EYE HE(ART): 2011

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

LIVING ROOM PARTY 60

(AKA: beth tries to calm down after the FIGEATER gig)

At the hand of one of my good friends, I was treated to a food opera here:
http://www.willows-inn.com/

It was so incredibly delicious it physically made me cry.
At one point, after leaving the restaurant twice to calm down, I wasn't sure if I could complete the meal...honestly....it was like having 15 massive, consecutive orgasms and not knowing if you can physically take anymore.

It was art for your insides.
(all art is for your insides...yes, I know...but you see where I'm going here....it was a food opera - AN OPERA!!!!)

I will remember it as one of my life's most magnificent moments.
The moment I realized food can have the transcendence of music.

Friday, November 11, 2011

FULL SCORE

Thursday, November 10, 2011

THE TASK

make an incision
and flood it with beauty

Saturday, November 5, 2011

MALCOLM GOLDSTEIN

presented by
Earshot Jazz Festival & Nonsequitur

November 4, 2011

Malcolm Goldstein with BF, Stuart Dempster, Eric Barber, Esther Sugai & Lorri Goldston

photo by Daniel Sheehan

Composer and violinist Malcolm Goldstein has been active in the presentation of new music and dance in New York since the early 1960s, as co-founder of the Tone Roads Ensemble and as participant in the Judson Dance Theater, the New York Festival of the Avant Garde and the Experimental Intermedia Foundation. For nearly five decades, he has toured extensively throughout North America and Europe, presenting solo violin concerts and appearing as soloist with new music and dance ensembles. His “soundings” improvisations have received international acclaim for “reinventing violin playing,” extending the range of tonal and sound-texture possibilities of the instrument and revealing new dimensions of expressivity. Goldstein played solo and with an ensemble of Seattle musicians.

Monday, October 31, 2011

HERE IT COMES - PHASE 1

More info, photos and such on the Mother May I blog:
http://mothermayimakewaves.wordpress.com/

BETH FLEENOR: MOTHER MAY I
Work in Progress – Phase 1
November 4-11

Jack Straw New Media Gallery
4261 Roosevelt Way NE

OPENING: Friday, Nov 4_8pm
Featuring: Beth Fleenor (clarinets/voice/electronics), Michele Khazak (voice), Paris Hurley (violin/tape players), Samantha Boshnack (trumpet), Michael Owcharuk (keyboard), Paul Kemmish (bass), Tom Zgonc (drums)

ACTIVATION: Monday, Nov 7 – Friday, Nov 11_1-5pm
Fleenor will inhabit the installation performing 4hours of solos and duos daily. Artists including: Craig Flory, Stephen Fandrich, Michael Owcharuk, Paul Budraitis, Double Yoko, Evan Flory-Barnes, Paris Hurley, Nate Omdal, Brian Bermudez, John Teske, Whitney Lyman, Kevin Nortness, PK, Michele Khazak, Ari Joshua, Stephen Parris, and Brad Hebert, among others.

BUILDING THE FRAME

More info, photos and such on the Mother May I blog:
http://mothermayimakewaves.wordpress.com/

Friday, October 28, 2011

WHEN DEATH COMES, EVERYTHING ELSE STOPS

Today I received news that my great friend (also one of my business mentors) passed away.

Carol Shiffman died a couple days ago - after a long, hard battle with cancer.

The last time I saw her we met at the Guggenheim, had lunch at a beautiful cafe called Elizabeth's, and took a walk in Central Park. Our very last moment was the quintessential New York goodbye - we were on the train...."Grand Central Station" it said...all upbeat, full of the strength and grace she always carried no matter what, she said "this is my stop!" - we kissed, left cheek, right cheek, a squeeze of the arm, and she bounded off the train. I watched her walk away until she was lost in the crowd. Then the train continued on....

The minute you know you've lost someone, every single element of the experience of them comes into focus. I suddenly can remember every detail about the way she stood, or held her head when listening, or the way her hands moved when she was communicating with an audience. I can remember every everything....and in such detail.

Carol had an immanent grace that is not easily summarized. It came both in the way she moved - her many years as a dancer and choreographer were evident even when she was riding the elevator - and the way she interacted with people.

She had a special way of receiving people - of really listening to them - of honoring them.

Once in talking about the old saying "this is business, it's not personal, it's business" she revealed the essence of her being...."yes it is business, but the person is always there - you can never overlook the person - the person always has to be considered"

That's not to say that she wasn't tough as nails when it came to business - just that she saw that with anything involving a human, the human must be recognized, considered, and above all else, RESPECTED.

She said that giving introductions was one of the concert producer's most important jobs - that you set the tone for the audience to receive what the artists are going to create....and that it's your job to personalize the experience, to humanize the experience, so that everyone can take the journey together - openly.

She had a way of navigating and mediating even the most tense of meetings/discussions. I observed situations where amidst great chaos she was able to give each person room to feel heard, seen and respected, even though opinions and ideas might differ greatly.

When we met, she had taken the helm as department chair of a music department, even though her background and training had been as a dancer (though she had MANY years of experience as an arts administrator working with music). Through this, she taught me alot about the core of art - how it is really all about the same thing no matter the medium it comes through - and she showed me how each discipline needs each other to learn and go deeper.

She taught me so much about feeling a space and filling a space.
about listening and being heard.
about silent confidence and unspoken channels of communication.
about the subtle lines of awareness that shape every conversation.

She taught me about believing in yourself, how to trust that everything you work on in the studio shapes your life, and that everything in your life shapes what you do in the studio....how to trust that no matter what new situation you are in, you can call on your personal history, on your personal voice to navigate the new with confidence. How to embrace the improvisation.

She taught me more things than I can possibly try to articulate through this sea of tears.

She was a beautiful, graceful, and fiercely strong individual - my life is so much better because of my experiences with her.

She believed in me.
She supported my business when I was just starting out.
and she always supported me as an artist and wanted me to promise to never stop playing - no matter how much administration I got wrapped up in.

Carol Shiffman was my great friend and mentor.

and she called me "Cookie"

(I will love you for always - you are with me on every stage and in every meeting - and you will live forever in our hearts. Rest in peace dear friend - and give 'em hell on the other side)

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

LIVING ROOM PARTY 59

Sketch_Push Through

(letting release rituals be seen)

LIKE WATER

I believe in the power of sound to clear the body and cleanse the soul - bathe in it

TRIO COMMANDO IMAGES

Taken by Daniel Sheehan at the September 30, 2011 performance presented by Nonsequitur

THE NATURE OF THINGS

life is a series of experiences
that no one else can experience
that everyone is experiencing simultaneously

Monday, October 24, 2011

MOTHER MAY I DEVELEOPMENT

It's coming....opens November 4....

MOTHER MAY I
Work in Progress Phase 1
(a sound/art/processing installation)

Opening Ensemble Performance:
Friday, Nov. 4 / 8pm

Daily solo and duo performances:
Monday-Friday, Nov. 7-11/ 1-5pm

Jack Straw New Media Gallery
4261 Roosevelt Way NE
Seattle, Washington 98105

INFORMATION: http://mothermayimakewaves.wordpress.com/

LIVING ROOM PARTY 58

CRYSTAL BETH
IMPROVISATION

(dear self - please find better location for camera placement)

CRYSTAL BETH'S FIRST TIME

Losing my Crystal Beth virginity....this was August 2010...
surrounded by friends I braved into the scariest performance incarnation I have yet to encounter - the solo voice set...

Playing clarinet for 200,000 people - no problem.
Singing alone for 10 - scariest shit ever.

BUDDHAS & THE BITCHES

TRUE SELF

BLINDFOLDED RECORDING - SJCE

SJCE recorded 4 different takes of Movement Exercise No. 1 for Blindfolded Ensemble....
this is the first studio recording of any of my blindfolded compositions!!

SJCE RECORD

The Seattle Jazz Composers Ensemble was in the studio this month, recording new works by a huge range of composers. One of the things that amazes me about this project is truly how much of the community it engages and reaches out to. I've never played in a jazz big band that incorporates so many different styles in the jazz canon - which is a direct result of cross-pollinating all of the different jazz scenes in Seattle and pulling them into one hell of a organism.

This is something to support for the long haul - and we need more ensembles like this!!

The Composers:
Samantha Boshnack, BF, Jim Knodle, Chad McCullough, Nate Omdal, Michael Owcharuk, & Mike Catts.

The Band:

Samantha Bosch - Flute
Beth Fleenor - Clarinet, Bass Clarinet
Ethan Thomas - Alto and Tenor sax
Mike Dodge - Tenor sax and clarinet
Brian Bermudez - Alto, Tenor, and Bari sax
Chad McCullough - Trumpet
Samantha Boshnack - Trumpet
Jim Knodle - Trumpet
John Terpin - Trombone
Michael Owcharuk - Piano and Accordion
James Baumgart - Guitar
Nate Omdal - Bass
Tim Carey - Bass
Max Wood - Drums

NAKATANI GONG ORCHESTRA

This month I had the great honor and privilege of playing with Tatsuya Nakatani and the Nakatani Gong Orchestra.

Nakatani has developed a method of playing gongs with bows and large mallets - all of which he makes himself - to create these incredible breathing, undulating, otherworldly baths of resonant sound....it is truly spectacular...

His level of precision and openness combine into a masterful tutorial as he pulls together individuals in each city to form each incarnation of the N.G.O.

I have so many things to say about this brilliant artist/experience. and I wish I had some documentation of the INCREDIBLE solo set he did with a modified drum set that included 3 large and 1 medium gong and a collection of metal objects that he played on the drums....but I was too captivated to even think of turning on a camera.

I hope this is the first of many opportunities to swim with Tatsuya Nakatani.

ACTION/RESULT

Frank tappy tappy on the keyboard all day...phone, text, email, web, phone, text, email, web.....

CLARIFY - ARTICULATE - AMPLIFY

for each event - each single aesthetic opportunity - hours and hours and hours of energy have been spent in the process of creation...

(photo by Paul Budraitis)

TANGO AHORA! OCTOBER

This band is so incredibly beautiful - the music and the people...on every level.
LOVE!

October's performance featured the Tango Ahora! quartet with special guest Lalo Bello (percussion).

I'm a huge admirer of Lalo's playing - and was once lucky enough to be gifted a cajon lesson from him which really helped me get some direction with that instrument. It was fantastic to finally get to make music together.

BF (clarinet)
Maria Scherer Wilson (cello)
Jason Parker (trumpet)
Michael Owcharuk (piano/accordion)
Lalo Bello (percussion)

I love these people. Pure greatness.