A Tuning the Air Journal
Saturday October 30, 2010 – D-Day #2 for Gustav, followed by a Music Lab
Back to the living room again today for another rehearsal entirely dedicated to Neptune. This is very meticulous work. In three hours we worked our way backward from the end of the piece to the beginning, building it one block at a time until we were able to run it from beginning to end successfully. It is a deceptively simple sounding piece, and there is no room for any lapses of attention. The next step would seem to be to get completely “off book”, and to really begin to address the musical issues, in particular flow and continuity. It may take a while yet; we don’t have any full days to give to it in the next couple of weeks – Monthly Open Circle next Saturday, and the CGT in town the following week.
For the Music Lab we moved to looking at the harmonic material from earlier weeks, but this time coming from a “playing by ear” approach, rather than theory and/or fretboard knowledge (although having access to that information was certainly useful). The game involved one player choosing a note, any note, and pulsing it. That note is the tonic and it is up to the other players to add notes necessary to create a particular modality; for this session we stuck with major and natural minor. This is an exercise that works best when there are at least 7 or 8 players. With only 4 today, it was difficult. Not a lot of room for much more than the basics. Some good insights into choices of inversions, though. I would hope we could pick this up again with more players in the future, and move on to a wider selection of modes.
For me, the two high points of the Music Lab were the opening and closing circulations. Some of the best circulating I have heard in a long time. The opener was specifically C Major, and was singing right out of the gate. Wonderful listening and choices. The closer was “the note of your choice.” It began wonderfully, and got better. Several times it began to wind down, but it turned out these were just breathers, and it would spring back to life. We went about 10 minutes overtime, but there was no way I was going to do anything to interrupt; I would have been very happy to have it go on all afternoon.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Tuning the Air #189
A Tuning the Air Journal
Thursday October 28, 2010 – Tuning the Air #189
Tuning the Air #189
October 28, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
Thursday October 28, 2010 – Tuning the Air #189
Tuning the Air #189
October 28, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
F Harmonic Minor Chimes w/JoelEncore:
Vrooom
The Children's Hour
Cultivating the Beat
Selection from the Hat: Constellations
Chacarera
A Day in the Life
Travis Address Audience
Spiral Circulation Ab Major
Twilight
Selection from the Hat: What Can You See In The Dark?
My Precious Dream
Ninth Guitar E
Spontaneous Composition in D Major
Eve
Space Zombies! From Outer Space! w/Joel
Eye of the Needle
Saturday, October 23, 2010
D-Day #1 for Gustav, followed by a Music Lab
A Tuning the Air Journal
Saturday October 23, 2010 – D-Day #1 for Gustav, followed by a Music Lab
Some time ago, Taylor indicated that he had an arrangement in mind for Holst’s Neptune, from “The Planets”. From time to time he would bring bits and pieces in and we would test out the concepts; various zithers, cascades and tremolo-ed chords to simulate the harps, voices and long tones of the orchestral arrangement. Over the summer break he completed his arrangement, and when we began getting together in August to experiment with potential new material, it was among the pieces worked with. It is not a piece that any of us can really practice alone, other than to memorize the sequence of events, the chord voicings called for and perhaps the picking pattern of the arpeggios. It can only be practiced together.
It has been some time since we have taken on a new piece of repertoire that requires this level of rehearsal to realize. Until we can play it with some level of competence, we can’t really even judge whether or not the arrangement works on a musical level, or is right for this group and the production. It is entirely possible that once it is on its feet we will discover that it the arrangement needs rethinking or reworking. It is rare, but not unheard of, that we practice a piece for weeks or months, only to ultimately decided that it isn’t right for us for any number of reasons, and abandon it altogether.
We decided to take advantage of the fact that Fremont Abbey is not available for our regular Saturday rehearsals for the next two weeks, and dedicate those rehearsals to getting the piece on its feet.
So, three hours of Gustav Holst today. The first 22 bars are the most straightforward, and we have been playing them for some time. The challenge here is largely counting. So we began with just a short review of that section.
What follows are 22 more bars, each one different, and each one involving some form of zither or cascade, accompanied often by arpeggiated lines in sixteenth-note triplets. There was nothing to do but to walk through the entire arrangement, one bar at a time, and work out the details. This can be tedious work, only relieved by the ability to finally hear what had only been a concept. We strung bars and sections together as best we could, so that there would be as much context as possible for this string of otherwise disparate bars of music, but the primary aim was to get every bar on its feet. A number of errors in the score were discovered and winnowed out. A handful of general concepts and techniques were identified. Next Saturday we will, presumably, be putting it all together.
After rehearsal, a short break and then there were five onboard for the Music Lab. Today was part one of a couple of Labs that I have in mind to bring our practical connection with the quality and character of intervals, chords and modes up a notch. Two of the players, as well as myself, had just spent three rather intensive hours in critical listening, which either primed us for this work, or had us in a giddy altered state. Today’s exploration was a little on the mathematical side, laying out modes in terms of their base triads and upper structure harmonies, realized through some technically tricky circulation patterns, with theory informing practice. Next week I plan to turn it around and work more from the ear, working back to practice and theory from a more tangible auditory experience. Somewhere between the two approaches is where understanding abides.
Saturday October 23, 2010 – D-Day #1 for Gustav, followed by a Music Lab
Some time ago, Taylor indicated that he had an arrangement in mind for Holst’s Neptune, from “The Planets”. From time to time he would bring bits and pieces in and we would test out the concepts; various zithers, cascades and tremolo-ed chords to simulate the harps, voices and long tones of the orchestral arrangement. Over the summer break he completed his arrangement, and when we began getting together in August to experiment with potential new material, it was among the pieces worked with. It is not a piece that any of us can really practice alone, other than to memorize the sequence of events, the chord voicings called for and perhaps the picking pattern of the arpeggios. It can only be practiced together.
It has been some time since we have taken on a new piece of repertoire that requires this level of rehearsal to realize. Until we can play it with some level of competence, we can’t really even judge whether or not the arrangement works on a musical level, or is right for this group and the production. It is entirely possible that once it is on its feet we will discover that it the arrangement needs rethinking or reworking. It is rare, but not unheard of, that we practice a piece for weeks or months, only to ultimately decided that it isn’t right for us for any number of reasons, and abandon it altogether.
We decided to take advantage of the fact that Fremont Abbey is not available for our regular Saturday rehearsals for the next two weeks, and dedicate those rehearsals to getting the piece on its feet.
So, three hours of Gustav Holst today. The first 22 bars are the most straightforward, and we have been playing them for some time. The challenge here is largely counting. So we began with just a short review of that section.
What follows are 22 more bars, each one different, and each one involving some form of zither or cascade, accompanied often by arpeggiated lines in sixteenth-note triplets. There was nothing to do but to walk through the entire arrangement, one bar at a time, and work out the details. This can be tedious work, only relieved by the ability to finally hear what had only been a concept. We strung bars and sections together as best we could, so that there would be as much context as possible for this string of otherwise disparate bars of music, but the primary aim was to get every bar on its feet. A number of errors in the score were discovered and winnowed out. A handful of general concepts and techniques were identified. Next Saturday we will, presumably, be putting it all together.
After rehearsal, a short break and then there were five onboard for the Music Lab. Today was part one of a couple of Labs that I have in mind to bring our practical connection with the quality and character of intervals, chords and modes up a notch. Two of the players, as well as myself, had just spent three rather intensive hours in critical listening, which either primed us for this work, or had us in a giddy altered state. Today’s exploration was a little on the mathematical side, laying out modes in terms of their base triads and upper structure harmonies, realized through some technically tricky circulation patterns, with theory informing practice. Next week I plan to turn it around and work more from the ear, working back to practice and theory from a more tangible auditory experience. Somewhere between the two approaches is where understanding abides.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Tuning the Air #188
A Tuning the Air Journal
Thursday October 21, 2010 – Tuning the Air #188
Tuning the Air #188
October 21, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
Thursday October 21, 2010 – Tuning the Air #188
Tuning the Air #188
October 21, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
C Harmonic Minor Chimes w/Joel PalmerAddress Audience
Voices of Ancient Children
Cultivating the Beat
Vrooom
Selection from the Hat: Swimming in Wind
My Precious Dream
Selection from the Hat: The War Machine Awakes
Spiral Circulation Ab MajorEncore:
Twilight
The Children's Hour
A Day in the Life
Spontaneous Composition in D Major
Eve
Ninth Guitar E
Space Zombies! From Outer Space! w/Joel Palmer
Eye of the Needle
Monday, October 18, 2010
Performance Team Rehearsal
A Tuning the Air Journal
Monday October 18, 2010 – Performance Team Rehearsal
Pretty much a night of nuts and bolts for the performance team. We are working on learning the CGT’s Chacarera, just in case it might be something useful to know, perhaps early in November, when they are in town. Howard learned much of it when he was on the summer project in Spain a couple of years ago, and the Trio had sent us mp3’s of the individual parts. I spent a bit of time over the weekend mapping out the arrangement that is used on “Andromeda”. So it was a matter of organizing, playing and counting, and getting the feel and flow. In an hour, it was pretty much ready to roll. A bit more personal work all the way around is necessary, I would venture, but we are substantially there.
After a break, we worked on tightening up Ninth Guitar E, with Bob at the helm, putting us through our paces. We seem to have crossed a certain threshold with the piece, and so daring to have fun no longer seems to be fatal to our capacity to play and count. That is a good thing.
A little Vrooom work, and then we ended the rehearsal with an exploration of Chris’ final arrangement of the de Hartmann/Gurdjieff piano piece, Prayer of Gratitude. A lovely way to complete the evening.
Monday October 18, 2010 – Performance Team Rehearsal
Pretty much a night of nuts and bolts for the performance team. We are working on learning the CGT’s Chacarera, just in case it might be something useful to know, perhaps early in November, when they are in town. Howard learned much of it when he was on the summer project in Spain a couple of years ago, and the Trio had sent us mp3’s of the individual parts. I spent a bit of time over the weekend mapping out the arrangement that is used on “Andromeda”. So it was a matter of organizing, playing and counting, and getting the feel and flow. In an hour, it was pretty much ready to roll. A bit more personal work all the way around is necessary, I would venture, but we are substantially there.
After a break, we worked on tightening up Ninth Guitar E, with Bob at the helm, putting us through our paces. We seem to have crossed a certain threshold with the piece, and so daring to have fun no longer seems to be fatal to our capacity to play and count. That is a good thing.
A little Vrooom work, and then we ended the rehearsal with an exploration of Chris’ final arrangement of the de Hartmann/Gurdjieff piano piece, Prayer of Gratitude. A lovely way to complete the evening.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Full Team Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
A Tuning the Air Journal
Saturday October 17, 2010 – Full Team Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
A truly remarkable morning of work together.
Frank returned to the Saturday morning full team circle. We are working with “upping the ante” for everyone, giving the players not currently in the performance team an opportunity to work at that level of challenge, and giving the performance team a weekly opportunity to play (emphasis on play) with material and ideas that are not necessarily directly related to the practical needs of the next performance. This has been very fruitful work this season, and we asked Frank if he would be available to help with this process.
Frank was on fire! He arrived with what turned out to be two-thirds of an inspiration for a game/exercise; two-thirds in the sense that he had a clear idea for two contrasting approaches to an improv exercise, but the third third did not reveal itself to him until we were actually in the room and addressing the challenge. In the first part of the exercise we worked with a musical expression of a familiar exercise with “filling the room”. In this we look for our place in the room where we each have the maximum space around us. Of course, as soon as someone moves, it changes everything, and so we all move. In fact, the room is in constant dynamic motion. To this exercise, he added the instruction to play parts on our guitar as different from everything else we hear as possible. A wonderful and interestingly thoughtful cacophony. For the next stage of the exercise we were asked to do the opposite: to get as close together as possible and play exactly the same thing in the same way. Once this unanimity was established we were instructed to break up, move away, and then do it again. The human sculptures created by 12 guitarists trying to get as close together as possible (without touching) while working to come to consensus on what to play were quite amazing.
The “third third” arrived for Frank, and he instructed us to do both exercises at the same time; that is both stay as far away and as close together as possible from one another, both physically and musically. Obviously impossible. But only impossible for an individual. For the entity of the group, entirely possible, although it took us a few minutes to grasp this. A little tentative play with the conundrum, and suddenly it came to life. A number of people, afterward, noted that they had experienced the arrival of The Orchestra in that moment; a completely organic improv beast, assembling and deconstructing without pretense. An unlike the three Orchestras I have thus far worked with, this one involved and required no “section leaders”. Amazing music.
We gathered in the circle and shared observations. The full circle work completed with a short, silly, but informative exercise in telling jokes.
After a short break, the performance team reconvened for rehearsal. Frank and Bill joined us for the first hour. Bill offering his ears and musical insights to the work we were undertaking, and Frank silently working the perimeter.
This was the nuts and bolts portion of the rehearsal. In some ways kind of a letdown (albeit, a totally necessary one) from the earlier circle. For myself, however, I found that the quality of the earlier work informed the rehearsal in several unmistakable ways. The first thing I noticed was a kind of heightened sensitivity. We were working, in the first part of the rehearsal, with matters of time, feel and pulse, specifically with The Children’s Hour. In circulated parts we are particularly exposed, and I found that while I was making the same kinds of observations and remarks I always do (for better or for worse), I was experiencing a level of empathy that was unusual. Occasionally, this generally increased sensitivity in the circle manifested as a bit of prickliness, but I was at all times aware of a general good will that made the work extremely productive.
After Bill and Frank departed, and another short break, we launched into the initial presentation, parts assignments and read-through of a new/old piece of material that we may play with the California Guitar Trio when they perform here in November. As with much CGT material, deceptively simple. Not so difficult on the technical level, but requiring a level of precision that may not be so evident from the outside.
Sadly, for the next two weeks the Abbey is not available for Saturday rehearsals, so the full group circles are on hold until November 6. The performance team is going to take advantage of this to use that time to get Neptune off of the drawing board and into the repertoire.
Saturday October 17, 2010 – Full Team Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
A truly remarkable morning of work together.
Frank returned to the Saturday morning full team circle. We are working with “upping the ante” for everyone, giving the players not currently in the performance team an opportunity to work at that level of challenge, and giving the performance team a weekly opportunity to play (emphasis on play) with material and ideas that are not necessarily directly related to the practical needs of the next performance. This has been very fruitful work this season, and we asked Frank if he would be available to help with this process.
Frank was on fire! He arrived with what turned out to be two-thirds of an inspiration for a game/exercise; two-thirds in the sense that he had a clear idea for two contrasting approaches to an improv exercise, but the third third did not reveal itself to him until we were actually in the room and addressing the challenge. In the first part of the exercise we worked with a musical expression of a familiar exercise with “filling the room”. In this we look for our place in the room where we each have the maximum space around us. Of course, as soon as someone moves, it changes everything, and so we all move. In fact, the room is in constant dynamic motion. To this exercise, he added the instruction to play parts on our guitar as different from everything else we hear as possible. A wonderful and interestingly thoughtful cacophony. For the next stage of the exercise we were asked to do the opposite: to get as close together as possible and play exactly the same thing in the same way. Once this unanimity was established we were instructed to break up, move away, and then do it again. The human sculptures created by 12 guitarists trying to get as close together as possible (without touching) while working to come to consensus on what to play were quite amazing.
The “third third” arrived for Frank, and he instructed us to do both exercises at the same time; that is both stay as far away and as close together as possible from one another, both physically and musically. Obviously impossible. But only impossible for an individual. For the entity of the group, entirely possible, although it took us a few minutes to grasp this. A little tentative play with the conundrum, and suddenly it came to life. A number of people, afterward, noted that they had experienced the arrival of The Orchestra in that moment; a completely organic improv beast, assembling and deconstructing without pretense. An unlike the three Orchestras I have thus far worked with, this one involved and required no “section leaders”. Amazing music.
We gathered in the circle and shared observations. The full circle work completed with a short, silly, but informative exercise in telling jokes.
After a short break, the performance team reconvened for rehearsal. Frank and Bill joined us for the first hour. Bill offering his ears and musical insights to the work we were undertaking, and Frank silently working the perimeter.
This was the nuts and bolts portion of the rehearsal. In some ways kind of a letdown (albeit, a totally necessary one) from the earlier circle. For myself, however, I found that the quality of the earlier work informed the rehearsal in several unmistakable ways. The first thing I noticed was a kind of heightened sensitivity. We were working, in the first part of the rehearsal, with matters of time, feel and pulse, specifically with The Children’s Hour. In circulated parts we are particularly exposed, and I found that while I was making the same kinds of observations and remarks I always do (for better or for worse), I was experiencing a level of empathy that was unusual. Occasionally, this generally increased sensitivity in the circle manifested as a bit of prickliness, but I was at all times aware of a general good will that made the work extremely productive.
After Bill and Frank departed, and another short break, we launched into the initial presentation, parts assignments and read-through of a new/old piece of material that we may play with the California Guitar Trio when they perform here in November. As with much CGT material, deceptively simple. Not so difficult on the technical level, but requiring a level of precision that may not be so evident from the outside.
Sadly, for the next two weeks the Abbey is not available for Saturday rehearsals, so the full group circles are on hold until November 6. The performance team is going to take advantage of this to use that time to get Neptune off of the drawing board and into the repertoire.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
A Tuning the Air Journal
Thursday October 14, 2010 – Tuning the Air #187
Tuning the Air #187
October 14, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
Thursday October 14, 2010 – Tuning the Air #187
Tuning the Air #187
October 14, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
C Harmonic Minor Chimes w/Joel PalmerAddress Audience
Voices of Ancient Children
Cultivating the Beat
Vrooom
Selection from the Hat: A Tornado Is Coming This Way
My Precious Dream
Selection from the Hat: Boomerang
Spiral Circulation Ab MajorEncore:
Twilight
The Children's Hour
A Day in the Life
Spontaneous Composition in D Major
Eve
Ninth Guitar E
Space Zombies! From Outer Space! w/Joel Palmer
Horn Up Your Ass (in honor of the visiting Hellboy’s birthday)
Eye of the Needle
Monday, October 11, 2010
Performance Team Rehearsal
A Tuning the Air Journal
Monday October 11, 2010 – Performance Team Rehearsal
A little circulation to warm up, and then we launched into Ninth Guitar E, which will be in the set for next Thursday’s performance. Necessary detail work with the metronome on the connections and interactions between the 3 parts, one section at a time. Integration. Work with playing the piece with a sense of ease and fun. Noted that it really is a very silly little ditty, and yet it requires maximum care and attention to pull off. Counting through the solo sections remains one of the most hazardous aspects of the tune. It was declared ready for performance, and so we are on for Thursday.
During the break, discussion about possibilities for the CGT gig in November, including a piece that we might be able to join them on. Also a mention of a change in the House Team and the gap that will create, with a major role in need of filling.
I had some questions about a particular section of A Day In The Life, and so after the break we took a little time to explore how we are interpreting it. Good work, and clarity achieved.
The balance of the rehearsal on continuing work with Vrooom, and a little discussion about the set list for this week.
Monday October 11, 2010 – Performance Team Rehearsal
A little circulation to warm up, and then we launched into Ninth Guitar E, which will be in the set for next Thursday’s performance. Necessary detail work with the metronome on the connections and interactions between the 3 parts, one section at a time. Integration. Work with playing the piece with a sense of ease and fun. Noted that it really is a very silly little ditty, and yet it requires maximum care and attention to pull off. Counting through the solo sections remains one of the most hazardous aspects of the tune. It was declared ready for performance, and so we are on for Thursday.
During the break, discussion about possibilities for the CGT gig in November, including a piece that we might be able to join them on. Also a mention of a change in the House Team and the gap that will create, with a major role in need of filling.
I had some questions about a particular section of A Day In The Life, and so after the break we took a little time to explore how we are interpreting it. Good work, and clarity achieved.
The balance of the rehearsal on continuing work with Vrooom, and a little discussion about the set list for this week.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Full Team Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
A Tuning the Air Journal
Saturday October 9, 2010 – Full Team Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
Sitting at my place. A drizzly Seattle Saturday morning. Then off to Fremont Abbey Arts Center for rehearsal.
The first hour or so was for the entire guitar-playing team, making sure we have a continuous exchange of experience and information within the group as a whole. The obvious motivation is to give the guitarists not on the performance team a regular and reliable opportunity to work with the performers in musical situations that are not beginners circles or open circles or the music lab; to stretch and challenge the entire group. That the non-performers benefit from this is the obvious hope. The actual result is actually a lot more bilateral than that. At last week’s circle we played a bit with some cascades using the augmented scale, and that exploration led very directly to the introduction the Performance Team is using for Vrooom. Not only good R&D, but good music.
Today we began by moving wordlessly into an improvisation. I cannot speak for the other players, but my intention was to work with introducing, hearing and developing themes within the composition. I opened with a little statement in C Lydian. This was answered, in shape and spirit if not perfectly in the tonality. The composition took a number of turns as it developed, and I was able to recognize a certain amount of thematic material that appeared and reappeared at crucial moments.
Next we moved onto the de Hartmann piano piece that Chris has been introducing. We worked with everyone learning the melody together (two parts in parallel harmony), and getting a handle on overall form. Before we wrapped it up, Jaxie, Carl and I took a shot at the bass line as well. There are a couple of internal parts that need to be fleshed out, but the piece is substantially there for us. At some point, we may be able to include a full-group rendition of the piece in a performance. We shall see.
A short break, and then the Performance Team, with Bill sitting in as listener/advisor, reconvened to have a look at some of the things we learned from Thursday’s performance. An observation and decision quickly made about the end of Space Zombies! From Outer Space! and a change we can make that will tighten up the end of the show considerably. Then on to Vrooom. Thursday was our first ever performance of the piece (much to the delight of our resident Audient), and we had plenty to look at in detail based on the experience. Some clarifications, a bit of tightening, and a whole lot of metronome work.
Another, even shorter break, and on to Ninth Guitar E which, we learned at the end of rehearsal, will be in next week’s set. Bob presented a modified arrangement that felt all the way around to be a very definite improvement. Again, mostly metronome work. Bill and Bob mixed and matched the sections, with a lot of work on better understanding the timing and phrasing of the parts, and how they interact, compliment and contrast one another. This was nuts and bolts work of the most basic and necessary kind, and very clearly moved us out of the learning phase and into the performance phase. The need for some serious personal practice is evident before we reconvene on Monday, when we will do section work to pull it all together for next Thursday’s performance.
Saturday October 9, 2010 – Full Team Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
Sitting at my place. A drizzly Seattle Saturday morning. Then off to Fremont Abbey Arts Center for rehearsal.
The first hour or so was for the entire guitar-playing team, making sure we have a continuous exchange of experience and information within the group as a whole. The obvious motivation is to give the guitarists not on the performance team a regular and reliable opportunity to work with the performers in musical situations that are not beginners circles or open circles or the music lab; to stretch and challenge the entire group. That the non-performers benefit from this is the obvious hope. The actual result is actually a lot more bilateral than that. At last week’s circle we played a bit with some cascades using the augmented scale, and that exploration led very directly to the introduction the Performance Team is using for Vrooom. Not only good R&D, but good music.
Today we began by moving wordlessly into an improvisation. I cannot speak for the other players, but my intention was to work with introducing, hearing and developing themes within the composition. I opened with a little statement in C Lydian. This was answered, in shape and spirit if not perfectly in the tonality. The composition took a number of turns as it developed, and I was able to recognize a certain amount of thematic material that appeared and reappeared at crucial moments.
Next we moved onto the de Hartmann piano piece that Chris has been introducing. We worked with everyone learning the melody together (two parts in parallel harmony), and getting a handle on overall form. Before we wrapped it up, Jaxie, Carl and I took a shot at the bass line as well. There are a couple of internal parts that need to be fleshed out, but the piece is substantially there for us. At some point, we may be able to include a full-group rendition of the piece in a performance. We shall see.
A short break, and then the Performance Team, with Bill sitting in as listener/advisor, reconvened to have a look at some of the things we learned from Thursday’s performance. An observation and decision quickly made about the end of Space Zombies! From Outer Space! and a change we can make that will tighten up the end of the show considerably. Then on to Vrooom. Thursday was our first ever performance of the piece (much to the delight of our resident Audient), and we had plenty to look at in detail based on the experience. Some clarifications, a bit of tightening, and a whole lot of metronome work.
Another, even shorter break, and on to Ninth Guitar E which, we learned at the end of rehearsal, will be in next week’s set. Bob presented a modified arrangement that felt all the way around to be a very definite improvement. Again, mostly metronome work. Bill and Bob mixed and matched the sections, with a lot of work on better understanding the timing and phrasing of the parts, and how they interact, compliment and contrast one another. This was nuts and bolts work of the most basic and necessary kind, and very clearly moved us out of the learning phase and into the performance phase. The need for some serious personal practice is evident before we reconvene on Monday, when we will do section work to pull it all together for next Thursday’s performance.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Opening Night
A Tuning the Air Journal
Thursday October 7, 2010 – Opening Night
Late Tuesday night I got a Google alert about a reference to Tuning the Air on the web somewhere. Clicked on it and it took me to the Seattle Times, and an article by Michael Upchurch. It opened with:
Toward the end of last season, Michael attended a show. We spoke briefly afterward, and on the strength of his experience he posted a short notice in his column in the times. We had record audiences the last two weeks of the season. A little attention is always a good thing. But a little attention from a sympathetic and insightful writer who has the ear of “our” audience – it doesn’t get much better than that. He and I sat down and spoke last week for an hour, and this week’s article was the result.
Good sized audience tonight. Not the onslaught we experienced at the end of last season, but very respectable; not to mention attentive and appreciative.
All in all, a good show. The improvs had life to them. My only critical observation was that the pacing was not what it can be when we are on our A-game. Not surprising for the first show of the season. It usually takes a few shows for us to really hit our stride. The silence after Eye of the Needle was profound. Very difficult to decide to violate it.
Tuning the Air #186
October 7, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
Thursday October 7, 2010 – Opening Night
Late Tuesday night I got a Google alert about a reference to Tuning the Air on the web somewhere. Clicked on it and it took me to the Seattle Times, and an article by Michael Upchurch. It opened with:
The sound can be brushstroke-soft or plectrum-sharp as the melodies are passed around the room. And because the nine guitarists surround you rather than face you from onstage, there's a marvelous feeling of floating in the middle of their music, with each "current" of sound coming at you from nine different directions.That’s something I’d like to experience. Wait a minute… it’s us!
Toward the end of last season, Michael attended a show. We spoke briefly afterward, and on the strength of his experience he posted a short notice in his column in the times. We had record audiences the last two weeks of the season. A little attention is always a good thing. But a little attention from a sympathetic and insightful writer who has the ear of “our” audience – it doesn’t get much better than that. He and I sat down and spoke last week for an hour, and this week’s article was the result.
Good sized audience tonight. Not the onslaught we experienced at the end of last season, but very respectable; not to mention attentive and appreciative.
All in all, a good show. The improvs had life to them. My only critical observation was that the pacing was not what it can be when we are on our A-game. Not surprising for the first show of the season. It usually takes a few shows for us to really hit our stride. The silence after Eye of the Needle was profound. Very difficult to decide to violate it.
Tuning the Air #186
October 7, 2010
Fremont Abbey Arts Center, Seattle WA
The set:
C Harmonic Minor Chimes w/JoelAddress Audience
Voices of Ancient Children
Cultivating the Beat
Vrooom
Selection from the Hat: Sun and Rain
My Precious Dream
Selection from the Hat: A Picnic on the Moon
Spiral Circulation Ab MajorEncore:
Twilight
The Children's Hour
A Day in the Life
Spontaneous Composition in D Major, with Oboe
Eve
Space Zombies! From Outer Space! w/Joel
Eye of the Needle
Monday, October 4, 2010
Final Tech Rehearsal
A Tuning the Air Journal
Monday October 4, 2010 – Final Tech Rehearsal
Our final rehearsal together before Thursday’s opening. We arrived at Fremont Abbey at 8:30 and quickly set to work. We completely set up the performance space, lights and sound reinforcement, including chairs enough for a sizeable audience. The House Manager worked out the details for the front of house and other off-stage details. We made very short work of this. The work we did last week served us well, with a number of people holding responsibilities for the various aspects of the system. We were ready to soundcheck and begin the runthrough in about 30 minutes.
We ran the set, more or less without comment, except to look at various blocking issues, entrances and exits, balance issues for the places where Joel will be playing along with us, and to fill in necessary details. Bill once again provided ears, sitting in the center of the circle and making notes for the Music Director. Darlene arrived just in time to play oboe on the D Major Spontaneous Composition.
Generally uneventful; neither transcendent nor shabby. The D Major Spontaneous Composition certainly had something, and everything was adequately represented. A working rehearsal. Eye of the Needle in the encore slot was particularly good.
Striking the set went very quickly, as Bill and the Music Director compared notes. No doubt some changes will be made in the set before Thursday.
Monday October 4, 2010 – Final Tech Rehearsal
Our final rehearsal together before Thursday’s opening. We arrived at Fremont Abbey at 8:30 and quickly set to work. We completely set up the performance space, lights and sound reinforcement, including chairs enough for a sizeable audience. The House Manager worked out the details for the front of house and other off-stage details. We made very short work of this. The work we did last week served us well, with a number of people holding responsibilities for the various aspects of the system. We were ready to soundcheck and begin the runthrough in about 30 minutes.
We ran the set, more or less without comment, except to look at various blocking issues, entrances and exits, balance issues for the places where Joel will be playing along with us, and to fill in necessary details. Bill once again provided ears, sitting in the center of the circle and making notes for the Music Director. Darlene arrived just in time to play oboe on the D Major Spontaneous Composition.
Generally uneventful; neither transcendent nor shabby. The D Major Spontaneous Composition certainly had something, and everything was adequately represented. A working rehearsal. Eye of the Needle in the encore slot was particularly good.
Striking the set went very quickly, as Bill and the Music Director compared notes. No doubt some changes will be made in the set before Thursday.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Monthly Open Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
A Tuning the Air Journal
Saturday October 2, 2010 – Monthly Open Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
The Monthly Open Circle consisted of TTA company members and one returning visitor this month, so once again I elected to sit down in the circle and work as a player as well as directing the action. For the first hour we focused on various circulation patterns, with very satisfying results. Even the most complex patterns, once the team had internalized them, flowed very well and seemingly naturally. Before taking a break we worked with some cascade patterns, first in a whole tone scale and then in the augmented hexatonic scale we have touched on lately in the Voodoo Situation. Chris, the TTA Music Director sitting to my left, clearly heard/saw something in this exercise that would be useful in the Tuning the Air set.
Since the assembled group was entirely from the company, and the one visitor was keeping up very well, for the second half of the Circle I turned it over to Chris to continue presenting his arrangement of the de Hartmann piece, and we managed to get the entire form up and running. Some refinements yet, but essentially it is there.
From there back to my place for the final rehearsal before opening night. We will be able to run the set on Monday, but that is the dress/tech rehearsal, so this was our final opportunity to work out details. Bill was onboard to give us feedback. The first part of the rehearsal was all about getting Vrooom into performance shape, adding the cascade intro that appeared at the Open Circle.
Through the setlist, only pausing to focus on necessary details. Everything coming into shape, although every player was certainly making mental notes about things to focus on in their personal practice in order to be prepared.
Keeping the other new material up and on track, we ran as much of Neptune as we have memorized, and then Ninth Guitar E. The latter had a lot of life, even if not note perfect, and as a result it was promoted to encore material for Thursday.
We ended the rehearsal with some focused metronome work on a number of pieces.
Saturday October 2, 2010 – Monthly Open Circle and Performance Team Rehearsal
The Monthly Open Circle consisted of TTA company members and one returning visitor this month, so once again I elected to sit down in the circle and work as a player as well as directing the action. For the first hour we focused on various circulation patterns, with very satisfying results. Even the most complex patterns, once the team had internalized them, flowed very well and seemingly naturally. Before taking a break we worked with some cascade patterns, first in a whole tone scale and then in the augmented hexatonic scale we have touched on lately in the Voodoo Situation. Chris, the TTA Music Director sitting to my left, clearly heard/saw something in this exercise that would be useful in the Tuning the Air set.
Since the assembled group was entirely from the company, and the one visitor was keeping up very well, for the second half of the Circle I turned it over to Chris to continue presenting his arrangement of the de Hartmann piece, and we managed to get the entire form up and running. Some refinements yet, but essentially it is there.
From there back to my place for the final rehearsal before opening night. We will be able to run the set on Monday, but that is the dress/tech rehearsal, so this was our final opportunity to work out details. Bill was onboard to give us feedback. The first part of the rehearsal was all about getting Vrooom into performance shape, adding the cascade intro that appeared at the Open Circle.
Through the setlist, only pausing to focus on necessary details. Everything coming into shape, although every player was certainly making mental notes about things to focus on in their personal practice in order to be prepared.
Keeping the other new material up and on track, we ran as much of Neptune as we have memorized, and then Ninth Guitar E. The latter had a lot of life, even if not note perfect, and as a result it was promoted to encore material for Thursday.
We ended the rehearsal with some focused metronome work on a number of pieces.
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