Tuning harmony in real time.
A longtime dream became a reality at @carnegiehall last month: TriadSculpture with orchestra.
The video starts with a minor triad, then major, both in just intonation, then I start pulling them out of tune & we start visiting the inside of the triad.
A lifetime high hearing @theknightsnyc bring these harmonies to life in real time, next to me, as I made them up.
Grateful to the Negaunee Foundation, @fondationbnpp , Carnegie Hall, & Yamaha for making this concert possible.
Video: @thomasbrunot
Disklavier CFX: @yasinewyork@yamahamusicusa
#JustIntonation
#ContemporaryClassical
#LiveOrchestra
#CarnegieHall
#ExperimentalMusic
#NewMusic
#PianoAndOrchestra
#Microtonal
#TheKnightsNYC
Wasn’t expecting to find a convincing analysis of Trump’s appeal in Paul Auster’s City of Glass (1985). I don’t think Trump is doing it intentionally, as Auster’s character claims Don Quixote is, but there’s no doubt that his ability to constantly keep people entertained (i.e. distracted from their lives) is part of the draw.
Reading glamour pic by @jeanne_gerard_soprano
One of the unexpected joys of this year’s #100daysofpractice was how many people dug Day 4, a solo over Carla Bley’s Lawns with Partido Alto left hand and metronome every 8 beats on 4. A surprising number of musicians chose to transcribe it on their instrument. Well, the amazing Vincent Sorel (@jaidecidedenepaschantercesoir ) took it upon himself to make an actual score of it, a good one, and you can get the PDF for 5 bucks at the link in bio if you’re so inclined. Thanks Vincent!
#100daysofpractice day 100. Bach chorales with friends.
It felt right to end this series with one of my favorite forms of musical practice: sight-reading Bach chorales. So I got together with @cecileachillesop , @christelle.raquillet , and @philippe_maniez today and we read through as many chorales as we could, switching parts and generally basking in the glow of mutual harmony. Couldn’t recommend doing this more.
I’d like to thank everyone who followed along on this series. Those who listened, those who commented, those who offered encouragement and advice. It’s been a genuine pleasure sharing my practice with you.
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
#100daysofpractice day 99. Ear training with EarGuru in Play mode.
Note dictation reinforces the connection between hearing a note and playing it on your instrument.
How fast can you get?
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
#100daysofpractice day 98. My Funny Valentine with @yael_naim_ .
Yael Naim and I have gotten together a few times to play and explore algorithmic music ideas I’ve coded, but here we did the least technological thing imaginable, playing My Funny Valentine, a song I grew up playing with my mom. I love the distinct flavor Yael, who is best known for her more pop-oriented music, brought to this all-time classic.
#musiclife #practice #practice
#100daysofpractice day 97. 5 - 7 - 9 - 11 metric modulations with @guilhemflouzat & @etiennerenardbass , over Cherokee.
Had a jam session in Paris with Etienne Renard and Guilhem Flouzat (whom I’ve known for 15 years, he used to live in NYC), and tried the metric modulation idea from the last few days out with them. The idea is to take advantage of similarities in the claves between the different time signatures to keep the bar length the same. Always fun to make music with others — that sense of togetherness is my favorite thing about jazz.
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
#100daysofpractice day 96. 5 - 7 metric modulations with Jacob Collier, over If I Were a Bell.
Way back on day 59, @jacobcollier and I did a Paris - NYC session over @farplayapp , and we improvised this version of If I Were a Bell where we alternate between 5/4 and 7/4 while keeping the bar length the same.
At the time, we shared only the out-of-time coda that came after this, because it felt particularly magical. But now, continuing yesterday’s theme of metric modulation, here’s what came before.
I’m still amazed that we were able to do something this rhythmically intricate 3500 miles (5600 km) apart. We had about 45 ms of latency on @farplayapp , equivalent to playing with someone 45 ft (15 m) away from you in a room, which is noticeable but subtle: it just feels like the other person is laying back a bit on the beat. That we were able to do this is also a testament to Jacob’s rhythmic clarity.
Any questions? Have you tried @farplayapp ?
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
#100daysofpractice day 95. 5 - 7 - 9 - 11 metric modulations with equal bar lengths, over Cherokee.
Just arrived in Paris today and this felt like the right exercise for my jet-lagged brain: play Cherokee, but change meter every 8 bars, going through 5/4, 7/4, 9/4, and 11/4, while keeping the bar length the same and maintaining the same long-long-short-short clave in the left hand.
If I’d had more time, I’d have practiced getting this more fluid, but it’s also useful to practice these things at the most obvious and basic level sometimes.
Notice how the clave gets more and more equal as the meter gets longer?
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
#100daysofpractice day 94. Reading figured bass with Emi Ferguson.
Another from the @farplayapp session yesterday with @emiferguson : 18th-century composer Bonporti’s Invention in C minor, which only exists in figured bass form — meaning there’s only a melody, a bass line, and chord symbols. So I’m improvising the piano part here, which I’ll be playing on clavichord this summer at the @oregonbachfestival with Emi playing baroque flute.
This is such a great repertoire choice from Emi: since the composition simply doesn’t include that much information, freedom is built in.
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
#100daysofpractice day 93. FarPlay practice Brooklyn - Millerton with @emiferguson .
I’ve known Emi Ferguson for a few years now, and one of the things that always impresses me, aside from her great musicianship, is her openness to new ideas.
In our projects together, we’ve focused on baroque music, but today we tried something new: total free improvisation, 100 miles apart, using @farplayapp . Maybe we’ll bring a little of this to our clavichord-flute concerts this summer at @oregonbachfestival , who knows?
#musiclife #practice #multidisciplinary
