20 Questions
Feb. 28th, 2007 12:06 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sen_no_ongaku]
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ltlbird asks:
1. Is there an instrument for which you would not like to compose music, and do you have a favorite instrument to include in your work?
Of the standard orchestral instruments -- well, I'm basically willing to compose for anyone who asks (or even pays), but I prefer to stay away from the brass instruments. My music tends to require a lot of agility, as well as clarity of tone and crispness of attack, all of which can be harder for brass to handle. Maybe it's unfair of me, but I tend to consider them pretty clunky and unwieldy.
My favorite instrument is the cello, but because I'm writing for specific ensembles and people these days, I can't really slip it in at whim. However, one of my longer-term goals is to try help make the electric guitar (and bass) part of the modern repertoire; newer chamber ensembles have begin including those instruments, and it's those folks I really want to write for.
2. Is there somewhere other than Boston that you would like to live?
Putting aside the issues of where my friends are and of cost of living, I can't imagine not living in (or near) a city. I'd love to live in San Francisco -- it's basically the Boston of the West Coast anyway, I suppose. I think I would like Chicago; I enjoyed our visit there a few years ago, and I'd be able to watch both AL and NL baseball there. And I hear Madison is a really cool place, though I imagine winters there are pretty harsh.
If cities weren't an option, Northampton would be my first choice. After visiting there so much while at Williams, I've developed a fondness for it. It's pretty and hip, and there are enough cultural things going on to make it interesting.
3. What musical instrument would I look coolest playing?
Something gigantic, at least half again your size. I'd suggest the contrabassoon, the tuba, or the double bass. If we wanted to move outside the range of classical instruments, something like the didgeridoo.
On a related, one of Singing City's singers was a squat dude who was probably under 5' tall. When I saw him come in for rehearsal, I was *totally* wishing he'd open his mouth and this gigantic, rumbling bass would emerge. Sadly, he turned out to be a tenor.
4. What is your ideal vacation?
Something I'd love to do is spend a summer taking a tour of all 30 big-league ballparks. The perfect vacation would be to just follow the Mets around for an entire season, and get to watch every game live. There, however, we're getting into the realm of "lifestyle choice" rather than "vacation".
5. How did Oob come into your life?
Oob was actually found bysigerson's roommate Renee when she was living in JP. She was tiny, probably around six weeks old. Even then, she was incredibly sweet and friendly, and would cry if there was nobody within her sight range. I was looking for a cat, and took her in for a trial period.
That didn't go so well, though. She remained really sweet and cute...but I had to housetrain her, she didn't know how to clean herself, and she farted a lot (like while walking across your lap), so life with her got pretty stinky. After she crapped on the floor *right in front of me*, I decided to pass her along tosigerson's roommate's friend.
Said friend kept putting off taking her in, so Oob (then tentatively named "Beano") stayed withsigerson and Renee. Renee's two cats taught her how to be a proper cat, and she was eventually christened "Oob" after protecting sigerson from, for example, her underwear. After a couple of months, since she had stopped smelling and learned how to use the litterbox, but remained ridiculously adorable (and had wormed her way into sigerson's affections), I decided to take her back in.
ltlbird asks:1. Is there an instrument for which you would not like to compose music, and do you have a favorite instrument to include in your work?
Of the standard orchestral instruments -- well, I'm basically willing to compose for anyone who asks (or even pays), but I prefer to stay away from the brass instruments. My music tends to require a lot of agility, as well as clarity of tone and crispness of attack, all of which can be harder for brass to handle. Maybe it's unfair of me, but I tend to consider them pretty clunky and unwieldy.
My favorite instrument is the cello, but because I'm writing for specific ensembles and people these days, I can't really slip it in at whim. However, one of my longer-term goals is to try help make the electric guitar (and bass) part of the modern repertoire; newer chamber ensembles have begin including those instruments, and it's those folks I really want to write for.
2. Is there somewhere other than Boston that you would like to live?
Putting aside the issues of where my friends are and of cost of living, I can't imagine not living in (or near) a city. I'd love to live in San Francisco -- it's basically the Boston of the West Coast anyway, I suppose. I think I would like Chicago; I enjoyed our visit there a few years ago, and I'd be able to watch both AL and NL baseball there. And I hear Madison is a really cool place, though I imagine winters there are pretty harsh.
If cities weren't an option, Northampton would be my first choice. After visiting there so much while at Williams, I've developed a fondness for it. It's pretty and hip, and there are enough cultural things going on to make it interesting.
3. What musical instrument would I look coolest playing?
Something gigantic, at least half again your size. I'd suggest the contrabassoon, the tuba, or the double bass. If we wanted to move outside the range of classical instruments, something like the didgeridoo.
On a related, one of Singing City's singers was a squat dude who was probably under 5' tall. When I saw him come in for rehearsal, I was *totally* wishing he'd open his mouth and this gigantic, rumbling bass would emerge. Sadly, he turned out to be a tenor.
4. What is your ideal vacation?
Something I'd love to do is spend a summer taking a tour of all 30 big-league ballparks. The perfect vacation would be to just follow the Mets around for an entire season, and get to watch every game live. There, however, we're getting into the realm of "lifestyle choice" rather than "vacation".
5. How did Oob come into your life?
Oob was actually found by
sigerson's roommate Renee when she was living in JP. She was tiny, probably around six weeks old. Even then, she was incredibly sweet and friendly, and would cry if there was nobody within her sight range. I was looking for a cat, and took her in for a trial period.That didn't go so well, though. She remained really sweet and cute...but I had to housetrain her, she didn't know how to clean herself, and she farted a lot (like while walking across your lap), so life with her got pretty stinky. After she crapped on the floor *right in front of me*, I decided to pass her along to
sigerson's roommate's friend.Said friend kept putting off taking her in, so Oob (then tentatively named "Beano") stayed with
sigerson and Renee. Renee's two cats taught her how to be a proper cat, and she was eventually christened "Oob" after protecting sigerson from, for example, her underwear. After a couple of months, since she had stopped smelling and learned how to use the litterbox, but remained ridiculously adorable (and had wormed her way into sigerson's affections), I decided to take her back in.
