Adam Gopnik continually amazes me with the range of his critical thinking.  Whether he’s tackling Shakespeare, physics, bread or the Holocaust, he is sure to bring a fresh perspective and several warm turns of phrase to the subject.  “The essential work of discrimination is lost in a blanketing cloud of nostalgia” is a line I could happily wrap myself up in on a chilly winter … [Read more...]

There are at least twenty-three devices in our home that keep track of what we do.  I say “at least” because there may be others I’m not aware of.  It’s not unreasonable to think that anything I buy at this point – and definitely anything I get for free -- is sending information about me to some outside entity.  A shirt I recently ordered on Amazon has an odd pattern of silver threads running … [Read more...]

This week, the Cassatt String Quartet is having its annual Cassatt in the Basin residency, through which they bring the abiding principles of chamber music -- effective communication, responsibility to the group, mutual respect, and intimate musical expression – to young people in West Texas.  They began yesterday with a concert that included music by Melinda Wagner and Lev 'Ljova Zhurbin.  They … [Read more...]

Sometimes I’m amazed when I realize the number of clocks I encounter every day:  on the wall, on the stove, on the phone, on the screen I’m typing on now.  Reminders of the passage of time seem ever present. But it’s not really the passage of time, is it?  It’s the current time.  Unlike the clocks I grew up with -- clocks with faces and arms and reference points around a circle – the clocks … [Read more...]

Last week I wrote about a recording session we had with soprano Lindsay Kesselman on March 15th.  Two weeks later we brought Eighth Blackbird here to record seven student chamber pieces: Oliver Glynn: A Couple of Ogden Nash Poems Nicholas Karr: Sulcus Thomas Little: Invasion of the Minor Seconds Thomas McMillan: Prime Gaps Algernon Robinson: Spring Luis Sanz: Transiciones … [Read more...]

I wrote here about the recording session we had in February with the Attacca String Quartet.  We had another this past month, this time with soprano Lindsay Kesselman and pianist Daniel Pesca collaborating on four student songs: Kyrie Antoinette: Old News Derek Wesley Arnold: The Song of the Shirt Alicia Bachorik: How Do I Love Thee? Jessica Buford: They Were Miners Jessica’s song … [Read more...]

We all have a strong inclination to view ourselves as the protagonists of our own stories. People in committed relationships have an increased incentive to view themselves as serving supporting roles in someone else’s narrative. Parents have an even stronger incentive to see themselves in supporting roles, and even as backdrop. What does this mean for artists?  It can mean any number of … [Read more...]

Like many people, when I read a great book, I immediately cast about for other titles by the same author.  When I see a film that catches my attention, I look for more by the same creative team. Part of this practice is a desire to get more of the same – the personal version of the ubiquitous marketing ploy “if you liked this, try these.”  Another part, though, is a pursuit of the pleasure of … [Read more...]

Life is full of small pleasures, and I do my best not to undervalue them. For me, many of life’s pleasures are solitary.   Writing music, for example.  Or reading.  Or just thinking about things. Sometimes, though, events capture my attention, pull me out of my self and away from my solitary activities.   Last spring was such a time.  Like many others, I found national and world events … [Read more...]

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that we had the Attacca String Quartet in residence here at the UNC School of the Arts.   Things are really jumping this spring, starting next week.  We are going to have new music coming out our ears, which is exactly how I like it.  And I can't help pointing it out, because I love this: the next seven weeks include sixty performances of new pieces by our sixteen … [Read more...]