Merry Christmas!!!! Happy Holidays to all!
Once again it is that time of year! Hopefully you are all snuggling in your warm houses, watching cheezy holiday flicks and drinking hot chocolate like meeeeeeee! Luckily, in Saratoga it will be a white Christmas, albeit a cold one.
So, it was a very exciting and busy fall for me! In October, we (by we I mean the All-Stars) toured Beijing and Shanghai. Having already been the year before, I sort of knew what to expect. This trip, however, had a little more room for exploring. We walked through so many different parts of town, some trendy, some more traditional. Actually, it was the more traditional part of town that charmed me. I especially loved the markets, full of fish, feathered friends, frogs……soon to meet their demise of course…..ooops….well, such is life. I kind of had this urge to knock over all the tanks and cages and let them go running (slithering, flopping, hopping, waddling—pick one) into the streets, but thought I better behave for once in my life. Anyways, the whole trip was fulfilling on many levels, especially musically. My favorite concert had to be the one we played in D22, a night club in Beijing. I have never played in a venue like this before and must admit it was invigorating. We were all a little pooped, still jet-lagged, and it was an 11pm show to boot…..then all of a sudden, as soon as we hit the stage, the energy and adrenaline took over. We were packed on this small stage, all facing each other, playing to a completely psyched audience! There was this cloud of cigarette smoke cutting through the red-orange lights, and people hanging over the balcony above us waving their arms…..totally cool and unforgettable experience.
Next was a college state tour which began in Gainesville, Florida and continued through UNC Chapel Hill, Penn State, University of Maryland and finished at Zankel Hall in NYC. We were joined by Trio Mediaeval, a lovely and talented group of singers from Scandinavia, in premiering Julia Wolfe’s Steel Hammer, an evening length work based on the ballad of John Henry. Bringing this piece to life was an extremely rewarding process. In the ten days we all spent together, we were able to rehearse and perform the work several times before bringing it home to NYC. More often than not, a performer doesn’t get to spend this much “quality” time with one piece of music, especially with the composer there! As a result, everyone was able to contribute, experiment, improvise and ‘grow’ the piece. I cannot think of a better way to make music, honestly.
I guess the only bad thing about being on the road is coming home and going our separate ways. You spend so much time with the same people, and you get to make music all day long…together…instead of alone in a practice room. I think I enjoy it too much, if that’s possible. So, the time in between tours is less exciting but I suppose absence makes the heart go fonder….and I also need to practice…a lot.
After Steel Hammer I got to spend some time in New Haven playing a concert with the Yale Camerata(a much needed trip down memory lane, btw). It was artistic director and founder, Marguerite Brooks’ 25th anniversary with the group as well as the annual Advent concert entitled: Dona Nobis Pacem(Give Us Peace). This year’s program featured Haydn’s Missa in tempore belli, also known as the Paukenmesse(Kettledrum Mass), Mendelssohn’s Christus (part I) and the Martinu Nonet. I must say, even in sub-zero weather and sleet, the die-hards rallied and we had a full house. The concert always ends with choir and audience singing in tandem, with the hope for peace and harmony.
And so I will leave you with that thought and wish you all a wonderful New Year!!!
Don’t forget to take a look at the schedule page from time to time…more updates soon including concerts in NYC as well as Milan, Amsterdam and the Hague!
You can find more information about Bang on a Can and our concerts here: www.bangonacan.org
Hugs and Kisses!!!!!
December 25th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
hey ashley, delighted to read this post. i am one of the founding partners of d-22 and we loved having u play at our little club….
December 25th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Thanks for that, especially the bit about China. I was at the Beijing club D22 several times during my own visit, earlier in the year, and I agree, it is a cool, smoky place with a feeling unlike any I have seen, although I wasn’t lucky enough to perform there. Its American owner has created a very New York vibe and from what I understand it has been at the center of a new music scene that is one of the most exciting I have experienced in recent years. The place is swarming with young Chinese musicans and there is a sense of something historic in the making. Reading your piece immediately made me nostalgic.