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April 27, 2009
March 18, 2009
Computer Update
Still fighting with the computer. The OS 9 partition that has all of my work on it (thankfully, Sing is over now) still works, but I can’t recreate it using the drive clones I created years ago, and I don’t know why. I got two new drives and they both work fine, but I can’t reload the 9 partition, and if I can’t do that, then writing another year of Sing is like walking tightrope across a very large drop with no net. Not going to happen.
So yesterday Erin and I were in the Apple store and I was contemplating the purchase of a new MacPro (on a friend’s discount, of course!). As I was standing there, I had the realization that this new MacBook I’m typing on is probably 10x as powerful as my old G4, and I could possibly use it as a temporary stopgap. I bought a $20 adapter and confirmed that I could indeed use my 22″ Dell monitor (great monitor) with it, then bought a 2TB external drive to use as a backup. The external drive is going back to Fry’s (it only showed as 1.36TB, which is terrible even accounting for formatting space), but I might be able to make this work.
This solution would enable me to save the cost of a new Mac Pro ($2400!) for now, and it would let me ease into the whole purchase of the new studio by only having to buy the Midi interface and the new audio interface. The only downside is that I lose the easy portability of the laptop. Why? Because once it’s ensconced in my desk it will have seven of its nine ports in use. Not that I can’t unplug it and go, but grabbing it off the desk to go downstairs won’t be a one step process.
I’m still messing with getting the G4 to work, though. But Erin brought up what would have happened to me if this whole debacle had occurred two months ago. I don’t even want to contemplate that. In that case I would have paid almost ANYTHING to get the whole thing working again. In that regard, I think making the big jump is probably due. I hate kludging solutions together, though, so I’m still not sold on using the laptop as my main machine. What a pain- just glad it’s March!
March 3, 2009
Why I Do What I Do
Email from a former Sing Chair:
Congratulations on SING!! I have actually missed the past couple of years, but finally managed to somehow snag some tickets for this past Saturday and just was overwhelmed at how great the performance was that y’all put on this year! I could not have been more thrilled with the Tridelt, act of course, (rotten fruit? Who would have thought something like that could have been as perfectly ingenious as it was!) and watching the Tridelt sing chairs up there on the stage the moment they won brought back all the same nervousness and anticipation and emotions that I went through as a sing chair as well. Gosh, SING is just so great! You did an absolutely amazing job on all the acts you arranged this year-the music was simply phenomenal. Worth going to SING just to hear the music even if you experience nothing else. Now that I am out in the real world, I absolutely have so much admiration for the time and the energy that you put into your work, Jason! I mean I’m ridiculously jealous of course that you still get to do SING every year… I’d kill to come up with some way I could still be involved. But the fact that you are a person who puts 200% into every act, every song, every group you work with for a whole year, every year is such an incredible gift. You manage to do it year after year and the show is always incredible. This year was no different, and we can partly thank you for the continuation of such an amazing tradition of excellance when it comes to SING. Congratulations again! You totally deserve a vacation!
People often ask me what I do, and if they’re in a hurry I usually just say “composer” or “arranger” and briefly describe the show. If I know them well, though, I’ll tell them what my life work really is:
I’m involved in a leadership training program that nobody realizes they’re a part of until they graduate. It’s gratifying to see the long-term effects of this incredible tradition.
What a wonderful job.
February 28, 2009
Final Night
Tonight is the final night of All University Sing 2009. 17 acts will cross the stage and be seen by 2200 enthusiastic audience members. We will perform the four hour show with all the skill that months of preparation and weeks of rehearsal have given us, and God (and the sound dept.) willing, the judges will arrive at a decision over who gets to go on to Pigskin in the fall.
This year has been an incredible experience for me. It’s the 19th Sing I’ve been involved in and I’ve loved every minute of getting to know the Sing chairs and sharing in their journey. This afternoon I was able to meet many of their parents at the open stage reception and it was fun to be paparrazzi’d by all the cameras. What an amazing job I have.
Tonight is also very bittersweet. This year, especially. Normally when they announce the eight acts that will be going on to perform in Pigskin, at least six of them are unsurprising. Tonight’s final judging results are all up in the air. The acts are really, really close and if you ask ten people you’ll get ten lists of finalists that disagree with each other. The groups know this so they’re all sprinting as hard as they can for the finish line trying to polish and tweak, refine and change, and generally make everything as perfect as it can be. The director told me the other day that the groups who are able to sustain the pace are the ones who will make it, and I definitely agree. For the band, though, it’s a tough night since we have to sustain the energy not just for one seven minute act, but for almost four hours of playing, and we go into tonight having rehearsed and performed for two tiring weeks.
It’s been a real joy to be involved in so much excellence and competition- to exhaust myself being with people who want to do something to the fullest extent of their abilities. Someone joked today that I need a T-shirt that says “Switzerland” since I help so many groups, but the truth is that I honestly do want all 16 of my acts to go to Pigskin, and work as hard as I know how to make sure that their ideas are as fully performed as possible. Tonight it will be an utter joy to rejoice with those who win and, this year especially, weep with those who who don’t. Almost a year of work went into the show for some of these groups and they know how close it will be.
Ultimately, though, it’s not about who wins or loses, but about being a part of a tradition that dates back 56 years. I got this email from an alumni chair not long ago that describes it well.
Dear Jason,
For me the best part of the our act was recognizing dance moves and ideas that stemmed from us. I didn’t quite get what you told me last year about how it is not about Pigskin. But once I saw our act this year, I understood that all the work we put in it was not for nothing. It was very satisfying to know that a piece of the three of us is still in the act. Knowing that I contributed something to the group means more to me than us going to Pigskin last year. Thanks for helping me realize that!
What a privilege to participate in such a show. Don’t miss pictures from this year!
Sing Man
The Baylor Lariat published an interview with me in today’s edition. It was fun being interviewed and I’m very happy with the results.
Check it out.
February 13, 2009
January 23, 2009
Charted
I reached a milestone today when I finished all charting for Sing 2009!
Interesting chart stats:
Total Measures: 11290 (”active frames”- not including empty measures)
Master Scores: 156 pages
Parts: 230 pages
Total pages: 386
Length of show: approx 4 hours with intermissions and time between acts. If you played it straight through with no breaks, it’s almost exactly 2 hours of music.
*WHEW*!
I still have to assemble the musician folders, which means copying and dealing with 600+ pages, and I also have to mix and master the final tracks for those acts that have additional music, but finishing the charts represents a major milestone in the months long process of creating the show.
I’m taking a few days off!
January 19, 2009
The Sound of Green Places
Ever since returning from our three week long Ireland trip this past summer, friends and family have asked us what it was like. I can show them the pictures and them the stories, but I’ve never been able to adequately capture the feeling of being there. As beautiful as the place was to the eye, for me the smell of peat fires and the sound of Gaelic being sung to traditional instruments will remain the very definition of Ireland. I think I may have found something that can explain it to you.
For four minutes and forty five seconds, I’d like for you to close your eyes and listen to this. I humbly suggest you give it some time and appreciate it without distractions, because it will be the most beautiful thing you hear today. And if it’s not, you’re a lucky, lucky person. Let yourself get lost in it.
I have no idea what she’s singing about, but it doesn’t matter. Some things transcend translation.
That was Ireland.
(Update: I adore this piece and have listened to it a half dozen times this morning alone. I’m more and more impressed by Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh’s musicianship each time I hear it. Pay special attention to what she does with her voice at 3:48, and the way she trails off the last note. Exquisite)
January 18, 2009
January 15, 2009
Morning Person
I’m normally not much of a morning person, unless my insomnia decrees Thou Shalt Wake at Five AM, which it did this morning at 5:22. I think my insomnia slept in for twenty extra minutes.
Anyway, when it’s cold and early and I have a pile of enjoyable work to get through I really don’t mind getting up early. Got a cup of Tea, Earl Grey, Hot, right in front of me and I’m off to edit audio all day.
I’m glad I’m making use of the time. Erin and I postponed a well anticipated camping trip this weekend (brr!) with some seldom-seen friends so I could get the current stuff out the door. Looking forward to it sometime soon.
January 2, 2009
December 4, 2008
Musical Fun
17 Fabulous Prequels To Broadway Musicals (copied shamelessly from woot)
Kate, We Haven’t Been Introduced
Bar Mitzvah of La Mancha
Sand And Primer Your Wagon
A Chorus Dot
Fiddler Borrows A Ladder
Little Business Plan of Horrors
A Star’s Mom Allows A Handsome Stranger To Buy Her A Drink
Indian Territory!
The Guy Who Is A Little Intense But Keeps To Himself And Isn’t Really Bothering Anyone Of The Opera
Annie There’s A Waiting Period
Kittens
Brand New Acquaintance Joey
Handshake Of The Spider Woman
Jesus Christ Waiter
Starlight Right-of-Way Allocation And Environmental Impact Study
Vocal Warm-ups On A Cloudy Day
West Side Backstory
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December 2, 2008
Bluegrass Redux
Friend Tim sent me this email about the Bluegrass post yesterday and it was too good to not pass on (with permission):
…I have to say that bluegrass is the only kind of “country” music that I “get”. Not that I choose to listen to it on my own, but when I have an opportunity to hear it played or see it performed I can generally tune into what’s going on for long enough to appreciate and enjoy the musicianship.
Anyway, the six guys in the video that you posted today are about as good as it gets. If you were to put together a master class in bluegrass, it would be virtually impossible to select anyone more highly skilled with their respective instruments. In short, if Elvis were to walk into a room in Nashville where these six guys were playing, announce that he was alive and coming back to perform for one night only, odds are that everyone in the room would tell him to shut up, sit down and listen to some real music.
Uh, thankyouverymuch
December 1, 2008
Bluegrass
Check out this amazing bluegrass musicianship. Specifically, listen to what Tony Rice (on guitar) does about the 3:30 mark and how he plays with the beat. Keep the beat going by tapping your foot throughout the solo and listen to how he plays “around” the tactus. Brilliant!
Many people mistakenly think that bluegrass is some kind of yokel’s music and doesn’t take much in the way of skill or talent. Fie on them. These guys are stellar.
Mr. Tony Rice, guitar
Mark O’Connor, fiddle,
Bela Fleck, banjo
Jerry Douglas, dobro,
Mark Schatz, bass,
Sam Bush, mandolin
November 17, 2008
September 4, 2008
September 1, 2008
July 24, 2008
Rush on Rush
Ha! The band Rush recently got to try one of their songs out on Rock Band. I won’t ruin the result for you.
A couple things I noticed, though: Geddy Lee is trained. I could tell by the way he supported some of the higher notes. He sang some of the really high stuff down an octave though. It’s not fair to have him sing the highest stuff full- voice without a warmup! I also noticed that Neil Peart and Alex Lifeson didn’t do so well on their respective instruments, even on expert, because the game had dumbed it down too much. They probably made most of their mistakes because they were playing the real thing, not the simplified (even on expert!) stuff that Rock Band makes you play.
All in all, though, good fun.
May 19, 2008
Bach
His music tends to work in all versions, I submit, because the notes-qua-notes are so good. Mozart, Beethoven, Stravinsky, or [your favorite composer here] were constantly concerned with the instruments that played or sung their work: great notes, too, but intimately bound to their media. In The Art of Fugue Bach didn’t seem to care what the medium was; it would work no matter what. A lot of his music—not all, but a lot—is like that: incomparable notes, regardless of avatar.
I’m sure what ultimately turns everybody onto The Art of Fugue, not limited to musicians who understand its arcana, is how melodically expressive and rhythmically vital it is. You never forget, for example, how Contrapunctus 9 gathers like a force of nature from a galloping D minor to the most hair-raising D major final chord you ever heard. Bach universalized what he called “the art and science of music” by the power of gripping melody, rich harmony, towering perorations, intimate whisperings, explosive joy, piercing tragedy: the same human stuff we find in Beethoven, Mozart, Shakespeare, and all the great creators. But nobody in music had the science down more than Bach did, and nobody ever wrote better notes.
April 17, 2008
Lifeway Project
This via Patrick’s website. This past year I did a few arrangements for this project. It’s a very cool idea of being able to assemble the parts that you need for your church service and have the computer print out the charts in the correct order and key (vs, chorus, vs, vs, whatever). I had a lot of fun doing the arrangements and only wish that I had gotten involved sooner. By the time they called me there weren’t that many arrangements left to do.
Anyway, here’s a video describing what the project is. The coolest part is the third section about Lifewayworship.com
LifeWay Worship Project from Patrick Watts on Vimeo.
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