sounds of Chicago
Here’s one of my favorite drummers, leading his own band, playing his own compositions.
Michael Zerang & The Blue Lights, live, Germany (Dortmund), 2015*
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lagniappe
art beat: other day, Art Institute of Chicago
Joseph Cornell (1903-1972), Untitled (Hôtel de la Duchesse-Anne), 1957
*****
*MZ, drums, compositions; Dave Rempis, saxophones; Emil Strandberg, trumpet; John Dikeman, saxophones; Kent Kessler, bass.
only rock ‘n’ roll
La Luz, live, Iceland (Reykjavik), 2014
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lagniappe
art beat: other day, Art Institute of Chicago
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858), Descending Geese, c. 1830
never enough
Frederic Chopin (1810-1849), 24 Preludes; Ivan Moravec (1930-2015), piano
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lagniappe
art beat: yesterday, Art Institute of Chicago
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858), The Monkey Bridge in Winter
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*Tracklist (courtesy of YouTube):
00:00 1 Agitato – C major
00:53 2 Lento – A minor
02:53 3 Vivace – G major
03:59 4 Largo – E minor
06:36 5 Molto allegro – D major
07:15 6 Lento assai – B minor
09:42 7 Andantino – A major
10:44 8 Molto agitato – F-sharp minor
12:51 9 Largo – E major
14:05 10 Molto allegro – C-sharp minor
14:42 11 Vivace – B major
15:32 12 Presto – G-sharp minor
16:47 13 Lento – F-sharp major
20:23 14 Allegro – E-flat minor
20:47 15 Sostenuto – D-flat major (“Raindrop”)
26:48 16 Presto con fuoco – B-flat minor
27:58 17 Allegretto – A-flat major
31:35 18 Molto allegro – F minor
32:28 19 Vivace – E-flat major
33:51 20 Largo – C minor
35:24 21 Cantabile – B-flat major
37:22 22 Molto agitato – G minor
38:12 23 Moderato – F major
39:10 24 Allegro appassionato – D minor
never enough
Miles Davis (with Wayne Shorter, tenor saxophone; Herbie Hancock, piano; Ron Carter, bass; Tony Williams, drums), live, Italy (Milan), 1964*
Listening to Tony Williams never fails to leave me feeling lighter.
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lagniappe
art beat: other day, Art Institute of Chicago
Arshile Gorky (1904-1948), The Plough and the Song, 1946-47
*****
*Setlist (courtesy of YouTube):
1. Autumn Leaves 0:43
2. My Funny Valentine 14:34
3. All Blues 26:22
4. All of You 40:03
5. Joshua 50:41
old school
Gospelaires of Dayton, Ohio, “Feel the Spirit,” live, Europe, 1966
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lagniappe
random sights
this morning, Chicago (Columbus Park)
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reading table
Talk is a way of not looking.
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Nothing speaks for itself.
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Most of the people you know are almost mad.
—Ann Lauterbach (1942-), Many Times, But Then (1979), fragments (“Then Suddenly,” “The White Sequence”)
two takes
“I Hate to See You Go” (AKA “Hate to See You Go”) (W. Jacobs)
Rolling Stones, Blue & Lonesome, 2016
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Little Walter, 1955
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lagniappe
art beat: other day, Art Institute of Chicago
Vasily Kandinsky (1866-1944), Painting with Green Center, 1913
*****
reading table
BRIDGEPORT, CT—Thinking back on how happy and untroubled he had been during that time and how different he feels in the present day, local man Jason Moulton, 52, reportedly paused Wednesday and nostalgically recalled the simpler era of 20 hours ago. “Everything seemed so much brighter back then before 9 p.m. last night—nothing like the way things are now,” said Moulton, wistfully reflecting on how, back before yesterday evening, things had seemed to make sense and the future appeared to hold endless promise. “America was a different place all those hours ago. Things were safer then, and the economy was strong—it was just a better time. But it’s all gone downhill ever since. We just don’t have the same values anymore.” Moulton then reportedly shook his head and said that while he would love for the country to get back to the good old days of November 8 and earlier, realistically he knew that would never happen.
—The Onion, “Man Nostalgic For Simpler Era Of 20 Hours Ago,” 11/9/16
more
Toru Takemitsu (1930-1996), Rain Tree Sketch II (1992); Hélène Grimaud (piano), live, Water, 2016
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lagniappe
art beat: other day, Art Institute of Chicago
Vasily Kandinsky (1866-1944), Landscape with Two Poplars, 1912
sui generis
Sculpture, “Untitled,” 2016
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lagniappe
random sights
other day, Oak Park, Ill. (Trumpenstein)
*****
baseball: Chicago Cubs
. . . Cleveland leads this World Series 3-2, but it feels very close—like, as close to tied as it can be without being, you know, actually tied.
—Thomas Boswell, Washington Post, 10/31/16
Repetitive?
Yes.
Boring?
Not to these ears.
William Basinski, Watermusic II, 2003
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Chicago (Columbus Park)
*****
baseball: Chicago Cubs
Now, it’s onto Cleveland, with a confident team, a DH in [Kyle] Schwarber, [Aroldis] Chapman knowing he’s capable of going longer than two innings, and a “Rocky’’ tape stuffed in their equipment bag.
“The boys are feeling real good right now,’’ said [Anthony] Rizzo, who was impersonating Rocky Balboa with shadow-boxing before the game, even playing the “Rocky’’ theme as his walk-up music before his first at-bat. “We had a good time in here before the game. We’re going the bout. We’re going the distance.
“We’re bought in.
“And we believe in it.’’
—Bob Nightengale, USA Today, 10/31/16
tonight in Chicago
He’ll be playing at Constellation.
Wadada Leo Smith (trumpet) with John Edwards (bass), Mark Sanders (drums), live, Latvia (Riga), 2014
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lagniappe
art beat: yesterday at the Art Institute of Chicago
Henri Matisse (1869-1954), The Geranium, 1906
music clip of the day 