Active Life

“If you’re not having fun, you’re doing something wrong.”
- Groucho Marx

I am creating four large projects: a lessons website, a dvd, a cd, and a novel. All of them are progressing well but it makes for a busy day.

The CD

Blair Mackay and I are co-producing the next Evergreen Club recording. Its a collection of songs, mostly from Bandung.

He and I have been collaborating since 1985, starting with Mosaic, then Evergreen Club, and Pirate Jenny. We’ve produced a lot of good music and we’re still working together. I think it’s because we love music, we understand each other, and we’re both from Montreal.

Plus he’s a fabulous musician who is a producer at heart. That’s more of an over-viewer than a details person like myself. He sees things from above. Or, maybe it’s from behind since he’s a drummer first and foremost. Strong aesthetic, open, and great ears.

Tina Jandela
- River Love

I arranged Mang Koko’s Tina Jandela for solo kacapi (20 string plucked zither). It’s on Evergreen Club’s Naxos recording. Here’s what the solo version sounds like, with a little percussion at the end.

Since then I have arranged it to include a variety of instruments, like suling (bamboo flute), gambang (marimba), guitar, and voice.

Right now

I am recording the most recent arrangement. There are eleven different parts. One is a recording of a favorite spot of mine on the Don River. It flows in and out of the song.

Sibelius Version

This audio file below was created in Sibelius notation software. It’s meant as a sketch of what the piece might sound like. The sounds are reminiscent of the instruments they’re pretending to be. Except an oboe sound is meant to invoke the singing of Jennifer Moore.

You have to use your imagination to get a sense of what I have in mind. The piece starts with the sound of a river, a kacapi groove comes in and Jennifer sings a short tune. The group enters. At 2:17 there is a nine bar section that loops: Jennifer sings “la, la la, la, la, le parapluie bleu” on one track while she improvises on another. She recorded her parts a few weeks ago. It sounds great.

Tina Jandela LYRICS

Jennifer Intro
there’s life still in these fallen trees
and oh, the river’s song is deep.
it’s a slow dance upon the green,
i open the latch, a step between.

and morning awakes,
lingering tender,
like you, my love.

Verse

Tina Jandela there’s a blue umbrella
Slow dancing in the streets children run to greet it.
Tina Jandela je vois une femme très belle
slow dance in the street le parapluie bleu.

PS

The hiss you hear represents the River Recording.

Have a Listen, see what happens.