concert last night
Robert and I played two improvisations last night at Mills College, and unlike Robert I felt like they were stronger than what we did at the Lab last week. In my experience I can never tell until I listen to the recordings. The suspended Meyer speakers in the large concert hall create a diffuse sound bubble with very little control of direct sound projection. For what I do, using less pointillistic sounds, the diffusion only helps. For others like Robert I'm sure it's a bit of an obstacle. But still the sound quality produced by the system in that room is pretty top notch. Overall the performances last night were riveting: Joel Ryan gave a sparkling and ultra-tight remix of Evan Parker samples. Laetetia Sonami presented a very introspective and powerful piece. At the end she brought out a large metal antenna, seeming to control the music while divining for signals in the air. Michel Waisvisz blazed through a sweeping musical collage that was so tight, so on. He was in top form. The audience was interesting as well, a few people I recognized: Bob Ostertag, Otomo Yoshihide, Ikue Mori, and James McCartney. All in all it was a very cool night.