Brian Sacawa: Sounds Like Now

Wind-up improv

"A clarinetist of no particular age, wearing a hat that obscured his face, and sitting cross-legged on the sidewalk, in the manner of a snake-charmer. Directly in front of him were two wind-up monkeys, one with a tambourine and the other with a drum. With the one shaking and the other banging, beating out a weird and precise syncopation, the man would improvise endless tiny variations on his instrument, his body swaying stiffly back and forth, energetically miming the monkeys' rhythm. He played jauntily and with flair, crisp and looping figures in the minor mode, as if glad to be there with is mechanical friends, enclosed in the universe he had created, never once looking up. It went on and on, always finally the same, and yet the longer I listened the harder I found it to leave.

"To be inside that music, to be drawn into the circle of its repetitions: perhaps that is a place where one could finally disappear."

Paul Auster, City of Glass from The New York Trilogy.

Week in review

This past week was spring break at the UA (b/t/w, go wildcats!), which I spent in Baltimore hanging out with J and doing some things in Philadelphia as well as Charm City itself. On Tuesday, I gave a master class--graciously rescheduled from a December snow day--to Cory Kasprzyk's eager and inquisitive students at Morgan State University, where I also had the rather pleasant unexpected surprise of running into composer James Lee, a UM alum, who now serves on the faculty there.

Coaching a quartet at the Peabody Conservatory

Wednesday was another master class day night, though this time at the Peabody Conservatory, one of my alma maters. It's always great to return to a familiar environment--I felt at home (or as at home as I could feel since the grand refurbishment that took place just a couple of years ago) and it was great to see that the level of the class continues to improve under Gary's guidance.

With my teacher and mentor, saxophonist Gary Louie

On Thursday, I Amtrak-ed up to Philly once again for a guest presentation with pianist Hugh Sung and technologist Barry Brahier for the Sound Technology class at the Curtis Institute of Music. The three of us tag-teamed to talk about different ways to use and implement technology as both artists and teachers.

Hugh during our presentation for the Sound Technology class at Curtis

Barry did a segment on technology for learning, particularly the open-source audio editor and recorder Audacity. Hugh (a.k.a. "The Tablet PC Guy") talked about technology in performance. And I provided some practical advice about using technology for career development. Hugh took copious notes, which he promises to post soon, and wrote a nice summation of the class on his blog. I must say that even though the topic I presented about had absolutely nothing to do with my instrument, as a saxophonist, infiltrating the inner sanctum of one of the country's most esteemed conservatories was quite exciting. (It remined me of the time I penetrated the walls of the Oberlin brotherhood last spring at Merkin Hall.) The train ride home was pleasant, although I slept most almost all of the way home, waking up at Penn Station.

Back to Tucson tomorrow for a busy week that includes a presentation with DJ Dubble8 for the composition seminar at the UA and an HGP concert on Friday. Then it's off to Austin, TX on Sunday to rehearse with Mike for our performance of Walimai at the 2006 Music Teachers National Association national conference--part of his prize for winning the national composition competition.

Liquid style

Because some people aren't born with it. (Discovered in the washroom facilities at the Curtis Institute of Music.)

Charm City extra

A sampling of some news that caught my attention this week in Charm City:

- Flamboyant Baltimore defense lawyer Warren A. Brown is currently defending himself. The charge? An advertisement for his law practice, displaying his scantily-clad (fifth) wife--a former Miss Black Maryland--in a revealing mid-drift halter, hiked-up skirt, and strappy sandals, seated in a Sharon Stone-esque pose. She's also holding a cigar. And her hand is positioned in such a way around the cigar that it looks like she's giving the world the finger. Brown has entered a not-guilty plea, saying he didn't intend for her to flip the bird, although admitting that it is pretty bad-ass when you think about it. As to the charge of the ad's tastefulness or lack thereof, he offers: "I would challenge anybody to say it is not classy. She's got a Bulgari necklace on. She's got a Cohiba cigar." No link to the ad, but keep your eyes peeled--Brown is looking for a billboard.

- The trial of two Baltimore police officers began last Tuesday in what seems like a scenario straight out of HBO's The Wire. Detectives William A. King and Antonio I. Murray are on trial in U.S. District Court after being accused of conspiring to rob and extort cocaine, heroin, and marijuana--as well as the proceeds from the sale of the drugs--from the suspects they tracked on the mean streets of West Baltimore. Yesterday, a federal jury was treated to the fruits of a seven-month FBI wiretap probe on the detectives' department-issued cell phones, which prosecutors say implicates the officers in the illegal drug ring. The trial resumes on Monday and is expected to last for three more weeks.

- Speaking of The Wire . . . this caught my eye late this afternoon. We know that Season 4 is currently in production with shooting being wrapped up sometime in April, so the sight of that sign seemed to signal their presence somewhere in the immediate westside vicinity. However, a short jaunt through areas you'd expect them to be filming turned up nothing. Because I didn't see any cast or crew around, I thought that maybe the sign wasn't for the series after all--I could have mistaken the font. However, a comparison with official materials online, reveals that my initial hunch was correct.

Springtime in Baltimore

Here and there

I made a quick incursion into Philadelphia yesterday for a performance and question and answer session with Marshall Taylor's saxophone class at Temple University. My original plan was to perform a concert with composer/pianist Michael Djupstrom, since he's currently living in Philly, but alas, he is on a concert tour with his piano trio. As a result, I had to improvise somewhat, playing four pieces with CD playback--J Anthony Allen's Hyperacusis, Memories of Xiaoxiang by Lei Liang, Getting to Know The Weather by Eve Beglarian, and Billie by Jacob ter Veldhuis. It was a good sampling of different sound worlds and compositional possibilities with the medium. The students were extremely attentive and asked many wonderful questions. It was fun to share a bit of what I do with some new folks. Speaking of that, I'd better get going. I'm giving a master class at Morgan State University here in Baltimore in about an hour and a half. And I need to catch a cab.

MIA: Temirkanov

After canceling two weeks of engagements in March with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra following the death of his close friend, composer Andréi Petrov, music director Yuri Temirkanov has now withdrawn from the entirety of a four-week stint with the orchestra.

Voice of an angel

We learn today the sad news that American soprano Anna Moffo passed away last Friday at the age of 73. Her voice, despite its untimely and unfortunate deterioration, was in my mind at least, one of the most beautiful instruments to have ever graced the earth. Her recordings of Villa-Lobos' Bachianas Brasileira No. 5 and Rachmaninov's Vocalise are two of my all-time favorites and among the most haunting and poignant in my library. Known almost equally for her exceptional beauty, Ms. Moffo's passing turns a page in the history of American opera. Philip Kennicott has an appreciation in today's Washington Post.

Need a loan?

Go blue

It's been something of a watershed year for the Universtiy of Michigan School of Music. In January, Leonard Berstein Distinguished Professor of Music Bright Sheng was named the first-ever Composer in Residence with the New York City Ballet. William Bolcom cleaned up at the Grammy Awards. Young female tuba phenom Carol Jantsch sent many running home with their tails between their legs when she won the principal tuba position with the Philadelphia Orchestra. And now this?!