If you remember Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign, the title of this post should come as no surprise. I recall vividly then-Governor Clinton appearing with his tenor saxophone on the Arsenio Hall Show. Last summer I began reading his memoir, getting about half-way through it before being overtaken by other responsibilites. However, reading just […]
I’ve had to turn the page on a few things. It’s time to move forward. It’s like starting a new book, which is exactly what I’m going to do. Something I’ve been meaning to read for a while now.
In what is most likely a rarity, I infiltrated the inner sanctum of the Oberlin brotherhood last night and performed with the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) at Merkin Concert Hall. ICE was ensemble-in-residence at NYU this week, which culminated with a concert of six world premieres by NYU graduate students. I played on the last […]
Composer Lawrence Dillon, whose now famous (or maybe infamous) list of 111 most influential works since 1970 made the rounds, is now wondering what other art forms or disciplines inspire composers. Literature? Architecture? Painting? Help him out over at Sequenza21.
Last night Evan introduced me to a gem in the East Village. Kenka is possibly the best Japanese restaurant in New York City. It’s the closest thing to an authentic izakaya that I’ve ever been to in the states. An izakaya is a very informal restaurant that you can find on just about any street […]
. . . it pours. And that’s exactly what it did following Non-Zero’s concert at the Tenri Cultural Institute on Saturday. Tim and I looked like we had jumped in the Hudson after getting all his gear out to the car. Luckily, we had the closest possible parking space to the venue but even that […]
Talk about an expose. Ilka Talvi writes about the bitter truth surrounding auditions. The illusion that some young musicians labor under is that the best player will win the job. Unfortunately, as Mr. Talvi notes, that’s not always the case–perhaps it’s not the case more times than some would like to believe. It’s inevitable that […]
Usually when I’m on the road, I have no shortage of thoughts to put up on the old blog. The time spent on planes, the subway (the T in Boston), or simply wandering around generally allows me to think clearly–free of the clutter and rushing around that I tend to slip into in my “normal” […]
With composer Karen Tanaka. I performed her work for saxophone and electronics, Night Bird, on a concert last Sunday. I’m off to Boston today to rehearse with Tim. Non-Zero plays New York’s Tenri Cultural Institute on Saturday. Works by Hillary Zipper, John Cage, Sophocles Papavasilopoulos and world premieres by Keeril Makan and David T. Little. […]
A few days ago Scott Spiegelberg had an interesting post on the use of Inderal, or beta-blockers, by musicians. For those not familiar with the drug, Inderal blocks the action of adrenaline and other substances, effecively muting the sympathetic nervous system, which produces fear or anxiety. Some musicians use the drug to overcome stage fright […]