Well, dear readers, last Thursday I got a call asking if I could put together about twenty-five minutes of LA Now and Then for an event that was happening at LACC on the main stage the following Wednesday morning. The event, something to do with free tuition for students, had Vice President Biden’s wife speaking and they wanted entertainment to begin things. I was told the mayor would be there and members of the city council, as well as a lot of press. Of course I said yes and thus began trying to pull all of that together. I began with our musical director, who said he could do it. I then went to Robert Yacko and April Audia, our two guest artists, and they said they could do it. We then decided on a Monday evening rehearsal. We sent a mass e-mail to the students, including two graduated after the show. Everyone said they could do it and were excited to get together again. There was only one person who couldn’t, due to beginning a new job that morning. So, I began figuring out what we’d do and the chair of the department rallied his folks for our needs.
Then Robert had to drop out due to understudy rehearsals for the show he’s understudying at the Taper. But we were still okay as the only group number was the opening and that could be done without the opening narration or I could do the opening narration. I spent a good deal of time on all this over the course of five days. I got everything ready for the rehearsal last night. Then at four o’clock I got a call from the chair of the department saying they’d just cancelled us and nary a reason offered. I know that’s how these people do these kinds of political press fests, but for them to ask us, for us to do all this work, and then for them to cancel without explanation is simply wrong. Nothing to do about it, but it certainly could have been handled better. So we had to make sure everyone knew not to show up and that our performance was not happening, which we did. We had a lot of disappointed kids, who’d been boning up on their numbers. If this is all part of this Mercury in Retrograde in Uranus crap, we’re all TIRED of it, really REALLY tired of it, like knock it the HELL off tired of it. I has spoken.
So, that was annoying. And the rest of yesterday had other annoyances and there wasn’t enough fun stuff to counteract them other than the Indiegogo campaign jumping from 48% to 60% over the course of the day. A mere 40% to go and still three Richard Sherman signed musical quotes left. If those go, then we’re in spitting distance of our goal. I got about seven hours of sleep, didn’t have time to jog, ate an omelet and a bagel for my main meal o’ the day, picked up no packages (the package that was due didn’t arrive until late in the day), and thankfully cast more of the Kritzerland show. I have most of the songs chosen – we still have two people to cast, and we have asks out so hopefully we’ll finish today and that will be that.
I did some writing (but not enough), got the cancellation news, then a Mr. Fix-It Man came to see about the washing machine. There is indeed a broken, rusted pipe that’s the culprit, but he’s not a plumber and so a plumber comes today to deal with that pipe. But I also had him look at the refrigerator. I have one of those things where you get clean, cold water and ice on the front of the thing. That hasn’t worked for eight years. We ascertained that eight years was the last time I changed the water purifier/filter – thankfully there was an extra on in the cupboard so we did that. Then he found there were two plastic hoses leaking and he put new ones in, then cleaned up what was a very dirty bottom of the refrigerator, so now everything is working splendidly and the ice maker is chugging away. That’s a good thing, although the sound is a little unnerving as it happens sporadically.
By the time he left it was already early evening, so I went to Gelson’s and got four really small drumettes and about three ounces of lobster salad, then came home and ate that as my snack – so calorie-wise I was okay. Then dear reader JohnG mentioned that he’d listened to and enjoyed my Sherlock Holmes compilation CD. Since I’d listened to the three big orchestral albums I did with Randy Miller last week, I thought I’d give a listen to all the ones I did with Lanny. I was a staunch defender of them all, despite criticisms, especially for the Sherlock CD. So, I pulled out the Sherlock CD, Sax and Violence, and our Ennio Morricone CD. I haven’t heard any of these for many years.
I began with the Sherlock album. It’s a really good program of music that is, for me, ultimately a failure in terms of its sound. While I’d like to defend it, if I’m truthful it just sounds thin to me – we needed about ten more players and it would have sounded fine. The Lanny albums were recorded the same way we did the singer CDs – in those days, rhythm section first, then horns, then strings, with horns and strings doing two passes of everything, thereby doubling the size of the orchestra. But even doubling, there are tracks where you just want more brass, more reeds and more strings. Eventually, by the time we did the Randy Miller recordings, we had the whole orchestra there at the same time and we had fifty players, which is plenty. If I went back to Sherlock and remixed it I’m sure I could make it better, but it’s just not up to my standards.
Then I listened to Sax and Violence. That is a seriously good album – recorded in the old way with everyone there at different times, but it just works really well. It’s the kind of album I would have loved as a kid. Then I moved on to Ennio Morricone. By the time of that one, I’d learned my lessons from the Sherlock album and we had more musicians and about eighty percent of the Morricone album is really great. The other twenty percent isn’t quite up to snuff. The sound of the Morricone, however, is fantastic. And that was that. I pulled out some other CDs I haven’t listened to since we did them, which is now almost twenty years ago. I’ll report on those as I hear them.
Today we’ll finish casting, I’ll get everyone their music (I’m trying to hear some songs from Tiny Dancer but haven’t found a way yet), and I’ll figure out the show order at some point so I can write the commentary. I’ll eat, jog, hopefully pick up some packages, finish liner notes, then Mr. Plumber will come and fix the pipe and then I’ll relax.
The rest of the week is meetings and meals and going and doing, then I’m seeing a community theater production of Parade on Thursday night and supping before it, and I may have stuff to see on the weekend. And a meeting on Sunday. And a potential dinner on Saturday.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, finish casting, get music out, eat, jog, hopefully pick up packages, write, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite cover versions of film themes and show scores? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, really being very tired of Mercury in Retrograde in Uranus mucking up the universe – just knock it the HELL off.