St Paul Chamber Orchestra Principal Horn List

Prepared solo

Britten Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings
Mozart Concertos 2&4


Excerpts

Bach Branderburg 1
Beethoven Symphonies 2,7,8
Berg Chamber Concerto
Brahms Violin Concerto
Haydn Symphony 31
Honegger Pastorale d'Ete
Kodaly Dances of Galanta
Mendelssohn Nocturne from Midsummer Night's Dream, Italian Symphony
Mozart Cosi Fan Tutti, Symphony 40
Ravel Piano Concerto in G, Pavane
Schoenberg Chamber Symphony 1
Schumann Symphony 2
R. Strauss Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme
Stravinsky Dumbarton Oaks Concerto, Pulcinella Suite

East Ky Youth Symphony is a Go!

By way of introduction: the letter I have distributed.

Hi, I am jody hurt, an alumnus of the district 9 music program (prestonsburg high school). I have believed for some time that students in and around the district 9 area have far too few opportunities to perform in a full band / wind ensemble and to perform standard rep for these ensembles. I am creating a youth symphony band program the region to address this issue.

As a youth symphony, the group is open to anyone *Under* the age of 21; attendance of a district 9 school is *Not* required to participate (students of other districts are welcome). The ensemble will be (eventually, though it may not start out as) an auditioned group, much like a district honor band. Rehearsals will be twice a month, on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of the month, from 3 - 7pm, and we will perform 3-4 concerts per year. Ensemble members will participate in masterclasses for their instruments, sectionals led by professional musicians and educators, and clinics on various topics (auditioning, stage fright, etc).

The first rehearsal will be at Pike Central High School, on March 13 at 3pm in the band room. Further rehearsal information and performance dates / locations will be given at the first rehearsal.

If you would be interesting in participating, or would like more information on the youth symphony, please email me, Jody Hurt, at RiotGearMD@gmail.com . You can also find me on Facebook.

Thank you,
jody

LA Phil Audition: Principal Horn Audition -- In Review

The audition committee was not screwing around. They clearly wanted nothing less than a world-class performer. Clearly, then, one was not to be found in the first audition for the principal horn, held on October fourth through sixth of this year. There was no winner.


I do not know how many individuals applied for the audition, but I do know that only thirty actually took the audition. Apparently, almost every resume was rejected. Of the thirty that played a first-round, two (I have been told) were invited to play a second-round audition. Neither of these candidates was advanced to the final round, therefore, only the acting-principal (I cannot at the moment discover his name) played a final-round audition. He was offered a (second consecutive) one-year contract, instead of the winner’s open-ended contract.


This may be a recurring West Coast theme: grandfathering-in players to high-profile positions, instead of leaving the job open to the chances of auditions. On the other hand, things may have been far less scripted. The candidates may have simply under whelmed the audition committee; as far as I know there weren’t any superstars of the horn world in the running. Either way, that means that there will, in all likelihood, be LA Philharmonic Principal Horn Audition, Round II in one year’s time. I plan to be even more ready for this one than I was the first time around, and it will be fun getting there

**Edit**

Just for the record, the orchestra did hold a second audition which was invite-only. The winner was Erik Ralske, of the New York Philharmoinc. It was clear he would win from the first round of this audition, when an audition committee person remarked that he "sounded really great" (coming from this person, this was a great compliment). In a twist of fate befitting the professional orchestral musician world, the LA Phil made their chosen player wait so long before offering a final contract that he was able to take another audition and win it too. This latest orchestra position happens to be the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the highest paid orchestra in the country. It's also in New York, of course. Ralske accepted his contract with the Met, and LA Phil is once again holding a pricipal horn audition.

Looking back on it, I really think the suggestions I heard that folks were being grandfathered in are way overblown. This might be happening in smaller / regional orchestras, but in light of the cost of holding an audition, major organizations are simply being very careful about their selections.

First thing to do after I graduate? Read!

While a student I barely managed to read anything. Even weekly readings for classes were a chore. I think the amount of rehearsals that persisted for ten years was to blame. After all, who wants to concentrate with all their might on reading (the norm for dyslexics) after having weighed tone, pitch, volume, and character for 8 hours.

Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised, then, at my achievements since finishing school this May. I have read more in four months than I had previously read in a year. Here's a list of the things I've finished so far...

Barack Obama The Audacity of Hope
Larry J. Sabato A More Perfect Constitution
Kurt Vonnegut Slaughterhouse Five
Thomas Mann The Magic Mountain
Stephen R. Covey Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

LA Phil Audition: Principal Horn (Updated)

This evening I played my first round audition for the Principal horn of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. As there are first rounds again tomorrow, I will not post the music requested at this time, and will simply say "excerpt one," etc.

I was well prepared for the day. All the training that you are led through really pays off under high pressure situations. Most useful to me, I believe, was Don Greene's audition techniques. Also, Robin Graham's advice to simply "Hit the first note," and let the rest of the excerpt take care of itself was huge.

The audition took place on the stage at Disney Hall, a stage I have performed on several times through CalArts. I even had the chance to play a bit by myself back during the "Slim And Beaten Dreamers" performance. When I played my test notes, therefore, I was familiar with the sound that I got back from the hall. The audition would be over in less than three minutes.

I began with the first excerpt, and nailed it. Halfway through I almost lost concentration, as I had a fleeting observation that "Wow, screwing up right now would be really bad." After putting this tangent in its place, I regained focus on the task at hand. Robin had told me of her experience in auditions, where she was able to enjoy her sound, and the process. I managed this for the last twenty seconds of the excerpt. It was great. No pressure. No nervousness. I was able to concentrate on hearing the whole piece being played around the piece I was playing.

I took perhaps ten seconds between excerpts one and two. Two began well, but my bit of nervous breathing struck soon after. I struggled with one and a half or two seconds of the excerpt, then was back on track. The end was just as good as the beginning. While I was getting the pitch of the next excerpt in my head, the proctor said "Thank you, that will be all." I knew that the jury had heard something to let them know right away whether or not to advance me. Alas, they didn't.

No one in my group advanced, in fact, a group of about fifteen people. I hope they all had as good experience as I did, but that I cannot know. On the whole, I think that there must have been many factors besides whether or not I nailed the rhythms and intonation, which I did, that determined one's advancement to the second round.

I can imagine several of these other factors, such as color, I play with a much brighter sound than the current section, and time / volume of applicants. I'm sure there are others. Then again, maybe I just need to keep on the ball and hit the excerpts for the next year, in order to be in top shape when auditions come up, and not have to work like crazy for four months.

***Edit***

The first round of the audition is over, so I can post the excerpts. The first round list for the audition was posted in the warmup rooms. It was as follows.

Brahms 3
Beethoven 7
Brahms 1 Mvt IV
Stravinsky Fairy's Kiss
Ein Heldenleben (opening through 1)
Schoenberg Chamber Symphony 1 (63 - 71)

Ramp up Part II : WotLK (aka "Sidetrack 1.0)

In an effort to keep me from being productive, Blizzard has decided to release the new class talents for the "Wrath of the Litch King" expansion to WoW. I suppose I will have to do a bit more listening to the music than I had planned, and a bit less reading of "To Kill a Mockingbird."

My main interest here is in their changes to the Priest's Shadow abilities. A Shadow priest has been fun, albeit frustrating, to play in pvp for the last year; the shadowpriest can't prevent taking damage in any real way. Blizzard is trying to fix this in today's patch. It remains to be seen whether they have really addressed the issue by balancing the shadow build with other classes' abilities, or if they have tweaked the others too much (Blizzard is introducing three to five new abilities in each class's three talent tree), in effect placing one class at a clear disadvantage in pvp.

LA Phil Ramp up

One week from today I will take an audition for the principal horn position in the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. In the vein of everything else that I've done this year, the first audition I have taken. I'm pretty excited about it. I am very interested to see whether or not I will get nervous on the day that I audition. I get nervous now and then during large ensemble performances, but never during solo projects. This evening, while running through a visualization of the event, I did get nervous. Maybe the fact that I play recitals and solos in my mind several times before the actual event is enough to prevent any debilitating nervous shaking, or perhaps worse, erratic breathing.

Anyway, it's coming up fast. I've been putting in five to seven hours of preparation per day for the last month. In this late hour I still have excerpts that I cannot play as I would like, something that will be corrected before Thursday.

Mantra : "Eat, Practice, Sleep" (in reference to Phelps's daily experience).

The Judge

Recital program notes

*watch online at http://music.calarts.edu/rod.html*


Jody Hurt May, 14th, 11pm
MFA Graduation Recital Roy O. Disney Hall




The Judge Robert Allaire


Tierkreis Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928 – 2007)

I. Aquarius
II. Pisces
VI. Cancer
VIII. Virgo
IX. Libra
XII. Capricorn


Short Pause



Trio in E flat Johannes Brahms (1833 – 1897)

I. Andante
II. Scherzo
III. Adagio mesto
IV. Rondo

Luke Fitzpatrick, violin; Mark Menzies*, piano

*Calarts Faculty Member


Translations______________________________________________________________


The Judge

From Psalm 42

Quare tristis es, anima mea? Why art thou sad, O my soul?

Et quare conturbas me? And why dost thou disquiet me?

Quia tu es Deus fortitudo mea: For thou art God my strength:
quare me reulisti? why hast thou cast me off?

Iudica me. Judge me.


Tierkreis

I. Wasserman - Aquarius

Wassermann Aquarius luftig geistig Bearer of water, Aquarius airy spirit
Hell und sharf und klar in die Ferne bright sharp and clear reaching
Dringend, forschend; blitzesschnell for the distant, delving; lightning fast
Wechselnd; hoffend, vereint changing; hopeful, unites
In Brüderlichkeit. in peaceful brotherhood.

Aquarius, Wintergeist bewegt Aquarius, feel of winter influenced
Durch Uranus Saturn kühn by Uranus Saturn bold discovering,
Erfindend, Janus gleich sees through past
Vergangenheit, Zukunft durchschauend, through the future like Janus,
Okkult; sucht Freundschaft, Freiheit. occult; seeks friendship, freedom.

II. Fische - Pisces

Pisces zwei Fische in Bewegung Pisces two fishes in movement
Planten Jupiter Neptun wasserweich planets Jupiter Neptune water softly
Anschmiegend fromlos vorwärts clinging formless foreward
Rükwärts unentschieden zerfliessend backward undecided dissolving
hingebungsvoll Sanft und gütig plötzlich devoted gentle and kind
Eigensinn, Intuition Träume Weisheit sudden willfulness,
Kindlichkeit. intuition dreams wisdom innocence

VI. Krebs – Cancer

Cancer Cancer Wasser Mond Cancer cancer water moon
Weib und Frau Mittag Südliche woman and wife midday southern
Sonnenglut Quellbäche Ströme Meer glowing sun spring-brook flowing stream
Und Wellen Sommer blüte innerlich, sea and ebb and flow summer blossom
Empfindsam träumrisch zart krebs innerly, tender dreamy fine crab

VIII. Jungfrau – Virgo


Virgo Jungfrau Merkur Spätsommer Virgo virgin Mercury clear late summer
Reife Kulgheit Vorsicht Kühle mellow sensible cautious and aloof
Gewissenhaft hilfsbereit conscientious, serving, modest

Virgo Jungfrau erdhaft ordnend Virgo earthy ordering
Schönheit des Denkens der beauty of thinking,
Vernunft und Simmetrie reason and of symmetry
Du goldener Mittelweg you golden middle-way

IX. Waage – Libra

Libra Waage Luft Winde Venus Libra balance air winds Venus
Freund Geliebte West Abend friend beloved lover west evening
Herbstfrucht lieblich harmonisch autumn ripened fruit lovely harmonious
Ausgleichend tanzend peaceful dancing
weigend verleibt swaying in love

XII. Steinbock – Capricorn

Capricornus Steinbock mit Saturn, Capricornus sea-goat with Saturn,
Erde Mensch aus Erde, Mann; Earth son of Earth, the man;
Nacht, ich Winternacht zeig das night, I winter-night show the
Himmelsfirmament Sternenzelt. Heaven’s firmament starry tent.
Same, verschlossen langsam Seed, withdrawn, slow tenacious,
Unaufhaltsam zäh, stetig steadily climbing heights;
Kletternd zur Höh; stur und starr, stubborn stiff,
Strebend zum Licht, Sohn der striving for light, son of
Ursonne Sirius. Mother-sun Sirius.


Commentary and Notes_________________________________________


My mid-residency recital was not unlike many others in its since of exploration. With guidelines for neither repertoire nor form, I did just about everything that I could do at the time. Several weeks later I learned just how far ‘out’ I had gone. I was riding with my long-time friend Jonah to a party when I asked him what he thought of the event. Jonah, a Louisville native, had been in attendance for my undergraduate recital, and therefore was in a unique position to give insight on what I was doing at Calarts. He simply replied that it was “much more contemporary than (my) last one.”
Jonah isn’t musically illiterate. Neither is he a scholar of music; he is an actor. Something about his statement piqued my interest though. He had spoken enthusiastically about the last program he had seen (which was grounded in the traditional music that inheres in western schools of music programs). For some time I pondered the whys and wherefores of musical experimentation, audience entertainment, and audience understanding. During this period of musing I realized that Jonah’s comments following my undergraduate recital weren’t about the music that I had played. Rather, they spoke of the connection that I had to the music. My performances during the mid-residency recital, while being drawn from my disparate musical interests, did not have the personal connection that had been so apparent during my undergraduate recital.
It is to this end that I present this evening’s recital: a program of music representing my past, present, and future.
For me, this means an experiment in voice. I have always had a profound interest in voices, both human and otherwise. Tonight’s program begins with a pair of voices speaking in turn (a new work for the catalogue of French horn pieces) followed by four voices working together in various pairs (a song cycle for voice and sustaining instrument), and finally three voices in the setting of the high-romantic era (French horn, violin, and piano.
Bob Allaire’s new work for horn and voice, The Judge, represents my future. During my time at Calarts I have developed a passion for commissioning new pieces for the French horn. Moreover, I enjoy receiving pieces that are written for me, not just for A French horn player. Due to the favourable ratio of horn players to horn positions in orchestras across the globe, there have been few pioneers in the realm of contemporary solo literature. I would like to work to expand this repertoire by continuing to work closely with composers to produce works that are not just solo pieces, but French horn pieces.
Bob writes about his work,

“Originally, this piece was going to be titled Duality. It is a convergence of different sound worlds inspired by Jody’s unique combination of skill with both the horn and voice. It is simultaneously a call and a cry – an answer and a question. At the midpoint of the piece is a request, or perhaps a challenge. The text is excerpted from Psalm 42.”

I relate my present by performing Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Tierkreis. The piece is a collection of melodies, one for each sign of the zodiac. Each sign has its own tempo marking and its own key (perhaps this last point is why Stockhausen neglected to set the thirteenth sign of the zodiac, Ophiuchus, as there are only twelve distinct pitches in the traditional western system of tonality). The composer instructs the performer to begin a performance with the sign that the performance takes place in. After performing all twelve movements in chronologic order, the performer repeats the “proper” melody. I will not be following the composer’s wishes exactly, I must admit.
The MFA program in music is a two-year program. By the end of the third term I had already fulfilled my graduation requirements (save this recital). It was around this time that my mentor, Ed Carroll, suggested the possibility of me staying on for a third year, for, there was one thing that I had wanted to do that had, to date, been impossible. Because of the way the National Association of Schools of Music defined private lessons (as either your major, or a minor), I had, for nine years, been refused private lessons for anything over thirty minutes. So, I accepted the offer to return for a third year, knowing that I would get to study voice as a major. This has truly been one of the highlights of my time at Calarts. I have decided to perform half of the movements of Tierkreis, due to the amount of time that I have spent working on technique.
The last section of the program represents at once my past and future. The Brahms “Horn Trio” is the first piece that performed with a chamber ensemble. This early experience at the Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts also figures in the sort of arts collaboration that inspired me to attend Calarts. As this piece is one of the few works with a French horn that is not only good horn music, but rather just good music, I am hopeful to be a part of many more performances in years to come.
The Trio is comprised of three distinct voices: the violin, piano, and horn. These are the instruments that Brahms played as a child. There is no declaration of why Brahms wrote this trio, but there are hints. In the year following his mother’s death, Brahms wrote only two pieces: A German Requiem, and the Horn Trio. Perhaps the very instrumentation, which calls back to his past, is a tribute to his childhood, and by extension, his mother.



I would like to thank the Calarts community. You have been my source of inspiration over the last three years.

To my professors, for showing me new ways of thinking,
To the vocal staff, and Paul Berkolds especially, for taking on a rogue student,
To Danny Katzen, for teaching although it meant giving up time at home,
To Robin Graham, for really getting it,
To Mark Menzies, for his understanding and wisdom imparted,
To Ed and Jim, for being great leaders of the program,
And to everyone that I have had the pleasure of arguing and / or playing with,

Thank you.

I’m (less than or equal to) Hans Castorp

I recently found this entry that I wrote while in England. I didn't have any way to transfer files from my Powerbook to the web at the time, and my entries from the time seem to have been misplaced. I'll post them as I find them.

My visit to the old country has been great. The people I’ve met have been dynamic individuals. Despite the general opinion that the US is responsible for the events in the Middle East, I have not been subject to the endless stream of questions and freely offered assessments of my own country’s problems that I anticipated. And, I’ve been around loads of musicians.
There is one characteristic of England I wasn’t exactly prepared for though. . In a land where buildings are older than countries, I’ve encountered something not in the typical tourist guide. Weather. I knew that English summers could be cold. I even expected rain. I did not expect to be in a constant state of fluster.
I frequently get cold in the afternoon, and return to change into warmer clothes. When I resume activities in these warmer clothes though, I find myself sweating! It’s not as if the temperature had changed though. Rather, it is as if the range of comfortable temperature has been diminished from ten or twenty degrees to less than one degree!
Maybe it’s consistence of heat in Los Angeles to which I’ve grown accustomed. Maybe it’s the food. Whatever the case, I find myself going from freezing to having a flushed face in a matter of minutes. And to continue aping of the magic mountain, I made the mistake of having a drink with my lunch on my first afternoon here. I looked as if I were embarrassed the entire evening.

I'm Catching Up to the Rest of the World

I've been going through a phase where I puchase all the cds I should have, but didn't. The latest is "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill." Here are the lyrics a track titled "To Zion." Like many Fugee songs, it has plenty of biblical allusions. Check out the lyrics, then listen to the song. It's a haunting combination.

"To Zion"

Unsure of what the balance held
I touched my belly overwhelmed
By what I had been chosen to perform
But then an angel came one day
Told me to kneel down and pray
For unto me a man child would be born
Woe this crazy circumstance
I knew his life deserved a chance
But everybody told me to be smart
Look at your career they said,
"Lauryn, baby use your head"
But instead I chose to use my heart

Now the joy of my world is in Zion
Now the joy of my world is in Zion

How beautiful if nothing more
Than to wait at Zion's door
I've never been in love like this before
Now let me pray to keep you from
The perils that will surely come
See life for you my prince has just begun
And I thank you for choosing me
To come through unto life to be
A beautiful reflection of his grace
For I know that a gift so great
Is only one God could create
And I'm reminded every time I see your face

That the joy of my world is in Zion
Now the joy of my world is in Zion
Now the joy of my world is in Zion
Now the joy of my world is in Zion

Marching, marching, marching to Zion
Marching, marching
Marching, marching, marching to Zion
Beautiful, beautiful Zion

Export What Doesn't Work

Cowboys don’t stay in one place for too long. Indeed, the very nature of the cowboy is motion. On the occasion that some rogue decided to break the pattern of moving by settling in a new town, they were inevitably run out of town by the local sheriff.

So make public opinion the sheriff. The cowboy; cowboy diplomacy.

The Bush administration’s plan for eliminating terrorism was originally supported by the American people (as long as by ‘American people’ we mean at least some of them). Like President Bush’s approval rating though, the administration’s policy of action > nonaction has lately begun to suffer. Americans are tired of loosing people in Iraq, especially when the war actually ended years ago. Worse, the once left-wing idea that we should attempt to negotiate with countries which we believe are a threat (North Korea and Iran top the list currently) has found support within the president’s own administration.

Now that the sheriff is effectively removing the cowboy from the states, where will it go? Neoconservatives, the main proponents of cowboy diplomacy, are not through with the Middle East. The popular opinion amongst neo-cons seems to be something like ‘An Islamist state is not a free state, however, it Is a threat to the Unites States.’ Without pulling punches, this roughly means “Sunni states are fine. Shiite states are terrorist threats.” Consisting of Syria, Iran, and Palestine, these Shiite states must, according to neoconservative thinking, be dealt with as soon as possible. But the cowboy was moving.

Proponents of cowboy diplomacy couldn’t have wished for more than what happens next in our story. The cowboy moved to Israel. Even though American public opinion has begun to frown on preemptive attacks, neo-cons might get their war with Syria, and if things go extremely well for them, Iran.

Recent statements by the newly elected Israeli prime minister bear the form of President Bush’s statements immediately following the attacks of 09/11/01. While the president has not publicly backed Israel’s attack on Beirut, he has stated that he would not deny a country the right to defend itself.

I hope nothing I’ve yet written reeks of conspiracy theory. I don’t go for them. I do believe, however, that, all things being equal, people tend towards their best interests.
Right now, the best interest of several large American corporations is to stay at war with someone. As the spending of money to influence political action is free speech, those who spend the most tend to get their wishes more often than not. If this is true, and I believe I am not off the mark, then right now, cash is being promised and spent by these corporations to encourage the Israeli government’s aggression.

I really hope the follow does not happen:

The Israeli prime minister decides to treat any country that aides Hezbollah as a threat (similar to the US doctrine that ‘any country that harbors terrorists will be treated as a terrorist itself’). Israel declares war on the two largest supporters of Hezbollah, Syria and Iran. As Israel cannot possibly win a three-front war, the United States decides to come to the aide of Israel. More troops are sent to the Middle East in order to fight two countries that have never threatened the United States. Taken as an attack on the Muslim world (which I believe it would rightly be reckoned), Islamic leaders declare the US enemies. The 130,000 troops in Iraq become hostages in a foreign country overnight

I'm Sure Someone is Pissed About This

But they are probably a heartless bastard. So it's ok.

Screw A’s. Strive for F’s (E’s @ UK)

That is to say, there are rules. Perhaps these rules were not meant to be broken after all. Then again, I’m having a great time.

Rule #1 Fred is a Fucking Idiot.

Rule #2 When presented with two paths, all things being equal, Follow the Hot Chicks.

Rule #3 Play games to your heart’s content. But never, under any circumstances, should one Purchase game pieces.

Yeah, it’s that third one that got me. Here’s the deal though. An addendum, if you will, to Rule #3: When an item may be used by a group of players, the item may be purchased. This excludes items such as ANY Magic: The Gathering card. These cards must be used by one person in their own deck. This does not exclude items such as support figures in the Wizkids game Heroclix.

One may apparently spend almost two hundred bucks on ‘support characters for the group.’ Whether or not this rule is being followed when a $120 Jean Grey Phoenix is purchased is still in committee (consider the scenarios! Dark Phoenix then Phoenix vs every other click created! Yes. I know you are tiring of the escalated level of Geek at this point).

Justification of one’s own silly actions aside, I have been playing Heroclix about once every two weeks for the last couple of months, and really enjoying it. The group of friends that I play with, has for a time, filled the social void left by school’s intermission. If you have Geek tendencies, especially if you like comic books, check out Heroclix. Do not violate Rule #3 though.

A leave of absence of mind. (In binary form)

I’m not a fan of puns masquerading as titles. On occasions when I encounter punny titles I generally feel that the author is condescending. Or worse: being cute. I swear I have been none of the above. Rather, I have been brutally honest. I could have chosen, “A leave of absence An absence of mind,” this would not capture the duality of the absence which I have taken.
The last year has been one of many changes. For starters I put my overly substantial undergraduate studies behind me. At the same time I left a city and community that I was growing to love. I lost two relatives, one of which was my last remaining grandparent. I then left friends and family behind to move across the country. This trend of Changes did not cease in California. My vision of playing in orchestra full time has been lain to rest; the more precise vision of freelance music (oxymoron?) replacing it. Finally my journey to enter ministry has halted, for I have begun falling in love with a young lady. This will not be my last year of changes, but it certainly has been the most drastic to date.

The California Institute of the Arts

This Los Angeles art school is where I have chosen to pursue a graduate degree. My time here has been one of finding ways to tap into creative abilities. I have tried composition and song writing. I have engaged in deep consideration of composer’s intentions. I have even collaborated with artists from other métier. While each of these experiences have been valuable in some way, the greatest path to the expression of musical ideas has been one of improvisation.
The improv I have discovered is neither the improvisation of jazz musicians nor of classical cadenzas. It is contemporary free improv. Unlike more traditional forms of improvisation such as those based in jazz or ethnic musics, there are no fast rules to follow. Performers must make decisions on traditional things like intonation and volume, but they also make decisions on whether or not to play, what instrument to play, etc.
My time at Calarts has focused on small improvisation ensembles. Unless they use a form such as the jazz standard “trading-eights”, free improvisers must rely on their ears and their intuition to tell them when to play. When one has decided to play, they must then make a decision on each of two subjects: whether to play in a complementary fashion to the other performers, or to go against the other sounds, and whether their idea is what should be heard as a melody, or a supporting figure.
Performers generally play someone else’s music. Therefore, creating is something performers don’t experience in abundance. Within this style of improvisation a performer must make many decisions based solely on their musical intuition. Herein the performer is also creator.

Note: I am publishing for the next few weeks simply to get used to writing once again. To this end I will be resurrecting unfinished entries and posting them even if they still suck. Case in point: the second half of this one

Page 123 Sentence 5

Page 123

The rules:

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions.
5. Don't search around and look for the coolest book you can find. Do what's actually next to you.


"Frau Stoehr, sitting just a little behind him, had an expression on here face revealing such ignorant ecstasy that it was pitiful to behold, while Fraulein Levi of the ivory complexion sat leaning back in her chair with half-closed eyes and hands resting palms-up in her lap-and one would have taken her for a corpse if her chest had not risen and fallen with such striking regularity, although Hans Castorp thought she looked more like a mechanically driven wax figure he had once seen in a sideshow."

did i mention that it's extremely difficult to read these sentences when you're dyslexic?

One thing or another

I suppose I am officially off the Blog Bandwagon. I haven’t kept a weekly post schedule since October, and I am averaging less than one a month at this point. Strangely, during this time of bloglessness, I haven’t been without a creative outlet.

When asked what instruments I play, I typically respond, “The French horn is my main instrument, but I have done quite a bit of choral singing as well.” When I get the “Ok. That sounds lame,” expression, I sometimes throw in, “And I suck at the guitar.” Although this always gets a laugh, it is, regrettably, true. Whereas I understand how the horn works, and how to manipulate it to get the desired sound, I haven’t a clue where to begin on the guitar. I can play chord progressions, but generally these are some form of G – C – D - G, in a slightly higher or lower key. I can’t really play anything that doesn’t involve strumming. Individual notes are right out.

Given my incompetence, I was surprised when I started writing songs a couple of months ago. I hadn’t played in ages (this being a serious problem with guitar, as you need calluses on your fingers to avoid serious pain), and knew I couldn’t just start playing. My solution was to drink away the pain; I had enough alcohol to, at once, numb my fingers and inspire several songs.

That night I ended up recording what would be three songs onto my Powerbook. Two of them are too eclectic, and one sounds like me trying to be someone else. So, I didn’t try it again the next night. Besides, alcohol is expensive.

It wasn’t until late July that I would write again. This time I didn’t need the alcohol, I had a night-long fiasco to inspire me. Strangely, as I was trying to write a song about my Fucking Curse, I managed to create two other songs. Then, as if my creativity were saying, “You’ll do what I say, punk.” I wrote a song about the curse.

Bit about Me

I wrote the following a couple years ago in response to a prompt. We were asked to consider an event or situation that has either directed or otherwise altered our course. What I came up with is interesting. It is horribly disjunct, and somehow gets the point across. I liked it, and decided a while back to expand it, and make it a bit less pedantic. The result will be out eventually, but till then, enjoy.



It is well within my nature to be clever. Barry-ish humour pervades my writing. This will not do at this time however. For, although the majority of childhood memories that remain are filled with comedy, the one I cannot forget is nothing of the sort.
It is by no means proper to teach children economical status or the disadvantages of lower social status. Children are supposed to begin school without the walls that socio-economic status creates. I am nothing if not abnormal.
I don’t remember my first day of school. I can recall neither looking just like the other five-year-olds, nor wondering why everyone else cried to see their parents leave them in the morning. I can not even remember being curious later that day as to how everyone seemed to know what each other’s dads did for a living.
I don’t remember crying when I was informed that every other dad was better than mine: the coal miner.
I have seen the insides of my dad’s office. A mountain. I have dressed up in his uniform upon several Halloween occasions. In short, I know my dad’s job pretty well. And it is a cool job. What does a lawyer do anyway? And why the hell do they tease me about my favourite shoes? It’s not like one just goes out and gets a new pair every time the get a hole.
But that’s just it isn’t it.
Apparently the other children had lots of new things. I was a minority. If I had associated with those like myself I would have to have given up interest in school. Somehow being the child of a coal miner was equivocal with being a loser. I was quickly on the road of the ‘scholarship boy.’
I had become a diversion. With humour and superior academics, I had managed to obscure the fact that my family was not as cool as it was supposed to be. I almost had myself convinced.
It is by no means proper to teach children economical status or the disadvantages of lower social status. There are words that must not be said too early in a child’s life. I wish my mother had read this.
Try as you may, there are concepts that children will not grasp. Tell a six-year-old that they are going to die eventually, and they may sing a silly song about death. If one mentions to a friend that they have discovered that they are bankrupt and that the bank may foreclose, an overhearing child will be utterly confused.
Unless that child was raised in the age of ‘Monopoly.’ Thanks to the wonders of family entertainment, I understood perfectly what my mother had just told her friend. All of my achievements were about to be disposed of, and I was suddenly afraid of becoming another noun a child should never have cause to fear: homeless.

I would like to say that this stopped affecting me later on in life, but I never really know whether that is true. Once I had planned to be a trauma specialist.
My passion for music has led me far away from that small town, and far away from the field of medicine. It was never really about money though, I suppose. I wanted to do medicine to help people in Africa who were worse off than I had experienced.
Rather, it is about distance. As a musician, I have the opportunity to perform all over the world. I can travel the world and make music with people whose speech I cannot even understand. And sometimes, when I feel like reminding myself that other people cannot tell me who to be, I can go home.

Me falda un tio, y no se donde verle.

It is almost irreverant to say this, but I am tired of having to process my personal eulogies. They are taxing. And, they are issues of death. I have almost finished my tribute to beloved grandmother, and this morning, at 4am, the oldest brother of my father passed away due to a heart attack. It has been fewer than two weeks since I have been in this place.

I just don't know.

Logan (Hoss) Hurt II, rest in Christ's peace.

Movin Out

My efforts for the next few months will be aimed westward. Conversely, my writings over the next few months will, I am certain, exude nostalgia and remorse. I am soon to be a former Kentuckian.

After several years of planning, waiting, and chemical testing (read: two months) I now know what I am going to be doing this fall. I will be attending the California Institute of the Arts (www.calarts.edu) where I will pursue a masters of fine arts with a concentration in music performance. I will be living on the left coast. I will be living in LA.

This is nutz.

And I still haven’t quite grasped all that will go into getting myself over there and being ready to go.

For now, I will enjoy what’s left of my time as a Louisvillian. I will enjoy Pimps & Ho’s. I will watch Thunder with my parents. I will laugh at all the people getting hammered at the Derby. I will party like I was a freshman again, and then go out to my favourite bars. Just for rediculousness. I will shave my head (this one is still in committee), simply because it just came to me. I will read Marcel Proust, and frickin enjoy it. I will turn the channel on my dad’s truck’s radio ASAP when Louisville’s favourite crap music plays. I will hang out with Delaney Jane Dill, one of the coolest babies I have had the pleasure to meet. I will kindle the flames of brotherhood with my big, little, and grandlittle brothers. I will enjoy the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I will enjoy Sin City again. I will spend approximately 15 hours in a theatre on May 19th, watching the EXACT same movie over and over. And get chill bumps every time it starts. I will listen to my nifty read-versions of the Harry Potter series, and then read, in one day, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I will play in the Sacred Winds Ensemble for the 5th year in a row. I will have barbequed elk meat on toothpicks. I will teach music students from Eastern Kentucky, and inspire in them an awareness of music’s important role in the enrichment of the human spirit. And they might just get it.

Stream of consciousness moment. It is really difficult now that I try to relate plans to actually, shut up itunes, get them 1) in order, 1) all there, 1) without having thought of it. So to make sure I don’t sound like one of those lists that tells you to make your own list of things to do, I will instead say, “Screw you! I busy.”