Late Junction. St Mary's Church. Gimlet-Eyed Mariners

Late Junction playing of my I-Park piece is now October 4th.

Playing St Mary's Church Reading as part of the Whitley Festival: http://www.whitleyartsfestival.co.uk/
miking up the church with piezo microphones, workshops with children to make the mikes and then play the church, very exciting.

Gimlet-Eyed Mariner's gig confirmed for the 24th November at the Congregational Chapel, Wiveliscombe at 7.30pm for 8.00 start.

World's Unknown gig at the Brewhouse in Taunton with Tim Hill and Richard Tomlinson on the 29th November 8.00pm start.

I-Park Film

My I-Park time-Lapse is now on vimeo to watch link here:
https://vimeo.com/49837518
It looks like this will feature on 'Late Junction' on radio 3 on thursday night, as one of my favourite programmes on the radio this is just too exciting.
Listen here first!!

Lymes Disease, Romans Film. Home

Okay, so I ended up getting Lymes Disease, I knew that headache I got on the last day of I-Park was abnormal and so it proved.  A week later and my should and back hurting I checked my back and yes a large rash was there, the classic Lymes rash, a trip to the drop in clinic and all is confirmed, now on antibiotics and all should be okay in three weeks, so lucky I caught it early enough the disease is a horrible one that one doesn't want to get.

Romans film is now on vimeo I will link it here:  http://vimeo.com/49440206?action=share
it has footage of me playing the Fibonacci Tree which works well and shows the instrument in a good light, the film also captures I-Park well and feature Jee Soo as well.  It is a great film by Roman and I look forward to seeing others from him.

I had a fantastic time on Long Island with Scott and Sara, boat trips, BBQs, a trip to the Catskills, a lovely break before coming home.

Yesterday I flew home and feel good, a great nights sleep last night and now I have the St Marys Church performance in Reading to look forward to, more details to come on that, but I will be miking up the church with piezo microphones and with the help of pupils from Theale school we will play the church.

A Post Script: The Residency is Over.

What happened there?  the residency is over, people came to the Open Studio we talked and performed and by monday everyone was gone.

So what happened? The day was spent preparing for the 1.00 presentations to each other, in each others studios, a chance for us all to see what the others had been doing and a chance for Ralph to see and hear what we all had been up too.
 It was good to see and hear everyone talk about their work and their process, the highlight for me was Romans film of the park and the strange narrative that went along with it, well read by Andy,  I was pleasantly surprised by how much footage he had used of my Fibonacci Tree and it playing, thanks for that Roman.

My presentation went well and the instrument was in fine form, ringing loud acoustically and electronically, this is such a good area to develop and I have a bucket load of thoughts and ideas for other places with other instruments.

The public came and I played the FT, again it sounded very good and I let the public play and it still sounded good, the pleasure on peoples faces was a joy to see and the reaction was very good, I love the American acceptance of the creative and experimentation, there really was an enthusiasm towards the instrument and what I am doing.

Next the presentation of our work in the common room, here I showed the time-lapse and gave a little talk about the scaryness of my walk home at night on a couple of occassions, and why I had taken a dark avenue for the video.

After the presentations Jee Soo and I did a short improvisation piece in her studio, me using the instruments I had made the day before.  This went well and again I was surprised at how well received it was.  Jee Soo recorded it and I have since listened to the recording which is good.

Afterwards we all ate and had an artist toast with champagne, Chef Jacob had gotten pizzas and we had a little feast together before going over to Pond Studio for a bonfire laid by Mason.
A jolly evening around the fire as one always has and then to bed.

But here was the weirdest thing, I lay in bed and a headache of proportions I have never felt before consumed me, it really hurt, I felt the back of my neck swelling and the pain would not go away, there was no respite, I couldn't sleep I lay in bed in agony, it was too painful to even think of walking back to the house to get painkillers, there were times in the night I thought that was it my brain was swelling and I going to die!  Yes very dramatic, I know, but I have never felt a pain in the head like this before and my neck was so so tender.  I got up next morning with a little relief and walked to the house and took painkillers immediately, had something to eat and got ready to go.
At 10.30 Mason took me to New London to catch the ferry to Orient Point on Long Island, my head was feeling much better, I was just consumed with tiredness!

The ferry was terrific, just relaxing on the top deck in the sun taking in the views, and hour and twenty minutes later and I am on Long Island, a sandwich at a deli and then a bus trip to East Hampton for 2 dollars, surely the bargain of the century, the journey is three hours, and what a great journey it was, lots of great characters on the bus, a bus driver who talked, farted and belched his way being both kind and rude to people, an eye opener, but a lovely little cameo take on some American life.

Met by Scott, so lovely to see his face and then off to meet Sara with whom I had shared a studio complex with at Hurstone for many a year in the halcyon days.




And yes that night in a comfy bed I slept and woke feeling wonderful.

More Editing, The Promo Video is Launched, Goodbye to Boaz.

Today after all the rain was set fair, but I spend most of it at the computer screen doing the final tweaking of the sound for the video, some frustrations, need to have another look tomorrow to have a new eye....this are heating up as the open studios are on sunday and we prepare what and I we might show off what we have done, finished or unfinished.

We got the link to the promo video of the open studio, the link is: http://vimeo.com/48962415
see what we are all doing.

If Jee Soo and I are going to do an improvised piece on sunday I will have to make a more portable instrument so that may well take up friday and saturday.

Boaz is leaving today to go to a private of his work in Miami, it is with sadness that he won't be here for the final days, his work is exquisite, he has a dry and wry sense of humour.

A drink to you Boaz.

Trip out to MASS MOCA. Another Migraine

Yesterday was our trip to MASS MOCA in North Adams, Massachusetts. A huge modern art gallery in a disused energy building.
First up the cafe had a terrific selection of loose teas, they give you hot water, a tea pouch and a spoon the rest is up to you.
They also had the "Invisible Cities' exhibition which I had missed in England, and very glad to see here, based on the Italo Calvino book of the same name, the highlight for me where the Sopheap Pich, Carlos Garaicoa and Lee Bul, with Sopheap Pich being the pick of the bunch.

Sopheap Pich

michael for scale

But what I wasn't ready for was three massive floors of Sol Lewitt whose work stood head and shoulders above all others, a retrospective of his work to stay here for 25 years and I really suggest that anyone anywhere should at some point in the next 25 years make a sojourn to see this fantastic work, seeing any photograph does not do it justice, the pencil and crayon drawings on the walls have an ephemera that can only be understood live, impossible to reproduce.

Sol Lewitt

The Oh Canada exhibition also had a few gems.

We drove back stopping at Northampton for a Moroccan meal, which was nice.


Back to I-Park in time for another Mad Men and for me to get another bloody Migraine!!!!!!!!

More Time-Lapse. Sound Editing begins. Oh and a Hoe up a tree.

As promised a picture of a 'bloomin'onion' from yesterdays blog, and yes that is one onion fried in batter.
Enough.
Today it was back out with the time-lapse camera, filming

in the Piano field

on the wheel bridge

and up a tree on a seat used by hunters, 

I was shooting rocks, trees and grass!
That past a very pleasant few hours and whilst the camera clicked away idle thumbs got to work and a few mini installations took place, I found a whole load of old farm stuff, a hoe, two saws, a plough shear and I thought I might just place them in surreal places to give passes by a reason to smile at the incongruity of it all.

So the hoe is now 15 feet in the air atop a sapling, 

the saw is embedded in the side of a tree 

 the plough shear sits between two divided boughs.

I came back to pond studio and downloaded the footage, edited and place within the movie, at 4.00 I went over to the house to get some lunch, later I started editing in some sound for the film, Jacob gave up his labor day and cooked us the best BBQ of beef, potato salad, black-eyed beans and sauces to die for, yum.  Followed by strawberries and cream.

Editing, Watching, Hopyard Neck Fair.

Another migraine to greet me this morning, this is getting absurd that is four is 3 weeks, not good.
A morning of putting together the video of the time-lapses, that went pretty well and I can see the things I still need to film to make it work well, also I see that I need a better time-lapse camera, this one has held me in good stead but if I am serious about taking more I think better resolution is needed.

At four Jacob came by and took us all to the local fair, The Hopyard Neck Fair and it was all you would expect, ferris wheel and rides, exhibiting cattle, very good bands playing, food stalls and I must say once you have seen a 'Bloomin' Onion' the world is a better place, hopefully I will get Tess to share her photo with me so you can all see what can be done to an onion.

My Internet has been down all day, but at last it is back and Roman sent me a clip of the video he took of me with the Fibonacci Tree yesterday.  Here it is.

Glueing, Recording and Cooking

Not a huge amount to report today other than it was another very hot day, which I spent finishing the spike in the F.T. glueing it and screwing it and making dowels.

Roman wanted to film me playing it for part of his video, which we did and we also recorded the spoken piece he wanted, I think my acting days are behind me!

I later cooked and lovely spaghetti for all with all fresh produce, one can't go wrong.
A headache after another sleepless night. It could be the oppressive heat.

Tomorrow I hope the spend the day editing the time-lapses and the sound.

Playing. Spike Making. Moonlit Boat Trip

beaters I made last night

This morning was hot and I got into playing the Fibonacci Tree again, this time recording the session so I can use it later in the sound piece for the film.  Again the F.T. sang and droned and tweeted its morning away, Amanda and Roman came over and listened and later played themselves, they both were enchanted and Roman wants to use it in his film both visually and aurally, so that was a nice boost.

In the heat of the afternoon I chainsawed the spike that is to hold the top end of the F.T. up, it worked well and I am very happy with it shape, a bit of drawknifing to touch up.

I got overheated today and by 4.00 was aching and hurting all over so I went for the supine position for twenty minutes to try and realign my back, it did help although it still hurt.  I used the fantastic outdoor shower again and got myself back on track.  Had a good chat with Andy who has been ill all day, but he seems to want to use the sounds as well.  Roman who was ill yesterday has given me a script to read for his video for the voice over, he wanted an english accent, a paranoid english accent......

Obviously Tess our Mad Men queen had us full steam ahead for another 2 episodes before I left to go for a moonlit row on the raft,  the raft that has appeared in a number of previous blogs, but tonight was different, not a breath of wind as the moon was in the sky and on the lake, it was almost too bright, it was also very very magical and I can only suggest that if you have the opportunity to go out on a boat only lit my the moon you will feel a connection to life that is a very temporal  visitor.