Attention all auditioning orchestral percussionists: audition for Japan’s “New World” Symphony; the Hyogo PAC Orchestra. I recently returned from a healthy week long visit to HPAC for the PAC Percussion! series of concerts on August 2nd and 3rd. Every year in August the orchestra organizes two concerts (the same) featuring the PAC percussion section with a guest artist. For more information about this years concerts click here.
As it turns out there is an inspirational story around the orchestras inception. According to HPAC’s site: “During the decade following the great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake of 1995, the courage, persistence, and compassion of Hyogo’s local residents brought about a miraculous renewal of the devastated region.” In 2005 the orchestra opened as a symbol of cultural rebirth of the region. Since then it has seen it’s 4 millionth audience.
HPAC orchestra is a resident orchestra exclusively affiliated with Hyogo Performing Arts Center under artistic direction of Yutaka Sado. During a three-year term, 48 international core members under the age of 35 engage in a variety of performance opportunities
including full orchestra and chamber orchestra concerts, a fully-staged opera, and chamber ensemble performances of standard and modern repertoire. They are joined in these performances by leading conductors, guest players and coaches from around the world. The HPAC program offers professional development for Core Members through master-classes and private lessons with visiting artists.
The facilities are immensely impressive and the center, being fully government funded, spares no expense when it comes to putting on productions and concerts. I had a first class experience. So, I share this post as an advocate for the center as it seems a bit unknown. Be sure to explore the source link above for more information.
Where you aware of this opportunity? Have any others that fit into this category? Please share your thoughts below the post.
It has been a while since we have featured a video by James Yoshizawa. Today, James is here to introduce some Top-end style Bodhran Exercises. There are two ways to play the bodhran: 1) The Kerry Style (the most common way), which is played with a double-headed tipper (or stick) and 2) the West Limerick style (or Top-End style), which uses only one end of the tipper. The second style is the newer tradition and popular with beginners.
Download the exercises and check out the video. How many DrumChattrers play bodhran? Leave a comment below.
The Mobius Percussion Quartet is an up and coming group based out of Brooklyn/NYC. They have played multiple concerts and been guests with So Percussion. This piece is a new snare drum quartet by Jason Treuting. For more information about the piece, the composer and the group, read the text from the YouTube post below.
As I was deciding what I was going to post today, I came across this video in the suggested videos on YouTube. Being that I know one of the members of Mobius (Yumi Tamashiro is a former student of mine), I wanted check out the new piece and performance. The piece is a combination of performance art and music. In the piece, Jason explore textures, combinations of visuals and extended techniques for the snare drum. It was posted on July 16, 2014 and as of this post, it has been views 5,229 times and there are 84 Thumbs Up and 27 Thumbs Down. What I find interesting about this piece is all of the controversy from the comments on the video. There is something to be said about the high number of views in the short amount of time and it seems obvious that a lot of people have viewed this piece/performance possibly because of the negative reaction it has received. (I am doubtful many people have watched the entire video). Instead of viewing this video as a performance, most people have chosen to let something they don’t like, understand or appreciate become a negative. In this case, controversy has driven traffic. Art is art and everyone has their opinion. Vic Firth has responded to some of the comments on the video. I also hope Mobius takes this opportunity and responds to the comments. They can turn these negative comments into a positive by letting people know about their performances and other videos. That is what social media is all about. If they get someone to purchase a CD or attend a concert, then their efforts paid off. Regardless, please watch the entire video.
Performed by Mobius Percussion
Mika Godbole – Jeremy Smith – Frank Tyl – Yumi Tamashiro
ABOUT THE PIECE:
“Thank you ( )” was written for Tom Sherwood and his 2012 Modern Snare Drum Competition. No drumsticks are used to play the piece. Instead, mallets, rattan shafts, brushes, fingers and coins are used along with the performers voice. The piece was written as a thank you letter of sorts to my favorite snare drummer and each performance is a thank you letter of sorts to the performers favorite snare drummer. It is written in 5 pages that are distinct yet connected.
“Thank you Tom Sherwood for asking me to be a part of this project and for supporting the direction I went with the piece.
Sincerely,
Jason Treuting”
ABOUT THE COMPOSER:
Jason Treuting has performed and recorded in venues as diverse as the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Walker Art Center, the Knitting Factory, the Andy Warhol Museum, Zankel Hall, Lincoln Center, DOM (Moscow) and Le National (Montreal). As a member of So Percussion, he has collaborated with artists and composers including Steve Reich, David Lang, John Zorn, Dan Trueman, tabla master Zakir Hussain, the electronic music duo Matmos and choreographer Eliot Feld. In addition to his work with So, Jason performs improvised music with Simpl, a group with laptop artist/composer Cenk Ergun; Alligator Eats Fish with guitarist Grey McMurray; Little Farm, with guitarist/composer Steve Mackey; QQQ (a quartet consisting of hardinger fiddle, viola, guitar and drums); and Big Farm (a foursome led by Rinde Eckert and Steve Mackey).
ABOUT THE PERFORMERS:
The Mobius Percussion Quartet seeks to fuse their interest in fresh sounds with their commitment to high-quality performance and the promotion of new works by emerging composers. The group is composed of David Degge, Mika Godbole, Yumi Tamashiro and Frank Tyl, who formed the ensemble after working together at the first annual Sō Percussion Summer Institute in Princeton, NJ. Based in New York City, the ensemble made their debut at downtown multimedia art cabaret, (Le) Poisson Rouge, performing alongside other notable artists including Sō Percussion, Nexus, Meehan/Perkins Duo and Mantra Percussion. Recent projects include commissioning a multi-movement work from So Percussion’s Jason Treuting that is currently being developed in a workshop setting for release in fall 2014. This past summer, Mobius recorded Australian composer Kate Neal’s dramatic quartet What Hath II with noted videographer Troy Herion. Based on the text transmissions of Morse code, the work integrates visual and corporeal elements that enhance the underlying rhythmic drive. In addition to their regular performance schedule, Mobius has given concerts and masterclasses at numerous universities including the Curtis Institute of Music, York College of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University, and Rowan University as well as participating in educational outreach programs including the MAP program at Juilliard and others. With several unannounced, versatile projects already in the works, Mobius seeks to springboard evocative ideas with a theatrical inclination to the forefront of their music making.
We live in a culture where things are either working or they’re not. And if they’re not working, we throw them away.
Apparently, there used to be these things called repair stores. These were stores that fixed your broken TV’s, washer and dryers and even blenders and toasters. The way products are made and purchased today, the vast majority of these stores have gone out of business. Our approach and feeling about the things we own has also driven these stores out of our lives.
We see this in the professional world all the time as well. A good example is the shelf life for professional coaches. An under-performing season for your team (maybe 2 if you’re lucky) typically means you’re looking for a new job. This is seen not only in sports but many professions including music. Fair or unfair, it’s just the way things work.
All this leads to some misunderstandings in the music world. Many students and teachers have the mindset of “this either works it doesn’t.” Students either get it or they don’t. This has also led to the belief that people are either naturally talented at something or they’re simply not. One of my favorite quotes about talent is this – I find it amusing when people tell me that they don’t have a talent for music. I tell them to go practice for two hours a day for the next year. Then, come back and tell me how untalented you are.*
This is also one of the reasons that I’m not a fan of talent shows on television like American Idol and America’s Got Talent. They seem to perpetuate this idea that a person is inherently talented and then is somehow picked and their life is changed forever. While that’s great for the very small percentage that it works for, this isn’t reality. Reality is more along the lines of practicing everyday for ten years and creating a career through learning and experience. There are plenty of other posts on this site about creating a career, so I won’t go into that here.
Thankfully, there are places in the music world teaching the concept of persistence. The first that comes to my mind are the lessons learned in the marching arenas of percussion. Showing up everyday in the summer and every weekend through the winter teaches students that nothing is handed out, it takes a large amount of time and dedication to get good at anything in life and that things can in fact be fixed. These are invaluable lessons that go against the grain of many things in our culture. If this lesson is learned early, it can have a tremendous impact in anyone’s life.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that things can’t be fixed. Teachers – be patient and take time with your students. Students – be patient and take time with yourself. Nothing will ever be able to replace hard work over a long period of time.
*I couldn’t find the origin of this quote. If you know where it comes from, please let me know!
There are a lot of great websites for musicians, but one I keep coming back to every week is The Bulletproof Musician. The site, by Dr. Noa Kageyama (performance psychologist and Juilliard graduate), features a weekly blog post, coaching and an online training course. According to his site:
“The purpose of this website is to teach musicians how to overcome stage fright, performance anxiety, and other blocks to peak performance. The specific mental skills you develop will allow you to experience the satisfaction of performing up to your abilities – even when the lights are brightest. Wait, let me rephrase that. Especially when the lights are brightest.”
I wait anxiously every Sunday morning to read the latest blog post. Unfortunately, I have never had the opportunity to take part in his coachings or online course, but I have a couple of friends who have and they are incredible.
The blog posts are well written, researched and presented. I would highly recommend adding this to your Sunday morning routine. The posts are not just about performance anxiety. Some of my favorite ones talk about creativity and practice habits.
As I continue to build my site, I will write about sites, apps, books and other resources about music that I have found valuable in my development. If there is something that I should check out, please leave a comment below and let me know.
BookChattr is in full swing and I hope you are enjoying reading the book. As you know, we are reading Learning to Listen: The Jazz Journey of Gary Burton: An Autobiography by Gary Burton. This post will discuss chapters 3-9 and will include listening examples as mentioned in the book.
Chapters 3 – 5 take place in Gary’s early years (around 1959 – 1962). He continues to talk about growing up in Indiana and starting college at the Berklee School of Music. Chapters 6 – 9 are the beginning of the section marked “Apprenticeship” and include his move to New York (when he meets Joe Morello), his time with George Shearing and then Stan Getz. I am enjoying reading about his experiences and lessons he is learning at a very young age.
“Sometimes, we play because we really want to play; sometimes we play as a favor for another musician; and sometimes, it’s just because we need the money. Despite countless hours of practice and concentration to elevate our art, we all too often have to put that aside because of circumstances.” – Gary Burton [Chapter 4, pg. 48-9]
Below, you will find the listening resources. I am also going to put together a Spotify playlist and I will add a link to it on this post. If you find something that is not correct or missing, please let me know.
Chapter 3: The Local Scene The Nashville All-Stars – After the Riot at Newport
httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slZ4vg5L-8g
Chapter 4: College Bound
No musical examples
Chapter 5: New Adventure New Vibe Man in Town (1961) [Gary’s First Album as a Leader] – Selections
Chapter 6: “Autumn in New York” Who is Gary Burton? – Selections [with Clark Terry (trumpet), Bob Brookmeyer (valve trombone), Phil Woods (alto sax), Gary Burton (vibraphone), Tommy Flanagan (piano), John Neves (bass), Chris Swansen (drums)]
