Support
Looper's Delight
|
Support |
|
|
Mark, Heheh. I'm tempted to say "Hey the next time the wife and I head down for an a Bay Area IKEA run . . ." But then there's your mention of a cat . . . and I'm rather alergic. Maybe some day . . . I always enjoyed your sets at the various loopfest I saw you at - and thought/think something collaborative would be interesting. Best regards, tEd ® kiLLiAn "Different is not always better, but better is always different" Flux Aeterna: http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=6378076 Also check out the BEMF 1 CDs at: http://www.boisemusicians.com/experimental/cd.htm http://www.pfmentum.com/flux.html http://www.CDbaby.com/cd/tedkillian http://www.guitar9.com/fluxaeterna.html http://www.garageband.com/artist/ArsOcarina http://www.towerrecords.com/product.aspx?pfid=2845073 http://www.netmusic.com/web/album.aspx?a_id=CBNM_17314 http://www.indiejazz.com/ProductDetailsView.aspx?ProductID=193 http://www.loopers-delight.com/cgi-bin/profiles.cgi?step=view_profile&id=121197000042 Ted Killian's "Flux Aeterna" is also available at: Apple iTunes, BuyMusic, Rhapsody, MusicMatch, MusicNet, DiscLogic, Napster, AudioLunchbox, Lindows, QTRnote, Music4Cents, Etherstream, RuleRadio, EMEPE3, Sony Connect, CatchMusic, Puretracks, and Viztas. Yadda, yadda, yadda. Blah, blah, blah. So??? ---- Mark Sottilaro <sine@zerocrossing.net> wrote: > I've been lurking in this thread... and as a performer who's > profoundly dull... I think I've come to the conclusion that, for me, > the world of music puts too much of an emphasis on performance. I've > got to say that at 95% of music shows I've ever been too... I'm > usually ready to leave after about a half hour no matter how much I > like the music. I'm usually too far away... it's too loud, Fripp is > shrouded in darkness (literally and metaphorically) Dancing is not > an option because it's too crowded (screw you hippy ass hole jumping > around like an idiot running into people at the last Belew show... > I'M TALKING TO YOU!) > > Yeah. > > On the other hand, I love playing with other musicians... just not on > stage. Last time I jammed on stage with other musicians (Rick and > Bill Walker) I couldn't hear our monitors at all and as it turned out > I was screamingly loud compared to them (as reported by my friends). > So, while being fun to me it probably wasn't much fun for the > audience. Hopefully they were distracted by the pretty video of sea > life we were projecting behind us, or our collective devilishly good > looks. Oh yeah, and during my solo performance my KAOSS pad (true to > it's name) decided it was OK to start sending MIDI program change > messages done the line (after I asked it nicely not to) and a turn of > the program change knob scrolled through my guitar patches at > hyperspeed while I was sustaining a chord... > > Hmm. > > So... I'm boring and un-fun to watch. I put up videos and video > games projected behind me to cover the fact that I'm creating ambient > drones and mostly making eye contact with LCD displays. I'm losing > my head hair and rapidly gaining ear hair. I'm nervous, unskilled at > many instruments and a bit of a blowhard because I want you to like > me and think I'm cool so I over compensate. > > Anyway, if anyone would like to perform with me, at my home, with my > dog and cat as our audience, let me know. I've just set up shop in > Emeryville CA and I'm itching to bore. > > Mark > > On Jun 20, 2007, at 5:58 PM, bill bigrig wrote: > > > Howdy, > > > > I know exactly how you feel. In 86 I had a > > couple or 3 stacks of keyboards, drum machines, etc. I > > met a man through a buddy I had been jamming with for > > a couple years at a party. i told him " you gotta come > > over to my place and jam" after I found out he bought > > a keyboard from aformentioned buddy. We met EVERY Wd. > > night for 16 years and NEVER learned a song made by > > someone else. We'd noodle around until some groove > > kinda fell into place, pause, and hit record on my > > cassette deck. I have over 90 cassettes filled with > > muzik that is mostly not listenable, BUT, there are 3 > > or 4 good CDs among all that stuff, PLUS, countless > > grooves that one can use for inspiration to compose > > something good indeed. > > Rig > > > > > > --- tEd ® kiLLiAn <tedkillian@charter.net> wrote: > > > >> Stefan, > >> > >> You make a lot of blanket assertions there. Fine. I > >> have here a few of my own. > >> > >> It has been so long since I posted my commments on > >> this thread that I do not even remember what frame > >> of mind I was in -- probably depressed (which I > >> usually am after most public performances). Yeah, > >> that's a bad attitude alright. > >> > >> I have been doing this stuff (looping and > >> improvising) for well over 20 years. I think I can > >> say from experience (and I am entitled to my opinion > >> too, I think) that I know pretty damn well when a > >> performance went successfully . . . or was a failure > >> . . . or was some odd mix of the two. > >> > >> It is in the nature of improvisation to be risky -- > >> and we either learn to accomodate ourselves to the > >> possibility of failure (and the hope or possibility > >> of success) and persevere under those terms and > >> circumstances . . . or we do not. Myself, I choose > >> to persevere . . . but I also choose to not always > >> wear a false smile on my face while doing it. > >> > >> "There is no BAD music" Well, you may just as easily > >> say there is no GOOD music either. We all (in or > >> heart of hearts) know this is nonsense. Otherwise, > >> we wouldn't continually take the risks we do, try as > >> hard as we do to become better, to learn, and to > >> grow. Hell, we probably wouldn't even bother to play > >> for that matter. > >> > >> Far from being a plea or an attempt to secure myself > >> from failure, I was simply trying to say what I > >> believe is true. Sometimes we FAIL. Sometimes we are > >> BAD. It would be healthier (I think) if we could > >> talk about it and not hide from it continually. > >> > >> If I perceive a given performance as being less than > >> it could have been, yes it CAN help to know that > >> some audience member or another had a different > >> opinion and enjoyed it. It CAN lessen the pain a > >> little. But that doesn't mean I dispose of my own > >> experience and critical accessment and paste a big > >> smile on my puss either. > >> > >> I'd say, a good 90% of what I do is simply show up > >> and play (physically and mentally prepared of > >> course) but with no rehearsal, set list or agenda > >> other than to create something GOOD. That is what I > >> aim for. That is what I do. That is what I am about. > >> Sometimes it works. Sometimes it's golden. Sometimes > >> it's shit. Sometimes its something of a mix > >> (gold-plated doo doo or poop-covered gold brick). > >> > >> I'm a live-looping guitar player, but on rare > >> occasions (the other 10% or less) I will go also > >> with some "canned" loops of found noises, > >> atmospheres, textures, rhythmic patterns and simple > >> musical motifs, along with some notion that I will > >> use them somhow . . . but will determine that "how" > >> during performance. This could be considered some > >> sort (or level) of improvisation too. You be the > >> judge. > >> > >> Less than 1% of the time I will attempt to actually > >> play one of the improvised pieces from my CD. I > >> don't know why I do this, probably a sense of > >> audience expectation or something -- or maybe a > >> false self-expectation more likely. But it is almost > >> 100% guaranteed to come out as a giant musical turd. > >> Nevertheless, I sometimes fool myself into thinking > >> I can do it. > >> > >> I have played some significant improv gigs upon > >> occassion where it simply came out all wrong. > >> Nothing went right. Nothing I tried worked. I felt > >> like a fool and an idiot and a charlatan -- and I'm > >> pretty sure most of the audience felt that way too. > >> But I'd rather die than pretend it was all roses and > >> tell myself that there is no such thing as BAD art > >> or music. I don't believe it for a minute. > >> > >> I will say it again: Sometimes we (especially those > >> of us who improvise) need to be allowed to fail. > >> > >> Best regards, > >> > >> Ted Killian > >> > >> ---- Stefan Tiedje <Stefan-Tiedje@addcom.de> wrote: > >>> tEd ® kiLLiAn schrieb: > >>>> In my experience, it is impossible to depend > >> upon or predict success > >>>> when you start out with a blank slate for every > >> performance. > >>> > >>> But starting out with a blank slate is the core of > >> improvisation... > >>> If you put something into it to secure yourself, > >> you failed already... > >>> > >>>> I fall flat on my face about as many times as I > >> do well. > >>>> > >>>> The risk of being an abject failure is all too > >> very real . . . and > >>>> the consequences painful. > >>> > >>> But the times it goes well are worth to risk the > >> "failure"... > >>> > >>>> Even when the audience and promoter(s) > >> themselves are very forgiving > >>>> it can be devastating to not live up to ones own > >> expectations. > >>> > >>> Even if you "fail" out of your own perspective, > >> because you know of your > >>> own, better performances, the audience will grab > >> something, maybe just > >>> unconsciously an imagination of where it could > >> have been gone if you > >>> didn't "fail"... > >>> > >>>> Many positivly disposed listeners may just > >> figure that it's > >>>> "abstract" or "avant garde" or "new" and not > >> realize that it also can > >>>> be truly BAD as well. > >>> > >>> There is no BAD music, but there could be bad > >> attitude. I suspect > >>> securing yourself against "failure" is bad > >> attitude and the result is > >>> eventually not music... its more like showing off > >> skills in the > >>> circus... Which does help for acceptance of the > >> audience sometimes, but > >>> its not really interesting... > >>> Either there is music, or there is not. Nothing > >> in-between. This is true > >>> for any instrument, being it a laptop or a > >> cello/sousaphone/foot > >>> pedal-bar... > >>> With known instruments its just easier to show off > >> skills, with laptops > >>> it looks more abstract... But don't get me wrong, > >> skills do help a lot > >>> to make music, but anything you do often enough > >> will develop your skills > >>> anyway. > >>> > >>> In short, the attitude is more important than > >> skills. Or for those who > >>> need to avoid new age: The path is important, not > >> the destination... > >>> > >>>> Artists need to be accorded a "right to be > >> awful" from time to time . > >>>> . . some of us more than others. > >>> > >>> Obviously you insist on your right to take a risk. > >> That's an attitude > >>> which will lead to music. The audience will > >> appreciate this much more > >>> often, than you think you did it well.... > >>> > >>> .......... > >>> > >>> The good thing about looping is being able to > >> start with a blank slate, > >>> and still being able to build a structure. > >>> > >>> The worst is the dependency on technology (if it > >> fails). > >>> > >>> Stefan > >> > >> > >> > > > > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________________________ > > ______________ > > Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel > > today! http://surveylink.yahoo.com/gmrs/yahoo_panel_invite.asp?a=7 > > > > >