When friends tell me they are starting a blog they invariably ask me for advice (sometimes not). One piece of advice I have always given is to try to blog every day. That being said, don’t blog if it feels forced or you are emotionally in a thorny place.
Because of that habit, I am confident there is a blogging neural network in my brain that could be called my blog antenna. In that my blog promises content about music and life, I have a pretty wide range of things I write about. But still, there is always that little magnetic muscle looking at the world from the eyes of a sharer of knowledge and opinion, desiring to share his thoughts through daily posts.
There is a kind of exorcism, or grounding, or confession, or therapy in blogging. One of my friends says that he is shocked that I am so willing to open my life and thoughts to the world. I’ve had to learn to put a family filter on the blog so as to keep my home life private. When things are on my mind, I share them with the people who read my blog, and, in that there is a diary aspect to my blog, to my future self.
There have been a few posts where I have hurled an insult or defensive remark at someone, and with the level playing field of the internet, I am able to talk back to critics. After the initial rush of lobbing that sophomoric water balloon it feels stinky and beneath me. So I’ve learned to not use this platform as a whipping post. (There are plenty of other blogs that do that.)
My guess is that my blogging antenna shares the area of my brain that caused me to be a university professor and a composer. I’m really just a slight more evolved cricket who likes to rub his legs together.
Tim Miller met Alistair McCartney around the same time I met Daniel. The four of us met in Palm Springs in fall 1994. I have always been a big fan of Tim Miller, and it has been thrilling to get to know Alistair. We’re going to a book launch at Highways on April 27 for his new book. Here is all the info about The End of the World Book and a cool video to boot.
The End of The World Book
By: Alistair McCartney
Spoken Text: Alistair McCartney
Directed by: Ian MacKinnon
“If I’ve read a more deeply impressive, beautiful, sweeping, mindful, and innovative first novel than Alistair McCartney’s The End of the World Book, I have no memory of it. McCartney is a writer of peerless, brilliant originality and pure, giant talent.”
—Dennis Cooper, author of The Sluts and God Jr.
http://alistairmccartney.blogspot.com/
ALISTAIR McCARTNEY – THE END OF THE WORLD BOOK
Alistair McCartney is the author of THE END OF THE WORLD BOOK published in March 2008 by University of Wisconson Press. This is no ordinary novel. An encyclopedia of memory—from A to Z—The End of the World Book deftly intertwines fiction, memoir, and cultural history. Born in Perth, Western Australia, in 1971, his writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Fence, Bloom, James White Review, and other literary journals, as well as in a number of fiction and creative nonfiction anthologies, including Wonderlands: Good Gay Travel Writing (University of Wisconsin Press) and Between Men (Carroll and Graf.) He lives in Los Angeles with his partner Tim Miller and teaches creative writing and literature in the BA Program at Antioch University Los Angeles and Antioch Santa Barbara.
The End of the World Book
A Novel by
Alistair McCartney
This is no ordinary novel. An encyclopedia of memory—from A to Z—The End of the World Book deftly intertwines fiction, memoir, and cultural history, reimagining the story of the world and one man’s life as they both hurtle toward a frightening future. Alistair McCartney’s alphabetical guide to the apocalypse layers images like a prose poem, building from Aristotle to da Vinci, hip-hop to lederhosen, plagues to zippers, while barreling from antiquity to the present.
In this profound book about mortality, McCartney composes an irreverent archive of philosophical obsessions and homoerotic fixations, demonstrating the difficulty of separating what is real from what is imagined.
“If I’ve read a more deeply impressive, beautiful, sweeping, mindful, and innovative first novel than Alistair McCartney’s The End of the World Book, I have no memory of it. McCartney is a writer of peerless, brilliant originality and pure, giant talent.”
—Dennis Cooper, author of The Sluts and God Jr.
“The End of the World Book is in turn informative, playful, erotic, imaginary, witty, perverse, charming, autobiographical, and full of wonders; the letter K, for example, begins with Kafka and ends with Freddie Krueger. If the world is ending soon, I recommend you read it while there’s still time.”
—Jim Krusoe, author of Iceland and Blood Lake
“Beguiling, comical, earnest, and wise beyond its author’s years. Crossing sporadic bursts of linear narrative with a detailed taxonomy of altercation, McCartney has engineered a compelling compendium of integrated distractions, somewhat in the manner of Robert Burton’s Anatomy of Melancholy. Read it from A to Z. He knows who you are: you will be quizzed.”
—James McCourt, author of Mawrdew Czgowchwz and Queer Street
People ask me who my favorite film composer is. These days I say Dario Marianelli and Alexandre Desplat, but if I had to take this question seriously, I’d have to say that John Williams is right there at the top. Too many people try to accuse him of just spitting out Star Wars music over and over which is simply not true. Williams continues to reinvent himself. He shows up year after year with an Oscar nomination and I know that he won’t win. Why? I guess people think he’s had enough recognition, which is probably true. I remember reading in Guinness book of records some 10 or 15 years ago that John had become the first billion dollar composer, and I’m sure he is way beyond that by now. He is rich for good reasons: he is a great composer.
Take the music here in this opening to Steven Spielberg’s CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (2002) — how do we describe the music? Film music? Well, technically yes, but the musical language reminds me a bit of Ornette Coleman, Paul Hindemith, Darius Milhaud, Duke Ellington, and maybe even a bit of Stravinsky (Ebony Concerto). It is his courage and interest in builiding upon our rich musical heritage that draws me to his music.
I find contemporary so-called classical music getting more and more out of of the reach of people who like music. (I don’t need to go into that here.) I see film music getting stylistically richer and richer, and new concert music getting more remote. Yes, there is room for everyone, but in terms of what to spend my own energies on for the rest of my life as a composer, modern classical music seems like a dreary choice.
As a teacher of composition, I can no longer look down on non-classical music as unimportant populist pap. The experience I’ve had composing my new musical, and the last couple of films I’ve done has been tremendously satisfying. In this music, I have used all the tools I learned to be a concert composer, but have no interest in out-Boulezing Boulez, or out-Cartering Carter, which is what I thought I had to do when I was in college. Out-Bourlanding Bourland should be just fine.
John Williams or Elliott Carter? Williams: hands down.
Thanks to Richard Garrin for bringing this bizarre find to the blog. You might want to line up a few shots of vodka and sing along.
The Leningrad Cowboys is a Finnish rock and roll band famous for its humorous songs and concerts featuring the Soviet Red Army Choir. Currently, the band has eleven Cowboys and two Leningrad Ladies. The songs, all somewhat influenced by polka and progressive rock, and performed in English, have themes such as ‘vodka’, ‘tractors’, ‘rockets’, and ‘Genghis Khan’, as well as folkloric Russian songs, rock and roll ballads and covers from bands as diverse as The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and Lynyrd Skynyrd, all with lots of humour.
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The Red Army Choir (Choir Aleksandrov) is a performing ensemble that served as the official army choir of the former Soviet Union’s Red Army. The choir consists of a male choir, an orchestra, and a dance ensemble. The songs they perform range from Russian folk tunes to Church hymns, operatic arias and popular music. In 1991, The Red Army Choir participated in Roger Waters’ The Wall concert celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall. They performed an anti-war song “Bring the Boys Back Home”. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Red Army Choir has continued performing, entertaining audiences both inside and outside Russia.
Taking my cue from my Deans in an effort to avoid burn-out, I planned a 4-day weekend months ago to Lake Tahoe with Daniel. I figured this would be a good weekend to take off. Well, that didn’t really turn out perfectly — you always leave stuff undone, but sometimes I have to just get over it and get out of town.
I went to a music production meeting for HOMER IN CYBERSPACE; took notes about tweaks here and there; new underscore in various scenes; discussion with the sound guys who tell me what to do with my Logic files. Mel bemoans the loss of the ability of a conductor to hold a moment. Jeremy and I explain the benefits of the pre-recorded track — which is how I wrote it. I’ve asked the singers for requests for tempo fluctuations, which is ultimately how conductors and performers make a moment their own take on that moment. We discussed the transition away from the rehearsal phase to the singing-with-my-accompaniment phase. It’s all very exciting.
Happy birthday to Vitaly Margulis, 80 years yesterday. He had a concert last night where he opened the show with 2 Rachs and a Scriabin, followed by amazing performances by his children, and later, friends. Vladimir Chernov sang two numbers sending us all into ecstacy, and the concert closed with an amusing and brilliant dialog for trumpet and bass where Jens Lindemann filled the air with breath-taking virtuosity as he slowly processed from the back of the hall to the stage.
I’ll be in Lake Tahoe this weekend taking a well deserved break from LA and UCLA. Love ‘em, but gotta get away.
I love how dogs and humans communicate. It’s usually a limited list of things they want: food, play, and affection. In the morning, usually when I write my blog, the dogs will come downstairs to be with me. More precisely, to sit and stare at me to let me know that breakfast time is now. I tell them they have to wait, they both let out a big sigh, and sit down next to me until I’m ready to feed them. Then, when I make a move toward the kitchen, they both go racing there for the feeding ritual to begin. When I put the food down, Daniel has trained them to sit until we say OK. During these few moments of torture, Cody looks up at me sincerely, eyebrow crinkled, waiting for the word. Giaco is crouched, and ready to spring toward his food.
The next communication is the “let’s play” look. I’ll be working, when all of a sudden there is a nose between my legs and a tail wagging wildly. I open my legs to find a mischievous looking Giaco giving me an irresistible look. I put on my shoes, and they know that their request will come true. I say “ball?” and they leap into the air.
Sometimes I decide that I will surprise them, and get ready to play ball. What is odd, is that whenever I do that, regardless of where they are in the house, they KNOW what I’m up to and come running to me, as though they picked it up via ESP.
Both of our dogs show affection in different ways. Giaco hugs (sic). If you are sitting, he will come up and drape his front legs over your shoulder and put the side of his face against the side of your face. He then stands here for a while and wags his tail. It’s the darnedest thing. His dismount is a bit awkward, but it is a cute habit. Then he leaves you alone.
Cody, on the other paw, is a lap dog at heart and wants to always be touching a human whenever possible. Sometimes he whines to let us know he wants to be in our lap. We’ve scolded him about this annoying habit, and so the whine has morphed into the teeniest, quietest little micro-whine that we can, of course, both hear, no matter where he is.
There is also that look when children or puppies come over. Cody will look at me with that “what were you thinking? Get this child/puppy out of my house. Now.” look on his face.
I remember Stan used to test his dog on word recognition. He’s say: “Do you want a wookie?” Dog does not respond. “How ’bout a hookie!” Dog moves in frustration. “A bookie?” More frustration. “Or would you like a COOKIE!” And the dog leaps into the air.
We have tried this with using the tone of “Want to go for a walk?” but used some sick words like “Wanna cut your head off?” And the dogs are equally thrilled. Tone is everything.
Finally, there is the “I better get out of here” leave-the-room response where the dog’s answer is clear. This answer is common when we ask: “Who wants a bath?” or “Wanna cut your toenails?” or “Time to brush your teeth.” Cody’s ears go down, knowing it’s futile to escape. Giaco runs to hide under a chair somewhere.
In grade school, I took a class from Miss Ding Dong (can’t remember her name) in typing. She didn’t like me very much. My hand-eye coordination was not the greatest in typing (although I was always good at sports) and as a result, I got a “D” for a grade that term. I’m a blazing typer now, as long as it comes directly from my head, if I have to read it off of a page, I’m slower. Just like the piano.
Coming late to reading music, I am not a great sight reader, at least at the piano. I can get through it, but not at tempo. My brain is always chattering: Oh look at that! Are you sure that’s the right note? Ooh, pretty. Hmm how do I play this, eek, this is WHAT chord? I can’t just shut up and play the notes. I suppose had I been sight-reading my whole life, I’d be better. But what I HAVE been able to do, is to play what I hear by ear at the piano. And for a composer, that is a useful skill.
What is ironic is that we are being encouraged to incorporate this kind of learning into our reading based music curriculum. And with the Beatles as popular as ever, my musical upbringing is more relevant than ever.
What is clear to me now, is that starting BOTH playing by ear AND the ability to read music at the piano at a relatively early age is the best plan. Can everyone learn to sightread at the piano? I don’t think so. I think many brains can’t get their neurons around all that information.
The paragon of sight-reading machismo is the ability to look at an orchestral score and play it at the piano. We used to require all composers to be able to do this in graduate composition, but I suspect that there are brains that are predisposed to this remarkable ability, and many that are not.
I”ve gotten good at “hearing” music by looking at the score, but manifesting what I hear and see through my fingers onto the piano is one synapse that doesn’t fire so well. Maybe when I’m old and wise.
Start blogging Alan, you’ll be a natural. In fact, I’ll volunteer to teach you how.
[Reblogged from LA Observed]
Alan Rich out as Weekly critic
Kevin Roderick
Another local music critic down, not many left to go. Alan Rich, who is at least 83, was let go as classical music critic over lunch with LA Weekly editor Laurie Ochoa, reports Laura Stegman at PRLosAngelesMediaMoves.
After getting the news earlier today, I spoke with Alan late tonight, and he said, “It’s open season on critics. We are an endangered species. I was surprised, but I wasn’t surprised.” He says the decision was made “by the corporate people in Phoenix,” and that when Editor Laurie Ochoa gave him the news over lunch, “she was as sorry as can be.”
The good news is that Alan will be putting up a web site by the time his last review appears in the Weekly two weeks hence. “I don’t know anything else but how to write about music,” he says, “so that’s what I’ll continue to do.”
Josie introduced me to this composer. There are quite a few different performances you can find on YouTube, this one was especially spirited, but doesn’t allow embedding. The performance below features a nice performance by José Carreras.
Here are the program notes from the YouTube post:
Ariel Ramirez is one of South America’s most prominent composers. His 1964 composition “Misa Criolla” is a mass for tenor, mixed chorus, percussion, keyboard and Andean instruments.
Misa Criolla 1 – Kyrie
“Gloria” is the second movement.
Misa Criolla 3 – Credo
Misa Criolla 4 – Sanctus
Entirely based on traditional rhythms (chacarera, carnavalito, estilo pampeano), it is also one of the first masses to be celebrated in a modern language – being contemporary to the Second Vatican Council.
The Andean instruments are used throughout, but highlights are found at 0:00, 2:35, 3:00, 3:50 and 5:55-6:30. And you gotta love the passionate expression on the drummer’s face at 6:30.
Available on the 2006 DVD “José Carreras: Arias & Misa Criolla.”
Yesterday, composer for The Simpsons, Alf Clausen visited our school and focused on the broadway music that he has featured on that show. I only popped my head in from time to time as my chairmanly duties pulled me away, but the Mancini studio was packed — smelled like a basketball gym in there. Most were sitting on the floor looking up at our big-cheeked, jolly Hollywood buddha, who sat in the corner, surrounded by blinking lights, knobs, computers and other hi tech gadgetry. The students loved him and he gave them hope that their dreams can come true.
We went out to the Sawtelle Kitchen afterwards for some terrific food. I got to chat with him at the end. A wonderful man. Gentle, happy, not at all neurotic or worn down. He uses Sibelius [music notation software] and we extolled its virtues in composer nerd-speak. He doesn’t have to do a computer mock up for the producers — they trust him. “Well you’re Alf Clausen, why wouldn’t they trust you.” He blushed. He said “I’m spoiled: I have a 35 piece orchestra that I write for every week.” Like Bach’s church job I thought. I’ve lost track of how many episodes he’s done, somewhere around 450. That’s a lot of music.
He conveyed a few disappointing experiences that he had had with UCLA in the past. I gave him my take on the issue and I think it helped.
It was an honor to have the man come to visit and just to be in the room with him. Role models are important for young composers too, and Alf is a great one.
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