November 26, 2008 by mike.

Greetings all…

I did my first radio broadcast last night on WPRB 103.3 out of Princeton, NJ. last night. The name of the show is, tenatively, “Music with Space.” I was filling in for another DJ who as unable to do his show. This gave me the opportunity to try out my idea. I received some very positive responses on the studios phone! If you`re curious, click here for the playlist.

The idea is to play a variety of genres of music with depth, lenght and breadth…music with expansive and dynamic character…Music that is non-invasive and though provoking. A soundtrack to dreamy reflection and meditation. Tracks that span the space from composers such as György Ligeti and Alvin Lucier , bands like electronic music pioneers like Kluster and Tangerine Dream and even onwards towards the drone/sludge rock band Earth.

Part of the goal is to educate listeners about this under exposed music in a world of Wall of Sound, in your face and relentless mass market radio music. (No slight on this music, mind you…there is “space” in their too…Sigur Ros  and Radiohead being a prime example.)

Hopefully, in the near future, I`ll be able to fill you all in with information about a weekly show. As soon as I know, you`ll know.

If this pans out, I`ll be setting up a community site to support the broadcast as well.

I`m very excited about the opportunity to share this music, much of which is truely remarkable and rarely heard on the FM dial. I`m even more excited that it may be on WPRB.

Meanwhile, I`ll be doing another broadcast on Saturday-Sunday (11/29-11/30) from 12 AM until 2 AM. Please tune in, listen and, if you find that like what you hear, shoot an email to program@wprb.com supporting the show. Don`t forget to mention the time you listened.

In the meantime, I`ll be engineerung the NJ side of Doctor Cosmo`s show on WPRB call Nocturnal Transmissions every Friday night between 10:00 PM and 1:00AM.

Thanks for your support,

Mike

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December 26, 2007 by mike.

Neat to see that Brian Eno’s useful Oblique Strategies cards are still in production…

I found a PDF version suitable for printing on card stock here

Print, cut and approach your artistic work “obliquely.”

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June 25, 2007 by mike.

Head on over to the Studio Sounds page and check out the two recent additions.

Rainforest One - A cool work in progress, have a listen to it and know it will change… It opens with the sound of a river and jungle birds…and the natives are restless nearby… the village shaman is doing his shamanizing. This is a direction I have been planning on pursuing for some time….hope you like it.

Analog Improv - No guitar! wow…that can’t be Ombient… well, I am known to bang the black and whites from time to time. This is an old school Arppeggiator/Analog synth lead improv type thing… might do this as a live piece at the Revelwood Art Show.

Also, my collaboration with Bill Fieger called Mayakara has produced some tracks, one of which is our Live Performance at the 2007 Electro-Music Festival. The other is a recording from a rehersal in my studio.  Click here to listen. More tracks to come from Mayakara soon, as well as a CD release.

I’ve been practicing with my Didgeridoo lately and almost have the circular breathing down. I grabbed a Native American flute (in the key of F) maye by Tribal Earth recently, and I love it. Good tone for a synthetic instrument and a good price. Easy to play too. I got it from the Didgeridoo Store. So, you’ll be hearing more flutes on Mayakara and Ombient tracks. 

Until next time…

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June 15, 2007 by mike.

Well, I experienced my first Electro-Music festival in ealy June. It was an excellent event. All those organizers and volunteers deserve a big round or applause!

I performed with Brainstatik on myu first day. Met some cool people, learned some cool new stuff and heard some great music.

Warren Sirota was a highlight for me. It was great to hear another looper doing such great work. He constructed his own customer looping software using Max/Msp, Java (it migh have included some FLASH as well, not sure.) He was kind enough to demonstrate his software to me earlier that day.

I got to play with a Moog Voyager (own by Terry Furber) in the basement, a real live VCS3 in the small gallery as well as a few other odd intruments and installation sound art pieces.

Next year, I think I am going to sign up for all three days. I’ll probably submit myself as “Ombient” to plasy a set as well as with Brainstatik and Mayakara…three bads, three days…we’ll see.

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May 8, 2007 by mike.

My good friend Albert Papp (a.k.a The Iron Baron of Revelwood) passed away on May 3rd.

Al was the keyboard player for The Stone Soup Band, the Celtic Rock / Irish Traditional band I play the Warr Guitar with.

Al was a great musician…he had perfect pitch, a rare skill. He was the “go to” guy for the “missing” chord. His playing and, most of all, his sense of humor and friendship will be missed.

Al, for the bottom of my heart, I love and miss you.

Mike

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March 15, 2007 by mike.

Well, it’s offical.

The collaboration between Bill Fieger of Stares to Nowhere and myself has a name.

मायाकार or, in English, Mayakara

The root of Mayakara is “Maya” 

Maya: literally ‘magic’ or ‘witchcraft’, the ‘force’ used to ‘explain’ how it is that we come to be deceived into believing that there is a creation with separate objects and living creatures etc. See also avarana and vikshepa.

Kara: To make or create (this is not an offical definition…but what I rememeber…but it seems to be correct)

Mayakara:  maker of magic i.e. a conjurer or magician.

We intent it to be a mix of Avant-Guarde, Tribal and Ambient…That being said, even those labels don’t reallyt fit.

 I may post some of the experiments we have recorded in the near future.

Please visit the bands site at http://www.mayakara.net/

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February 7, 2007 by mike.

Well, the true winter weather has finally arrived. I took this picture while on a post-lunch constitutional stroll through the wooded trails on the propery of my office building complex. Apparently, there is a bit of a drainage issue here. A low lying area filled with runoff, and frozen in this bleak but stranging beautyful way.

New music is on the horizon. Ombient with world rhythms… and an acoustic project with Bill Feiger (of Stares To Nowhere) and a friend of his I have yet to meet… should yield something interesting! More to follow on that as it unfolds…

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January 23, 2007 by mike.

Alas…the startup I was working for has begun the process of what looks like a shutdown…or maybe it will return after hibernation…who knows. All I know is that I don’t work there any more…and I was one of the few left by that time.

 The company is now in the software only business…I hope those few left behind have so form of success. It was a great team…and my direct manager was world class. It was nice being made to feel so much ownership in everything I was involved with.

So, now I am back in big telcom again…you know, that big telcom (that used to be the ONLY telcom) that got purchased by one of its ”split off” companies that is based in TX. I’m back after being away 3.5 years…and it is weird.

I recognize faces of people in the halls…people I never knew or though about while away. It’s strange how that can happen. I wonder if they remembered my face and though….”I remember that guy…I wonder who he is?”

Anyway, the project I joined here is interesting and the team seems very sharp. I wonder what the future holds for me here…

So, my Irish Traditional/Celtic Rock has come to an end…but that end is a new beginning. We are reforming with myself (but on guitar this time), one other original member and some new people… still looking for a drummer though.

It looks like this incarnation might have some more progressive elements and be more of a challenge to my musicianship. I was getting tired of being held back by others who couldn’t (read wouldn’t) raise the bar. I love them, but I cannot see myself in a band with them again unless they worked harder and opened their minds more…

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January 8, 2007 by mike.

I just found out today that my friend Edmund passed away at 4am on Christmas Day…

…we will all be raising our glasses high to you my friend…

 …goodbye…

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November 10, 2006 by mike.

I’ve been surrounded by music all my life.

While growing up, my father was in and out of various bands. I grew up around music and musicians.  I remember falling asleep in my room listening to the windows rattle in sync with the rock drums and bass echoing up from down below…weekly band practice.

So I’m 37 years old and following in his footsteps…albeit a odder and mostly uncommercial type of music…but a musician just the same.

..and my father is 61…and, once again, in a rock band called “The Wire“…. to bloody cool eh? They play a little bit of everything, Neil Young…Van Halen…Van Morrison…AC/DC…Stone Temple Pilots…you name it. If your ever in Southwestern Florida, check em’ out.

On another unrelated note… I’m thinking of trying to create some Ombient podcasts…ans a matter of fact, I’m off to figure that out now…

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