Sunday, January 30, 2005
whirlwind- vrooom
Wednesday- The Digitial showcase, in and of itself, did little for me. It lacked a central theme, musically and artistically. Their music spanned from the digitally explosive Venetian snares and Squarepusher to old school trip-hop. Mixed in with a live electric guitar (which sounded completely off tune) and projected plug-ins that bore no semblance to what I would call high quality digital art, it made for an obtuse theme. Red wine and cloves, travel tales of Bodhgaya, Costa Rica and Santa Catarina followed by two hours of salsa dancing did make up for it though.
Thursday- Evening started of with the much anticipated audition. Ten minutes into our first rehearsal and the alcohol comes out (this is on campus mind you). Doors locked, volume turned up and the jam session had begun. Daniel (the Paulista) and I are the hand percussionists for the band e ele gostaria de falar so' em Portugues. Otimo. Congas, two djembes, tamborine, shakeray and the talking drum. Song list to come later. Just as we got into the rhythm of things, I had to take off cos Jesse and I had a presentation to make on Nigeria, which apparently was loved by all. We included a 5 minute pidgin session at the end, which I believe did the trick. No be so? Post-presentation- Kirk, Ksiusha and I sneaked away from Jesse's spring roll party and made our way to the Church of the friendly ghost. Bless one hitters. We arrived late, in time for just the climax. But boy was it worth it. Founded primarily to 'foster marginalized art', this multi-purpose art space (max capacity of 50 people) served as a perfect venue for the West African ballet. Precision drumming coupled with the female dance troupe from Guinea (with the Big Mama ofcourse) captured the cultural spirit of West Africa. What I didn't comprehend, but nonetheless appreciated, was the post performance hip-hop dance session on stage. And so we danced the night away.
Friday- Kispe night with the Peruvians. Need I say more?
Saturday- Pancho Sanchez was in town. I am told, and I now see why, that no one can bring together Latin music, jazz, soul, R&B, hip-hop and even funk like this man can. I adore bands that are centered around a percussionist. There was wine, some dancing, a lot of gazing (in complete awe) and some flirting. We finished up at Trudy's and a midnight walk in the cold, which turned out to be a not so fabulous idea. I am still adapting to this cold front. Hands down am a warm weather person.
Amidst all this, I have to balance a design project with Applied Materials and my horrid job.
Slow down says u, live it up says I!!!
Thursday- Evening started of with the much anticipated audition. Ten minutes into our first rehearsal and the alcohol comes out (this is on campus mind you). Doors locked, volume turned up and the jam session had begun. Daniel (the Paulista) and I are the hand percussionists for the band e ele gostaria de falar so' em Portugues. Otimo. Congas, two djembes, tamborine, shakeray and the talking drum. Song list to come later. Just as we got into the rhythm of things, I had to take off cos Jesse and I had a presentation to make on Nigeria, which apparently was loved by all. We included a 5 minute pidgin session at the end, which I believe did the trick. No be so? Post-presentation- Kirk, Ksiusha and I sneaked away from Jesse's spring roll party and made our way to the Church of the friendly ghost. Bless one hitters. We arrived late, in time for just the climax. But boy was it worth it. Founded primarily to 'foster marginalized art', this multi-purpose art space (max capacity of 50 people) served as a perfect venue for the West African ballet. Precision drumming coupled with the female dance troupe from Guinea (with the Big Mama ofcourse) captured the cultural spirit of West Africa. What I didn't comprehend, but nonetheless appreciated, was the post performance hip-hop dance session on stage. And so we danced the night away.
Friday- Kispe night with the Peruvians. Need I say more?
Saturday- Pancho Sanchez was in town. I am told, and I now see why, that no one can bring together Latin music, jazz, soul, R&B, hip-hop and even funk like this man can. I adore bands that are centered around a percussionist. There was wine, some dancing, a lot of gazing (in complete awe) and some flirting. We finished up at Trudy's and a midnight walk in the cold, which turned out to be a not so fabulous idea. I am still adapting to this cold front. Hands down am a warm weather person.
Amidst all this, I have to balance a design project with Applied Materials and my horrid job.
Slow down says u, live it up says I!!!
# posted by Surya Swamy : 1:02 PM
