I am really excited! One of the things I had thought about doing when I got back to NY was to join the Balinese Gamelan Orchestra, Dharma Swara. I saw them perform at BAM a few years ago, right after a trip to my second childhood home, Bali. After that trip & performance I was inspired to start writing some songs, and over these last few years have made a little collection of songs about Bali.
I have played some of them at a few gigs, but I am still very shy about them, they haven't found their true voice yet. But, with a little help from my musician friends who have played them with me, they are growing. It is my hope to be able to go and study in Bali a little next year before I record them, and in the meantime I thought it would be great inspiration to join the Gamelan Orchestra here in NY. So, luckily for me, I am there every week now, loving it.
It's funny to be in another musical situation where I should probably wear earplugs. First with A Storm of Light, and now with Dharma Swara! hehe, one side of the musical spectrum to the other.
It is so nice to be back in a band situation. I have missed that without realizing it. And I am finding myself loving the learning of the pieces, - all aurally, it is so good for me to play an instrument with no notation. One of the reasons I switched to voice was because my classical (trumpet!) training really got in the way of me using my ears. I can read music like anyone's business, I am really good at it. But it makes my ears very lazy, or perhaps, it is a safety net for me, and I don't listen. Jazz singing was really great to break that habit, but it also separated two things in my mind. Singing is aural. Playing an instrument is like reading. I am really thankful to be put in a situation where I can use my ears and play an instrument as well. I hope the two will mix and I will feel comfortable one day to pick up a trumpet and not get out the music books!
To get to rehearsal I have to traverse one side of Central Park to another. It is so beautiful. And yesterday it was raining a little and it was so romantic at The Mall, which is already romantic enough. My heart actually hurt. I am a huge lover of the rain.
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