Thursday, October 30, 2008

Faculty Guest - Cathy Meyer

Cathy Meyer teaches art classes for children at PMAC, focusing in early childhood education. I have seen the movie she mentions, and agree that it is quite thought-provoking. Here are Cathy's answer's to October's questions:

Who was my most inspiring teacher?
One of my professors, Philia Yi. She introduced me to printmaking and to silkscreening as fine art, which I just fell in love with. She also helped me explore abstract art and dynamic movement within a piece, which I strive for still in my own work. She was incredibly enthusiastic, open minded and she pushed me hard in a very subtle and motivating way.

What is the most recent art exhibit you attended?
Early this fall I visited the Ogunquit Museum of American Art. I had never been there before. What an amazing location!! I was really taken with Robert Eric Moore's watercolors. They all have this incredible sense of movement within them, which always intrigues me. They dealt with the land and the water and some depicted animals or birds (in my mind he could have left out the critters and still had beautiful works of art), but I love the way he also scratched the paper to achieve some super detail and texture. I don't know if they are still there now, but if they are, check his work out.

What is my favorite movie about an artist?
Well, I guess I am going to change this question if that's ok, as a documentary that my husband and I saw recently jumped into my mind and stuck there when I read this question. So it's not my favorite movie per se, but a fascinating one that really brings up some great questions for debate about art - watch it with friends who like to debate all the angles! It is called "My Kid Could Paint That" about a four year old artist, Marla, who ends up showing her abstract works in galleries.

Where is the most unusual space you have exhibited your art?
I once exhibited at a yoga studio. Great people, nice space too! There are so many opportunities for artists to get their work out there these days.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Faculty Guest - Virginia Macdonald

Ginna teaches clarinet, saxophone, and early childhood music classes including Jump Start Piano for 4 and 5 year old students. She has been with PMAC from the very beginning and has recently begun her studies for a Masters Degree in Music Therapy. Here are her responses to a few of my questions:

What was the most recent concert you attended? Did you like it? Why or why not?
I attended The Fab Faux's concert at Berklee. They are touted as the best Beatle's tribute band around and they did not disappoint! No synthesizers for the winds or strings - real people - right down to the piccolo trumpet solo on Penny Lane. Their specialty is the music from the Beatles' psychedelic years - the things they did not perform live, but with modern technology can be done.

At what age did you decide to become a professional musician or artist? How did you come to that decision?
I've always thought of myself as a band weenie. I was probably 16, but sometime in high school I decided that I wanted to be a high school band director. My high school had such a great program and our director Jeff Smith took us to the World's Fair, the Cherry Blossom parade in DC, and Mardi Gras. If it were not for music during those years, I don't know where my life might have gone. Music has gotten me through a lot. I am looking forward to learning all that I can on music's healing benefits as I pursue my graduate degree in Music Therapy. I'm loving it so far!

What advice do you have for a young student who is considering art or music as a career?
Look at all the possibilities. I was only aware of performance and education. There are so many careers in music that are not as apparent as others. I didn't even hear about the field of music therapy until I was an adult, although it has been around for 50 years or more.

What is your favorite movie about an artist or musician?
One that really sticks with me is Dancer In The Dark. Bjork stars in this musical about a woman who is working so hard to prevent her son from her fate of losing sight. Her dreamworld revolves around all the sounds she hears and the songs are truly beautiful. It is a heart-wrenching film and you may want some tissues nearby.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Faculty Guest - Mark Zielinski

Mark is one of PMAC's trumpet instructors. In addition to teaching at PMAC, he is currently teaching a class at UNH in the Music Department. With an extensive background in music education, Mark is a wonderful teacher, conductor and trumpet player. Here are his answers to a few of my questions:

Who was your most important/inspiring teacher/mentor and why?
All of my private teachers and collegiate band directors. I learned a lot from every one of them, just at different stages in my development, so I can't say that one was more significant than another. They all shaped me into who I am now.

What was the most unusual performance you've given? Or most unusual venue you've performed at?
Playing in a Madrigal Dinner concert. We had to wear outfits typical of that time in history (Renaissance Period - 15th and 16th century) and play fanfares on piccolo trumpets. It is not like performing in a suit or tuxedo.

What album/CD do you love to listen to that you think others would be surprised to hear you like?
I like to listen to bluegrass music sometimes; not your typical trumpet player "stuff".

What advice do you have for a young student who is considering art or music as a career?
My advice would be to work hard at it. You will find that the harder you work at it, the more you will like it!

Thursday, October 09, 2008

Disc Golfing in Vermont

I haven't been able to blog for the past week because I took a five day vacation to Vermont - no internet access, very little cell reception - to play in a disc golf tournament. I won't reveal how I did, but it wasn't pretty. Here is a nice photo of me throwing a disc - I don't remember the details of this particular shot, but I assume it probably hit a tree and rolled into some nasty thorn bushes.

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Faculty Guest - Dick Ray

Next up: Dick Ray, PMAC's guest conductor for the fall session of the Portsmouth Men's Chorus. Formerly the choral director at Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, Dick has a long and interesting history as a musician, including being the leader of the well known rock band, The Spectras.

Name a musician who is relatively unknown, but whose work you think everyone should hear. Name examples of recordings if possible.
Bobby McFerrin is a singer/composer who is relatively unknown and if people do know of him, it may only be through his 1988 Top 40 hit “Don’t Worry Be Happy,” but you really don’t get the full picture of this man’s capabilities from that one song. He is perhaps the most amazing vocal artist I have had the pleasure of hearing in the past 40 years. His live, one-man concerts are jaw-dropping. He has the ability to sing a bass line, accompaniment, and melodic line all at the same time one note at a time but arranged so cleverly that you can’t believe all that music is coming from just one set of vocal chords.
To become further aquainted with his work I would recommend listening to two albums: Voice and Spontaneous Inventions. You’re in for a real treat!

Who was your most important/inspiring teacher/mentor and why?
Without a doubt, my most important music teacher and mentor was my father. He was not a trained musician or a singer, but what he imparted to me through years of personal example was that music was fun, it could be something you can do your whole life, and it can be approached on a lot of different skill levels for enjoyment. He taught my brothers and me how to sing vocal harmonies and to be part-independent when we were not yet in first grade! As we grew older, it became a family tradition to ‘bring out the books’ after dinner and sing four-part men choral arrangements. This simple love of the choral art was deeply etched on my soul by my dad, and I have tried to pass that tradition on to my two sons and daughter as well. It all started with a man who loved to sing.

What was the most unusual performance you've given? Or most unusual venue you've performed at?
I think the most unusual performance I ever gave was in the summer of 1968 when my rock band, The Spectras, opened for the Beach Boys at the Hampton Beach Casino. There were over 6,000 people jammed shoulder to shoulder on the floor, so that when you looked out at the crowd from the stage, all you saw was a floating sea of heads. It felt like we were on a bobbing life raft, and before long I actually began to experience some motion sickness! I looked over at the other guys in the band and they were looking a little green also! But we put on our stage face and drove on through the set without getting sick.

At what age did you decide to become a professional musician or artist? How did you come to that decision?
I was 17 years old and a freshman at UNH majoring in Chemical Engineering. I could do the science and the math, but I just felt that I wasn’t emotionally invested in that career path. I wanted to be two things – for the near term, I wanted to be a touring rock and roll star, and for the long term I wanted to be a high school music teacher. The rock star thing actually came to fruition on a regional level. As I look back at that experience, it was simply a way to feed my giant teenage ego and to get girls to notice me. The teaching thing went much deeper. I had had some wonderful high school music teachers, and I wanted to pass that experience on to other high school kids.

What is your favorite movie about an artist or musician?
I think my favorite movie about a musician is “Mr. Holland’s Opus,” probably because I feel like I’m watching my own life story when I see that film. I love the way he begins teaching music as a way to make ends meet while pursuing a career in another aspect of music (composing), but is slowly drawn in to the wonder and beauty of teaching music to high school kids. In the end he realizes that as he retires, the thousands of students he has taught over his career are his most important opus, and will have far more impact on the future than any composition he might have written. It can be a bit corny in spots, but on the whole, for me, it is deeply meaningful.

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Faculty Guest - Jose Duque

In October, several of the PMAC faculty will be featured on the blog. I've asked all of them a series of questions - ten questions to be exact - and asked them to answer at least four of them, to be posted on the blog. Today we begin with Jose Duque, who answered eight of the ten questions. Jose is the drum instructor for PMAC. For more about Jose and his music, visit his website www.zumbatres.com.

Name a musician who is relatively unknown, but whose work you think everyone should hear. Name examples of recordings if possible.
Nguyen Le' , an incredible French guitarist of Vietnamese descent, very unortodox way of playing, and great compositions, I would recomend, his album BAKIDA, it's gorgeus

Who was your most important/inspiring teacher/mentor and why?
I think mentors change according to your growth as a person and musician, at the beginning were all those drummers in the records I listened to, Bruford, Peart, Taylor, Mosley, Negus...then my drum teacher back home, a Cuban Master drummer, nick named Tutty, as of late in life, Jon Hazilla, my teacher at Berklee....a great source from whom I learned jazz, and lately my friend from back home, Pablo Bencid, a superb drummer, and a friend

What was the most unusual performance you've given?
Playing at a beauty pageant contests back home, in which after setting up, we never got a chance to play because time constrictions.

What was the most recent concert you attended? Did you like it? Why or why not?
RADIOHEAD, incredible, I like it coz it was definitelly a conveying of how rock music should sound today, incredible songwriting craftsmanship and performance

What album/CD do you love to listen to that you think others would be surprised to hear you like?
ARVO PART, TE DEUM, Scandinavian composer, very subtle and beautiful

At what age did you decide to become a professional musician or artist? How did you come to that decision?
I played drums since I was 12, but it wasn't until I was in college back home that I started doing gigs, around 23 I decided that Psychology wasn't my thing, so i went to music school, was hard, my dad didn't talk to me for 3 or 4 months

As a child, who was your favorite composer or artist? Are they still among your favorites? Why or why not?
BILL BRUFORD, and still is!!

What is your favorite movie about an artist or musician?
BIRD, by Clint Eastwood