For the past few weeks, I've had 15 songs up on my wall, each with a list of what needs to be done to really get to the core of the song. Each day I've been taking songs down, building introductions, defining the mood for each, adding new sections, adding additional verses of lyrics, and more. It's hard; sometimes I feel like the wall is winning haha, but at least I can check off one item here and there as the days go by, and that helps me not to feel overwhelmed. That and allowing it to be a process that may take many months til I get to where I am really happy with the end result.
One of my goals in moving to NY was to focus on my pieces and to spend the bulk of 2007 getting really specific with my songs -- and get to that place where I really felt like it was as specific as say Matthew Barney is with his artwork. I don't want to express the same things as Matthew Barney, that's not my goal, but I can appreciate how insanely specific each and every piece he creates is and it opens my mind to how far my pieces could go if I take them beyond the sketch level, beyond the jazz format, to tell the stories to their fullest capacity.
While the process of getting more specific has been challenging, it has also been exciting and makes me even more excited to share the progress at each stage. For New Yorkers, please join me in a few weeks when I perform these newly refined pieces:
Feb. 28
8pm
Michelle performing original songs w/
Art Hirahara (keyboard), Thomas Morgan (bass), Tim Bulkley (drums).
Smooch Organic Wine Bar & Cafe
264 Carlton @ DeKalb, Brooklyn, NY
Directions, Map, Menu
Being in NY is great fuel for getting specific. There are so many people who are advanced technically that it's a great reminder not to be lazy with your artwork; that there is room, time, and energy to perfect something and make it the best it can be. My friend Art Hirahara was particularly inspirational with regards to getting specific with my pieces - thank you Art! Looking forward to performing in a few weeks!
Friends are good inspiration. :) I recently saw an installation by an artist friend from SF, Oliver Halsman, recently at Little Cakes. Unfortunately you can't experience it live anymore, but check out the pictures & press release. The installation, Dada for Grandma, was dedicated to his Grandmother, Yvonne Halsman, an amazing person who cared for fostering new art and seemed to embrace life in the best way. It was cool, you would sit on her exercise bike, which she apparently used everyday, and it would make a prayer wheel of artworks spin in front of you as you peddled. My description doesn't relay how cool it was, but maybe it will come back a second time and you'll be able to experience it. Anyhow, thanks Oliver - hope to see you in person soon. He's got an installation running in SF at New Langton Arts through Feb. 24. He also has a cool project that he's co-created called the Instant Drawing Machine that you can participate in around the world.
Another inspiration for taking my work to the next level has been ETHEL, a group that I am working for as Development Director. They are good peeps, and it's been a great learning experience to work with them, to learn how they deal with challenges, what they strive for as performers, and compositionally to be exposed to such specific string arrangements and compositions -seriously, if you are not experienced in writing for strings (or even if you are!) and you want exposure to just how creative strings can be in both performance and composition? Check them out - they are playing this Thursday in NYC, and they will be giving it their all like never before - I'm looking forward to it.
Anyhow, talk to you all later :)
Michelle
P.S. If you are watching TV right now Noon on Sunday - Sarah Vaughan - piece on ABC - opened up with her singing "What are you doing the rest of your life?"...:)
