SOlo CoNCeRt at the 440 Gallery: Next Sunday!

On Sunday, April 2, 2017, at 4:40 pm at the 440 Gallery at 440 6^th Avenue in Brooklyn (Do you see a pattern here?),  I will be performing works from my new solo recording Sopranoville: New Works for Prepared and Non-Prepared Saxophone. This performance is a part of the “Me, Myself, and I” solo concert series presented by Michel Gentile. And I have to say, I'm really excited and really nervous about the release of this CD.  Over the past few years, I've gotten used to rattling the cage-of-conventionality. But now, I've taken that cage, thrown it on the ground and kicked it a few times. It's been fun pushing my own limits. However, I'm still amazed at how scary the thought of releasing the results of these new limits into the world are.

Just to give you an idea of what I'm talking about: During the final session, I recorded one piece titled "Micro-Suite for 15 Sopranos, " which on the surface sounds pretty insane. One soprano without accompaniment sounds strange enough,  but 15 is over the top. And there were a few moments while listening to the playback where I thought, "Wow, this is new territory." Not necessarily good territory, but certainly new. And it's scary to think that over-dubbing 15 sopranos will someday be my normal. In some ways,  I guess it already is. 

Thanks to my recent NYFA fellowship, I was afforded the resources to go into the studio five or six times from August of 2016 to November of 2016, with no tunes, no written notes, and no idea of what I was going to record. My only agenda was to have fun--which I did. Exploring the concept of prepared soprano was new for me. But it is quickly becoming my new normal.

And I realize that the soprano sax played in a conventional way can be a bit much for people, so I can only imagine the response to hearing the soprano altered (or prepared) by attaching aluminum foil to the bell or covering the opening the neck with scotch tape and punching small holes inside for bursts of air to escape through. Pretty wild stuff. Certainly a creative framework I'd like to explore further.

But it was wonderful to be able to compile these several hours of sonic exploration and adventure into a full-length CD. I went into this recording thinking that it might be my last one for a while. But who knows, maybe I have a few more left in me. I guess only time will tell.

And once again, the set at 440 Gallery begins at 4:40 PM. Copies of my new CD will also be available. Maybe I'll even sell them for $4.40 per CD! OK. You can STOP laughing now!