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Brent and I spent the whole 4 1/2-hour bus ride to New York watching Stargate. It was a good trip. Eric met us at 34th and 8th and led us down the Q to his house in Brooklyn, where we squeed over the two new Toby Twining songs he had; he played us the midis and we watched the score go by. Brent, I think, was a little overwhelmed, but he was very interested in the notation and, of course, impressed by the sound and concept. Eric kindly explained some of the issues that arise in extended JI, and let me sing along a bit with the midi. They're gorgeous, and I think he said there are more, and this is the new Toby project. :D
We walked Brent and his cello through Prospect Park to the other side, where his VGO quartet colleague was having a concert, though we didn't take him all the way to the venue. Eric and I retreated back to his apartment and talked for ages, catching up and trading stories way past bedtime.
He got up early in the morning to sing for Jesus, but I slept in till nearly 11. I'd arranged with Joodles to meet at 1:30 at Penn Station, and I got my act together and was wandering around in the area by 12:30. It was sunny, so I stood around for awhile (no sitting allowed) and read my Rufus biography, till Joodles strode up in the Hitler Youth coiffe that seems to be in these days (he told me the haircut story, set that morning, and it was quite silly), and a n aesthetically calculated, monochromatically brown (it seemed to be exactly the color of his hair in different shades and saturations) getup of skinny jeans, wool jacket and suspenders. We ambled along till a pizza hole-in-the-wall smelled inviting enough, got a slice each of hawaiian and mushroom, and had a lovely lunch in Bryant Park, catching up and discussing the ins and outs of an externship in architecture. He likes New York, though he hadn't thought he would.
We walked back to his apartment, which is microscopic but altogether pleasant, and jammed happily. I showed him my new mandolin chops on his own mandolin, because I can play Sailor Song, though apparently I should learn it in a different key than we recorded, because he had to capo to the 10th fret to match a minor (he's now used to playing it in b). We traded songs and stories of songs. Best way to spend an hour not walking around New York.
But I am glad we walked more, because he took me up to the High Line, which is a former elevated rail system that's been turned into a long skinny pedestrian walkway-cum-park. It's quite beautiful, with lots of plants and interesting benches and birdhouses, and the view as it meanders through Chelsea is very different from ground level. It was a long walk, and unfortunately crowded on a Saturday afternoon, but I loved it, and it was a great walk to go on with Joodles, who explained all kinds of architectural points of interest (including a Gehry building, which touched off a discussion about the various perspectives on Gehry's evilness or lack thereof, and the self-absorption of the current field of architecture).
He then tried to lead me to an A train so I could make it down to John Street for a concert that Mark was in and Liz was attending. However, turns out the A skips the 20's. There's 14th and there's 34th, but not 23rd. So I walked a little more than I expected to, but it was more time to chat with Joodles, and he eventually found me a C I could transfer from.
I made it to the church where the concert was with a minute to spare, despite a few turnarounds on the way from the station, and sat with Liz. It was good to see her doing well, and the concert was excellent (Choral Chameleon, a multi-genre ensemble). I have to admit, Mark was probably the most skilled singer there, but it was a worthwhile concert, including several premieres and some cute pop arrangements. I even got to hang with Liz and Mark for awhile afterwards, before she had to catch her train back to school outside the city. Brent called to see if we could manage another meetup before he went back to Boston, but it didn't work out, so I headed back to Eric's.
Who was glad to see me after a day working at the church. We chatted some more and exclaimed enthusiastically about music we showed each other, and decided to stay in and watch movies instead of going out for dinner. Good choice. He'd not seen How To Train Your Dragon, but was as charmed by it as I could hope. I hadn't seen Being John Malkovich, and I was as baffled and intrigued as he could hope.
This morning's bus ride was less companionable, but not unpleasant, and it was quite a rush to come up Stephan's stairs and see him in the doorway.
It's been a good afternoon. Out for food (I touristically got a cheesesteak) and to replace Stephan's broken wallet, and we've been trading culture and stories ever since. Just how it should be. Ben gets here tomorrow, and Bryan on Wednesday. It's gonna be intense.
We walked Brent and his cello through Prospect Park to the other side, where his VGO quartet colleague was having a concert, though we didn't take him all the way to the venue. Eric and I retreated back to his apartment and talked for ages, catching up and trading stories way past bedtime.
He got up early in the morning to sing for Jesus, but I slept in till nearly 11. I'd arranged with Joodles to meet at 1:30 at Penn Station, and I got my act together and was wandering around in the area by 12:30. It was sunny, so I stood around for awhile (no sitting allowed) and read my Rufus biography, till Joodles strode up in the Hitler Youth coiffe that seems to be in these days (he told me the haircut story, set that morning, and it was quite silly), and a n aesthetically calculated, monochromatically brown (it seemed to be exactly the color of his hair in different shades and saturations) getup of skinny jeans, wool jacket and suspenders. We ambled along till a pizza hole-in-the-wall smelled inviting enough, got a slice each of hawaiian and mushroom, and had a lovely lunch in Bryant Park, catching up and discussing the ins and outs of an externship in architecture. He likes New York, though he hadn't thought he would.
We walked back to his apartment, which is microscopic but altogether pleasant, and jammed happily. I showed him my new mandolin chops on his own mandolin, because I can play Sailor Song, though apparently I should learn it in a different key than we recorded, because he had to capo to the 10th fret to match a minor (he's now used to playing it in b). We traded songs and stories of songs. Best way to spend an hour not walking around New York.
But I am glad we walked more, because he took me up to the High Line, which is a former elevated rail system that's been turned into a long skinny pedestrian walkway-cum-park. It's quite beautiful, with lots of plants and interesting benches and birdhouses, and the view as it meanders through Chelsea is very different from ground level. It was a long walk, and unfortunately crowded on a Saturday afternoon, but I loved it, and it was a great walk to go on with Joodles, who explained all kinds of architectural points of interest (including a Gehry building, which touched off a discussion about the various perspectives on Gehry's evilness or lack thereof, and the self-absorption of the current field of architecture).
He then tried to lead me to an A train so I could make it down to John Street for a concert that Mark was in and Liz was attending. However, turns out the A skips the 20's. There's 14th and there's 34th, but not 23rd. So I walked a little more than I expected to, but it was more time to chat with Joodles, and he eventually found me a C I could transfer from.
I made it to the church where the concert was with a minute to spare, despite a few turnarounds on the way from the station, and sat with Liz. It was good to see her doing well, and the concert was excellent (Choral Chameleon, a multi-genre ensemble). I have to admit, Mark was probably the most skilled singer there, but it was a worthwhile concert, including several premieres and some cute pop arrangements. I even got to hang with Liz and Mark for awhile afterwards, before she had to catch her train back to school outside the city. Brent called to see if we could manage another meetup before he went back to Boston, but it didn't work out, so I headed back to Eric's.
Who was glad to see me after a day working at the church. We chatted some more and exclaimed enthusiastically about music we showed each other, and decided to stay in and watch movies instead of going out for dinner. Good choice. He'd not seen How To Train Your Dragon, but was as charmed by it as I could hope. I hadn't seen Being John Malkovich, and I was as baffled and intrigued as he could hope.
This morning's bus ride was less companionable, but not unpleasant, and it was quite a rush to come up Stephan's stairs and see him in the doorway.
It's been a good afternoon. Out for food (I touristically got a cheesesteak) and to replace Stephan's broken wallet, and we've been trading culture and stories ever since. Just how it should be. Ben gets here tomorrow, and Bryan on Wednesday. It's gonna be intense.