Hannah and I were honored to be a part of Martin Bresnick's 70th birthday celebration at National Sawdust last month. He was and is one of the most influential mentors in my life, and it was a joy to hear more of his eloquent remarks. Songs of the Mouse People is based on Kafka's last short story, about a community of mice and their diva Josephine. Mouse People has been a NMC staple since our first "want to play something together?" emails, and I'm proud to keep playing softer, softer, softer.
Patter
Thanks to Four/Ten Media and Vic Firth for this great video of Robert Honstein's Patter, with New Morse Code and NMC super friend Katie Hyun. Enjoy!
Ode to Vine
RIP Vine. I hardly knew ye. Spurned by Doug Perry's incessant and heavy handed repetitive videos and Tim Feeney's brilliant and miniature masterpieces, I resolved to craft my own, carefully curated edition. Snapshots of the whimsy of modern life, they would be. To quote Tennyson:
“Gone—flitted away, Taken the stars from the night and the sun From the day! Gone, and a cloud in my heart.
”
Oh wait, I have the instagram app…
Lachentime
Playing Lachenmann's epic Interieur at PASIC (that's the Percussive Arts Society International Convention) this November. I'm getting my cymbal-cowbell-temple block-tom tom arpeggios in order.
What I Did on My Summer Vacation
I'm a little forlorn that my stint as a guest blogger for New Music Box is over. My fourth and final post was a reflection on New Morse Code's work at Avaloch over the past 3 years, and discusses in particular our work with Robert Honstein and Christopher Stark.
Back to School, Pens Blazing
It's the beginning of another fantastic school year! This will be a fantastic year for KUPG and all Kansas Percussion. Look, we organized our almglocken and everything:
KU wood and metal is on point!
Stay tuned for more news about what's happening at KU!
New Music Box
I'm honored to be writing a series of short short weekly blog posts about collaborations happening at Avaloch Farm this summer for venerable e-publication New Music Box. Here's the first edition!
You know, just "observing"…
MassMOCA break
Took a break from Avaloch to attend the Bang on a Can Summer Festival's annual Marathon and check in on one of my favorite museums. For someone struggling with writer's block, Sol Lewitt is a splash of cold water on the face.
Pro-Tip
Audio editing with New Morse Code
Avaloch
So so so excited to be back up at Avaloch Farm Music Institute for a summer of incredible chamber music, composer/performer collaborations, and FOOD. I'm celebrating by helping out in the kitchen. Stay tuned for videos, photos, and humble bragging emanating from Boscawen, NH, and follow us on our shiny new instagram page!
Everyone loves shortcake…
My tortilla game is on point!