Haines His Way

MOVING VIBES to DR GINNY!

Friday morning greetings!  Today's a self-declared casual day - I'm in my cleaning & moving clothes for the big cubicle switcheroo.

Someone at my office (not me) is also moving from one cubicle to another. Must be a trend. Now I just have to remember that she moved on Monday morning when I deliver printouts to her desk.

Methinks said sculpture will stay in our minds. Is it on one of Jose's walking-and-eating tours yet?

Why, yes, it is.  There is a matching "wife" sculpture on the other side of the atrium lobby.  There's nothing to rub there, but a lot of people opt for the rear-view photo opportunity.

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CONGRATS TO DR JOSE!!
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Last night, my accompanist (Matt Brown) and I got together for a nearly three hour session, in which we attempted to nail the twenty or so songs constituting a new cabaret.  We ate no ham chunks.  We did however, sans music, do an impromptu "I Can't Help Falling In Love" (key of E-flat) which we may just add to this little cabaret.  Last night was the first time I tried to sing all of these songs without looking at lyric pages or sheet music, with many new lyrics made up on the spot.  
I believe that the hardest piece, memory wise, that we're working on is Rodgers & Hammerstien's "I Am Going to Like it Here," which just goes off in its own directions lyrically and melody-wise.  The melody I've got, it's just those darned words. . .

Following the get-together, I watched a most excellent film on dvd, entitled, THE HONEYMOON KILLERS.  Criterion did a great job with the film, which has a remarkable performance by Shirley Stoler and a compelling performance from Tony LoBianca.  Based on a true 1940s series of murders, the film is starkly photographed in black and white, features a score from Gustave Mahler (!) and is just plainly one of the best films of the late 1960s early 1970s.  I'm glad that I finally caught up with it.  Now, I'll also seek out DEEP CRIMSON and LONELY HEARTS which are both based on the same true tale.

Then, I must have slept in a bad position, for I have a major muscular pain in my neck, which a massaging showerhead somewhat relieved, and which, hopefully, a Tiger Balm patch will alleviate while I'm working.

Great news DR Jose.

Someone on a theater chat board just saw fit to comment on a second posting of our press release (have no idea why it was there again, but always happy to see it) - mind you, there was also a second posting of the Such Good Friends release right below ours.  He didn't comment on that so it's an LA person with an agenda - he says he saw the show and it was "marginally entertaining".  That's fine, but why comment with "we've seen this press release why do you keep posting it" - twice doesn't mean they keep posting it, but if they want to, who am I to say boo?   This is why once we get near performances, I will NOT be visiting these chat boards - too many people with agendas who are just waiting.  And since I was at the show every night in LA, and I know the LA people who post on the board I know who this is - and if he does it again, I'll just let everyone else know.  And it's funny that he didn't post after he actually saw the show.

I'm waiting for the tub-resurfacing guy to show up and resurface the bathtub. He didn't sound too organized on the phone. Let's hope it goes well. Replacing the tub and shower just isn't an option.

DR Cillaliz, re: BIG BROTHER

No, i don't consider howie anything like dick donato. Howie was a goof, who was occasionally mean.  Yes a couple of times he was a bully.  But he taunted whats-her-name.  Dick has abused and threatened a bunch of people.  Dick is way more abusive than howie.

Otherwise, Thanks for the continued Congrats regarding my potential conducting duties over at Mary Poppins.  I'd say the earliest I'd ever get on the podium would not be until sometime in November, and, frankly, I don't think I'd be comfortable getting on the podium - with a stick in my hand - until sometime in November.  Late November.

However, after observing last night, from my stand point at least, it would be an easier show for me to conduct than it would be to play.  There are just a LOT of notes in the Keyboard 2 book - I don't even want to think of tackling the Key 1 book at all right now - and having to coordinate the MIDI piano technology is quite the feat in itself.  But that's where I'll have to start off.  *And, thankfully, by playing the rehearsal book, that should make learning the Key 2 book a little easier.  In the meantime, I'll have to brush up my scales and arpeggios.

But conducting the show is by no means an easy feat.  With all the dance sections in the show, there's a lot of tempos that have to be locked into my body.  Additionally, there's a ton of rubato - give and take of the tempo - throughout most of the musical numbers in the show.  And there's a lot of music.

I'd have to say it would be one of those situations where if I were called in an emergency situation to conduct the show sooner than later - say, like tomorrow (which I'm not) - that that would be "easier" to do than conducting the show a few weeks from now.  I'd just have no time to be scared.  Well, I would be, but I seem to have a knack for dealing with last-minute musical emergencies.  There's just no time to think of the (possible) mistakes I could make.

-Does that make sense?

-Does that make sense?

In a word:  YES.

However, there's no remedy for any young children sitting in the front row and peering into the pit, sighting THE ENABLER holding a stick.  

DR Jose - allow me to add my congrats for your impending Poppins gig!

Signing off for now - it's about time to move the computer (Jared's going to help me).

DR Cillaliz, yes in Canada we get all the major US stations (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC...).  The only channels we don't get are HBO (although if you buy the movie network here they carry those shows), US Bravo (Canadian bravo has their own list of shows) and channels like that.

So if i remember i will be watching the POWER of 10 on tuesday (although i actually think this show is also carried on a canadian station).

I am very curious to see who won. You'd think in a one on one it would be daniele.  But amber was mentioning talking to her cousin. So she might have been the one of the two to go forward.

Actually if it is between these two, i hope amber actually gets some money (for her daughter).

Good morning, fellow Dear Readers.

But I guess I should go ahead and make my appointment at the hairdresser now.