Hunger: An Unnatural History

Sharman Apt Russell’s Hunger: An Unnatural History is an exhaustive study of what hunger represents. The book includes anecdote, history, anatomy, and iconography related to feast, famine, and fasting. The author’s sources cover a wide range from medical texts, religious parables, journal entries, and historical records to Kafka and Gandhi.

Especially moving are Russell’s personal struggles with food. As she attempts to find the meaning behind food as an American with the privileges and contradictions of knowing hunger from feeding her own children juxtaposed with commercials of hungry children around the world, she voices a compassion that “hunger cannot be ignored.” Most devastating for me is the section about cannibalism in China – yi zi er shi (swap child, make food) – where in the 1930s corpses of starved girls were boiled into soup.

Hunger is recommended for people who need to read stories about eating, starving, and everything in-between from a poetic voice who references multiple disciplines throughout history and around the world.

Bret’s Amazing Mind

After meeting with writer/director/theatre-maker Bret Fetzer, I had insight on two matters:

1. Violence as a Solution
2. Celebrity as Politician

Bret and I discussed our fascination with the Fort Hood Shootings. He said that ever since the 90s in America, violence has become a solution.

We also spoke about the transfer of empire and how the state will increasingly be ruled by celebrity personas. The aura of the celebrity fuels feelings of inadequacy and encourages increased spending which oils capitalism and silences multiple voices.

I realized that advanced capitalism and social democracy are inherently at odds with each other. The day after Thanksgiving is known as both Black Friday and the National Day of Listening. Black Friday, a way to lubricate the capitalist economic and social system, had extensive media coverage while the National Day of Listening, more akin to a democratic forum, had only one article from the major press.

Perhaps with time this will change.

Stuck Elevator reading

Stuck Elevator
starring Steven Eng

Thursday, 4:30-6PM
November 19, 2009

Pearl Studios NYC
500 8th Avenue
New York NY 10018

Free and open to the public
Limited seating – please RSVP
Email apa.rsvp@nyu.edu or call (212) 992-9653

About the Show
Prompted by the real-life story of Ming Kuang Chen, Stuck Elevator is an operatic solo performance about a Chinese restaurant deliveryman trapped in an elevator for three days.

* * *

Music by Byron Au Yong
Words by Aaron Jafferis

Director David Herskovits
Music Director Alden Terry

Violinist Cynthia Marcus
Cellist/Pianist Alden Terry
Percussionist James Mack
Sound Designer Kate Marvin

Stage/Production Manager Laura Wilson
Assistant Director John Kurzynowski

Creativity Workshops

Up next, I teach two creativity workshops for Portland Taiko. This is an expansion of a workshop I taught at the North American Taiko Conference in Los Angeles over the summer.

The workshop is called Seven Ways to Develop Material. Here’s a description:

Do you have great ideas but need to know how to turn your thoughts into a composition? Learn seven ways to expand craft and creativity to create compelling music. These tools can help produce work that takes risks, develops material, and engages the audience. Together, we will expand the space between our ears to complete unfinished works or refine existing catastrophes.

There will be two workshops. The first workshop introduces seven ways to approach creating a musical performance. In between the two workshops, students will use these tools to develop musical material. In the second workshop, four to five participants will share their developed material.

In preparation for the first workshop, I’ve asked participants to come with:

1. A list of 20 ways music is used. For example one way would be wedding music.
2. A list of 20 audience types. For example one type would be farmers.
3. One musical idea you are working on, with, around, or in. The idea should be on paper and can be drawings, words, musical notation, or a combination of any/all of the above.

Seven Ways to Develop Material will cover the following:

1. Function What and who is the music for?
2. Concept How does the work access imagination?
3. Structure Does the form promote the concept?
4. Time Where does the performance take the audience?
5. Timbre When do in/significant moments happen?
6. Filter How does the music breathe?
7. Notation How can the work be remembered/documented most effectively?

I look forward to working with Portland Taiko on these Creativity Workshops.

Unclogging Gutters

As I clear autumn leaves from clogging the sewer drain outside my home, I am reminded of all the music-making that needs to happen in preparation for Three Seasons to premiere at On the Boards in mid-January 2010:

• Finish my musical analysis of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons
• Meet with Stuart McLeod to figure out an amplified percussion set-up that can appear and disappear seamlessly with the dance
• Touch base with Baroque violinist Ingrid Matthews, costume designer Michael Cepress, and choreographer Olivier Wevers

Even though it is much more fun to gather leaves in the rain and hang out with the chickens, I know that once I start transferring my sketches and connecting with collaborators, my figurative clogged gutter will flow with musical creativity.

Tristan Uhl recently wrote about the Whim W’him launch where a Three Seasons musical sketch presented:

For Whim W’Him’s debut production Olivier has chosen to address not only the unpredictability and fragility of our lives but also, the changing of the seasons. The title for the debut is Three Seasons — an apt beginning for a project that thrives on unpredictability.

The piece has been scored Composer Byron Au Yong, who has created a profoundly moving and modern interpretation of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. The musical instruments used almost confront nature with man by melding sounds including but not limited to, a violin, the rhythmic rustling of leaves and — my favorite — a high heel. The overall effect makes it hard to distinguish the traditional instruments from the more novel ones.

SubterfugeSeattle.com has the full article plus photos. Thanks for the nice write-up. High heels are my new favorite instrument too.

Music with light bulbs and leaves

Last Saturday, Whim W’him held a benefit for the launch of Olivier Wever’s new company. The debut work, to be premiered at On the Boards in January 2010, will be the Three Seasons prompted by Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

percussion set-up photo by Stuart McLeod

Press play for an audio sample (duration 1:11)
(No audio player? Try AloneTone Mp3)

I’ve been sketching ideas drawn from Vivaldi’s use of musical gestures. His phrases for violin and strings represent birds, thunder, and other sounds heard in nature. This prompts me to think about the nature of “nature.”

Each of Olivier’s nine dancers have an object they cannot live without. These include high heels, pillows, and light bulbs. I wonder if these factory-produced items affect a listener’s notions of what is natural.

• How do man-made and nature sounds inhabit the world?
• In the Digital Age, is the notion of nature broadened?
• What is the sound of light bulbs with leaves?

The audio sketch above is from a live performance held at Steve Jensen’s studio loft.

The music was created in collaboration with Sebastian Lange on amplified/processed violin, and percussionists Stuart McLeod and James Whetzel on amplified leaves, water bowl, pillows, high heels, water phone, and light bulbs. Jeff Walker recorded the performance and yours truly edited the sample above.

Stuck Elevator 2009 Demo

Aaron and I are busy revising Stuck Elevator for two readings in New York in mid-November. To that end, we created a demo from the September reading. This was recorded in the Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music at the Tisch School of the Arts by audio engineer Mark Aiken.

Already one of the songs, A River Running, is cut from the November version of Stuck Elevator. I am fond of the music, so I included it as part of this online demo.

Core Values

On Tuesday, the faculty and students in the Dance Department at Cornish College of the Arts discussed the core values listed below. I find these nine keywords to be a clarifying reminders when lost as an artist within academia.

Of course these are words on the screen, to actualize them Professor Michele Miller had students come up with “We will…” statements; action plans generated during the discussion to make these abstract words come alive. Here’s an example of an action statements that a group of students wrote:

We will practice the idea of respect by taking care of our bodies in dance and in health, practicing courtesy to our teachers, musicians, fellow students, and dancers, while also self-encouraging ourselves to take on the challenge of technique.

Here are the keywords and thoughts generated by the dance faculty:

Excellence

Strive for excellence. Challenge yourself to develop to your fullest potential in every aspect of your work: physically, intellectually, emotionally, imaginatively, and artistically. Take the risks necessary for growth, embracing failures as an essential path to success. Invest your whole self in your work for the reward of knowing you have done your best. Commit to a process of change. Support extraordinary efforts, your own and others.

Exploration

Explore your body, cultivating awareness. Explore all possible connections to the world and embrace the breadth and variety available to you in dance. Learn about dance through live performance, film, videos, books, electronic media, and other resources. Explore your potential as a generative artist as well as an interpretive one, reaching beyond your discipline to embrace collaboration, interdisciplinarity and multicultural perspectives.

Inquiry and Reflection

Be curious. Seek out the widest range of educational resources that are available to you within this college and the world at large. Question deeply your relationship to your art form and your own artistic purpose. Take time to reflect about what you have learned in order to integrate what you learn into your work as an artist. Synthesize information from multiple sources.

Openness

Seek and welcome feedback. Be willing to evaluate your own work unsparingly. Develop the ability to generously, constructively, and specifically critique the work of your fellow artists, and connect your critique of others to your own ongoing development.

Responsibility

Assume responsibility for your learning and progress by providing your own discipline and motivation. Take advantage of all learning opportunities, within the college and in the outside community. Develop a diligent and consistent approach to your education. Take responsibility to care for your self: body, mind and soul. Embody: physically manifest your knowledge and intentions.

Trust

Trust your faculty and their knowledge. Trust your body and its wisdom, your process of growth and change. Trust your ability to succeed. Trust your peers and their creative energy. Dare to be authentic, dancing truthfully from who you are.

Respect

Learn and practice respect for yourself, your peers, your instructors, your dance musicians, all Cornish staff, your artistic community. Respect your art form, the process of creation, the space in which you do your work, the audience who receives your work, the history of dance, its traditions and legacy. Respect your body, developing a healthy approach to your art form. Respect cultural diversity, learning from those whose experiences differ from yours.

Humility

Be humble. Practice empathy, patience and compassion. Recognize that in dance we commit to being lifelong learners, always students of our art form. Be of service to the work and people involved in the work.

Passion

Remember why you are here. Celebrate your love of dance and the joy that it brings you. Share that joy with others and support them in their passions. Draw inspiration from others’ growth and challenges.

# # #

The students were given the keywords and grouped into discussion teams of five or six where they focused on one or two keywords for 20 minutes. They then presented their thoughts to the larger group. I was surprised by how many of their ideas resonated with the faculty’s.

Kitty, the chair of the department, commented at the end that the keywords and their personalized meanings reminded her that Cornish was a place for practicing artists. Alex, a junior in the department, said that it was a great way to kick-off the start of the school year.

MoCA Reading

The new Museum of Chinese in America holds its grand opening tonight. I think fondly of their new home designed by Maya Lin. Last Friday, the Stuck Elevator Workshop Reading was held in MoCA’s contemporary gallery space which features the Here and Now: Chinese Artists in New York exhibition.

Paul's modified trap set includes a bowed bicycle wheel and scrap metal

Stuck Elevator musicians rehearsed in front of Xu Bing’s (!) work while construction workers hammered together shelves in the adjacent room and the alarm-system flashed lights and bells. During the rehearsal I kept repeating “It Could Be Worse,” one of the songs from the show, to myself.

The Workshop Reading hosted by MoCA and the A/P/A Institute later that night was followed by a lively feedback session moderated by Jack Tchen. Musician/Scholar Cynthia Wang wrote insightful impressions of the reading on her blog.

The week-long whirlwind of composing, rehearsing, and performing was fantastic thanks to a dedicated team. Aaron and I worked with director Tamilla Woodard, music director/cellist Alden Terry, performer Steven Eng, violinist Cynthia Marcus, and percussionist Paul Kikuchi.

Steven, Cynthia, and Alden rehearse

Helping with logistics were stage/production manager Edna Lee Figueroa, and numerous A/P/A Institute staff that included Laura Chen-Schultz, Alexandra Chang, and Ruby Gomez. A special thanks goes out to the MoCA staff who allowed us to have the Stuck Elevator reading a few days before the momentous opening tonight. MoCA’s Beatrice Chen and Cynthia Lee rock.

Now, I’m back in Seattle picking pears, taking care of the chickens, weeding my vegetable patch, teaching at Cornish, composing for Whim W’him’s event this October, and thinking of the revisions for the November Stuck Elevator readings.

Snakehead book

The book Snakehead: An Epic Tale of the Chinatown Underworld and the American Dream is released next week. It already has 21 reviews on Amazon.com. I look forward to reading author Patrick Radden Keefe’s perspective on undocumented Chinese immigrants as Aaron and I continue work on Stuck Elevator.

Risk/Reward Tech Ordeal

Last Saturday, percussionist/instrument builder Paul Kikuchi and I (Byron) performed Kuang in a Stuck Elevator excerpt as part of Hand2Mouth’s Risk/Reward New Performance Festival at the Imago Theatre in Portland. The sound cues were totally messed up, leaving Paul and I holding the show together while gritting our teeth. When Kuang opens the fortune cookie at the end of the excerpt, I breathed a sigh of release glad to be finished with the ordeal.

This is what the fortune read: “Your mind will make your body rich.”

My mind stayed focused while my body tensed during this difficult performance. Even though I was forced to sing over the wrong recordings, silently wondering how to tell the tech director and sound board operator to turn off the audio, the Portland audience was highly responsive.

The Risk/Reward Festival has a convivial feel and the larger stage helped the sense of isolation for this excerpt. Thanks to Hand2Mouth for hosting this version of Stuck Elevator and to Paul for being my onstage comrade as we were trapped performing in technical difficulties.

Moving and Funny Stuck Elevator

Excerpt from Seattlest review of NW New Works by Jeremy Barker

Byron Au Yong’s short opera about a Chinese delivery guy stuck in a New York elevator manages to be both moving and funny. Performed by Yong and musical collaborator Paul Kikuchi on a non-traditional set of percussion instruments, the action unfolds on a tiny platform representing an elevator, where Kuang has become trapped after delivering Chinese food to an apartment. Lacking good English and a proper work visa, as the hours unfold, Kuang is tortured by self-doubt and emasculation–he’s afraid of being mocked, afraid of being deported, and frightened of having to return to his wife a failure. But the painfully emotional parts are interspersed between comic bits, such as the hip hop song his bladder sings him in his sleep as he struggles not to piss himself.

I now get Gary Snyder

Last night, I rode the bus with my neighbor and writing group compatriot, Wendy Call to Benaroya Hall to listen to poet Gary Snyder. Snyder is a beat poet who was raised in the Pacific Northwest in the 1930s. He lived in Japan for 10 years and is known for his connection to the environment and Buddhism. Snyder won the Pulitzer Prize for his book of poems Turtle Island. I never truly connected with Snyder’s work until last night’s event presented by Seattle Arts & Lectures.

After his reading, Snyder fielded questions from the sold-out (2,500 seat) house. These responses, paraphrased through my memory, stay with me.

Q. How do we increase cooperation?
A. Poverty. Having grown up during the Great Depression and working on oil riggers and as a logger, Snyder said that when people have little, they work together.

Q. What did Allen Ginsberg teach you?
A. That a poet’s life should be an open book. When Snyder and Ginsberg were roommates, he found Ginsberg opening and reading his mail. When confronted, Ginsberg said that he wanted to know more about Snyder and that a poet must let their vulnerabilities be public. Ginsberg then added that Snyder should not be scared to be indecent.

Q. What does the Black Bear found in Ballard want?
A. Music. Snyder said that humans don’t have much to offer, that animals think humans are cute. One time, as he was walking home, Snyder heard his daughter play the piano. As he approached, he noticed a cougar listening to the music. As another bit of evidence, Snyder talked about the Ainu in Northern Japan; how they sing to the meat on the table, because the animal’s soul expects a human song in return for their food.

Listening to 79-year-old Snyder last night was an opportunity to hear wisdom from one of America’s elders. Thanks Wendy for bringing me to this ear-opening event where I am now closer to the meaning of Turtle Island.

Stuck Elevator workshops in NYC

Back from New York with good news:

Aaron Jafferis and I will be Artists-in-Residence at the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at New York University. Aaron and I have been working on Stuck Elevator, an operatic solo performance about the Chinese delivery man who was trapped in a Bronx elevator for three days. I am excited to workshop this super-heroic stationary journey with A/P/A.

In New York, A/P/A greats Laura and Alex took me to the Chen Dance Center and Museum of Chinese in America. At CDC, H.T. wowed us with his performing carp and intimate venue.  The black box theatre was surprisingly quiet given that it was in New York’s Chinatown. I look forward to interacting with the audience during our workshop performances about an undocumented Chinese immigrant from New York.

Cynthia and Beatrice at MoCA discussed programming possibilities in the new Museum designed by Maya Lin. Touring the space under construction was phenomenal. Surrounded by glass, concrete, steel, and wood is a central courtyard with natural light. The walls of the courtyard are the original brick from the former garment worker’s building. Lin has created a place in New York’s Chinatown that reinterprets the meaning of the Chinese home in a city known for immigrants.

Aaron and I begin Stuck Elevator workshops this September.

Finalist

Kidnapping Water: Bottled Operas was a 2009 Richard Rodgers Award Finalist.

Amazing knowing that the Bottled Operas are a set of 64 musical miniatures for any number of performers to be performed in any order, outdoors in water – a far cry from The Sound of Music.

Thanks to the American Academy of Arts and Letters for the encouraging nod of approval.