Roger Bourland
writes about music and life

Pardon me: I’m having a wave of nostalgia. What a trio!

The students in our fab new Music History, Culture and Creativity class have a challenging assignment this week. They are required to compose and record a one minute melody that includes microtones.
Last week one of the three teachers, AJ Racy, was on the stage with three students, a bassoonist, a bass clarinetist, and a violinist. [...]

The amazing Eigenharp Alpha. A terrific instrument that one can play live. Looks like a cross between a bassoon and a sitar. I’d like to hear some other kinds of music. I’d assume it’s a flexible instrument–could be anything you plugged it into.

Sung by Judy Collins on the Smothers Brothers Show (1967).

I think about retiring from academia quite a lot these days. One thing I would miss is the affiliation with an organization that ensures I have a performances of my music. Once you retire, you don’t have the same connection. I look at many American composers late works and no one seems to care too [...]

This week I came home to discover a huge box from Amazon waiting for me on my porch. When Daniel got home I opened it to discover the new Beatles RockBand inside. Inside were a faux Hofner Beatle bass guitar, four drum pads with a bass drum kick pedal, and a USB microphone on a [...]

In an area known as “Music Education” which, for Schools, Conservatories, and Departments of Music means K through 12, there appears to be a national problem. Potentially gifted teachers may not always be the best performers: sometimes yes, sometimes no–and vice versa. So the question arises: if instrumental lessons are required of all future [...]

I struggle writing my book analyzing songs by Rufus Wainwright because I keep forgetting who I am writing the book for. I simplify the language so that regular music lovers can appreciate it, but then I address issues that are more appropriate to graduate music analysis seminars for composers or music theorists.
What is it [...]

[A commercial for my students.]

This is National Coming Out Week, also known as LGBT Awareness Week. Coming out is short for coming out of the closet, meaning bringing out into the open something that has been hidden away. I encourage my students to be compassionate when a friend “comes out” to them–coming out is very [...]

I found several times this week that making a call can save weeks of email volleys. Long emails, and especially ones that are a bit confusing or unclear can be cleared up in a minute with a quick phone call. I must say that I love email for quick memos, notes and efficient communication, but [...]