And now for something completely different...

[cuttime]

Almost makes me long for High School again:

http://dangerousminds.net/comments/bada ... n_and_othe

[Shooshie]

Almost makes me long for High School again:

http://dangerousminds.net/comments/bada ... n_and_othe

I always wanted to play in an orchestra. When I was a kid, Marian Gagliano played sax in the band, and I thought if I played sax, I could sit by her. Well, in no time at all I was 1st chair, and she was last. That didn't work out, but I found myself becoming proficient at an instrument, so I stayed with it. Then I found out that band was pretty much end-of-the-line for saxophone players. I absolutely hated marching band. I think that was fueled by a profound hatred of the sport with which it's associated: that of moving a ball up and down a field while wearing armor and trying to see how many concussions you can get before you can't remember your name. Naturally, I gravitated toward any orchestral parts I could get, and ultimately was able to play the sax in a large number of orchestras, with recordings on RCA, Tel-Arc, and others. But I was always a visitor in the orchestra, no matter how many times I went back. I got to play sax in chamber music, on stage as soloist, touring all over the US, in studios, and a lot of incredibly wonderful situations, but I've always been haunted by the sound of concert bands and especially marching bands, which are the "real" homes of the saxophone. That is one part of high school I really did not enjoy. Unsubtle things like pitch, dynamics, and control over the instrument just make HS bands unbearable. I did enjoy my friends in the band, of course, but musically it was no picnic. Nevertheless, I do still enjoy the sax, no matter its origins. And when the mood strikes me, I do like good recordings of marches. The military bands combine orchestral musicianship with military precision and turn the march into an art form. But that mood doesn't strike often.

Shoosh

[HCMarkus]

John Cleese was on Conan last night.

[cuttime]

I think I heard Frank Zappa arranging some of these tunes in absentia.