Improvisation, Part 4 - Bettine, McCoy, Heuer

Let me start out by saying that improvising is a very personal thing. So what we have here, is my take on what I do. I'm sure you have different ideas floating around in your head. You might like what I played, you might not—I didn't like everything I did over the course of the day. But that's a big part of improvising, you have to accept the great with the not so great ideas played.

 The idea here is to take a peek inside my brain, inside my creative process and hopefully understand how I approach music, especially improvisation. And maybe you can glean some ideas and inspiration to propel your own musical explorations.
Video Analysis
Alright, here we are, the video of the 1st improv session recorded, and my analysis of what I was doing. The video is only of myself, but the audio features both John McCoy and Sarah Heuer on electronics and samples.

It was a little after 9am on a Saturday morning. I had just hauled in and set up 13 cases/bags of percussion. I had no idea what to expect, because most of the people I was going to record with I had never met before. A few I knew, and knew how they played/approached music, and 2 of them I had played with before. But this was a blank slate, so I tried not to bring too many expectations with me.

 The video features my voiceover explaining what I was doing and what I was thinking. It turned out well and I hope you can get a feel for how I was working that morning. 1 down, 30 more track to go.

 I took the mixed down track from Jason Wietlispach and dropped onto the video. By luck/intuition, it was synced on the 1st try!

Bettine/McCoy/Heuer #1 video link

 There you have it, a 1st look into my creative process. In Part 5, we'll explore another video.

 ~ MB



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tam Tam vs Gong

Image
I can't tell you how many times this argument of "A tam tam is not a Gong" comes up. It came my way no less than 3 different times this week. Actually, 'tam tam' (also tam-tam) was 1st used in symphonic music back in the 1800s to differentiate a flat faced Gong from a Gong with a raised center 'boss.' (There is no definitive answer as to where the term tam tam originated - some say it's Chinese, some say it's Hindi, still others say it's something else…) To add to the confusion, 'tam-tam' is a term often used for either an   African  djembe or talking drum. When a score calls for a 'tam tam' (like Messiaen’s 'Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum' or various works of Richard Wagner), then a flat faced Gong, like a Chinese Chau, is used. Flat Faced Chinese Chau Gong/Tam Tam When a score calls for a 'Gong' (like Puccini’s 'Madame Butterfly', or 'Turandot'), then a bossed Gon
Read more

What to Look for When Buying a Gong

Image
Today's blog is a revised & updated blog I posted 3 years ago on my old website. I'm always having people ask me about buying a Gong. Well, here's some tips: •••••••• So you’ve decided to get a Gong. The first thing to ask is, what will I use a Gong for? What type of music do you play? Do you want to use it in a rock band, a jazz band, solo? Are you looking for a meditation device? These are important questions and will help determine what type and size of Gong to get.  One important thing to look at is how big a Gong do you want? Gongs are heavy. Gongs are not easy to transport. If this Gong will stay in your house/studio, then that makes it easy to have a larger size. But if you plan to travel in a band with it,  you need to look at the impact a different size Gong will have on transporting it.  A lot of drummers want a Gong because they look cool and sound cool. They also want that type of sound in their percussive arsenal.  A good place to star
Read more

Music Notation for Gongs

Image
Recently, I was asked a question about how Gongs are notated in a musical score. Here are various examples of different ways they have been notated, from traditional classical, to modern musical forms. The first thing is to differentiate the 2 main types of Gongs: the flat faced, usually termed Tam Tam in a classical score, and the Bossed Gong, with a raised center boss (AKA cup, nipple). A good example of a traditional symphonic Tam Tam part would be from Gustav Holst’s, The Planets . This example is from Mars, the Bringer of War : We can see the Gong/Tam Tam notated traditionally on a single staff line.  The next example is from Puccini’s opera, Turandot . This is the Tam Tam part, notated on the bottom line. Example #3 is also from Turandot. The score also calls for Tuned Bossed Gongs. Unfortunately I was unable to find a score example of them. John Cage used various Gongs in his percussion music. This is an example of how he notated the
Read more