--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Saturday
- 4/29/06
Thousand Oaks / Newbury Park,
CA
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2nd Movement
This past Saturday I played another show
at the art gallery I performed at last week. I
drove up to a section of Thousand Oaks called
Newbury Park, and arrived about 11:30 am.
On the way there I saw this Ford Mustang with a vanity
plate that
read "I No Fake", which is most fitting for this virtual sound odyssey.
(Sorry ACF, I didn't get a picture of the front of the
Mustang, he was speeding past
my weighty truck with no hope of my catching up to him...you're lucky I
got this shot)
driving on...
After I arrived, I unloaded and assembled most of the VSO system outside under the awning as I did the previous Saturday. I did this to avoid interfering with the ambience in the art gallery with my various gear slingings and cord flingings during setup. This technique works out pretty well.
I parked in a handicapped zone to unload, but there was another spot
available for
handicapped access in the area, and it turns out no one needed access
during my time there. It only took about 15 minutes to pull the gear out
of my truck, and no one was affected.
I rolled the VSO in around 12:15 to begin my performance
There weren't too many people coming in the gallery that
day,
I had been told last week that it would be busier than it was.
The woman greeting patrons for the afternoon was a little skeptical at first when I wheeled in my monstrous rig. From the look on her face I think she was worried that the music I'd play wouldn't be suitable for the gallery's atmosphere. This was confirmed later in the day when she said "When I saw you bring those big speakers in I thought you were going to play rock and roll!"
I think she was pleasantly surprised after hearing a
couple of
my
spontaneous improvised ambient background orchestrations.
I indeed could have, as Jack said, "blown the roof off the place" if I wanted to, but I opted to play what fit the venue as I always try to. I did do a hard rock guitar instrumental at the request of some onlookers just to show what the VSO could do. It seems people have more of an appreciation for music they wouldn't normally like when it is all tied together Via-S-O. For example, punk rockers appreciate the classical, and cultured folk are intrigued by the varying sonic capability emulated by the VSO. Much of the time I was peppered with welcome questions from the sparse audience wandering through, and I gave as many system demos as I did play music. I was there until they closed at 8 pm so there was plenty of time for talking about the history of the project, and socializing. Two brothers (age circa 4-5 years) asked where my shoes were. I told them they were behind my VSO rig for all not to see.
Everyone who came through really enjoyed the music and the VSO in general. I improvised orchestra and light jazz most of the time, and did a few written pieces as well, including the Thieving Magpie, and Also Sprat Zarathustra. I even did the new Vivaldi piece a couple times which nearly blew the roof off the place. This brings me to part of the theory behind the "Improvivaldi" concept. As we all know it is difficult to remember a lot of pieces, as I don't read sheet music. Also, traditional sheet music doesn't quite work with the VSO due to my irreverent programming/note transposing techniques. As I played the first section of Vivaldi's Summer Op. 8 No. 4, I realized that I didn't know the rest of the piece after the first 20 measures or so. I decided to improvise a suitable middle and ending of my own design. I stayed in the key of the song, and played an aggressive progression with fast strings ascending and descending through scales and arpeggios with the same feel of the written work. This turned out better than expected, but I didn't record it as the recorder had shut off. I'm sure most of the audience didn't know the difference. From my observations, most classical music (besides Vivaldi, Mozart, Bach, Hayden, and the like) tends to wander into melodically evasive sections, without distinct melodies carrying the piece. Nine out of ten people, including myself, wouldn't know the difference if I filled in my own spontaneous timbres instead of memorizing meandering orchestral parts. This may be blasphemy to some, but many art forms have been considered blasphemic in the past, and I'm happy to join the ranks of artists who go against the grain of tradition.
I took pictures of some of the artwork after asking permission.
The works I've included are the ones that caught my eye among the many paintings on the walls. The piece pictured above is a favorite of my fiend Jack. I would have to agree it was one of the better pieces in the display. The fellow who painted it asked if I would play an art show he is having in the fall. I quickly agreed to if I was still in the area and available. His girlfriend painted the picture below. I think it was also one of the better ones, and was surprised to learn that it was her first work to be displayed in an art show.
Feel free to listen to the following sound clips from my performance to more fully experience the atmosphere created in the gallery. The pieces will be elaborated on toward the end of the page
(I bet that was unexpected)
(This too)
I suppose you're getting used to it now.
The woman I mentioned earlier who was concerned
about the nature of my performance painted this piece
I was concerned that it didn't fit in with
the general atmosphere in the gallery
of course I jest
I met another woman who painted these next four pieces. She was very amiable and really enjoyed the VSO. She was anxious to try and think of more gigs for me as everyone seems to be, and I gladly gave up one of my last remaining business cards to an enthusiast such as herself. I thought her artwork was quite good, and I'm not just kissing up (as I'm pretty sure she'll be visiting the VSO website)
I loved the softly rippling water captured in this piece
The color in this painting was subtle yet bright
The flowing shape of the
upper cliff caught my eye here
This was also one of hers. Unfortunately it came out a little blurry from my poor photography skills, which is simply- take a lot of pictures, and something I didn't do this time. I suppose the blur could "add" to the impressionistic quality if you stretch your imagination.
This painting was done by a different artist, and was unique
as it continued in the form of sculpture beyond the frame
Along with the paintings they had sculptures displayed in one section of the gallery
The VSO rig is actually a pretty impressive sculpture in an and among itself.
Joe, the coordinator of the art show had a piece on display. It was a printout from a graphic he created on the computer. he printed it out on transparency paper, and had it in a backlit frame.
This reminded me of my own fairly new hobby of plexiglas etching, inspired by a friend I often talk to over the internet. When I was living on the lake in Hopkinton, MA there was a calendar on the fridge with a great picture of a wave. I decided to try to etch the wave with my Dremel rotary tool during some down time, tracing the outline on top of the glass, which conveniently allowed the image beneath to be seen during the process. I ended up mounting the etched plexiglas with the color transparency in a window box frame screwed to the top of an old mixer from radioshack. I then mounted a fleur-escent light inside the mixer, which I had removed the electronics from, to backlight the wave. This allowed light to be transmitted through the glass to accentuate the etching. I thought it came out pretty good for my first attempt.
This is the picture that inspired the project.
The first thing I figured out after printing out the transparency, is that I had to flip the image so it would come out the right way when it was finished. I like to have the etched part facing inward, leaving the outside smooth, which means I have to reverse everything during production.
Unfortunately I can't find a picture of the finished
piece.
It was probably lost in the hard drive crash of '05.
My roommate Zen who builds custom pc's said he'd like to have me etch some of his computer cases. Many high end computers have a great aesthetic to them, with etched glass cases and even neon lighting. I'm anxious to try my hand at doing some etching for him in the future.
My very plexi friend from back east who helped inspire my etching hobby is an artist as well. As some of you know she let me use one of her colored pencil drawings as the rear cover art to my "Music of Love" wedding CD. When I was looking through her portfolio one day the image jumped out at me as something I'd pictured for the back of the CD which went with the color scheme I had in mind, very bright and colorful.
I met a family down the street when I was living in Hopkinton, MA who I did some website design for. They had a piano museum with a large number of antique pianos. Viewable at www.pianomuseum.org Their son Ash is a young aspiring artist who has done cover art for a couple of my VSO CD's. They are pictured below.
This is the front cover art he did for "Music of Love"
This is the Front cover art he did for "Moon Hill"
This is the rear cover art for "Moon Hill"
I asked him to listen to the music on the compilations beforehand to get a feel for the mood which would hopefully be represented in the artwork. I thought he did a great job on all the pieces, and the dark timbres are reflected on the rear cover of "Moon Hill" especially. He sketches the drawings with a standard graphite pencil, and then scans them into the computer where he adds color using Adobe photoshop. I just realized his technique fits well with the merging of standard "analog" art practices, and digital manipulation, which is a common musical theme here at VSO Inc.
While we're on the subject of art, or while I'm on the subject of it rather, allow me to show you some of the art that I've done over the years. I painted the Macaw parrot pictured below in high school art class. I like the texture of the trees in the background if I could be my own critic.
The following images I created on the computer using graphics
software a few years back during a creative spurt with said medium.
My friend Justin, who is an artist from back east (Natick,
MA) painted this picture
of the
VSO in action one day while I jammed some improv with my buddies Ed and Mike.
I thought he captured the essence of the VSO very well, and there are some hidden themes lying within the painting. He said that the spotlight was an obvious reference of my desire to be in the spotlight. The "open door" to my bedroom has similar connotations toward future opportunity. My favorite is the theme represented by his impression of my face. He said that as I was moving my head, he painted several angles over one another.
He said it represents "the many faces of the VSO" which I thought was clever, and very fitting. While Justin painted, my buddies Ed & Mike were playing electric guitar and I was playing everything else, mostly bass and drums. I thought the merging of art forms was intriguing and the music came out just as inspired as the painting. The short demo clip below is a sample from the day's experience, included thanks to my giant new server. Analysis of the jam will be elaborated on in the section below.
VSO -
EMJ (Ed, Mike, Justin)
My friend Justin is quite the artist and has painted
numerous
works since he took up painting. Below are a few of my favorites.
This one I plan to use as cover art
in a future
VSO jazz compilation
My friend KT from back east also painted a picture for the VSO.
I love the color scheme. I plan to use this as
cover art for a future VSO CD release as well.
Along with my friends from back east who lend their artistic flare to the VSO project, a couple of the artists at the art gallery expressed an interest in painting portraits of the VSO. I hope they follow through with their ambitions, as I like the mergence of artistic styles, which brings us back to the art gallery gig-
Herb and Katherine graciously invited me to dinner
during one of my
breaks at 5:30. I took a picture of the embroidered artwork on the wall.
During the dinner conversation they said I was welcome to stay overnight on their cot anytime I needed to. I ventured to ask if I could stay that night, as I was tired, and I had an idea brewing for the following day, which will eventually bring us to the third, and final movement of my three part "Improvivaldi" blog series. I went back to the gallery and played for another hour and a half, packed my stuff up, and drove back to Herb and Katherine's house which was a stone's throw away. On the way back I stopped to get some gas and saw this Lotus at one of the pumps. I had never seen this model and I thought it was quite the work of art. I was a very small car, and I bet it was fast as the dickens.
I arrived at their house around 8:30. Before we retired for the evening,
I watched Herb and Katherine sing a few songs together on the Clavinova.
It was a romantic sight.
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VSO Bit's & Pieces
This newly created section will include my
comments and analysis on select VSO pieces.
Galleria - Orchestral Improv, Time - 4:29
This is an improvised orchestral piece incorporating the new full string section I recently created, which occurs at the beginning and throughout certain sections of the piece. I realized that I can use the solo accompanying backing chord families if I play in the key of C major or minor as the notes haven't been transposed programming the subsequent chord families. I am able to switch orchestra feels now as long as I stay within these boundaries, which are bound to be broken eventually. Guitar tracking problems are apparent which were mainly due to my shabby technique, and the US-20 unit selector A/B switch was set to send signal to both synthesizers which creates confusion for the synthesizers receiving the note messages.
I initially set the US-20 to run both guitar synths in parallel to catch dropped notes from the inevitably imperfect guitar tracking technology in the synthesizers. The science of turning a vibrating string into a MIDI note message isn't quite perfected. Time lags are always present, and tracking isn't always accurate. Paired up, the guitar synths usually send all the required notes to the main synthesizers, but during softer pieces such as this one, tracking is skewed by multiple note messages, for example when I switched to the solo oboe sound during this piece (time index 1:58) A very light picking technique is required to conjure the proper oboe sound, and it may have been partially my fault for not playing it correctly. Heavier, more aggressively played progressions utilize the dual-synth technique better, and the technique of using both will be used for such times. I do like the onset of the high register strings at time index 0:47, and the smooth switching into the heavy orchestra sound at time index 3:39. this is another problem at times as the main synthesizer takes a couple seconds to change, and I have to time it accordingly.
VSO - Jazz Expo
This is an improvised jazz piece using an arrangement I play often. I cheat a little bit and use my Digitech loop station to generate a descending bass riff. This is a bit unorthodox, and goes against the grain of what I normally do, but you have to cut me some slack as playing jazz in multi-arrangement on the VSO is difficult as jazz changes key so much. I am working out ideas to play the bass in real-time as I'd like and I'm sure I'll figure it out eventually. I played a few arrangements of jazz for the gallery show. My slower slinky flute jazz was probably more suited for the show, but I didn't capture it in a recording. I was pleased with some of the guitar runs I came out with while maintaining an ever improving steady rhythm with my feet on the pedals.
VSO - EMJ (Ed, Mike, Justin) Time - 2:54
As I mentioned previously, this improvised jam was recorded on 5/3/03 with my friends Ed, Mike, and Justin. I was playing drums on the VSO with my feet and my beloved Conklin 7 string guitar, which I unfortunately had to sell when I moved as it wouldn't fit in the truck with everything else.
I was sad to see it go, but I can
always get another one I suppose.
The drum beat in this jam is one of the easier ones I play. Playing this drum beat on the VSO is almost like just tapping your foot to the rhythm, as many musicians do. My right foot simply bounces back and forth from the programmed kick drum (pedal A2) to the snare drum (B2) The only difference from standard foot-tapping is moving your foot from side to side to hit each pedal alternately. Ironically this is one of the drum beats I can't do for an extended period of time on a real drum set. The quick 2/2 beat always leaves me in the dust. A lot of times when playing the VSO, I pretend that the music is being played in the background as accompaniment by a CD or other means (which I assure you it isn't) This allows me to detach myself from everything going on sonically, and focus on the body motion and mechanics involved. This technique has helped me improv(e) my rhythm greatly as it takes the pressure off keeping my rhythm steady, and I'm more able to flow with the music. I'm fairly pleased with a few of the drum fills I managed to pull off, although they are not totally on the beat. (time index 0:12, 0:25) I grant myself some artistic license as I'm doing all the drumming/fills with my feet while playing the bass guitar. I also like the cymbal crashes at the end (time index 2:32). The rhythm section (bass & drums) are obviously very tight with one brain controlling the 2 parts. Aside from my performance as the rhythm section, Ed & Mike are both great guitar players. This jam hardly shows their talent, but I suppose the focus in this case is VSO.
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Lessons Learned
1) Move the guitar synth A/B switch for greater accessibility, and switching during performance. A "musical suit" with body mounted switch access has been on the table for quite some time, as described in previous blogs, but I think I'm scared to try it. For now I will relocate the switch to an ergonomic position for performance. Speaking of, I think it's ironic that the input from the MIDI pickup, called the GK-2A, is labeled "GK in"
This strikes me as funny as I am also "GK", as in Greg Kreinsen. This seems a little too random to me. Is it fate, chance, or merely irony? Whatever the case, I will move the switch, and change my name as the whole thing is a little creepy.
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Mussorgsky - Pictures At An Exhibition - The Great Gate At Kiev
Instrumental
I chose this song of the day mainly for it's name, and how it relates to the blog. After listening to it I realized I don't dislike Mussorgsky as much as I thought.
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