Turning

A(n HD) video from the premiere of Paul Kerekes’ “Turning,” live at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival.  Hannah, Paul and I are excited to take the rest of the piece for a spin February 7th, on Yale’s New Music New Haven series!  More information is forthcoming… Not shown: almost two minutes of page re-arranging pre-downbeat.

The New New Sincerity

From Christy Wampole's "How to Live Without Irony:"

 What would it take to overcome the cultural pull of irony? Moving away from the ironic involves saying what you mean, meaning what you say and considering seriousness and forthrightness as expressive possibilities, despite the inherent risks. It means undertaking the cultivation of sincerity, humility and self-effacement, and demoting the frivolous and the kitschy on our collective scale of values. It might also consist of an honest self-inventory.

Here is a start: Look around your living space. Do you surround yourself with things you really like or things you like only because they are absurd? Listen to your own speech. Ask yourself: Do I communicate primarily through inside jokes and pop culture references? What percentage of my speech is meaningful? How much hyperbolic language do I use? Do I feign indifference? Look at your clothes. What parts of your wardrobe could be described as costume-like, derivative or reminiscent of some specific style archetype (the secretary, the hobo, the flapper, yourself as a child)? In other words, do your clothes refer to something else or only to themselves? Do you attempt to look intentionally nerdy, awkward or ugly? In other words, is your style an anti-style? The most important question: How would it feel to change yourself quietly, offline, without public display, from within?

I have very strong opinions about this subject, but don't want to dilute Wampole's sincerity with my babbling just yet.  More to come.

—via the NY Times

Boris Kerner

Preparations are underway for the premiere of Caroline Shaw's "Boris Kerner:" tempo is set to "baroque" and the pots are tuned. Check it out in Princeton on Tuesday the 20th at 7:30 pm!

Extra, Extra!

Even though this post doesn’t have effusive ASL interpreting, I hope it’s informative. The big news here is that I’ve accepted an appointment as Visiting Lecturer in Percussion at Cornell University, where I’m director of the Steel Band and World Drum and Dance Ensemble.  Although I’ve always prided myself on being a total drum nerd, these two genres of music are relatively new to me.  I’m humbled to have been given the opportunity to start exploring, and so far both bands are sounding great, no thanks to me.  More information about the program is available here.

If you’re in the Ithaca area on November 16th, you can hear the fruits of this semester’s work: a joint concert featuring the Cornell Steel Band and WDDE, with special guests Nukporfe, Dr. James Burns’ crack team of Ewe drummers and dancers from Binghamton University.  Nukporfe really smokes, as these videos will attest.  This free concert will begin with the Steel Band at 6:00 on Ho Plaza.  WDDE and Nukporfe will follow inside Willard Straight Hall: more information is available here.

Cornell has a vibrant music scene, and I’m excited to get involved.  Stay tuned for for some recitals and other performances, but in the meantime you can catch me with the Cornell Chorale on November 30th, for a performance of Vincent Persichetti’s Winter Cantata for women’s voices, marimba, and flute.

What’s next for New Morse Code?  On November 20th, we’ll  premiere a new piece by Caroline Shaw on thePrinceton Sound Kitchen’s series (formerly the Princeton Composer’s Ensemble).  I can’t wait!  Also on the Princeton show is the ever amazing Janus Trio.  Stay tuned tonewmorsecode.com for the latest telegraphs.

Lastly, this semester I’m filling in for Ayano Kataoka as lecturer in percussion at UMass Amherst. The studio is a great group of people: nice enough to put up with my terrible puns, at least.  I’m honored and humbled to be put in charge of such a great percussion ensemble.  If you’re in the area, please check out our joint concert with the UMass Symphony Band on December 4th at the UMass Fine Arts Center, featuring some classic chamber percussion repertoire.

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Hope to see you soon!

Mike

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My new Tumblr is up and running.  Hopefully, it'll be synced with wordpress soon, but in the meantime, mosey over there for more current events and whimsical findings.