From the monthly archives:
Over the past 10 years we inherited four couches–all off white. The oldest used to belong to Michael Crichton (he wrote The Andromeda Strain on it), who gave it to Martin Nathan, who then gave it to my former partner and me. Bruce bought a Lady Kenmore sewing machine and reupholstered it. 20 years later [...]
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I stumbled across a video clip from Nov.13, 1993. It was from a West Hollywood City Council meeting where the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles was receiving a commendation from the city. I was there as I was the Chairman of the Board at the time. Jon Bailey, the music director, was eloquent in [...]
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A lovely performance of some gorgeous guitar arrangements by Notis Mavroudis of songs by my old friend Manos Hadjidakis.
Artist: Kostas Grigoreas
Album: The Guitar Notebook
Composer: Manos Hadjidakis
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There is a melodic principle, or tendency in melodies from the Renaissance; we teach it in counterpoint exercises known as species counterpoint. The rule I’m thinking about right now is that of gravity. After the melody leaps up––say the interval of a fourth to an octave––the tones after said leap must recover in the opposite [...]
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I was greatly saddened to see the passing of Kate McGarrigle, mother of Rufus and Martha Wainwright and sister of Anna and Jane. I thought her cancer was in remission but evidently it returned. She touched many lives and helped shape the aesthetic of one of the great songwriters on the planet, Rufus Wainwright.
Like many [...]
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Professor Rees will be teaching our class Ketjak, the Balinese music heard in the movie, Baraka. I can’t wait! And when I hear this I can’t sit still, and when I see this video, especially the leader, I can’t help but smile.
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This morning I woke up in 7/8. [For non-musicians repeat over and over: 1212123 and accent the ones a little bit and you'll get the feel.] It was the Bulgarian Radio State Vocal Choir (from “Le mystere des voix bulgares”) on the Johnny Carson Show. Take a listen and focus on two things: the time [...]
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This quarter, in our Music History, Culture and Creativity class, one of our themes is the notion of aural simultaneities. We chose this word as a substitute for the more traditional appellation, “harmony.” The term “harmony” tends to call up the Western notion of functional tonality, where every (or most) chord has a function. The [...]
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