One of kd’s lesser known masterpieces. The song deserves a better orchestration, but her voice takes you places that make you forget everything. So I don’t worry about it.
I think she is singing this song naked, or at least topless. Look at her eyes.
Be sure to wait for the howl 2/3rds of the […]
Here is a tasty performance of SWEET GEORGIA BROWN played by Jeff Midkiff and Curtis Jones on mandolin and guitar. I’ll have to research the term “breakneck” but I know it to mean as fast as you can possibly play in the bluegrass or mountain style. These guys do it.
And for me, this is where […]
Since I’m boning up on the mandolin I found this performance to be a big inspiration. In fact, I’m looking at her hair, thinking, damn, what ever happen to Prell? I can just tell that that is what she uses. That bouncy curl at the bottom is unmistakable––a Prell girl, and a perky one at […]
One of our friends, Jason, sold us tickets to a mysterious event called “Men, their dreams and fantasies” or something like that. He wouldn’t tell us any more than that, but that there would be male nudity, and women were not allowed. We were relieved that Corbin would be there as well. We called him […]
The amazing inventor, Theo Jansen, has invented a fleet of wind propelled robots, designed to roam the deserts of the future post-greenhouse-effect world. The ever-sensuous Museum of Dust looped a bit outside its mission to bring these desert rovers to our attention (and I’m glad she did):
No one, that is, until Dutchman and god, Theo […]
Programme music is music that supposedly tells a story with music. This is not to be confused with the Hollywood film music technique where the music apes the action in the film precisely (think the music for Bugs Bunny or Tom and Jerry), this technique is known as “Mickey-Mousing” after the famous cartoon character. A […]
UCLA begins classes today. And today I meet a class of 40 terrified, excited Freshmen taking their first college class. I’m sure some of you remember that first day: the smells, the temperature, the hormonal rushes of seeing all these strange new people that just might be your friend. The smell of the paper, the […]
Looking for a VERY cool gift to give to an inquisitive child with latent herding tendencies? Look no further! Some of us old timers remember those plastic see-into ant farms. Well, times have changed and this little invention takes us to the next level. Think geek will sell you a space age ant farm for […]
The World of Geometric Toy (sic) has a fun website. I can’t tell whether “toy” is a philosophic statement or just poor English. This toy looks like a new take on flipping a coin.
[Via Ursi’s blog]
I get up early (5 am), make coffee and go down to a quiet little corner in our house. There I compose melodies on paper. I play Sudoku. There it is very, very quiet. All the animals in the house are sleeping, and even outside no one is up yet. That corner is deafeningly quiet. […]
In line with my new commission, I’ve ordered a new mandolin, made by the same company that made my banjo. A medium priced instrument with a nice sound, good enough for me.
Formerly called “electronic music” this course has morphed into a class preparing the composer to learn about the technical process of composing music for motion pictures. We will study and work in LOGIC PRO.
Music 176/226C: Compositional Technologies
Wednesdays, 3 - 5:50; fall 2006
Professor Roger Bourland
SYLLABUS
• Wednesday, Oct. 4 , 2006: Bach chorale orchestration (in class demo)
Asst. […]
In the TMI (too much information) department, Daniel sent me this cheery note that listening to music while having a colonoscopy will make us feel better about it all. Having just had one 3 months ago, I must admit I don’t remember a damn thing. “Light” sedation. Uh, yeah.
Musicians have in centuries past been more servants than promethean super stars. I just received a handsome commission for a work for mandolin, cello, and piano. Like with EMILY, I’m going to buy a mandolin, learn to play it, and then write the piece.
For some reason, I came away from my college education thinking that […]
Composer, Mark Carlson (2006); photo by Roger Bourland.
Mark Carlson came over early for some new head shots. This one was my favorite, although it wasn’t the one he ultimately chose.
I find it interesting, speaking of how our brains make sense of the world, to see what pictures people prefer of themselves––myself included. I remember […]
The other day I commented how, in Sudoku, when a solution appears, a whole slew of additional answers and clues appear––kinda like life. It occurs to me that the opposite is also true. When you make a mistake, a single mistake, [in Sudoku] you base future decisions upon that erroneous solution and they are usually […]
From time to time, a page from a book jumps out at you like a revelation on fire. Daniel J. Levitin’s new book, THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON MUSIC is rocking my world. I’m only on his first chapter (What is Music) and am impressed at how well he concisely brings the non-musician up to […]
Relax and look at some fabulous photography by Henri Cartier-Bresson and a song sung by Edith Piaf.
French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908-2004) is often regarded as the father of modern photojournalism - his influence on 20th-21st century photography is incalculable - many of his photographs are hallmarks of photography as a recognizable art form … he […]
The September issue of the Choral Journal arrived today (for you non-choral nerds, this is the magazine published by the American Choral Directors Association) and it featured an article about composers who have set the poetry of Emily Dickinson. The author dutifully and generously wrote about my DICKINSON MADRIGALS BOOKS 1 & 2 for women’s […]
Graham and I spent a grueling 8 hours composing and recording “sound” throughout the film: Lo pads, high sustained pitches or climbing, little sonic stings here and there. Paul Simon once said that the sound is the most important thing he listens to in his music, not the words, melody, or chord changes, but the […]
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