Spaced Out

    

      

#117

09.21.10

    

Spaced Out - Lushy

   

   

 

   

:)

CCE 

 

Cello Song: Tribute to Bach and Zuill Bailey

     

  

#116

09.19.10

    

A few nights ago I had the supreme pleasure of attending a performance of the complete Cello Suites by Bach as interpreted and performed by the magnificent Zuill Bailey at the Grant Auditorium on Alaska Pacific University's campus.  The night was indescribably wonderful; I felt as close to being on heroin as my imagination permits me to conceptualize.  Of course that sounds dramatic, but I'm telling you - there were times I didn't feel human, or physical, if that makes sense.  "Floating in the ether", as it were.  And to spend that evening with T & Q made it all-the-better.  I'm hoping one day C.Q.E. II will remember the event fondly, as it remains one of my highest priorities to expose him to music.

      

I own 4 recordings of the Suites, beginning with the Yo Yo Ma recording.  I also have a classic Pablo Casals recording, and in 2010 have added both the Jean-Guihen Queyras and Zuill Bailey recordings.  Each is stunning,  each is distinct and worth owning.  There are many other options out there for me to eventually purchase and explore as I become more comfortable with the versions I currently enjoy.

 

I must admit that when I first purchased the Zuill recording I was a wee bit turned off by the occasional pickup of heavy breathing.  We've been playing the music for about 6 days straight here through our home system, and I don't really pick it up at all... but when I really want to enjoy a piece of music, I put on the Sennheiser cans and let 'er rip.  That's when I hear the breathing, and I wished that it had been edited from the final master.

 

I said, I wished.  

   

Because now, having seen The Man play the complete Suites live on his fabulous 1693 original Matteo Goffriller violincello, my eyes are opened to the herculean physical act it surely is.  As elegant as Zuill is, and as charming and personable he surely is during the fascinating chats between pieces... he would noticeably transform in to an absolute beast when required to harness that instrument and ride the lightning.  Especially in the 4th and 6th Suites.  

 

To my knowledge very few musicians ever attempt to perform the entire Suites live, and now I understand why.  To be absolutely honest, even if I could play cello I know I do not possess the physical stamina and mental focus to ever, ever dream of pulling off the feat that I've just witnessed in person.  And now when I hear the breathing, at times near-grunting... I just smile and shake my head in absolute amazement and respect.  Zuill Bailey is surely a rockstar of classical proportions.

 

One final note: though an announcement was never made to the effect at the performance, it is likely improper that I took some stills with my iPhone camera.  I hope it causes no offense, and would immediately take down these photos if asked to do so.  I offer them in all their low-resolution glory only to pay homage to the evening and the composer and the musician.  And I offer no apologies for their low-resolution, as I think it lends a sense of the ethereal to them.  I just love the aura surrounding Zuill in these photographs, and am not so sure it is artifact.

  

   

   

Music

 

So for a little gratuitous flashbacking on this blog, I think it's worth mentioning that in my first entry on 01.01.10 I suggested Miles Davis and John Coltrane's Bye Bye Blackbird (the version off 'Round About Midnight) as a musical accompaniment to the photos.  At that point I had no intention of streaming music with my blog, because I didn't know it was an option.  After my 2nd blog on 01.02.10 my amazing sister-in-law B.L.W.E., who happens to be an amazing photographer, taught me how I could add music if I wanted.  And the rest is history - the blog has pretty much become more about the music than the photography, mostly because I'm not a great photographer, but do enjoy writing and listening to a good tune.  

     

So the next day, in entry #03 on 01.03.10, for my first entry to ever feature music, I payed tribute to Nick Drake's lovely Northern Skies.  Then, in entry #05 on 01.05.10, only my third entry to feature music, I showcased the sublime voice of José González on Crosses.   {Now at this point you're likely feeling numb and wondering where this is headed, and I'm getting there just now.}  On entry #34 on 02.03.10 I featured what I consider a great track by The Books called Owls With Knees, and I promised to feature another Books song down the line featuring the singing of José González.  (By the way, you can listen to these tracks in the blue player called "iPhone Photoblog Soundtrack" on the right hand column of the blog, if you so desire.) 

 

And now, thank you kindly for your patience... let's get To The Point:

     

I've waited for a long time to play this track that hopefully you're enjoying right now;  

     

Cello Song - 

The Books, featuring José González 

 (Cover of the Nick Drake Classic)  

       

CCE

       

If You Want It (Got To Come And Get It)

   

    

#115

09.15.10

       

If  You Want It - Pacha Massive

        

I double-dog-dare you to listen to this song three times through, and not become infected with it! 
 
And while you become aurally infected; how about gazing upon more beautiful Dahlias from the Alaska State Fair?

       

          
CCE

    

One Note Samba

     

     

#114

09.14.10

 

One Note Samba - The Postmarks 
  

Brilliant cover of the bossa nova tune by Antonio Carlos Jobim.

 

Brilliant orange Ball Dahlias, too.

 

 

CCE

 

Cockroaches

     

  

#113

09.13.10

Echoes - The Raveonettes
  

{Back to Alaska State Fair photos...}

These Madagascaran Cockroaches were the size of my pet cats.

Not cool.

But Echoes?  By the Raveonettes?  

Cool.  

Very cool.

 

CCE

 

Remembering 9.11.01

    

     

#112

09.11.10

     

Intro - the XX

     

I was a third-year resident seeing outpatients at the Ankle and Foot Medical Center of the Delaware Valley in Philadelphia, PA.  In between patients I heard someone in the waiting room talking about a plane that crashed in to one of the World Trade Center buildings in New York City.  A few of us pulled up the story on CNN.com while one of the staff got coverage on a radio station.  I remember feeling so sad.

     

Then we saw and heard that a second plane had deliberately crashed in to the other tower, and sadness was replaced with confusion and fear.  Other planes were not responding to air traffic control, and thought to be targeting additional sites, including Washington, D.C.  I quickly telephoned my mother in Utah to make sure none of my brothers or sister were traveling.  I didn't inquire about my father because I usually know when and where he is traveling.  What a wave of relief I felt when she said my siblings were all at their homes, but then mentioned "But dad is in Washington D.C.  Why?"  

     

Fear, confusion, and panic.  

     

He was staying at the Marriott next to the White House, which was a suspected target.

   

By then the Pentagon had been hit, and I felt such fear that I simply couldn't think straight.  I left the clinic and got in to my car; I was going to drive in to D.C. and personally get him out.  I stopped off to pick up T from her work and take her home - she was on the 13th floor of a large building off Rittenhouse Square in downtown Philadelphia, and prepared to leave for D.C.  All the roads leading in to D.C. were blocked, and I felt visceral helplessness.  Then my mother phoned and had received word from my father.  He had literally walked out of the city for several hours until he found a car rental agency, rented their last car, and began the slow drive West, to the safety of Home.

    

I am very mindful today of those who didn't make it home safely that day, and I grieve for their families.

    

  

This series of photos was taken on July 4, 2010 in South Jordan, Utah at my father-in-law's home.  He's the taller man in this photo, the other man is one of his neighbors, and that's my Q with them.  The flag was lowered to half staff in honor of my mother-in-law who had passed away just one week prior.  The lowered flag also feels appropriate on this occasion while remembering the events of 09.11.01.  

   

CCE

   

Hey, Man... Nice Pumpkin

      

     

#111

09.09.10

   

Pumpkin - Tricky (featuring Alison Goldfrapp)

   

{Note:  The next several blog entries will feature photos taken with the iPhone camera at the Alaska State Fair this past Friday, September 3, 2010.  It was just my Co-pilot Q and I that night, and we had a great time.}

    

This photo was ultimately inevitable.  No discussion of the "Alaska Fair" is complete without mentioning insanely large vegetables.  Some years that means monster cabbage, but this year it was mega pumpkins.  This particular pumpkin happens to be an Alaskan state record, weighing in at a healthy 1101 pounds.  It was grown by Dale Marshall, in case you want to reserve your pumpkin for Halloween 2011.  

 

He happened to be standing near it when Q and I were there, and I heard some guy wearing a trucker cap and a t-shirt with a silk-screen print of a wolf howling at the moon say to Dale "Hey, man... nice pumpkin."

  

Mark the date, and write this down:

"Hey, man... nice pumpkin."

  

Deep stuff; and eloquently delivered.

  

Alright, I admit it... the pic of the pumpkin isn't outrageously cool, and my lame (but true) story to go along with it isn't much better.  And that, dear reader, is why I have introduced music into this otherwise pathetic blog.  Tricky shall save this day!

  

I have been a big fan of Tricky since he and Massive Attack pushed the boundaries of possible soundscapes in my mind.  I find him to be a fascinatingly unique individual, and his music is ultra-textured and "groovy", for lack of a better word.  It's the only trip-hop I ever care to hear, unless someone else comes along and does it as well as he does (or better?  Is that possible?).  

This particular song is extra cool because it features the gilded voice of Alison Goldfrapp accompanying Tricky's slo-mo rap.  I love her Goldfrapp recordings, too, and will make it a point to feature some of her stuff here soon.  I think this track was recorded before her solo career started; so for all I know, Tricky discovered her.  This song is supposedly a criticism of the pretentious arrogance of Billy Corgan, the main man for the Smashing Pumpkins.  It comes off Tricky's debut solo album Maxinquaye, named for his mother Maxine Quaye who committed suicide when he was a wee lad in England.

     

CCE