Here’s an unusual bit of early NEXUS history. The Internet Movie Database references John Wyre and NEXUS providing the soundtrack for a 1974 film “Monkeys in the Attic: A Film of Exploding Dreams”. The film won the Prix Khalimer as well as Best Foreign Film at the Toulon Film Festival in France in 1974. Written,… Read more »
Great Weekend at Bard College
Thanks to everyone for the great turn out at the Fisher Center, Bard College, for this weekend’s revival of “The City Wears a Slouch Hat”, John Cage’s 1942 radio play. The evening was a great success. It was called “John Cage: On & Off the Air! ” and it was designed to spotlight Cage’s fascination… Read more »
Press release for Saturday’s event at Fisher Center
NEXUS’ score for “Inside Time”, 2007
If you have been following our blog posts this week, here is a more recent example of NEXUS’ film work: “Inside Time” an awarding-winning film by Jason Young from the National Film Board of Canada, 2007. You can view the whole thing by clicking here, or if you choose, skip through, finding parts of the… Read more »
Listen to The Man Who Skied Down Everest
Further to my last blog post, where I mentioned NEXUS creating the chilling score for the Oscar-winning “The Man Who Skied Down Everest”, you can hear some of it in this short trailer! Amazing visuals too! The music was entirely improvised. Robert Aitken played flute. http://vimeo.com/5375024
New Photos, PASIC and Bard College
Thanks to Lauren Vogel Weiss for photos of NEXUS at PASIC 2012 in Austin. Check our Facebook page to see all of them (and please click that “Like” button while you are there, so that you receive updates to the page!) Ray Dillard, who conducted this revival of John Cage’s “The City Wears a Slouch… Read more »
Malletech unveils new Bob Becker BBSD snare drum stick at PASIC 2012
Malletech introduced its new PhD (Premium high-Density) line of concert snare drum sticks last week at PASIC 2012 in Austin, TX. The three new models are made from Honduras rosewood, and were designed by Tony Cirone, Michael Burritt and me respectively. The specs for my model, shown in the details below, are: 17 3/16 inches… Read more »
NEXUS, live actors and film: performance at Bard College NY, Nov.17
NEXUS had a great “trial run” or “sneak peek” of John Cage’s “lost work” The City Wears a Slouch Hat at PASIC in Austin TX last Thursday. Great turn out! We will have some photos for you soon. Now NEXUS is preparing for the full premiere at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY on November 17th… Read more »
The challenges of Cage, in Austin TX, Thursday
Bill, Bob, Garry, Russell and Ray are heading to Austin TX this week to take in the sounds and sights of the here, and a little bit of NEXUS’s PASIC and Austin history here. )
Creative Music Making in Buffalo – Part 2, October 24, 2012
On Wednesday, October 24 I facilitated the second of two “Creative Music Making” workshops at Buffalo State College. The 2-1/2- hour afternoon session took place at the Burchfield-Penney Performing Art Center. There were 16 partticipants on a variety of instruments – electric bass, trumpets, flutes, violin, viola, banjo, oboe and percussion, including a homemade amadinda… Read more »
Creative Music Making in Buffalo – Part 1, October 17, 2012
On Wednesday, October 17 I had the pleasure of presenting the first of two “Creative Music Making” workshops at Buffalo State College. The 2-1/2- hour session on freeform improvisation was based on my book “Creative Music Making” (Routledge, 2005) and it was the result of an invitation from Bradley Fuster, a member of the BSC… Read more »
“Just Ducky”
Today, Drum Corps International spotlights a Guardsmen DVD and its percussion feature – NEXUS’ “Xylophonia”: “a delightful work written by Joseph Green, older brother of famed recording xylophonist George Hamilton Green. The piece had been identified in pre-season promotional materials as “Just Ducky,” due to the duck whistle sounds that were added in the “Nexus… Read more »
Read about NEXUS’ appearance at Soundstreams 30th Anniversary Concert
Click HERE to read about NEXUS’ performance for the 30th Anniversary Concert of Soundstreams in Toronto, Canada, on October 11th, 2012.
A Most Excellent Week!
What a great week! NEXUS was honoured to be a part of Soundstreams’ 30th Anniversary Spectacular at Koerner Hall. It was an ear-opening concert, beautifully presented, and a fitting tribute to Lawrence Cherney and Soundstreams, and their many accomplishments. Reviewer Margaret Lam wrote: “The works were presented by some of the best musicians this country… Read more »
Read the Review of the Soundstreams 30th Anniversary Concert – October 2012
“Nexus performed Reich’s hypnotic Clapping Music and Mallet Quartet with such ease and grace, each of the performers were like extensions of each other.” Read the entire concert review HERE.