Drawing Music :: Look & Listen Festival at BRIC

Cellist Michael Nicolas

Today, my friends and I attended day two of the on-going Look & Listen Festival at BRIC Arts Media House in Brooklyn. Here's what the website says about the Festival's mission: "The Look & Listen Festival is an annual event dedicated to presenting new music in art galleries. The Festival seeks to expand and engage audiences of 20th and 21st music by providing a unique opportunity to simultaneously experience a stimulating visual environment for new music and a vibrant aural context for contemporary visual art. "

I can't believe that it's been 4 years since my first Look & Listen event...

It was an absolute pleasure to be there today! I will let the drawings do the talking. You can still catch two more days of this beautiful event on May 1st and May 2nd.

Hush by Phyllis Chen & Robert Dietz, being composed in real-time and looped.

Mario Davidovsky's 1960s composition, performed by cellist Michael Nicolas
with electronic computer loops.

Violinist from the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE)

World Premiere of Sebastián Zubieta's piece commissioned by Look & Listen
entitled Coronata di stelle and performed by Adam Kent, Michael Nicolas and Adda Kridler

Composition Chorus Music by So Percussion.

Oscar Bettison’s Apart, performed by So Percussion. Playing tuning forks.

Adam Sliwinski of So Percussion playing a tuning fork for
Oscar Bettison’s Apart.

Watching Whales

Provincetown Harbor

Last weekend, I was in Provincetown, MA, for The Whale Naturalist Workshop with Dalvero Academy. The incredibly informative and eye-opening 3-day-long event ended with a whale watching voyage. We saw so many whales, even a Humpback mother & child duo, also hundreds of dolphins, who like to swim alongside whales. If you spot dolphins, it's a clue to look for a whale. A WHALE. The biggest animal on this planet, and most mysterious. At any given moment, only a small part is visible above and between the waves. 

Passing Provincetown lighthouse, as we sail into deep waters.

Windy

First, you see a spout. Then, if the whale is nearby, there's this horse-like "Phfrrrr" sound, and a black curve of the spine rises from beneath the waves. It arches up and disappears in a few seconds, and whale's fluke comes up and slowly completes it's own arch, propelling the whale into a deep dive.

Humpback Whales: Mother and 6-month-old child.

As I watch, time actually slows down: few long seconds of the sighting is all I have with these magnificent creatures. The movements are permanently etched in my memory.

A group of dolphins, swimming alongside a whale.

View of Provincetown and its Pilgrim Monument (tower) from the water.

You can also see Veronica Lawlor's beautiful post about this trip here>

Before coming to this conference, I had no idea just how much whales and other large marine animals suffer from the byproducts of our civilization. People who presented at the Workshop are dedicating their lives to studying, cataloging, protecting and saving them, as well as educating the public about harsh realities that are not covered by media. But more on that in another post. 

The Whale Naturalist Workshop was co-hosted by the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, the Dolphin Fleet of Provincetown, and the WDC (Whale and Dolphin Conservation) group.

Electro-Swing Party Poster 4

This annual party, Swingin' Penguin, hosted by my friend Deejay Spinach, will celebrate 5 years in May. Don't miss it! You can see what I designed for 2011, 2012 and 2013 Swingin' Penguin events by clicking here and scrolling down.

Spring Life Drawing

Here are a few highlights from the past 5 life drawing sessions with Dalvero Academy.  Last class was tonight and I miss it already.

Conrad

Conrad

Conrad

Conrad

Conrad

Regina

Regina