red

My guilty pleasure for this summer has been to buy some books for my nook that I might not have otherwise picked up.  For several months, I have been eying the Sammy Hagar auto-biography, Red.  So, I finally picked it up on my nook this summer and powered through it over the course of about 3 days.  Before I write any more about it, you need to know that this morning I bought the Chickenfoot CD and the Wabos CD (Sammy Hagar’s most recent recording projects).  So, that ought to say something.  I get a kick of this guy.  You also need to know that I was never a big fan.  I knew “I can’t drive 55” and all of the popular Van Halen stuff.  I had seen him on a few interviews on MTV over the years.  For some reason, I really remember on night that he was on the Magic Johnson late night show, back in the ‘80’s.  Otherwise, I really didn’t know that much about him or his music.

Wow.  I was knocked out as I read this book.  What a life this guy has lived.  What a story of determination and success.  The book is a little hard to get started into.  The writing style is super-conversational. But, as you go, it starts to make sense.  Sammy comes from a really rough childhood; an abusive father, poverty, alcohol abuse all around.  He essentially is a fighter and a winner.  From music, to business, to relationships, there is a lot to like about this guy.  He wanted to be a song writer and a musician, so he figured it out.  He took some major chances, kicked and scratched, and made it happen.  He fronted Van Halen for a bunch of years and wrote or co-wrote some many of their biggest hits.  He has strong ideas about music, songwriting, putting shows together, and entertainment that he developed from years of watching, trying things, and learning from his mistakes.

I am so impressed with his business sense, too. He started out in real estate and a bunch of buildings in his home town.   He had this super successful early mountain bike business back in the ‘80’s.  I had totally forgotten about it. Do you remember the “Red Rocker” mountain bikes?  They were high end mountain bikes in the early years.   Then there was his club in Cabo.  And, of course, he has his tequila business.  Not to mention his attention to details and what sells in the music business.  He takes care of his employees, too.  He gets it.  And, he gets into businesses that he thinks are cool.  I am really impressed with that.

Another thing that I really love is his honesty.  He is honest in the book about his life.  And, he seems to be really honest with people. What a great quality.  I heard someone say recently that honesty is so much easier than dishonesty: you don’t have to remember anything when you are honest.  It is true.  It seems like he is pretty good with that.

I also really dig his accounts of spiritual experiences.  He talks about encounters that he had with relatives and friends in dreams after they had died, before he knew they had died.  I just feel like he is a pretty intuitive guy.  I enjoyed hearing about it.  Also, he talks for a bit about his relationship with the concept of numerology.  It sort of blew my mind.  It was hard for me to look at numbers the way he does, but I enjoyed getting the concept explained a bit. 

I want to be clear; the book isn’t for faint of heart.  The writing style and language is harsh, to say the least.  There are lots of stories about his sexual exploits and drug abuse by him and others.  That is, for better or worse, part of the rocker lifestyle, story, and mystique, it seems.  (We have seenit all over the “Behind the Music” series.)  He lived it in every way.  But, somehow, he came out the other side.  He has a beautiful wife and two daughters, as well as two boys from a previous marriage that he really hung in there on.  He is a successful businessman and musician.  For goodness sake, he is making music on his own terms, not someone else’s.   He is a guy that went for it and succeeded.  There is a lot to gain from knowing the story.  And, honestly, I am really digging the Chickenfoot and Wabo recordings.

I really enjoyed the story.  So much so, that I started in on the Mick Jagger biography yesterday! (I have to say, I have a very different impression of Sir Mick.  Rock Icon, but a very different human being – in relationships, business, and motivation. )  This book by Sammy Hagar has been a fun little journey.  Rock on!

Peace.

Scott

Goldfinch

Over past 3 years, I have developed a relationship with the goldfinch. 

Or, maybe it would be more accurate to say that the goldfinch has developed relationship with me.

Many of you know that I am an avid bicyclist and, even though I don’t get out as much as I used to, or I would like, I still really enjoy getting out on the road for a long ride or onto the single tracks to rip it up on my mountain bike anytime that I can.  (In fact, yesterday, I had a great day riding about 90 miles to Old Mission Lighthouse in the northern part of Michigan and will write about that later.)  I think it is also important to state that in recent years, I have developed new and probably much merited fears about riding on the roads.  It is really dangerous out there!  Maybe I am more aware of my family responsibilities and my own mortality.  In any event, I do think about it every time I get on my bike.  But, I feel like the benefits outweigh the risks, so I pedal on.

About three summers ago, I was teaching at a string camp in Anne Arundel County near Annapolis, MD.  While there, I was getting out on my bike every day when I wasn’t in rehearsal.  Boy, were the roads dangerous there!  Cars would fly by me and not give an inch.  I really worried about my safety.  Sometime during the week, I noticed that a goldfinch was following me on my ride.  I started realizing that it would stay with me for miles.  I can’t quite describe it but to say that I felt a sense of safety and peace when it was with me.  I would say that I noticed it on three of my rides that week and always smiled when he was with me.

Later that summer, my family was vacationing in Western Pennsylvania at a small state park called Prince Gallitzin.  It is one of my favorite places in the world: a small lake, rolling hills, forests, trails, camping, farms that go on forever, and quaint small towns.  I try to ride every day when we are there.  The hills are a great workout.  Sometimes too great!  Anyway, guess who shows up?  Goldfinches.  Again, they are hanging with me for miles on my rides.  Again, I just have this sense of safety and peace when they are with me.  Later that summer, we headed to Indian lake, near Somerset, PA to hang out with my sister-in-law and her family.  Sure enough, more goldfinches.  And in Somerset, they were even more prominent during my rides, hanging with me for 10, 15, even 20 miles.

When I returned home to North Carolina, I decided to drop a note to my old friend, Joe Liles.  Joe is immersed in Native American culture and I thought that I would ask him about the goldfinch and if there was any Native American lore about this phenomenon.  He told me that he wasn’t aware of anything specific, but that Native Americans do feel that The Great Spirit can be found in nature and that animals can be a conduit to ancestors and to God.  Interesting.  I don’t have any conclusions here.  I just find it all to be interesting.  I am a pretty spiritual guy.  I am a Christian.  (If you read my blog at all, I hope that you had already figured that out.)  I am really intrigued by the book “Heaven is Real” and the concept of intercession by our relatives.  I don’t know.  I just find it interesting and palpable.  I have read a couple of similar books and love the thought of a heaven where we are young, whole, happy, and together with those that love us.  I have bought in to the concept.  I have really wondered if these goldfinches were at least a representation of a deceased relative just hanging with me, assuring me that everything is ok, or maybe literally keeping me safe.  Maybe they were a sign from God, reminding me of his grace and protection.  Again, no sermon here.  I am just reporting the facts.

This summer I am teaching at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp.  I love my gig here.  I have time to ride my bike almost every day.  Guess what?  The goldfinches are back.  I have been joined on my bike rides several times by these guys.  This summer, they are more like fly-bys.  They don’t hang with me for miles.  Instead they fly right in front of me.  Almost like they WANT me to see that they are there.  And, every time, I get this incredible sense of the presence of God.  It is a feeling that tells me I am not riding alone (on my ride that day and through life). 

A few days ago, my wife and kids were leaving to go to Pittsburgh for a couple of days.  I was a little concerned about them.  It is a long drive and the family was going to be apart for a while.  We said our goodbyes and they headed out.  As they got out onto the road, a goldfinch did a fly-by on them!  She had my son text me and let me know that he was headed my way.  The bird flew right in front of the car.  He wanted to make sure she saw him.  Crazy.

I have shared this story with lots of folks.  As I said, I don’t really have any concrete explanations.  All I know is how it makes me feel.  These finch encounters make me feel safe and not so alone in the universe.  They give me a sense of peace.  I think we all need more peace in our lives.  I know that I need more.  Peace can certainly be well beyond our understanding.   I feel like this is that peace.  I don’t really understand the peace that I receive when I know I am not riding alone.  I just accept it for what it is worth.  I enjoy it and savor it.

And, now every time I get on my bike, I wonder if I am going to encounter my old friends, the goldfinches.  Or maybe they are some other old friends.  Regardless, it makes getting on my bike an adventure!

Peace.

Scott

Styx

I have just a few minutes to write briefly about my experience at the Styx Concert this summer at Interlochen.  Those of you that are Facebook friends with me have a pretty good idea of the experience, but I thought I would just share a few other thoughts.  I had the great pleasure of seeing Styx in concert at Interlochen on July 19 and then enjoyed backstage passes and a nice conversation with original band member, James Young, after the show.

Many of you don’t know that I loved Styx as a kid and from 1977 – 1983, simply wore the grooves off of my Styx records.  My sister went on a few dates with a guy in 1977 that turned me on to the band.  The Grand Illusion album had just come out and Come Sail Away was finding its way to the airwaves on WDVD in Pittsburgh.  I bought the record at Indiana’s local Record Store (and head shop), took it home, and began memorizing words, guitar solos, bass lines, etc. from the very beginning.  I remember my parents looking over the words on the slip cover and approving of the material, but pointing out the one use of the word “hell” and that they didn’t want that word creeping into my language.  Soon after, I bought previous records, Crystal Ball and Equinox.  I couldn’t get enough.  I particularly liked the lyrical songwriting and guitar playing of Tommy Shaw and the heavy quality to James Young’s riffs.  I wasn’t a big fan for Dennis DeYoung’s dramatic style, even then.  I couldn’t wait for Pieces of Eight to come out in 1978.  I bought the album the day it was released and even saved up to buy the “picture disc LP” that had the album cover art imprinted right on the vinyl.  I had it framed and it lived on my bedroom wall until I went to college in 1983.  I loved every tune on Pieces of Eight.  Still the Tommy Shaw stuff, I realize now, was my favorite.  Conerstone came out a year later and it was memorized in just the same way.  By the time Paradise Theater was released, I was beginning to move on to other music, but I still knew every riff and word of that record.  Like many kids in the 80’s, they lost me on “Mister Robato.”  It just didn’t work for me. 

I have been turning my kids on to Styx music all summer in preparation for the concert in July.  I took the whole family.  It has been a wonderful trip down memory lane to experience all of the great songs again, remembering my feelings about them as an adolescent and creating new memories and feeling about the songs as a 47 year old dad of three boys.  I have definitely realized this in the past few weeks:  Tommy Shaw is the reason I love this band.  He has been an incredible influence on my musical life.  He is the consummate rock star on stage.  He is a tremendous musician and lyricist.  Man in the Wilderness, Angry Young Man, Crystal Ball, Fooling Yourself.  These are the tunes that still resonate for me in so many ways.  They always will.  I think that many of the melodies I write are directly influenced by his writing.  I am indebted to him and Styx in so many ways. 

I definitely want to thank Liza Grossman for hooking me and my son up with the backstage passes.  It was a thrill to meet JY and I loved my conversation with him after the show.  What a great guy.  It was so much fun to hear his stories of the early days and their current work and lives.  I was sorry that I didn't get to say thanks to Tommy.  But, I totally understood, he had several shows coming up and needed to save his voice after the show.  If we had met, I just would have said "thanks."  So, I will say it here.

Styx helped me get through my adolescent years.  Their music moved me.  It shaped me.  It has been a blast to revisit that in the past few weeks. 

Peace.

Scott

Everyone's Attitude Matters

As a conductor and educator, I am keenly aware that the attitude and approach that I bring to every rehearsal and class has a tremendous impact on the direction and success of that session.  If I bring positive energy to the rehearsal, I usually get it back from  the musicians.  If I am having an "off" day or am a bit under the weather, I can usually see that reflected in the attitude of the musicians as well.

A couple of days ago, I was in a meeting that ran right up to the beginning of my rehearsal. The meeting was rather intense and raised several ideas and concerns for all of those in attendance.   I raced to my rehearsal space following the meeting, never really gaining the time to focus on my upcoming rehearsal. The musicians were in seats and tuned as I raced up to the podium and began rehearsal.  It took me a solid 30 minutes to get focused and I believe that everyone in the room knew that my head wasn't entirely in the right place. The rehearsal was certainly sub-par in every way.  The musicians were unfocused.  They made unnecessary mistakes over and over again.  And, I became frustrated with them and myself as the rehearsal continued. The next day, I owned up to my personal disappointment in that rehearsal and took full responsibility for the results.

I am guess that this idea doesn't come as much of a surprise to anyone that may be reading this. We often hear that a classroom is always a reflection of the teacher.  I believe this is true.

I have encountered a situation this week that has me believing that the reverse is true as well.  Every student has a responsibility to bring a good attitude and approach to class and rehearsal as well.  And, it really only takes one bad attitude to pervade and entire ensemble or class and to really ruin the experience for everyone.

This week, I have a new group of students in my ensemble.  Te have had two rehearsals and we are just getting to know each other, both musically and personally.  It is a lovely group of students and I am really looking forward to preparing two magnificent concerts with them.  We are doing some excellent literature and there are many opportunities for genuine music-making and exceptional moments.  Except for one factor.  There is one student, that for some reason, has an incredibly bad attitude.  She has a disinterested look, isn't participating fully in the rehearsals, never smiles, is never prepared for a downbeat or and entrance, and generally exudes negativity with every movement she makes. (I am working to reach out to this student and am hopeful that I can care for her in some way that is meaningful and turn this around, but that isn't really the point of this essay.)  My point here is that her bad attitude affects me and everyone around her.  Ultimately, she is bringing us all down with her.  Her negativity makes me and everyone around her feel bad.  It doesn't just stay with her.

I think that it is important for members of ensembles to know that their attitude has impact.  It has impact on everyone.  Conductors aren't immune to negative energy.  It makes it hard to do our job!  Teachers and aren't immune to students' negative energy.  I am guessing that the same is true for pastors, CEO's, school administrators, managers, and all sorts of other leaders.  We all have a responsibility  for the energy that we bring to a team activity.  Certainly, playing in an orchestra is a team activity that requires energy and a positive approach from every participant.  I think that this concept extends well beyond a musical ensemble or a sports team, though.  Any group effort: a class, a business, a church, a club, etc.  requires all members to bring an attitude of cooperation and desire to succeed in order for the organization to have long or short-term success. 

I think it important for my musicians to understand this. We are all in this together.  It is what we signed up for and a chain is only as strong as the weakest link.  Both musically, and in attitude.

So, for my students and all students, musicians, team members, and leaders:  let's bring an attitude of positivity to the work that we are doing.  It will make the process much more enjoyable -more enjoyable for everyone.

Peace.
Scott

Intership Opportunity for Students Interested in Music and Technology

Friends and Music Educators, 

I recieved this note recently from an alum of NCSSM, Doug Whitfield, that is working on starting a 501(c)(3) with lawyer Nicholas Clark in the Washington, DC area that helps fund educational and journalistic materials through an umbrella organization. Currently he works with a few websites that are planning on joining, two of which specifically deal with music, the Music Manumit Podcast and the Music Manumit Lawcast. It is for these two organizations that he is looking for an intern.

Please see the information below and feel free to make contact with Doug if you think you have an interested student.  This can be a high school or college student and they need not live in the same region as the leadership.

I hope that this finds some interest!

Scott

WHAT THE STUDENT GETS: Valuable experience using an audio editor, such as audacity. Project management skills. Depending on knowledge and desire, potentially practical software development skills (I'm happy to talk more about what we might want here). Access to our truly global* network of musicians, netlabels, professors, journalists, lawyers and activists. Access to professional bloggers/podcasters such as Jeffrey Powers.

*our most recent guest was from South Korea, but we've had guests from Italy, Germany, Poland, Sweden, France, Indonesia, Switzerland, Argentina, Spain, England and Australia. On Saturday our guest is from South Africa and we have plans to speak with lawyers in Japan and Canada in the next month.

WHAT THE ORGANIZATION GETS: Well, that depends on the student. Here's what we're looking for:

An intern interested in music would be putting together our music shows in blogger and searching out great new bands releasing under remixable Creative Commons licenses. We would also have an intern interested in music help with booking bands for interviews. We have long talked about putting a live show together and that is something we may finally be able to do if we have a capable intern willing to help out with booking.

An intern interested in social media/advertising would maintain our facebook and Google Plus pages. We would likely also start a dedicated twitter account. Right now, I am just using my personal twitter account because there is too much to keep track of otherwise.

An intern interested in technology would be helping us write a script to take banshee (a Linux media player written in the mono language) playlists and get them into blogger in the most efficient way possible. This is going to take some serious regular expression manipulation. My master's degree is in information science and I could easily speak more about the requirements for this project. We also have some projects lined up for the SIP telephony protocol. 

An intern interested in law would do legal research on the Creative Commons license. This is likely where Nicholas and I can provide the most to an intern.

Thank you,

--

Doug Whitfield

Executive Director, Netizen Empowerment Federation
whitfield@opensourceplayground.org
http://sportazine.com

http://musicmanumit.com

http://law.musicmumit.com

Hindemith’s Acht Stücke

This week, I had the opportunity to conduct 5 movements of Hindemith’s Acht Stücke.  This was really a ball for me as the last time I had programmed the work was 12 or 13 years ago when I was at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland.  At the time, I had a group perform it for our Music Performance Adjudication and they did a great job with it.  About the same time, I had an opportunity to write a couple of chapters for the GIA publication, Teaching Music Through Performance in Orchestra and one of the chapters that I wrote was on this wonderful work for string or chamber orchestra. 

It had been a while since I had spent much time with this piece and I had a hunch that after 10 or 12 years, that I would have some new takes on the work.  That has certainly turned out to be true, so I thought I would share some of my thoughts while there are fresh in my mind today. 

For the performance this week, we did movements 1,2,3,4, and 8.  These five movements take about a total of 7 minutes to perform up to tempo.  Hindemith wrote the the work while teaching at the Berliner Hochschule für Musik, in Berlin in 1927.  I would describe this work at “neo-Baroque” in that he employs a great deal of baroque concepts in the work including detache style bowing, terraced dynamics, and a generally contrapuntal language.  Harmonically, however, there is a great deal of dissonant sounds which ultimately resolve to consonance at the end of each movement.  Each of the 5 movements that we performed is listed as “schnell” or quickly.  Some have other designations such as mäßig schnell (moderately fast), lustig (animato), and munter (cheerful).  So, in general, this is an up-tempo work with a general spirit of happiness and positivity. Another generalization about the work is that all movements are written without a defined key signature.  At first glance, my students all thought that each movement was in either C major or A minor.  It was only upon further discussion that they realized that there really isn’t a specified “key” for any of the movements. Rather, there is more of an opening sense of tonality and tonal center and an ending sense of tonality and tonal center for each movement.

The problem with teaching it to a student group is that the dance-like quality of the work can only be achieved after the notes and passages have been adequately mastered.  And, with the overall dissonant sonority of the work, this can be a steep hurdle to overcome.  I must have used the term “ponderous” a hundred times over the past week in rehearsals.  While working slowly to help the students master numerous unexpected harmonies and chromatic passages, the early part of the process of learning each movement would at times sound like the slow, heavy, sounds of a German prison camp.  However, they trusted me as we navigated the work together and in the end, we were able to make each movement sparkle as I believe Hindemith intended.

Movement I (mäßig schnell) is a short, quick introduction in 4 beats per measure.  It feels a bit like a fanfare to me.  Opening with an A minor feel and quickly incorporating C sharps and ideas of A major, eventually ending on an A major triad , there are numerous opportunities for teaching detaché bowing style, phrasing and direction of line (much like in Baroque playing), and real tuning of whole and half steps. While the entire movement is marked as forte, there are many opportunities for dynamic nuance in the 30 second movement.   One interesting aspect of the work is that all of the parts may be played in first position, but there are several spots in the work that work much better in other positions.  We worked to use the warmth and/or brightness of various string selections when making those decisions.

Movement II (schnell) is a study in terraced dynamics.  With two distinct dynamic voices, there is never a dull moment in this movement.  In 4/4 time, the movement begins with a sense of F minor, but ends with an open fifth on F.  There are opportunities to focus on precise releases of notes, maintaining energy in bow style while playing “piano,” and, as always in this work, precise intonation and direction of line.

Movement III (mäßig schnell) takes on a dance-like quality in 2/4 time. I actually like this movement to be played off the string with a spiccato stroke.  A melodic theme starts the piece in the first violins and reappears throughout the movement, giving it a fugue-like quality.  While not a fugue in the purest sense, the orchestra must give the listener the sense that the opening theme is the primary idea in the work and each appearance of that theme in every voice is what is most important.  The piece seems to begin in G major, but one’s sense of tonality is quickly confused.   There is a difficult passage in the first violins that, while possible in first position, really works best crawling down by ½ steps from 3^rd position to first.  This entire movement must be light and dance-like and push right to the last G minor triad in the upper strings only with no ritard. 

Movement IV (lustig, mäßig schnell) is a fast movement, written in 3/8, but felt in one beat per measure.  I find that the measures are grouped in distinct sets of 4,3 or 2 and the phrasing is much more understandable when that is made clear to the performers. Beginning with a sense of D major, this movement maintains that sense of tonality throughout and, even though it ends rather abruptly, it still ends on a strong measure of D major. There are opportunities here for work on concepts surrounding momentum, playing off of the strong pulse, groupings of measures and phrasing, and simply playing in a scherzo-like tempo structure. There is also a magnificent hemiola toward the end of the movement that provides a real rhythmic surprise and further interest.

Movement VIII (mäßig schnell, munter) is a closing movement in a moderate 3/4 time, although the 16^th note undercurrent makes it feel pretty darn fast.  It is in an A-B-A form with the A section employing two different short primary themes.  The A section opens with a D major sound with a bit of a dominant feel.   It is lively and has a bit of a carnivalistic feel.  The B section features a walking bass line in the celli with a haunting ostinato in the violas.  The first violins chime in with a beautiful rambling melody and the second violins eventually join the violas allowing the ostinato to further dominate the sonority of the section.  Eventually, however, the original A section carnival theme returns and all is back to “normal.”  The entire work ends with the first violins fading out, giving the impression of the carnival parade disappearing over the horizon as the whole event comes to an end. 

What fun!  It isn’t easy to get young people to buy into this music initially.  But, once they get the feel of the spirit of the work, they will truly enjoy it and audiences will love it.  This isn’t for the faint of heart, but if you are looking for a new type of musical and sonic challenge for your students, I recommend it highly.  It was well worth my time this summer and I have been truly gratified by the responses that I have received from my students and audience since the performance.

Peace.

Scott