the hole in my soul has been temporarily filled
i really enjoyed rehearsal yesterday and after of summer of living in the past (mixing the alt-classical EP) it was great to start living in the present.
it was my second time playing with guitarist jeremy keller and not only it was starting to gel musically but we were also able to get beyond our training and technique to create an incredibly visceral electronic/ folk/modular improv performance.
i have always felt it was possible as duo or trio, but finding this hasn’t been easy. while i was talking to jeremy i found out he hasn’t really played much tonal music and although our musical instincts are puling us in opposite directions, i’m finding that the space between the seams very is invigorating and satisfying.
since yesterdays rehearsal the fact that i haven’t been able to stop listening to our rehearsal probably says a lot about what has been absent than anything else. it’s like dreaming your arm was missing and waking up realizing how lucky you are that it still works.
right now the hole in my soul has been temporarily filled
Music for Controllers, Reh 082110
jeremy keller, guitar
paul bailey, korg nanokey, buddha machine, kaossilator, and ableton live
Cleaning Out the Garage
summer is here and i’m actually think it might be productive. it’s not like i don’t need the break, i’m just not that productive when i don’t have any real structure to my day. overall the last few years have been a little too much drama for me and it’s time to “get my house in order” (literally as well as figuratively).
1st up is cleaning out my garage and turning it into a rehearsal studio/performance space. over the last few years i have definitely outgrown my “office” and now that i’m teaching private students at the house i need a bigger space to work in. after editing and mixing three albums (not to mention most of the composing that i do at home)i also have to admit that i really need a change of scenery. even though i wasn’t writing that much music this past year i found it very hard to want to sit down at my desk to do anything creative so i ventured out anywhere i could think of as an alternative creative space (including different rooms in the house) and came to the conclusion that having a larger space in my garage should do the trick for now. it will also allow me to setup and properly practice with the all the gear i’m using with my “music for controllers” setup. instead making music through headphones i really have needed to spend the time figuring out how to play these pieces “live” and have come to realize it’s much more involved than when I just played trombone.
the main problem is getting a proper balance when you are mixing live acoustic instruments (trombone, voice) and controllers (kaossilator, drone/scruti box, buddha machine, ableton live, launchpad, etc…). i also have realized that mixing electric and acoustic instruments without sound reinforcement can be very a very disjointed listening experience in a live performance and in many ways my even though much of this music is not technically hard to perform my “practicing” centers around how to setup gear, mics, and amps which means that i have to pretty much be practicing/performing with a stereo/PA system to make my performances aurally make sense.
with all that being said (and after trying to mostly “practice” at other locations) the reality is that the setup and teardown of this technological spectacle (a few amps, mic/stand, laptop/keyboard stand/table, MOTU traveller(digital/audio interface), and 2 pedal boards) can take almost as long as the rehearsal so for the time being i’m going to be only performing solo or with whomever musicians that can make it to the 90042 for a weekly rehearsal.
after driving down to fullerton and back for the last 20 years for PBE and DIE rehearsals can really take it’s toll and at this point in my life i think it’s only natural to change things up and make music in a different way. to me it’s kinda funny b/c on one hand i know there are a lot of people who over the past few years have been introduced to my “Retrace Our Steps/PBE 1.0″ music who really wish i was making more music with the larger group and really like the strings/winds/rock band orchestration. there are also another group who have only seen the “PBE 2.0 rock band” (as we jokingly called it) and keep asking when that group is going to perform again. all i can say is that part of making alt-classical music is not really having the control to make those choices which leaves me to make music with the equipment and musicians that are available (and not continually banging my trying to fit a round peg in a square hole)
the good news is that if all goes well I should be performing on a regular basis soon. when and if there will be a PBE 3.0 is yet to be seen. right now one step at a time is fine with me.
Music for Controllers (2009)
are improvisations performed live using ableton live, korg/nanokey, buddha machine and srutibox (iphone), and korg kaossilator
Music for Controllers I
created using ableton live, buddha machine (iphone), korg kaossillator and nano-key
Music for Controllers II (coming soon)
Music for Controllers III and Music for Controllers IV
were improvised live using ableton live/ korg/nanokey, buddha machine (iphone), and the korg kaossilator
Music for Controllers V
improvisation post-whatever ableton, buddha machine (iphone), srutibox just-intonation drone
Music for Controllers VI (A Stable Job is an Oxymoron)
this track was based on a field recording i made of my last day of work before my “fall break” at CSUF (a one-week non paid work furlough). a few days later i improvised over the recording of my commute (from highland park to union station) with some materials of an earlier piece i made last spring (not getting fired is the new promotion). when it was finished i felt it was a little too minimal and forgot about it until about a week ago and when i listened to it again i realized it pretty accurately captured my dread of what this financial disaster has become in my life.
interestingly enough on that was the same day on my commute home the conductor on my amtrak route told me that she had lost about 75 daily commuters between san diego and los angeles from a year ago and it was pretty sad how so few of us were left. i know for me there aren’t many part time faculty left in the music department at CSUF and at this point it’s can get pretty depressing whenever i think about all of my friends who are out of work.
probably a little TMI, but yeah… i guess it is a bit dark.
Music for Controllers VI (A Stable Job is an Oxymoron) is spoken word piece based on twitter RSS feeds on the keywords “fired” and “job”. parts of this piece were originally contained in the piece “not getting fired is the new promotion” (2009) and was improvised/performed/composed using ableton live, novation launchpad, korg kaossilator, iphone (buddha machine, srutibox), text-2-speech, and a field recording (zoom H2) of my morning commute (metro goldline from heritage square to union station; los angeles, ca 10/15/2009 (10 min)
Music for Controllers by paul bailey
"Relegate the Machine to the Background"
got a great review of my Music for Controllers EP from marc weidenbaum at disquiet.com
“Probably the sole development that wasn’t a surprise, pleasant or otherwise, was that other musicians would use the Buddha Machine as a tool of self-expression. Among the latest is Paul Bailey, whose recent Music for Controllers album includes several tracks featuring the Buddha Machine (in this case, the Buddha Machine app for the iPhone and iPod Touch). The opening tones on the album’s opening track are familiar, their patient looping like waves brushing up against the shore, albeit in slow motion (MP3). But that’s just the start. Then comes a pitter-patter like some children’s wind-up toy acting up, and a tentative bit of melody that slowly, ever so slowly, over the course of nine minutes, finds a common sensibility with the looping tones, and insinuates its own drone-like hymn. In the process, Bailey manages to do what many Buddha Machine adopters have not, which is to once again relegate the machine to the background.”
Music for Controllers by paul bailey
i actually found out about the buddha machine from reading marc’s blog and in the back of my mind i was wondering what he would think. it’s not actually posted on this site yet (it’s been a busy spring), but you can find it at archive.org (via blacksquare netlabel)
Paul Bailey: Music for Controllers VI (2009)
Paul Bailey: Music for Controllers VI (2009)
Music for Controllers VI by paul bailey
this track was based on a field recording i made of my last day of work before my “fall break” at CSUF (a one-week non paid work furlough). a few days later i improvised over the recording of my commute (from highland park to union station) with some materials of an earlier piece i made last spring (not getting fired is the new promotion). when it was finished i felt it was a little too minimal and forgot about it until about a week ago and when i listened to it again i realized it pretty accurately captured my dread of what this financial disaster has become in my life.
interestingly enough on that was the same day on my commute home the conductor on my amtrak route told me that she had lost about 75 daily commuters between san diego and los angeles from a year ago and it was pretty sad how so few of us were left. i know for me there aren’t many part time faculty left in the music department at CSUF and at this point it’s can get pretty depressing whenever i think about all of my friends who are out of work.
probably a little TMI, but yeah… i guess it is a bit dark.
spoken word piece based on twitter RSS feeds on the keywords “fired” and “job”. parts of this piece were originally contained in the piece “not getting fired is the new promotion” (2009)
made using ableton live, novation launchpad, korg kaossilator, iphone (buddha machine, srutibox), text-2-speech, and a field recording (zoom H2) of my morning commute (metro goldline from heritage square to union station; los angeles, ca 10/15/2009 (10 min)
Music for Controllers III and IV
still trying to get my head around live improvisation using digital sound sources and controllers. these next two tracks were improvised live using ableton live/ korg/nanokey, buddha machine (iphone), and the korg kaossilator
Steve Layton also made a nice mashup of my Music for Controllers III and Shane Cadman’s very beautiful piece: “For the Mighty Noah Bailey Dowell”. Shane’s description of the piece follows:
“I know Noah Bailey Dowell and his family from a church we all used to go to. He is known as “The Mighty” and he died on 10.3.09 after a battle with a rare form of cancer – he was not quite 8 years old. He and his family are an inspiration. They are all mighty indeed!. This piece is for Noah. I don’t know what else to say.”
Shane Cadman
100909 – For the Mighty Noah Bailey Dowell
Steve Layton
listen and come join the fun at improvfriday.ning.com
Music for Controllers I
finally getting around to joining the ImprovFriday fun. here is my first submission. Music for Controllers I created using ableton live, buddha machine (iphone), korg kaossillator and nano-key Be the first to like. Like Unlike
