"The existence of free music can be understood in part by the study of where it is performed and why it is performed there." 

 - Joe Morris  (The Properties of Free Music) 

The above quote is taken from my teachers book on improvised music. The conditions of the music, its  why and where, are things that I'm particularly interested in documenting, in part through my own experience, in part through conversations with others, and in part through research. I think this will help me figure things out for myself. I'm realizing now that while my performance experiences as a student were valuable, most of them are not relative to the types of things I have done in the last 6 months, and will continue to do for many years. This is something that there are varying degrees of, but it's time for a serious re-evaluation of what I'm doing, where, for who, and how I, and others I associate with enable these things.

Boston: Trip III + Returning

During the last few weeks, and especially since the first weekend in December, the dealings of the Burr project had entered a new stage of progress. A couple days before Thanksgiving, Ted Reichman (who produced the recording session) sent me all of the raw takes, which I sifted through with great enthusiasm. We recorded over three hours of material, and had a lot of decisions to make about good takes, bad takes, potential splices etc etc. So, after a few emails and maybe a phone call, Ted came up with a rough edit that would be mixed before NEC's Winter break. He sent the first mix (dated 12/5) to Burr and I for feedback, and gave us a few days to come up with notes. A second mixing session took place on 12/10, by which time I knew I might be visiting Boston for a few things. With a third date of 12/15 or 16 set, I knew I'd be there.

Just before this, I hosted BUCK HAMMERSTEIN CLEAR RIVER CHAPAUKEE  (my friends Nigel and Fausto) in Burlington, and had been talking to Heidi Aispuro, another friend I wanted to visit before she left for the holiday. I knew I'd miss her after coming through Boston on Christmas morning (as I had already scheduled), and since I found a show to play when Fausto and Nigel were back in Boston, I thought that these things combined with the possibility of another mastering session were a good reason for a trip. I bought my bus ticket a week in advance, and headed down on Tuesday the 11th. I went back to Burlington on Friday with Mark Goldstein, Sonny Lalchandani, and Clare Twohy. I knew Mark and Sonny would be visiting that weekend, so it seemed like going back with them would be pretty logical, and a good end to the trip. Clare joined us on a whim. 

On the 11th, I took the usual 4pm Megabus,  and arrived in Boston shortly after 7:30. I immediately went to Outpost 186, where I heard Fausto + Nigel play with our teacher Joe Morris, and the great Drummer Luther Gray. I ran into a bunch of folks I knew there, and the music we all heard was fantastic. I left the Outpost with Mark, who drove us over to NEC. He practiced for a bit, and I got some food. We decided before we left Cambridge that we would go to this party that some friends of ours were hosting. It turned out to be a fiddling party. We left around 2:30am, and though a lot of people had left there was still music happening! I always love when there's some form of live music at a party - no stage, just a bunch of people with their instruments, great ears, and some common interests. I got to Heidi's place, and went directly to sleep.

The recording session was the next day, so I slept in a bit, and spent the early part of my day looking over the score beforehand. We were mixing from 3-5, and we came up with what should be the final mix. We were all happy, and somehow ended up listening to the track below. While I'm not sure how we got to it,  Judy in Disguise and Voyage in a White Building I do have some similar sonic qualities:

The show I came to play was happening on the same night in Lower Allston, a residential neighborhood known for its basement venues, which have been under great police scrutiny city-wide. Around 8pm, I went to Peter Negroponte's senior recital at NEC, and headed over to Allston around 10 with Tara, who had just played an orchestra concert! This was the first FULL CIRCLE TIME MACHINE performance since May, and the first set that we've ever completely improvised. I brought  my valve trombone, and we didn't really talk about what/how to play, except that we kind of wanted to freak out a bit. We got there, I think:

After our set, we caught the last 66 Bus to Brigham Circle, and I took a cab back to JP from there (it was after 2:30). 

I spent the next day mostly in JP with Heidi. We decided on making stir-fry (a favorite for both of us), and around 3pm we went shopping for specific ingredients. We didn't quite make it up to Super 88 in Allston, but managed to hit Trader Joe's in Brookline, and the JP Whole Foods. We made up a huge amount of Thai Peanut sauce, and then cooked everything else. We were done with cooking, eating, and clean-up by 10, when we headed out to the Back Bay. Heidi went to the Y, and I ended up running into a bunch of folks around NEC who were headed back to JP, Nick Neuberg and I decided to grab a drink, and Heidi met us at JJ Foley's in Forest Hills.  From there, we went back to Heidi's, and were convinced by our friend Grant Randall to barhop. We went to Brendan Behan's, probably my favorite bar in Boston, where by chance, we ran into some other folks we knew! 

While at Foley's, Nick and I had a really interesting conversation about how musicians should document what they're up to in addition recordings and videos. There are publications that tell you about where these shows are happening, and people are always writing analysis of historical periods. My point was why is there so little analysis of today's situation(s). There are good things out there
(signal to noise and Arcana are examples), but I think if there were more among even younger generations, it might help us continue, think critically about our situations, and make tomorrow a bit brighter for people who want to go after this kind of stuff.  

On Friday, I left JP for NEC, where I kept all of my stuff, practiced, and met up with more people I hadn't seen. Sonny had a final until 8, so we knew we'd be making a late night trip. When he was finished, we drove over to their apartment in JP (Mark, Sonny, and Clare all live in the same place), and Sonny got a few things together. Clare was there, and decided to come with us to VT last minute. It's always the most fun for me traveling in numbers slightly greater than 3, but less than 6. 

We got to Burlington at 2 am, and passed out. My roommate had his kids this weekend, and they managed to keep quiet until about 7:30. We got up and went to Henry's, a diner downtown, and then saw the waterfront. It was cold, but it did get a bit warmer. Later, we went over to the Redstone campus, and made tea at the church. The sanctuary was in use, so we went to the music building so Sonny and Mark could practice. I think I took a nap. We tried (unsuccessfully) to go to the Fleming Museum, but then drove around and got some great pizza in S.Burlington. Leonardo's. It was half pesto, and half Thai Peanut sauce - why more people haven't done that, I can't say! 

When I was in Boston before Thanksgiving, Mark and Sonny planned on coming, and Sonny wanted to do a sitar set somewhere. I emailed a few folks, but nothing came up. We ended up playing in the church where I work on campus. There were 9 of us, I think. Mark and I played together first (trumpet/piano), then Mark played a solo, I played an organ solo, and Sonny played a raga. Clare wanted me to play a Hymn that we could all sing, but I (and a few others) objected. Our evening ended at an on-campus apartment occupied by our friend Alec Layman, where we played pool and air hockey in the common area. We had beer and Bailey's, too - not a bad way to end a night.

Shortly after we got back to my place, Sonny and Mark went back to Alec's (they were crashing there). Clare and I got a call from Sonny a few minutes later, and they figured it would be better to leave overnight, and avoid today's snow (there was snow). So they came back, and took off. I was a little sad at first, but when it started to snow, I saw their point. I've seen stranger departures...

-----------------

It's been a really interesting week. I hadn't gotten to play trombone much since my set with Frank and Leah at Out of the Blue last month, and it was great to dive back into it. Although we didn't record our little concert at the church, my duo set with Mark was the best we've ever played together, and I think everything had a flow in general. like my set with Tara earlier in the week, Mark and I didn't talk about what we were going to play, and this is really working for me right now. As I've said before, I'm hoping to get more improvisers from Boston to visit. I've realized that my greatest performance interest at the moment is working with the people I started things with a while back. Because we haven't been consistent, but have otherwise kept in touch, I think it's worthwhile to re-hone some of these musical partnerships. I have also realized that if/when I move back to Boston, I'd like to be in Cambridge, near Central or Inman. It's very similar to Burlington in a way: Compact, and there's alot of interesting things happening there. It's hard to live in Boston or Cambridge without traveling outside your neighborhood too much, but given my trips back, I think it's safe to say that I could manage. 

      

     

The First Journey to New Haven

I just found this. I'm not sure why I didn't post it before, but it's pretty neat story about the beginnings of the Burr project.

- JB 12/6/12


Part One: The First Journey to New Haven

Somehow, before my last bout of M.M paper-writing, I am finding the urge to recount my experiences with the Burr Van Nostrand project suitable. It won't be easy, but I'm going to try to create a detailed report of the project, from the time it began to form up to now. This is the first of what I think will be 3 posts.

Soon after I wrote initial blog post in June, I was happy to connect with Burr via phone and email. I think our first conversation was on July 1st or 2nd. I remember this because a few days later, I was on the road with the Roma Band of Boston, playing numerous Independence Day events. Shortly after this, I received the score to Voyage in a White Building I, and booked the first of what would be five trips to New Haven to meet with Burr before what would be our April 22nd concert. That first trip took place on August 17th, which was, coincidentally, the first day of direct Boston-to-New Haven service from Megabus. This trip would have taken at least four hours on another local bus line, so I was more than happy to learn of this new service.

Just a few days before I left, my teacher Anthony Coleman was in Boston for a rare pre-schoolyear series of concert appearances at the Yes Oui Si space, and the Whitehaus in Jamaica Plain. After the Yes Oui Si show, he pulled me aside for a moment to tell me that a member of the New World Records staff saw my blog post, and was happy to see rekindled interest in Burr's music. Unknown to me at the time, NWR was thinking about trying to release an album dedicated to archival recordings of Burr's music around 2003, but due to the lack of a direct NEC connection at the time, a record failed to materialize. I will be eternally grateful for this, as it has made our work now shine with a greater sense of purpose. I blissfully thought that we could be the first to bring this music back. At the time, there were no plans, but they were "talking" about it, and this was a great sign. I told Anthony that I'd be going to New Haven in a few days, and he asked me not to say anything about NWR yet. I didn't, but this really helped to build a great fire, which had been started by my earlier trip to the ACA.

Also in the days before my first trip to New Haven, I toldJoe Morris (another one of my teachers) that I'd be in town. He lives in a New Haven suburb, and we made plans to meet on the night I got down there. I arrived in New Haven on the morning of August 17th. Burr told me that he was driving an old wagoneer, and would be wearing a brightly colored shirt, so I couldn't miss him.

He picked me up from Union Station at 9:08AM, and we drove directly to his apartment in East Rock, a pleasant neighborhood that is home to a number of families, and members of the Yale community. He and his partner Ron made coffee while I got settled, and was greeted by their Weimaraner, Hadyn. Their apartment was spacious, and very organized. Paintings and dioramas covered the walls, and the color original of TUBA-TUBA (the first of Burr's pieces I'd ordered from the ACA) was framed in a corner by the TV. We began going through the score of Voyage, and listened to a number of various other things that Burr and Ron were enthusiastic about, including Gluck, Ernst Chausson, The Shangri-Las, and Ernie Kovacs.

Around 2PM, I went down the street to get a sandwich at a deli about a block away. The weather was great, and I sat outside, watching the mid-afternoon buzz of people walking their dogs, and returning students. If there's one thing that Boston doesn't have, it's a thriving local deli scene, where in a quiet neighborhood, you can just sit outside and watch the world. I was on vacation, and really enjoying it there!

When I got back to Burr's apartment, we listened to 45-minute long Lunar Possession Manual, and continued to work through Voyage. Anthony remembered hearing Lunar when he was a freshman at NEC, and asked me to inquire about the piece. Before I knew it, it was about 5 o'clock, and I met with Joe, who give me the "Grand Tour" of New Haven.

Everybody told me that if I was going to New Haven, I had to eat pizza, and that's exactly what we did. In New Haven, there are two places in particular that are really famous. So famous that you sometimes have to wait 2 or 3 hours to get a slice. We chose not to go that route, and instead drove out to a place in West Haven, where Joe grew up. On the way there, we went through the city. He pointed out all the landmarks, including the concert hall, several secret society buildings, the Firehouse 12 recording studio, the Neighborhood Music School, and Wooster Square, that place where you have to wait in a huge line to get a slice of Frank Pepe's Original Apizza.

We crossed the bridge over into West Haven, and when we got out of the car next to Zuppardi's Apizza, Joe pointed out the house where he grew up, his elementary school, and the church his family attended - all on that same block! It was at Zuppardi's that I got my first taste of New Haven Pizza, and the equally famous Foxon Park birch beer. After pizza, we went back to Wooster Square for gelato. I was really reminded of Boston's North End, a place that I love, and though it can't be replaced, this part of town gave me yet another great feeling that New Haven was a home away from home.

By the time I returned to East Rock, I had been awake for about 18 hours, and felt ready to pass out. I think it was then that we listened to several Chausson songs, and a few hours later, I went to sleep in their guest room. I woke up around 11AM the next day, we had breakfast, did more score study, and by 5PM, I was back on my way to Boston. I was sad to leave, but not too sad, as I knew the project would continue to grow, and I'd already had more than enough reasons to return!

5/2/12

Beginnings in Burlington

Larissa, Zach, Fausto, Myself, Larry, Nigel, and Larry's housemate at Lumberjack House 12/5/12

"I value the contact with local people who are organizing the gig, and finding out what their conditions are like, what the music in that area is like, and I also value the contact with the audience directly...I feel much more encouraged by community activity on a small level. If I do a concert, and one person has their ideas seriously effected by what I did, and comes to me in perplexity or some kind of changed state and wants to talk about it, then that's great - and it happens alot." - Fred Frith (Step Across the Border) 

I first saw the documentary from which the above quote is taken in the Fall of 2007, my first semester as a student at the New England Conservatory. Fred was the CI department's visiting artist that semester, and came to Boston for a week of masterclasses, rehearsals, and a performance in Jordan Hall, the first thing I took part in as an NEC student.

Since then, I've finished my studies, and about 6 weeks ago, left Boston for Burlington, Vermont. I knew after my first year of graduate work at NEC that I'd want to leave the area when I graduated, in part because the school was so great that I didn't want to be around it if I wasn't studying or working there. I tried to get several jobs in Boston that all had to do with administration (I applied to three at the Conservatory), but was unsuccessful. I had a few really good interviews, but nothing ended up coming my way. Foreseeing that it might be difficult to find decent work in Boston (where around the schools, almost everyone you see on the street is at least as qualified as you are), I began to think heavily about where I could go, and what I'd do if I felt uncomfortable staying put. Here was my list (in no particular order):

1.) Philadelphia, PA

2.) New Haven, CT

3.) Middletown, CT 

4.) New York, NY

5.) Burlington, VT

I also had these basic criteria and considerations, which ultimately led to my choosing VT:

Cost of Living

Regional Music

Transportation 

Community Need for Musicians

At the end of August, my lease in Roslindale was up. Though I had to stick around for the recording of Burr van Nostrand's Voyage in a White Building I, I had pretty much decided that sometime in the coming weeks I was going to leave. It's worth mentioning that I was extremely close to moving to Middletown to play in Anthony Braxton's student ensemble at Wesleyan, and be close to New Haven. Burr lives in New Haven, and there's a tightly-knit community of improvisers there I could have worked with. I decided to let CT go, and temporarily moved in with a friend in Somerville, who was gracious enough to let me stay there for about 3 weeks.

During this time, I worked on the logistics for the recording of Voyage that was on 10/8. I continued to search for jobs, and a place to live. Shortly before the end of September, I made another temporary move, and by October, I felt that Burlington was going to be my best bet: It's the largest city in Vermont, and there's a great concentration and variety of live music. At the same time, it's cheap, easy to get around, and there's a demand for musicians that is relative to a larger metropolis, like Boston or New York, but without the supply that densely populated areas have. When I say demand for musicians, I'm talking about opportunities like teaching, giving concerts, playing functions, religious services, arranging, etcetera. 

To add to this, people here seem to be naturally interested in what others do. Nobody is afraid to introduce themselves if they're in close enough proximity, or if they think they know of an opportunity for you. I have met several people this way, and so far these chance meetings have resulted in me getting work as a church musician, and organizing a house concert series one block from the downtown area. It's also worth mentioning that this part of town is about three blocks from where I live.  

In October, I went up there twice, and on my second visit, secured an apartment. I don't want to sound like I'm ecstatic to have left Boston. There are a lot of things that I miss about it, but one of the great things about being in VT is that it is not hard to go back. In fact, I think that since I moved, it's safe to say that I've been splitting my time between the two places. That's yet another thing about Burlington - it's easy to get out, and wonderful to come back to. One thing that's especially exciting for me is learning about a new local history, culture, and being somewhat of a foreigner. 

This seems like a good time to further address the quote at the top of this post, which also largely ties into my listed criteria for choosing Burlington. Fred speaks of "the music in that area," "conditions," and (though indirectly) "organizing the gig." I want to elaborate a bit on these things, which I think are all extremely important.

The music in that area:

This is something that I'm really still trying to boil down, but from what I can tell, there are alot of different frequencies in regard to how often and where musical events take place. This works perfectly for me, because while there are few musics that I'm actively seeking, I'm open to alot of what I hear when I'm walking down the street, communicating with friends, or searching the web. 

The most frequent period is usually a week (in regards to a venue), and maybe twice for some of the groups. These groups will play a couple concerts a week, with a particular venue hosting them during a fixed weekly spot. They tend to have a moderate-to-heavy following, and play in places that sell food and drink. These people are jazz musicians, folk singers, fiddlers, metalheads, and jam bands who all occupy the same few blocks. Most of the venues share diverse interests in genre, so I don't always go to the same place if I'm on a folky kick (for example). Venues in the Downtown area that I've been to are: Muddy Waters, Radio Bean, Red Square, Signal Kitchen, 1/2 Lounge, and The BCA Firehouse. There's Also Nectar's (a rock club that hosts a weekly metal night), a few other downtown places, and more venues in South Burlington. During my fist 3 days here,  I chanced upon 4 different groups, and hosted members of Debo Band and Full Tang, who were visiting from Boston (they played at Higher Ground).

There is a consistent stream of artists who come through while on tour, and while of course these people are playing all sorts of different music, the "stars" can be heard at the Flynn Theatre on Main St., or at other large venues on the University campus. The Vermont Symphony Orchestra also plays at the Flynn, I think about 5 times a season (I saw them last week). The VSO is a good quality orchestra made up of University professors, and freelancers from all over New England. Going to hear an orchestra play in an old theatre was really sort of a shock, as I'm so used to halls in Boston for these types of events. Classical ensembles usually perform in larger downtown churches, and while most are touring, Burlington has a few really strong choirs that perform fairly often. This is something that has me thinking about writing more choral stuff.

The more abstract/underground things happen downtown as well as in residential areas, but on a much less frequent basis. Improvising groups with regular slots at the Radio Bean appear every 2 or 3 weeks, and there seem to be house concerts that occur at slightly greater frequency. These shows are extremely well organized, and attended by all kinds of people. Most of these underground types of events happen in the Old North End, the neighborhood where many of the musicians also live. There are exceptions, such as Mouse's Roadhause in the South End. It's about a mile from downtown Burlington, and only four people live there.

Conditions: 
My living situation mirrors what I had in Boston to an extent, a key difference being that I don't really know my roommate, and one out of three weekends, he has three kids (ages 3 to 5!). I live in the North End, on the side that's a bit closer to UVM. 10 minutes from downtown by foot, and about 30 to the edge of the UVM campus where I work. It's less gritty than the area west of North Winooski Ave, but some of the houses are still funkily painted, nearly lopsided, or both. I love it here.

The funkier side of the North End (not too far from me) has TWO Asian grocery stores, and is a bit more urban, with businesses open until about 10. This is where a number of house concerts take place. I'm not sure how many people live in those houses, but it wouldn't surprise me if some of them were secretly rented by large quantities of people. Some of the musicians I know here (and in Boston) are avid couch surfers, and others live above the places they work. In the Winter, people don't like to move as much, because it gets very very cold. It's already been 12 degrees here...

I don't really go out to eat anymore. When I do, it's because I'm feeling lazy, or I have a visitor from out of town. It's funny how my idea of a night out has turned into going to the Panera for a croissant. My work schedule during the week is sporadic, so I have a good amount of time to cook. I try and learn a new dish every week, on top of the 5 hymns.

A few days after I got here, I learned of two churches in need of a keyboardist, and now I play for both of them. One is on campus (2nd and 4th Sundays) and the other is in two towns over, in Essex (1st and 3rd Sundays). I have to take a cab to get to Essex, as there is no bus service there on Weekends, but I can walk to the church on campus. I practice there during the week, and they have a kitchen where I can eat, and make tea. I don't trust their burners for too long, so I don't cook there. As a rule, I don't eat things that I can take on the go if I'm in my house (sandwiches etc.), but I've been sliding a bit lately, I think because I've had a few visitors.

Organizing the gig:

If you want to book a gig in Burlington, you're going to have a pretty easy time with it (at least I have), and I've been fortunate to meet a couple people willing to host concerts in their home. The first one I did was this past Wednesday, with Zach Kangas, Fausto Sierakowski, and Nigel Taylor in a big Victorian house near the corner of Winooski and Pearl. I met Larry (the owner of the house) at Panera, when I heard him talking to a friend about tuning pianos. He told me that he had a nice piano in his house, and though he never had concerts, he'd like to. Nigel and Fausto had contacted me before I moved about organizing something here, so I was thrilled to have their visit be our first show at Lumberjack House. Larry is also a logger, and the best landmark for finding his house is the giant woodpile next to his driveway.

Contact with the Audience: 

If you go to a show and really like someone, it's easy to go and talk to them after. Locals and visitors alike have a very friendly predisposition. These people are also somewhat mysterious, as you can go for weeks without seeing them, then you'll find them in a different setting - say, the supermarket. They will also tell you of their ideas, their dreams, and how you fit into the picture. The next time you see them after that, their idea will have completely changed, but they mean well. I think the bottom line is that people get excited here, and they aren't afraid to show it. If they don't like you, they won't approach you, or show up at all. Everyone I've played for here so far has been pretty receptive.

---------------------

So, that's a bit of a glimpse into my time up here so far. I'll be organizing a tour in February that will culminate up here with an overnight drone concert, hopefully at CC Presbyterian. We'll see if they let me do it. I'll be traveling to Boston on Tuesday to play at another house show,  edit copywork, and do other Boston-ish things. I'm going to try and see the BSO, too. After working in Symphony Hall I never thought I'd miss it, but I really do.  

---------------------

Addendum 12/9/12:


Most recently, I played at an improvisation night with my new friends Torey and Ian (two people I didn't know beforehand). We met up about an hour before we were supposed to be at the venue to talk and play a little bit. Torey lives in a big loft-like space above the Radio Bean, which had an amplifier, and room for some percussion instruments (Ian is a drummer, and Torey plays Ukelele). We were assigned to play with each other this morning, and there were 14 other ad-hoc groups. We were the third to play, and followed a great noise band that sounded like they'd been playing together for years, or at least had spent most of their day preparing. Though there was alot of crossover, each group was pretty distinct. One of the best things I heard from an audience member after our set was "I think everyone should have been sitting on the floor for your set. It seemed strange to be standing during something like that."

Ian and Torie at Mouse's Roadhause

Amplified trombone half at Mouse's Roadhause