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| (The Bricks) (Midi Realization) (OTHER ITEMS) |
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Thoughts and Contemplations |
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"Who is John Galt" "In everything that can be called Art, there is a quality of redemption." Raymond Chandler, The Simple Art Of Murder "That which does not destroy us only makes us stronger." Nietzsche "Many secrets of Art and Nature are thought by the unlearned to be magical." Sir Francis Bacon (Attributed erroneously to Arthur C. Clarke) "We have got them exactly where they want us." Star Trek, The Motion Picture Ultimately, one's religion is not a predisposed genetic inheritance. "Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." Berthold Auerbach "It has become appallingly clear that our technology has surpassed our humanity." Albert Einstein "It is what you learn after you know it all that counts." President Harry Truman "I suppose, in some far removed eternity to come, the most important matters of our destinies will only be a flash of light in someone else's sky." Jimmy Webb What is it about death that motivates people to want to have sex after a funeral? "Laughter is a social sanction against inflexible behavior." Bergson, French philosopher |
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April, 2011 |
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John
W. Raley Chapel. That wonderful edifice and memorial to the man who
turned Oklahoma Baptist University into the institution that stands
today. It seats over 3000 people, has a steeple that landmarks the
school for miles, and has hosted the likes of Jimmy Webb and Thelma
Houston as well as concerts by the university’s musical and drama
groups. But
for many years, it contained a major flaw. The
Bricks. The
podium in the chapel was permanent at that time. It could not be moved
for concerts and presentations. And it was always visible. The most
noticeable part of the podium was a cutout in its lower portion. Lit day
and night were three bricks, encased in concrete and a metal container.
They were like a deity, staring at everyone who entered the building and
sat in its seats. Only occasionally was this icon ever covered and that
was mainly due to a presentation or concert or some such happening. The
three bricks were purported to include one from the first Baptist church
built in Oklahoma, another one from the original home of Mrs. Raley, and
finally one from John Raley’s original home. In
late 1968, The Bricks were stolen. When
everyone entered for chapel services the day after it happened, the
black hole where they once resided was quite obvious. The light was
turned off. Rumors flew. After a few days, it was said that so-and-so
did it or that such-and-such a group did it. None of these rumors were
correct. I
know who did it because I was one of the people who planned and executed
the removal. I will not name names here without permission. And I only
make this admission now because of the amount of time that has passed,
that no repercussions toward me or the others are possible. And there
was a surprise ending to the whole affair. When
the Chapel was built, the basement area was not complete except for the
band room and some storage. I discovered that it was possible to get
inside the chapel after hours, late at night, by leaving one of the high
windows around the basement unlocked. Then I (along with others) would
sneak into the building. Our
early purpose was to get to the tower and sit outside on the ledge of
the tower on warm nights. How did we get into the tower? There is/was an
unlocked access point in the one of the hallways that went up to the
organ loft. From there, it was possible climb a ladder up to the
catwalks above the auditorium to a door in the lower part of the tower.
From there, it was just a climb up a ladder and opening one of the tower
windows. One
night, I realized there was an accessible area under the stage and
podium. To my amazement, I could see The Bricks and that they were
installed with just a couple of pieces of wood. When I told a couple of
the other soon-to-be conspirators, we decided to remove The Bricks. A
group of about 7 of us entered late one night and literally slid The
Bricks out of their position. One person was designated to take them and
hide them someplace where none of the rest of us would find them,
leaving only one person vulnerable. When we did this in the chapel that
night, we had to stop our work when the campus cop made his rounds,
waiting quietly as he passed below us. Time
passed and the Christmas break arrived. We all left for home, except for
the person hiding The Bricks. During that break, the news broke
state-wide that Raley had died. All of us were struck with real guilt.
The person holding The Bricks placed them on Dean Osborne’s front
porch one night. The
Bricks were returned to their original place in the podium. Our
guilt dissipated with time, especially when we learned that Raley could
not have known about the missing bricks before his death. Curiosity got
the best of us. Two of us went into the building late one night and
discovered that nothing had been done to prevent the removal of The
Bricks again. So we put a plan together and removed them once more. Since
it was one of those religious focus weeks of attending chapel every day,
we also unsoldered every microphone connection in the floors. And we
replaced the audio tape in the tower that played the Westminster chimes
with a tape of the Beatles. This particular item did not work and our
fear was that the tape might be traced back to me. It never happened.
One microphone connection was reactivated in time for Chapel the next
day. This
time, we held The Bricks for several weeks before returning them. The
hole in the podium was boarded up to match the rest of the wood. When
returned, The Bricks were moved to the library where I assume they still
reside today. One
other prank that we pulled off was taking the campus cop’s car on a
cold night and moving it to another location just off campus. The car
was left running with the keys in the ignition every night back behind
the chapel while the cop made his rounds inside the building. It was
just too easy. And it took 3 days for them to locate the car –
something that was hidden in plain sight. Now,
before I and the unnamed others get accused with all sorts of nasty
names and such, the story has an ending that will surprise everyone. I
know that what we did could be considered as a college prank or as an
act of theft. Accepted! But what we did not know was how far reaching
the effects of the theft of The Bricks had spread. Many
years later, as my parents were in their retirement years, I told them
this story. It must be understood that both my parents attended OBU back
in the 1940’s when Raley was the University’s president. My father
was a well-known minister in the state and became part of the church’s
hierarchy later. My mother was a known librarian and teacher as well. I
did not expect the reaction from them that I received. Silence.
Then
Dad spoke these words: “We always wanted to thank the person that
stole The Bricks.” I was stunned. But his and my mother’s
explanation was revealing. Most everyone among Southern Baptists in the
state hated those bricks and thought they sat there like some kind of
idol, not a memorial. Entering the building and seeing them there was
like having to pray before some entity. Everyone wanted them removed but
no one was brave enough to say so publicly. Again, they thanked me for
having been part of this caper and for telling them the story.
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November 22, 2006 |
| "MIDI Realization" |
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Two
words that have become almost obscene to the music world. Therefore, any recording or
performance or Bach’s keyboard music should be rejected unless it has
been ‘realized’ on a harpsichord; Bach did not write for piano and
did not like the 2 or 3 that he encountered during his life. Beethoven
was upset that much of his keyboard music could not be played on the new
pianos of his day because the ‘strength’ of his writing was damaging
these ‘weak’ instruments; he was writing for 'future' pianos. And
finally, please verify that the instruments in any orchestra performing
Wagner’s music include Wagnerian tubas and horns. (Perhaps we should even get
rid of Liszt's piano transcriptions of Wagner's music, only because it
is Liszt!) Many argued back in the 1970's
that placing home video recorders, affordable cameras, and later,
computer editing programs into the hands of the public would, in the
end, produce an explosion of product that was artistically lacking. And
it did. But this also lead to changes in the art of filmmaking itself as
more and more creative people were able to experiment with what had been
an expensive and time-consuming endeavor. Of course there are hundreds
of really bad films and videos being produced. |
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On Mediocrity: But it was killed off quickly. The music academies of the world could not break this kind of music down into rules for writing it, thus depriving music teachers of something to teach. And the rapid changes in technology precluded any passionate push into experimentation. Suddenly, people could listen to whatever they wanted to hear at the push of button on a computer or home stereo. And all of those want-to-be ‘classical’ composers jumped on their computers and starting producing some of the most mediocre music ever heard. Oh, the John Adams of the world have produced some interesting pieces. But if you listen to the most recent winners and runner-ups in the Masterprize contest, you wonder what century you are living in. Move to the commercial side of music and there is nothing to listen to that hasn’t already be written and copied at least 4 times over. Those circles of fifths are completely worn out. And anyone can chant some gangsta rap to a rhythm loop. During the
short life span of mp3.com, I had some of my music listed for listening.
Occasionally, I would peruse the classical listings in search of hope,
only to find John Tesh sound-a-likes and Brahms want-to-bes. It was
depressing. There was one ‘musician’ from Music as we know it, based on those 7 precious notes and their 5 other related tones, is dying. There is little more we can do with the sounds of the current instruments. And no one wants to experiment with other sounds sources as we once did in the 60’s and 70’s. I am so afraid of trying to write any more music because every attempt starts to feel like a derivative of something or someone else. And when I do start writing something new, I fear that it has already been said and I have to inquire of myself whether or not I have the ability to say it any better. If the record companies bemoan their dropping sales, they have only to look at the mediocre products, not the constant illegal downloading and file sharing of their products. The music these companies produce is mediocre and bland and derivative. Not even new, dynamic voices can raise the level of the shit that they sing. |
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ON RELIGION: There are no gods. There never have been and never will be. Sorry, I am wrong. There are only the gods that men have created as needed for themselves. And those needs are always draped around the desire for control. The greatest event in the current history of man was the invention of the printing press. The greatest fear of the world’s religions at that time was the invention of the printing press. Education is the largest and most constant threat to organized religions. As author, Arthur C. Clarke once said, “Religion is the most malevolent and persistent of all mind viruses. We should get rid of it as quick as we can.” No one has ever given me a reason for there to be a god. Every major war has been
a result of people arguing over whose religion or god was better. More
people have been killed, cultures destroyed and wars fought over a
religious disagreement. And it is even truer today. I refuse to
acknowledge St. Patrick’s Day as I refuse to acknowledge a nation at war
with itself over religion. I refuse to acknowledge the great feat of |
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On Music Schools: When I was taking piano lessons back in the early 1960’s, my teacher not only taught me piano playing but music theory as well. When I entered my senior year in high school, I had to take music theory in order that I might graduate with a music emphasis. When I entered college, I was excused from first year music theory because of my piano teacher and high school theory teacher. Since then, I have forgotten most of what I was taught then and later in graduate school. Why? On the first day of high school music theory class, the teacher, an older lady with good intentions, delivered the following line: “There are rules for writing all music.” Since I was already writing music, I raised my hand and said, there are no rules for writing music. She retorted by saying that in her class, there were rules for writing music and there would be no more discussion on the matter. I shut up and got an A in the course. After 6 years of undergraduate and graduate music courses and 35 years experience outside the hollowed walls of academia, I can truthfully and honestly say that there are no rules for writing music. There never have been and never will be. Music theory as taught in the public and private educational system is nothing but a set of generalities disguised as rules to explain how some ancient music is constructed. And for every rule, hundreds of exceptions can be found. There have been dozens of attempts to explain, with words and symbols, what a piece of music sounds like. They all fail. I remember one graduate level class at Eastman that taught the Hanson method of detailing the sound of chords. It was the most outlandish idea I had ever seen but was taught only because the school’s chancellor had thought it up. But music schools must teach something because they cannot teach talent. Music history is useful as long as it is correct, up to date and in perspective. As a junior in college, I was taking the required music history course. Toward the end of the year, we started learning about the 20th century. The teacher stated that Shostakovich had written 9 symphonies. In a moment of exuberance, I raised my hand and pointed out that we had listened to Shostakovich’s 13th Symphony the night before in the dorm. The teacher looked at me and the rest of the class and said that Shostakovich had only written 9 symphonies and any other answer on a test would be graded as wrong. The ingrate! Music schools lie. They are required to. If they didn’t, then they would have very few students and would go out of business. And there would be nothing for all of those people who graduated from their schools to do since most of them go on to teach as well -- or drive UPS trucks. Music – like all of the arts –is a passion. And it cannot be broken down into a set of dated rules. No originality has ever come from rules. Originality comes from breaking the rules. It makes no difference whether we are discussing music performance, music education, music composition, etc. Bach broke the ‘rules’. Beethoven broke the ‘rules’. Mozart broke the ‘rules’. Stravinsky, Wagner, Lutoslawski, Cage. All of them broke the ‘rules’. A little theory, as long as it is presented as theory, not law, gives perspective. But music is an aural experience. You listen to music. You do not write words about it despite the critics who abound in this world. That is another subject in itself. Music composition cannot be taught. It can be guided and pushed but the teacher’s ideas are always going to be subjective, just like any other listener. |
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On
Fathers and Sons: When people find out that my father was a Southern Baptist minister and that I am an atheist (god, I hate that word!), they invariably ask what went wrong? Nothing, you moron. I am not my father. It seems that there is this idea that a son should be like his father and do what his father did. If this was true in the history of man, then there would be no Einsteins, or Edisons, or Jesuses, or Lincolns or Fords or Gates or Washingtons, or Buddhas, no curiosity, no questions, no advancements, no cures, no ideas. And we would all still be living in caves, without fire, with a lifespan of less than 30 years. Dads, deal with it. Your sons and daughters are not you. And to expect otherwise will take you down a road of anger and frustration from which you will not recover. On growing up: There is no separation of Church and State in a minister’s home. The Constitution is suspended. |
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On
Religion: There is no difference between true communism and organized religion. Both require everyone to act, look, think, and speak the same. The scene is two men in a park. The first man has been walking around, reading a Bible. The second man is sitting at a table, reading a newspaper. The first man approaches the second saying, “God has spoken to me and told me to tell you about the word of God.” The second man looks up in surprising, saying, “During my morning prayers, God told me to be cautious of men in the park claiming to speak in his name.” Who is telling the truth? |
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After arriving at work tonight, I had a bombshell dropped on me. I edit all of the interstitial material between movies for the Fox Movie Channel, a division of the Fox Television. This interstitial material contains the previews and teases for movies on the network, movie trailers for coming theatrical films, and various other movie moments and interviews. Tonight, I received a phone call from the network saying that they were going to remove all movies from their broadcasts that contained the word “fuck”. “Shit” is sure to follow. The powers-that-be at FMC are worried about the FCC’s new rulings and fines for television content deemed to be indecent. Their problem is that in some markets, they are a free channel (since when is any cable or satellite station ‘free’). In other markets, customers pay extra. It is in those ‘free’ markets that they fear the wrath of people who do not want to hear the seven filthy words. This means that great films such as "The French Connection" cannot be shown. (It also means that mentally deficient films such as "Capone" will not be shown – no loss there). The powers that run FMC are cowards. Are we going to face going before the Supreme Court one more time to have them decide that they have already decided what is indecent or obscene? Not unless someone or some company decides to challenge the state of siege that the Bush/Ashcroft administration has made on media and art. A large segment of the American population has decided that it is the Federal Government’s responsibility to protect them and their families from licentious fare, unable to take responsibility for their own lives. They can watch the movie trailers and movie ratings and decide what films they will see or allow their children to see. They can read reviews and book covers to decide what they will read or allow their children to read. But when it comes to television, they refuse to take responsibility. They are just plain lazy. And so the Fox Movie Channel has decided to hide from a very necessary fight and just not allow people to think for themselves and act on their own, thus depriving the rest of us the choice to watch or not. And this is not the first time that they have bowed to public pressure. Once again, a ‘statue’ has been covered because her breasts were showing. |