been one of its greatest flaws.<br />
<br />
But maybe we're not so wrong to be proud. We represent the community and the culture that produced him, after all and we can take some small credit for having nurtured him toward his great achievements, his massive success. <br />
<br />
If in the final estimate, we as New Jerseyans are just "a town full of losers," then at least one of us got free and we can cheer him on his heroic journey. If he is the best we can do, that's ain't half bad. <br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Follow me on Twitter: @CarltonOne<br />Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-30235987940473780182012-07-02T22:21:00.004-04:002012-07-02T22:21:59.925-04:00Fourth of July Orchestra and Summer ConcertsThe Garden State Philharmonic performs a free outdoor Fourth of July concert at Ocean County Library, Toms River at 7:30 p.m. Anthony LaGruth conducts a program of classical, pops and patriotic favorites. Bring your own chairs and blankets. <br />
<br />
The event is part of the Ocean County Department of Parks and Recreation's "Carousel of Music Series". The series features rock tribute bands, brass and wind ensembles, jazz groups and classical orchestras performing each week, Wednesday through Saturday, at a handful of locations: Veterans Park, Berkeley; Ocean County Library; 10th Street Waterfront Park, Ship Bottom; River Front Park, Point Pleasant; Beachwood Beach; and Heritage Gazebo, Bay Blvd., Lavallette. Most of the scheduled events are at the library. <br />
<br />
For a downloadable listing, see the <a HREF="http://www.co.ocean.nj.us/OCParks/" TARGET="_blank">The Parks and Recreation website</A>.<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Follow me on Twitter: @CarltonOneCarlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-51415982102320830072012-06-28T22:41:00.001-04:002012-06-28T22:41:37.941-04:00SCOTUS: Health CareWith the SCOTUS decision, Obama is politically in a better position since the burden of proof now lies with the Republicans -- they have to prove they have something better. The Constitutionality issue was the biggest hurdle. The GOP had successfully painted Obama's reform as contrary to the Constitution, un-American, creating doubt in his leadership (he is a Constitutional law professor after all). Removal of that doubt will peel off a small number of anti-Obamanites from the Tea Party-led herd. The Republican base will be a hotter group but also a smaller one. <br />
<br />
Mitt Romney's "Repeal and Replace" is going to be a very hard sell because he doesn't have a workable plan. The free market can't provide health care for everyone. It can provide health care for everyone that can afford it -- damn good health care. But it can't provide health care for everyone. A free market is competitive, which means Tiffany's health care for some and pawn shop health care or none for others. That's what we have now. It's not humane; as humans, it fails to meet our expectation of compassion.<br />
<br />
Note the emphasis on "Replace" in Mitt's new slogan. The Republican camp realizes that voters are more united on this point: a majority want health care for everyone. <br />
<br />
<B>As to the Obama law itself</B>: It doesn't do a damn thing to limit drug costs. It's confusing enough that I really don't know how it will pan out for the currently uninsured -- a lot of people who labor to get health care to the poor are happy about the law, for what that's worth. Big health care corporations are way too happy.<br />
<br />
The budget numbers being tossed around on both sides don't make a whole lot of sense -- I suspect all of them are a fiction because the reality is too complex and messy to nail down, let alone fit into a campaign speech. <br />
<br />
But it is a first step. The president and lawmakers have established the first universal health care system. We've never done that before. Probably it will suck. Hopefully it won't suck worse than what we have now. Hopefully we can keep hammering away at it until we get it right. <br />
<br />
But flawed as it is, I think voters are not going to want to give it up, now that they have it. <br />
<br />
Romney will make this a central campaign platform until he realizes it's a mistake, and by then it will probably be too late. <br />
<br />
Thus, my takeaway from the SCOTUS ruling and subsequent hoopla: Bye-bye, Mitt.<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Follow me on Twitter: @CarltonOneCarlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-75565811955686607272012-06-27T23:14:00.000-04:002012-06-27T23:17:33.527-04:00OperaNJ in Asbury and Red Bank Jazz CafeOperaNJ is launching its summer season at McCarter Theatre in Princeton, with New Jersey Symphony Orchestra members in the pit. Those two productions, H.M.S. Pinafore and Il Travotore, will be coming to Asbury Park's Paramount Theater later in July. Check out the <a HREF="http://www.operanj.org" TARGET="_blank">group's website</A> for more information.<br />
<br />
The Jazz Arts Project presents its Summer Jazz Cafe at Two River Theatre starting 8 p.m. July 6 and 7 with the Mauricio Zottarelli Trio. Claudio Roditi is the special guest Friday and vocalist Fabiana Masili is the guest soloist Saturday. For more information check out the <a HREF="http://www.jazzartsproject.org" TARGET="_blank">Jazz Arts Project website</A>.Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-44909323019430226882012-02-07T13:53:00.004-05:002012-06-28T22:06:32.675-04:00End of 'Best Of ... 'The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra has terminated its "Best Of ... " programming experiment. <br />
<br />
In 2008, the group introduced the idea of one-hour programs featuring shorter works and excerpts as a way to build audiences in some of its outlying venues, including the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank. In the first season, I recall these shorter movements being linked together with narration, drawn from historical documents. The spoken word idea was abandoned pretty quickly and last season I noticed a return to more traditional programming. <br />
<br />
This year, the NJSO scrapped the "Best Of..." idea altogether, returning to full programs of standard length. These concerts at outlying venues will be built around traditional repertoire, with few risks. But at least they'll be full-length concerts and complete works.<br />
<br />
I'm glad the NJSO saw fit to make the change and I hope they see a boost in their ticket sales as a result. The "Best Of ... " just felt like a waste of a really good orchestra. <br />
<br />
You'll be able to read my other remarks about the NJSO's upcoming 2012-13 season in Sunday's Asbury Park Press (Feb. 12).<br />
<br />
--C.<br />
<a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a><br />
Follow me on Twitter: @CarltonOneCarlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6621476300246027833.post-36097278011126461412012-02-05T16:15:00.004-05:002012-02-05T17:28:22.466-05:00Composers Concordance 'Ensemble'Just a quick reminder that the final concert of the <A HREF="http://www.composersconcordance.org" TARGET="_blank">Composers Concordance</A> Festival 2012, "Ensemble," takes place tomorrow night, Monday, Feb. 6, at <A HREF="http://www.wpunj.edu" TARGET="_blank">William Paterson University</A> and featuring the directors of Composers Concordance, Gene Pritsker and Milica Paranosic with percussionist/composer/conductor <A HREF="http://www.youtube.com/user/petermjarvis" TARGET="_blank">Peter Jarvis</A> and flute legend <A HREF="http://www.robertdick.net/" TARGET="_blank">Robert Dick</A>. <br /><br />You can find <A HREF="http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2012302030056" TARGET="_blank">a full article,</A> including some remarks from a brief interview with Peter, on the <I>Asbury Park Press</I> website and in today's (Sunday, Nov. 5) "Sunday Best" section of the <I>Asbury Park Press</I>.<br /><br />--C.<br /><a href="http://www.theandofone.blogspot.com">www.theandofone.blogspot.com</a><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/carlton.j.wilkinson?v=info">On Facebook</a>Carlton J. Wilkinsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05042412804100051375noreply@blogger.com0