July 2004 - zorn-list - mailman.xmission.com

Amon Tobim Recs/Hemophiliac Live
by Efrén del Valle 30 Jul '04

30 Jul '04

Hi, Although I listened to some of Tobim's stuff years ago, I couldn't even recognize it now. So I thought that you guys probably can recommend a good album of his for starters. Also, did anybody listen to the new Hemophiliac on Tzadik? My copy is on its way right now but I'm very curious anyway. I've heard several bootlegs and also the limited edition double album and I find the quality to be very variable (of course quite understandably, it's ad hoc improv after all) Thanks a lot in advance. Best, EfrÃ©n del Valle ______________________________________________ Yahoo! lanza su nueva tecnologÃa de bÃºsquedas Â¿te atreves a comparar? http://www.viralbusquedas.yahoo.es

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Cartoon S&M
by Craig Lieske 30 Jul '04

30 Jul '04

The version of "Memento Mori" is a one of my favorite recordings of Zorn's entire catalog... CL _________________________________________________________________ Discover the best of the best at MSN Luxury Living. http://lexus.msn.com/

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music in l.a. til aug 4?
by Acousticlv＠aol.com 30 Jul '04

30 Jul '04

dear zornlisters i'll be in los angeles, long beach, til august 4th. if you know of any interesting gigs, could you write to me offlist? much thanks steve koenig AcousticLv(a)aol.com

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Cecil Taylor- live in NYC
by Perfect Sound Forever 29 Jul '04

29 Jul '04

Really sad that I had to miss the show tonight. Was anyone on the list able to attend? Could you let the rest of us know what we missed? Thanks, Jason Perfect Sound Forever online music magazine http://www.perfectsoundforever.com

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Zorn/Frith
by zsteiner＠butler.edu 29 Jul '04

29 Jul '04

Any know how the Birthday disc of this duo is? Is it basically what is to be expected from the two? Thanks. Zach

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RE: thoughts on Zorn
by Tom Bowden 28 Jul '04

28 Jul '04

------------------------------ Message: 4 Date: Wed, 28 Jul 2004 14:20:25 -0400 From: "Dave Smey" <dsmey(a)mindspring.com> Subject: Re: thoughts on Zorn To: <zorn-list(a)lists.xmission.com> Message-ID: <002c01c474cf$a3c70d00$a31cf7a5(a)mshome.net> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Dave Smey wrote that "Zorn is interesting and appealing because he does seem totally unfiltered and honest, and on the surface he seems to not care what anybody thinks. If you told him you couldn't stand a particular record he made he'd probably say something like "then don't listen to it." This is an appealing image of freedom - freedom for the artist, freedom for the audience. But of course, you have to be particularly successful or antisocial to *afford* this kind of freedom." I would emphasize that phrase "on the surface." Although "Zorn literally claimed that a great piece of art says 'fuck you!' It's quite a different model than, say, art as 'communication,'" it strikes me as absurd and disingenuous for an artist-- particularly one given to performing publicly, writing musical pieces dedicated to friends & influences, and disseminating on a regular basis recordings of said performances and compositions--to say with a sneering tone that he couldn't give a shit what people think of his work. I interviewed William Burroughs back in 1988, and I asked him a question about trying to communicate with an audience, to which he gave me his standard-issue bad boy reply that he didn't write to communicate with others. (His published letters to Ginsberg & Kerouac betray this nonsense: most of "Naked Lunch" was taken from letters he wrote to them.) I asked him if, then, he were stranded on a desert island, would he keep on writing. To which he petulantly responded "that's not fair." Of course it was. I called his bluff. He had something to say, something he believed in. And he said it well. And many people from around the world liked what he had to say--his vision of the world--and how it said it. So why pretend he wasn't flattered? (Part of the tough-guy attitude he had cultivated over the ages. A "kinder, gentler" Burroughs is now emerging from the biographical record, often in Burroughs' own words.) My point is, that unless Zorn is a montrous egomaniac--and I've seen nothing, heard nothing, read nothing that indicates he is--unless he's a monstrous egomaniac, he *does* write and perform to communicate, as does any other artist--painter, writer, musician, etc--who actively seeks a public forum (a gallery, a magazine or book appearance, a concert or CD). Somebody who doesn't care what others think, doesn't listen to what others have to say. It's a form of shouting (like those so-called "debate" programs on TV). Who wants to listen to music like that? Who wants to work in a band under those conditions? That said, I'm sure his priority in writing and performing is to do something that satisfies his own criteria of excellence. Of second priority is probably his hope that others--maybe only his closest friends--will enjoy it, too. More Dave Smey: "Actually, Zorn is one of the few artists I really like who I'll personally forgive for not pleasing me." There are artists--and I count Zorn among them--who, even when they faulter, faulter in interesting ways. I have something like 80 of Zorn's CDs, and I'll be the first to say that not every note is a miracle. But he has good ideas--sometimes unsuccessfully executed. Sometimes he has ideas that probably looked good on paper but which didn't pan out when performed. I think those are valid points to (constructively) criticize; to evaluate a work on the terms it set out for itself and how well it succeeds in (a) meeting those goals and/or (b) being goals that produce interesting work. On the whole, Zorn strikes me as an artist who constantly challenges himself, as a composer and a performer, who finds inspiration all around him (which you can only do if you find the world endless fascinating), who more often than not succeeds in creating works of lasting value and beauty; and who is able to cull from the people who perform with and/or for him their own personal bests. What else can you ask from a guy? Tom Bowden

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Re: thoughts on the Film...
by Efrén del Valle 28 Jul '04

28 Jul '04

--- Olivier Borzeix <oborzeix(a)sympatico.ca> escribiÃ³: > ...and, less cinically, because unexposed art isn't > art. An artist > who's never gonna show, present or somehow expose > anything because he > doesn't want to is simply not an artist even if he's > the truest, has > the best integruty and talent in the world. I can't say I agree with that. A buried Schiele is still an amazing piece of art, even if it's 2km underground, imho. The only problem is that, in such a case, the artist or nature have deprived us from enjoying the painting. > But what about the artists who don't make a living > out of it and who > are choosing it? Would you say, as I heard often > from art historian or > sociologist, that they are not artists just because > they do have a day > job to pay the bills? Absolutely not. Have those historians or sociologists thought about the circumstances under which those guys have to make a living? What forces them to keep a daytime job as the average guy and performing their art at night? I think it's totally inaccurate. Perhaps that's the difference between an amateur and an artist, but in that case I would remove any negative connotations in the word "amateur". They're probably artists who have been underexposed or underrated, but that's not a problem, their work will make millions when they're dead. That makes me think of myself when I was at the university. I thought, I can't understand how all these people with a linguistics degree are bar-tendering, they have to be really, really bad. But the truth is much more bitter and complex than that. How did Van Gogh live? Was Henry Grimes born an artist but took a 40 year-hiatus from that condition to reborn again last year? You are or you are not, regarless of what keeps you busy all day or whatever provides you with a slice of bread, I think. Best, EfrÃ©n del Valle > Olivier > > ______________________________________________ Yahoo! lanza su nueva tecnologÃa de bÃºsquedas Â¿te atreves a comparar? http://www.viralbusquedas.yahoo.es

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The Artist and the Consumer
by Peter Gannushkin 28 Jul '04

28 Jul '04

Hi All, I couldn't resist myself and not to quote Daniil Kharms. Four Illustrations of How a New Idea Disconcerts a Man Unprepared for It 1. WRITER: I'm a writer. READER: In my opinion you're shit! THE WRITER stands for a few minutes, shaken by this new idea, and falls down in a dead faint. He is carried out. 2. ARTIST: I'm an artist. WORKER: In my opinion you're shit! THE ARTIST turns as white as a sheet, sways like a thin reed and unexpectedly expires. He is carried out. 3. COMPOSER: I am a composer. VANYA RUBLYOV: In my opinion you are . . .! THE COMPOSER, breathing heavily, sank back. He is unexpectedly carried out. 4. CHEMIST: I'm a chemist. PHYSICIST: In my opinion you're . . .! THE CHEMIST said not another word and collapsed heavily to the floor. -- All the best, Peter Gannushkin URL: http://downtownmusic.net/

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Zorn DVD
by Craig Lieske 28 Jul '04

28 Jul '04

I really was underwhelmed by the DVD. I felt like that it was sort of an ego trip on the director's part. It just wasn't that interesting, outside of the musical footage.... CL _________________________________________________________________ Is your PC infected? Get a FREE online computer virus scan from McAfee® Security. http://clinic.mcafee.com/clinic/ibuy/campaign.asp?cid=3963

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hips road?
by Shane Brady 27 Jul '04

27 Jul '04

Hello there, Just a matter of curiosity, can anyone tell me what "a project of hips road" is referring to? probably been asked here before but I saw no mention of it on the FAQ. --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? New and Improved Yahoo! Mail - 100MB free storage!

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