I Drink The Air Before Me

"I Drink the Air Before Me is an evening-length score for Stephen Petronio's dance piece bearing the same name. Inasmuch as it was celebrating Stephen's company's 25th anniversary, the piece wanted to be big, ecstatic, and celebratory. Our initial meeting, in which we discussed the structure of the work, yielded a sketch: a giant line, starting at the lower left hand side of a napkin, and ending in the upper right. Start small, get big!"

Awesome music, please do have a listen! Check out pre-ordering possibilities on Nico's Bedroom Community website.

If you liked this...

Yes, I know I wrote about my dislike of recommendations when it comes to my own personal taste (especially music but in reading as well). I do think that this has got to be part of the future for libraries, public and educational alike.

The world is a social place and online strategies do seem to work. There's something quite touching about seeing a book with a customer's review attached to it. A good bookstore (or library) should also leave the bad reviews on, if they're well articulated. This particular store offers only good reviews...

I know I would love to leave a tweet-length review on some cd's, if the opportunity is provided. Borders offers it throughout their stores in the shape of blank notes that wrap neatly around a book cover of your choice. Show & share your likes and dislikes! To read the reviews on the books, go to the original picture.

Now think again

"God's thumb"?

What was I thinking? That everyone would know what I was talking about?
Google doesn't know, apparently...

But how poetical does 'jugular notch' or 'suprasternal notch' sound to you?
I'm pretty sure I didn't invent this. Look at it: God the Sculptor put his thumb there for the finishing touch - to entice us.

On true art (2)

Here's another excerpt that underlines my point of view very eloquently:

There is nothing intrinsically wrong with enjoyment per se - I like having a good time as much as anyone. However, in order for a work of art to be successful, it needs to pull as well as push - often, the goal is to anger, disturb, or even to deliberately bore or tax the audience, viewer, or listener in pursuit of some larger goal. The obvious response to this is the one we have heard throughout the history of modern art - "it's pretentious bullshit," "my kid could paint that," etc. And yes, that is often the case. However, even work that enlightens or entertains often needs to mystify, or to defer pleasure, in order to be successful. Of course what we say we want is the thrill, the laugh, the cheer, the beautiful sound or object, but most often those moments need to be surrounded by something else, or the experience is meaningless - art as a series of positive stimuli that zaps our animal brains in a pleasing way, but offers little else.
(by Jason Grote)

I thought I had suppressed those animal brains but looking at it this way, it seems I've been using them all along. The laugh, the beautiful sound, the shape of hands caressing the keys, God's thumb. Impressions. But then offering endlessly more.

Beauty in simplicity - Sonnet 20

I adore Rufus Wainwright and this Sonnet sums it all up for me. I've seen him playing it while wearing a pompous long black dress with feathers and sequins - a 15 feet long train trailing behind him. But this little video offers as much Rufus as you can get, he's all there and giving everything - every time. He's for real.

On true art

“It’s something which reverberates within your psyche, it disturbs the whole life cycle within a person. It affects the atmosphere in which you live. Most of what its called art, your eye just flows over. It may be charming or nice, but it doesn’t change you”. Francis Bacon

June 21st

There you have it, the longest day. It is what it is.
It should be nice & warm but I feel cold.