Bill Cahn: Blog

    What do NEXUS, Phil Nimmons (clarinet), David Braid (piano), Suba Sankaran (voice), Parmela Attariwala (strings) and Mark Laver (saxophone) all have in common?   Maybe it is their eagerness to go to that place no one knows – the place where music is born – and to do so accompanied for the first… Read more »

  On Sunday January 18, 2009, having just returned from Japan, I was a guest on the Michael Burritt Faculty Artist Series recital at the Eastman School of Music in Kilbourn Hall.  Michael, who heads the Percussion faculty at Eastman artfully performed a very challenging program of five major compositions for solo percussion.   The… Read more »

    Thursday (Jan. 15) was a long day.  The first lesson started an hour later than normal, at 11:00 AM with a lesson on the Jolivet CONCERTO FOR PERCUSSION.  There was a good exchange over how to best execute the snare drum rimshots, and the resolve was to play them all with the right… Read more »

    My residency at the Showa Academy of Music is now in its last few days. I am in the middle of my second week of private lessons, ensemble rehearsals and workshops. This week began when, on Monday during my daily power walk, I noticed that the traffic on the streets was very light…. Read more »

  It is Sunday night and I am writing this as I sit in front of the TV in my hotel room watching some great sumo-wrestling matches.  Since my previous blog entry I have been able to take a leave from the school and my hotel room.  Last night I visited my good friend Seichiro… Read more »

  After being spoiled by several days of very mild weather, it was raining here all day, though there was just enough letup for me to do a power walk around the upscale residential neighborhoods near the Showa Academy this morning.  The homes are all very tidy and have well-cared-for gardens.   All has gone… Read more »

    Greetings!  I am back in Japan for a 2-week residency at the Showa Academy of Music and Arts in Kawasaki.   This is my 6th such visit since 1998, and during my stay I will be working with about 25 college conservatory percussion students in private lessons, ensemble coaching, percussion workshops and a… Read more »

Hello from New York City, where I am performing with the Paul Winter Consort at the 29th annual Winter Solstice Concerts in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.  The first performance occurred last night before a sold-out audience of over 3000.  It was great to perform with fellow percussionists Jamey Haddad and Cafe.  I… Read more »

Q. How did you come up with your book, Creative Music Making? A. As decribed in the book, Creative Music Making is a practical process to develop musicianship through freeform improvisation.  The process is simply based on my experience in creating improvised music with NEXUS.  The group’s first few years of concerts consisted entirely of… Read more »

Q: What was involved in creating the NEXUS label and doing your first CD? A: The idea for creating our own ‘NEXUS’ CD label emerged when Ray Dillard and I were on a long drive in a rental truck transporting NEXUS instruments between concerts in Queensland, Australia in 1988.  In that year personal computers were… Read more »

Bill Cahn has been a member of the NEXUS percussion quintet since 1971, and was the principal percussionist in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra from 1968 to 1995.  Born in Philadelphia in 1946, Bill has performed with conductors, composers, ensembles, and artists representing diverse musical styles – Chet Atkins, John Cage, Aaron Copland, Chuck Mangione, Mitch… Read more »

2007 Highlights January – returned to Japan for a week of concerts at the Amakusa ISLAND MAGIC 2007 festival with marimbist, Mika Yoshida, clarinetist Richard Stoltzman, bassist Eddie Gomez, and pianist Peter John Stoltzman. The ensemble performed in New York at Carnegie Hall the following week. February – workshops presented at the University of Kansas… Read more »

Hello out there.  It’s a week after the NEXUS performance at PASIC, and the sun still shines, though not as much in Rochester as in Austin.  Eric Ewazen’s new piece, “The Eternal Dance of Life,” was a great success, and NEXUS is looking forward to revisiting it many times in the future.  A few days… Read more »

A lecture/demonstration on approaches and techniques applied to performance on standard orchestral small percussion instruments: cymbals triangle tambourine wood block tam tam/gong Included in the presentation are taped examples from the standard symphonic repertoire with simultaneous live performance. Time: 90 minutes Requirements: audio-cassette tape recorder (+ amp & speakers), 3 gooseneck cymbal stands), 6 music… Read more »

A lecture/demonstration aimed at musicians who are already performing on acoustic instruments and who want to have a closer look at the possibilities for musical expression offered by the MIDI revolution. Topics may include: COMPUTER INSTRUMENT ENVIRONMENTS – Personal Computers, Dedicated Components, What Electronic MIDI Instruments Can Do, Limitations of Electronic MIDI Instruments HELPFUL CONCEPTS… Read more »