The following is an e-mail I sent to Representative Beth Harwell, TN Speaker of the House. Feel free to share and copy for sending yourself. I'm sick of elected officials embarrassing me and the otherwise-wonderful state I live in. (Do a Google search for Rep. Richard Floyd. Also of "TN Anti-bullying Laws." And also of "TN Tea Party Remove Slavery")
Dear Speaker Harwell,
As a Tennessee resident, I am appalled at the recent remarks by Rep. Richard Floyd to "stomp a mudhole" into a person. According to Urban Dictionary (and common knowledge), this phrase means "to beat them to near death or to otherwise hurt someone to the point that they can not fight back." Sometimes our politicians say things that get them into trouble - they are human after all - but a statement like this is reprehensible and inexcusable for an elected official.
Rep. Floyd should understand that it is a privilege to serve the citizens of Tennessee and residents of his district, and with that privilege comes the responsibility of maintaining a high level of respect for the citizens of his state - regardless of what his personal beliefs are regarding transgender individuals. (The fact is they live here, whether he likes it or not.) He is more than welcome to publicly state his beliefs regarding transgender individuals, but under no circumstances should he be allowed to threaten physical violence upon any person, regardless of outward physical appearance, especially a resident of the State of Tennessee.
I ask that, as the Speaker of the House, you and your members, at the very least, reprimand Rep. Floyd for his behavior. At the most, I ask you to encourage him to resign his position, as I have no confidence that such a publicly violent individual can be held responsible with crafting laws in my state.
Sincerely,
Alan
Nashville, TN
Friday, January 27, 2012
Friday, April 01, 2011
The Final Countdown - 6...
On the first day of Recitalmas, my true love gave to me, the realization that 1) there are 6 days left until my recital and 2) I clearly failed to write about music every day until my recital. So how about this, each day (hopefully) between now and April 7, I will give a brief preview of each piece that was commissioned. Some of this may be included in my program notes, some of this has been included in my Master's Paper (which is far too academic for my taste), and some of it is in neither. In the words of that beloved Italian plumber, "Here we go!"
6 Days Left
Expectations by Evelyn Pursley-Kopitzke
percussion solo for marimba, vibraphone, bongos, temple blocks, small gong, cymbal, triangle, crotales, snare drum, concert toms, bass drum
Yes, that is correct, it says percussion solo! More about that in a minute.
In February of 2008, I performed on the world premiere of Reflections for choir, marimba, and organ, which was performed at and commissioned through the First Presbyterian Church (Bristol, TN) Arts Series Artists' Reflections concert. Five or six local composers were commissioned to write music that was inspired by art from a collection at King College. As my parents are Music Directors at the church (and therefore of the Arts Series), one of the things they informed their composers was that their older son was a percussionist. One of these composers—Evelyn Pursley-Kopitzke—chose to write for percussion...and thus Reflections was composed.
As Evelyn was the first composer to have written a piece of music specifically for me (and due to my sincere enjoyment of being directly involved in the creation of a new piece of music), it was a no-brainer to include her in this commissioning process.
So the piece itself is a multi-percussion solo for "gigantic" set-up with "one bazillion" percussion instruments. In all seriousness, the piece calls for lots of different instruments surrounding a marimba. Originally commissioned for a marimba solo, Evelyn inquired about including some other instruments set up around the marimba. Not one to stifle the creative spirit, I said go for it, not realizing that the coming piece would not be a marimba solo with some extra instruments, but a multiple-percussion solo where each of the instruments serve an equal musical role to the marimba. Much of the musical material is based on melodies that have some connection to my musical development...some of it is obvious, some not so much. You'll just have to come hear it for yourself!
Here is a link to Evelyn's website, and a brief preview of her new piece, Expectations.
We thankfully reached the goal of $1k on my Kickstarter project, but if you are so moved, you can still donate, as I will (otherwise) still be paying for a good bit of it out of pocket.
Thanks for reading, hope to see you on April 7!
Alan
6 Days Left
Expectations by Evelyn Pursley-Kopitzke
percussion solo for marimba, vibraphone, bongos, temple blocks, small gong, cymbal, triangle, crotales, snare drum, concert toms, bass drum
Yes, that is correct, it says percussion solo! More about that in a minute.
In February of 2008, I performed on the world premiere of Reflections for choir, marimba, and organ, which was performed at and commissioned through the First Presbyterian Church (Bristol, TN) Arts Series Artists' Reflections concert. Five or six local composers were commissioned to write music that was inspired by art from a collection at King College. As my parents are Music Directors at the church (and therefore of the Arts Series), one of the things they informed their composers was that their older son was a percussionist. One of these composers—Evelyn Pursley-Kopitzke—chose to write for percussion...and thus Reflections was composed.
As Evelyn was the first composer to have written a piece of music specifically for me (and due to my sincere enjoyment of being directly involved in the creation of a new piece of music), it was a no-brainer to include her in this commissioning process.
So the piece itself is a multi-percussion solo for "gigantic" set-up with "one bazillion" percussion instruments. In all seriousness, the piece calls for lots of different instruments surrounding a marimba. Originally commissioned for a marimba solo, Evelyn inquired about including some other instruments set up around the marimba. Not one to stifle the creative spirit, I said go for it, not realizing that the coming piece would not be a marimba solo with some extra instruments, but a multiple-percussion solo where each of the instruments serve an equal musical role to the marimba. Much of the musical material is based on melodies that have some connection to my musical development...some of it is obvious, some not so much. You'll just have to come hear it for yourself!
Here is a link to Evelyn's website, and a brief preview of her new piece, Expectations.
We thankfully reached the goal of $1k on my Kickstarter project, but if you are so moved, you can still donate, as I will (otherwise) still be paying for a good bit of it out of pocket.
Thanks for reading, hope to see you on April 7!
Alan
Friday, March 11, 2011
30 Days of Writing About Music - Day 3
27 Days until my recital! Here's day 3 (or 4, depending on if you count the day I skipped or not).
Music & Money
One thing that sucks about being a [fledgling] musician is the lack of money. Sure, I don't play that many gigs, but even so, it's rare that a regular performing musician earns enough money to be able to only perform. I wish there was a way for me to (once I'm done with this degree) ONLY perform, but also not have to worry about paying the rent, utilities, buying food, etc. Even if I played at a different church gig every week, I might make $400 a month. Add in some Friday performance of some kind, and (again, assuming it paid money), I might get $800 a month. That's still not enough for me to live on. (At least, in Nashville, where cost of living certainly doesn't compare to NYC or Chicago...but is also significantly more expensive than cities of a similar size.)
Working at a hotel, I frequently tell my story (the super-brief version) to guests, and am frequently asked if I play studio sessions in town. I would LOVE to. The problem is (at least as far as I can tell) that the handfull of classical percussionists that do that have a strong grip on those jobs. Sure, that's how the business works - if you do a great job, you get called back to do more work, and you get recommended for other work. But it also means that unless you get lucky enough to get called into the one session that happens to have a big producer/engineer/artist in the room...there's almost no way you're going to get any studio work in town.
And that's not a dig on any of the studio percussionists in town - every single one that I've met is incredibly nice, very humble, and (obviously) a stellar musician. It's just, they're going to keep getting called to play the sessions until they die.
But, trying to return to the main point, it's nearly impossible to make money as a performing musician. I've seriously considered (at the advice of other folks, even) attempting to seek out a personal patron. That's what they did back in the "Olde World," when Mozart & Beethoven and the like we're playing and writing, they all had patrons provide them with the money to pay for all the necessities, so the musicians could focus on their music. Is that something that could work in today's world? I don't know...everyone likes a tax-deductible donation, and they like to see tangible returns on their investments. Music, unfortunately (in this case), is an intangible. Sure, with a patron, I could give more frequent performances, more exposure to the music world and the general public, the possibility of published works and recordings: these could all be tangible results of such an investment.
But who would risk such an investment? Would anyone do so in this current "financial climate?" (I don't know how money and weather are related...unless it's going to be raining mad dolla dolla billz anytime soon.) Probably not...but I suppose you never know if you never try.
I haven't had time to seriously consider such a financial patron...but I'm thinking about putting together a presentation or other form of "List of Reasons why You should pay for my Rent and Insurance and Electric Bill." Or maybe I should just set up a kickstarter fund. I'm still considering doing so to help pay for my Master's Recital.
Of course...there's the HUGE discussion of arts patronage, but that's another topic for another day and another 30 minutes.
Peace Love and Drums
Music & Money
One thing that sucks about being a [fledgling] musician is the lack of money. Sure, I don't play that many gigs, but even so, it's rare that a regular performing musician earns enough money to be able to only perform. I wish there was a way for me to (once I'm done with this degree) ONLY perform, but also not have to worry about paying the rent, utilities, buying food, etc. Even if I played at a different church gig every week, I might make $400 a month. Add in some Friday performance of some kind, and (again, assuming it paid money), I might get $800 a month. That's still not enough for me to live on. (At least, in Nashville, where cost of living certainly doesn't compare to NYC or Chicago...but is also significantly more expensive than cities of a similar size.)
Working at a hotel, I frequently tell my story (the super-brief version) to guests, and am frequently asked if I play studio sessions in town. I would LOVE to. The problem is (at least as far as I can tell) that the handfull of classical percussionists that do that have a strong grip on those jobs. Sure, that's how the business works - if you do a great job, you get called back to do more work, and you get recommended for other work. But it also means that unless you get lucky enough to get called into the one session that happens to have a big producer/engineer/artist in the room...there's almost no way you're going to get any studio work in town.
And that's not a dig on any of the studio percussionists in town - every single one that I've met is incredibly nice, very humble, and (obviously) a stellar musician. It's just, they're going to keep getting called to play the sessions until they die.
But, trying to return to the main point, it's nearly impossible to make money as a performing musician. I've seriously considered (at the advice of other folks, even) attempting to seek out a personal patron. That's what they did back in the "Olde World," when Mozart & Beethoven and the like we're playing and writing, they all had patrons provide them with the money to pay for all the necessities, so the musicians could focus on their music. Is that something that could work in today's world? I don't know...everyone likes a tax-deductible donation, and they like to see tangible returns on their investments. Music, unfortunately (in this case), is an intangible. Sure, with a patron, I could give more frequent performances, more exposure to the music world and the general public, the possibility of published works and recordings: these could all be tangible results of such an investment.
But who would risk such an investment? Would anyone do so in this current "financial climate?" (I don't know how money and weather are related...unless it's going to be raining mad dolla dolla billz anytime soon.) Probably not...but I suppose you never know if you never try.
I haven't had time to seriously consider such a financial patron...but I'm thinking about putting together a presentation or other form of "List of Reasons why You should pay for my Rent and Insurance and Electric Bill." Or maybe I should just set up a kickstarter fund. I'm still considering doing so to help pay for my Master's Recital.
Of course...there's the HUGE discussion of arts patronage, but that's another topic for another day and another 30 minutes.
Peace Love and Drums
Thursday, March 10, 2011
30 Days of Writing About Music - Day 2
Ha. Of course, I can't even hold myself to it for more than one day. Well...in my defense, the time I had scheduled for this got usurped by more important things, so there.
Also, the conversation that I had intended to have about music (prior to the authoring of yesterday's post) never happened, so there again.
Here's my question. Maybe this question only applies to "classical" percussion music, maybe not, I don't know.
How come the best performers don't focus on performing, but on teaching?
Obviously, that entire question is based solely on personal opinion and experience, but there it is. Now for some discussion (or, more aptly named, my garbled thoughts).
Let me start by explaining the basis of these opinions. I consider the "top performers" those individuals that have a true sense of musicianship, how to give a performance (not merely play a piece of music), how to connect with an audience, etc., all with an immaculate 'touch' (sure, technique, though that could be another discussion) on the instrument.
Some of the best performances I've seen were by (in no particular order), Chris Norton (sure, maybe I'm biased here...but he's amazing), Michael Burritt, Tom Burritt, She-e Wu, Mark Ford, Eric Sammut, Marta Klimasara, Chris Lamb, Keiko Abe (duh), Katarzyna Mycka. Each of these individuals (and I probably left some out), while they do perform fairly frequently, are primarily teachers at various institutions around the world. Now, I would never name individuals that I have seen perform...in whose performances I did not see the same outstanding factor that I did in each of those named. (Wouldn't want to alienate any potential colleagues as an aspiring performer myself!) But, I will say that I have been disappointed in performances by percussionists whose primary fame or function is performance, or I have witnessed their instruction on giving performances when [I felt] their own was lacking.
Anyway...I suppose I have digressed from my question. Perhaps the primary reason is that percussion as a solo instrument is still mostly a novelty in the "classical" music world (outside of NYC, of course, where groups like So Percussion are running the show in regards to "classical" music...and rightfully so). If this is the case, what can we do to change this? Should it change? Hell yes it should. Percussion "music" has been around longer than the violin or piano, pretty much longer than any instrument other than the human voice.
Or perhaps they see it as their duty to inform future generations of percussionists how to perform (and/or simply have a passion for teaching). I can't complain about that, especially as the direct recipient of such an individual.
So whose responsibility is it to promote the best possible performances of percussion?
—Sure, in one way, it belongs to the performers. We must promote our craft in many ways...one way being the creation of new percussion music, thus my own Master's Recital is comprised entirely of new works I commissioned.
—Some responsibility also lies with instructors...which, of course, answers my question of why the best performers teach - so they can fulfill this responsibility.
—Some of it lies within the greater percussion community (Percussive Arts Society, etc). I think PAS does a good job of doing this, but in a lot of ways I see it merely as a self-serving institution. In that, it promotes our craft...to other percussionists. Yeah, that's great, and it makes us feel really good about ourselves...but what good does it really do? I want to see PAS sponsor a major, no, a GIANT percussion-centric project that does not happen at PASIC or serve only percussionists. Percussionists already know how great percussion is...let's share that joy with everyone else, okay?
—The musical community at large. Had some ideas to say here, but not sure how to say them yet...
Well, that's more than 30 minutes. Maybe this one will serve for Days 2 and 3...maybe I'll just write a short piece later today. Who knows.
Peace Love and Drums
Also, the conversation that I had intended to have about music (prior to the authoring of yesterday's post) never happened, so there again.
Here's my question. Maybe this question only applies to "classical" percussion music, maybe not, I don't know.
How come the best performers don't focus on performing, but on teaching?
Obviously, that entire question is based solely on personal opinion and experience, but there it is. Now for some discussion (or, more aptly named, my garbled thoughts).
Let me start by explaining the basis of these opinions. I consider the "top performers" those individuals that have a true sense of musicianship, how to give a performance (not merely play a piece of music), how to connect with an audience, etc., all with an immaculate 'touch' (sure, technique, though that could be another discussion) on the instrument.
Some of the best performances I've seen were by (in no particular order), Chris Norton (sure, maybe I'm biased here...but he's amazing), Michael Burritt, Tom Burritt, She-e Wu, Mark Ford, Eric Sammut, Marta Klimasara, Chris Lamb, Keiko Abe (duh), Katarzyna Mycka. Each of these individuals (and I probably left some out), while they do perform fairly frequently, are primarily teachers at various institutions around the world. Now, I would never name individuals that I have seen perform...in whose performances I did not see the same outstanding factor that I did in each of those named. (Wouldn't want to alienate any potential colleagues as an aspiring performer myself!) But, I will say that I have been disappointed in performances by percussionists whose primary fame or function is performance, or I have witnessed their instruction on giving performances when [I felt] their own was lacking.
Anyway...I suppose I have digressed from my question. Perhaps the primary reason is that percussion as a solo instrument is still mostly a novelty in the "classical" music world (outside of NYC, of course, where groups like So Percussion are running the show in regards to "classical" music...and rightfully so). If this is the case, what can we do to change this? Should it change? Hell yes it should. Percussion "music" has been around longer than the violin or piano, pretty much longer than any instrument other than the human voice.
Or perhaps they see it as their duty to inform future generations of percussionists how to perform (and/or simply have a passion for teaching). I can't complain about that, especially as the direct recipient of such an individual.
So whose responsibility is it to promote the best possible performances of percussion?
—Sure, in one way, it belongs to the performers. We must promote our craft in many ways...one way being the creation of new percussion music, thus my own Master's Recital is comprised entirely of new works I commissioned.
—Some responsibility also lies with instructors...which, of course, answers my question of why the best performers teach - so they can fulfill this responsibility.
—Some of it lies within the greater percussion community (Percussive Arts Society, etc). I think PAS does a good job of doing this, but in a lot of ways I see it merely as a self-serving institution. In that, it promotes our craft...to other percussionists. Yeah, that's great, and it makes us feel really good about ourselves...but what good does it really do? I want to see PAS sponsor a major, no, a GIANT percussion-centric project that does not happen at PASIC or serve only percussionists. Percussionists already know how great percussion is...let's share that joy with everyone else, okay?
—The musical community at large. Had some ideas to say here, but not sure how to say them yet...
Well, that's more than 30 minutes. Maybe this one will serve for Days 2 and 3...maybe I'll just write a short piece later today. Who knows.
Peace Love and Drums
Tuesday, March 08, 2011
30 Days of Writing About Music - Day 1
30 Days until the project that has consumed the past three years of my life is complete. This calls for a blog entry. In fact, I believe I'm going to spend 30 minutes every day between now and then writing about music, perhaps in relation to my recital, perhaps not. You don't have to read it...in fact, I doubt many people will. But this is the internet, the place where blogs were invented specifically for so many people to say so little to so few. Here we go.
My Master's Recital, which will happen on April 7, will feature the presentation of 7 brand new works for percussion. (...Haha, I just got the numerical connection...totally unintentional.) This is a project I have been working on since early 2009, but for which I was inspired a full year earlier, in February of 2008. My entire time as a graduate student (plus the six months between Feb 08 to the time I actually started coursework) has been spent working toward this recital.
The subject of this posting, the past three or four months have been spent writing my recital document. This is important, as I finally finished it this past weekend. Thankfully it was not a full-on thesis, but since my recital was vastly different from most performance majors, I had more material to discuss regarding the actual commissioning, the importance of expanding the percussion repertoire, and the performer's role in all of this. Regardless of the passion I felt for each of these aspects, I have a strong dislike for writing. (But wait, I have a blog? And I'm writing on it?)
Idislike hate academic writing. If I could have written the whole paper in "story-telling mode," I would have enjoyed it much more. In fact, I personally think it (a) would have made more sense as a paper due to the necessity to tell about the commissioning process in first person and (b) would have a much greater chance of being read by future percussionists interested in commissioning new music. I mean, isn't that the point of writing a Master's Document - to (a) best tell us what you learned and why you qualify to get this Master's Degree and (b) provide something that will be read by future students looking for information on your topic? Why should I write something boring that maybe one other person ever might read?
Which, of course, gets into the much larger question of why so much of academia is still a bunch of old and stuffy garbage. I was having a very intriguing conversation with one of my professors the other day, who indicated that it needs to change, and that I may be one of the last of my generation to write a paper like this. I hope so. Society is changing so much thanks to technology...I mean, when I started this blog, the iPhone was still two years away. When I turned 16 and got my first cell phone, the smartphone didn't exist, and very few people under the age of 16 even had a cell phone. In two years, everyone will have an iPad (or Android tablet, for the Google-heads), students will do homework via Xbox Kinect, teachers will take attendance with a QR code...and then the robots will begin their takeover.
But...I'm digressing and my time is running out. Music. This entry hasn't been as much writing about music as it has been writing about writing about music. Here's something about music - to encourage the last push to finish my paper, I downloaded and listened to (on repeat) Daft Punk's Alive 2007 album, because it is super awesome. Anyone listen to a certain type of music while working?
Peace
My Master's Recital, which will happen on April 7, will feature the presentation of 7 brand new works for percussion. (...Haha, I just got the numerical connection...totally unintentional.) This is a project I have been working on since early 2009, but for which I was inspired a full year earlier, in February of 2008. My entire time as a graduate student (plus the six months between Feb 08 to the time I actually started coursework) has been spent working toward this recital.
The subject of this posting, the past three or four months have been spent writing my recital document. This is important, as I finally finished it this past weekend. Thankfully it was not a full-on thesis, but since my recital was vastly different from most performance majors, I had more material to discuss regarding the actual commissioning, the importance of expanding the percussion repertoire, and the performer's role in all of this. Regardless of the passion I felt for each of these aspects, I have a strong dislike for writing. (But wait, I have a blog? And I'm writing on it?)
I
Which, of course, gets into the much larger question of why so much of academia is still a bunch of old and stuffy garbage. I was having a very intriguing conversation with one of my professors the other day, who indicated that it needs to change, and that I may be one of the last of my generation to write a paper like this. I hope so. Society is changing so much thanks to technology...I mean, when I started this blog, the iPhone was still two years away. When I turned 16 and got my first cell phone, the smartphone didn't exist, and very few people under the age of 16 even had a cell phone. In two years, everyone will have an iPad (or Android tablet, for the Google-heads), students will do homework via Xbox Kinect, teachers will take attendance with a QR code...and then the robots will begin their takeover.
But...I'm digressing and my time is running out. Music. This entry hasn't been as much writing about music as it has been writing about writing about music. Here's something about music - to encourage the last push to finish my paper, I downloaded and listened to (on repeat) Daft Punk's Alive 2007 album, because it is super awesome. Anyone listen to a certain type of music while working?
Peace
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