Guitar Circle New England Minutes

rehearsal #1, GCNE performance project Season Three, Thacher Montessori, 1-22-12

2012-01-27T12:54:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad

The quartet convene around 7:45, and directly begin work on some recently proposed repertoire ideas. First on the plate is Peaches En Regalia, which Rick has arranged. The group tackles the piece one rehearsal mark at a time (first the 'A' section, then the 'B', etc.), with most present learning as they go along (Chris and Brad mention they have been working on the more difficult sections first). This is promising enough for future work.

Next the company takes on the second overworld theme from Super Mario Bros. 3, which Chris has brought in. Part distribution will depend on seating, but for practical purposes an ad hoc formation of the arrangement is taken on by the group. If the intention is to inject some mirth into a GCNE set, then the mission appears well on its way to accomplishment. Again, the group takes it by section-by-section, and loops the 'loop' a few times.

Victor would like to hear how a three-part harmony arrangement of Jessica would sound, so the group gives it a whirl with Rick alternating between one of the voices and a comp pattern. This also seems promising, and the guys discuss possibilities for a complete arrangement.

A little talk about how to approach full-group pieces (Opening, Fugue No. 1, La Cathedrale Engloutie) before the rehearsal is done at 11:00.

Inaugural Meeting, GCNE performance project Season Three, "The Loft", 1-15-12

2012-01-27T01:04:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Alex, Scott

The group commences the next period of its work with silence, and a circulation which leads to several spots of improvisation. With this keynote, the circlers decide that the next step is to share personal aims for the project. Rick has Dev's aims (currently visiting family in India) and reads them aloud for the group on his behalf.

The ensuing discussion is a thread of logistical topics, the most pressing of which is the selection of a space for the performance part of the project. A handful of prospects are offered and subsequently appraised, with a likely candidate coming out of the rough. Appointments are made for further investigation before a final decision is made.

Next is a general consideration of promotional work, which inter alia includes arriving at a new and exciting name for the performance series (now likely happening on a Thursday or Friday).

Besides promotion, the other task which the group has reserved these two months for is repertoire: things added, things resurrected, things brought to a higher performance standard. The motto is no wrong notes! Mistakes, perhaps, but not mistakes in the understanding. Victor points out that the concert standard for a professional is seven times through without an error. Improvised repertoire is also discussed.

After a break, the group delves into personal guitar practice with each member sharing what he is doing, and how far along he is with that work. Victor offers some exercises along the way, according to the need of each particular player.

The group takes some time to share ideas for new repertoire, which are added to a list of repertoire to be carried over from last season.

With a circulation, the meeting concludes around 11:00.

small group meeting, Rick's House, 1-6-12

2012-01-12T23:29:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Rick, Chris (scribe), Scott, Brad, Dev, Alex

We begin with a circulation around 8:30, followed by some remarks regarding the purpose of our meeting tonight. Once we have settled this, we decide it would be best to warm up the hands with a primary exercise, a simple ascending pattern (1-2-3-4) for the left hand up and down the neck at a moderate tempo (sixteenth notes at 60 BPM). Intermittently, we take the opportunity to refresh some of the principles behind the exercise, such as succession, simultaneous release and constant release. Dev makes a note to be cautious about ringing strings (especially undesirable when amplified) and to keep right hand movement small; Alex reminds us to listen for tone.

Next, we continue along the same lines with a different fingering pattern, a descending figure (4-3-2-1). We find ourselves speeding up, with a few in the group admitting that this form of the exercise comes less easily than the familiar ascending pattern. Chris hypothesizes that the difficulty comes from the quality of constant release feeling unusual, while Dev suggests that we are not used to leading with the fourth, small finger.

For further variation, Alex proffers the "Hammerhead" exercise, which displaces a given fingering pattern to adjacent strings without disrupting its constituency (thus making any first primary figure a candidate for experimentation). He demonstrates a form for ascending and descending across strings, so that the exercise may be taken a la the first primary. We spend some time practicing on the middle strings, then add the outer strings, proceeding at a similar moderate tempo.

Next, Chris requests an exercise for the right hand. Alex then presents a figure based on Albeniz's Austurias (Leyenda) which incorporates an accelerating tremolo part with some continuous work for the left hand. First, as we come to grips with the figure, we practice eighth notes at 60 BPM (possibly slower) before adding and alternating with the triplet form. For fun, we take it up to 80 BPM, but don't last long.

After a break with some practical discussion, we reconvene with a second circulation that leads into some extended improvisation. This turns out to be an appropriate spot to conclude the meeting, and we do so around 10:30.

Season's End Meeting, 12-18-2011, at Canary Square Pub

2011-12-24T17:33:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Alex Lahoski, Chris Paquette, Dev Ray, Brad Hogg.

All have arrived at Canary Square (come for the fries, stay for the waitrons) by 8 p.m. for a celebration of season's end, as well as a fairly important discussion of the schedule and plan for the next phase of the circle. A lot of logistics aside, the big points of the meeting come out to be:

The Intro to Guitar Circle and Guitar Circle Advanced-Beginner and Intermediate courses that are fast approaching in May 2012, here in Massachusetts.
Strategies/schedules for promotion work. Dev is officially named Promotional Director, giving further proof of his many capabilities.
The push for new music and adjusted performance conditions for the new season coming up in the spring.

With a good amount of joshing and joking around, we manage to draw up a relatively comprehensive list of "necessary things to do and approach". We all leave just around 10 p.m., making sure to tip the waitress generously, and go our separate ways out into the cold night.

See you all next year!

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #14, 12-11-11

2011-12-19T01:23:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris, Alex, Brad, Scott, Dev, David

With two additional guitars, we take a little extra time to soundcheck tonight. Scott is running late, so we take the stage at around 8:00.

The set that unfolds:

circulation
Where's the Nurse
improv
Blockhead
circulation II
Voices of Ancient Children
Askesis
Derailed at the Junction
Morning Has Broken
Flying Home
improv II
Third Relation
improv III
Thrak
Prelude in D minor
Intergalactic Boogie Express
Eye of the Needle
improv III
Austurias
circulation III

Completion meeting after the performance, where David takes an early leave and the rest remain until 11:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #13, 12-4-11

2011-12-09T16:24:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, David

Downstairs tonight. A little extra time is needed to clean up and ready the space for a performance, and to get adjusted to a dry sound. We prehearse Calliope slowly for Rick to test out the lead, and also touch on Intergalactic Boogie Express, before people arrive.

The set comes out as follows:
circulation I/improv I
Eye of the Needle
improv II
Derailed at the Junction
Askesis
circulation II
Calliope
Where's the Nurse
improv III
Thrak
Third Relation
circulation III
Bicycling to Afghanistan
Hommage a JSB
improv IV
Austurias

Afterward during rehearsal, we play a game where the role of time keeper moves around the circle during an improvisation. Victor notes that, in general, the time keepers tend to slow down when also taking on an active listening role; we also talk about being aware of time feel.

There is also a little talk about some struggles that were going on during the evening's performance, one of which was dealing with poor sound - or what seems to be poor sound. Another was being 'free' during the performance.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #12, 11-27-11

2011-12-09T15:46:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe) Brad, Dev, David

We're soundchecking as Victor walks in. Warm-up tonight: Third Relation and Askesis. Prehearsal bits: Blockhead with Rick, Brad and Dev on the main piece, and Chris, David and Victor on 'color'; Hommage a JSB from Brad and Chris; and the full team on Voices of Ancient Children.

The set tonight:
circulation (short)
Blockhead
when ready, begin
Voices of Ancient Children
circulation (long)
Batrachomyomachy
Eye of the Needle
Q & A (requests)
Hommage a JSB
Calliope
improv I
Derailed at the Junction
whizz circulation
Prelude in D minor
Where's the Nurse
circulation III
improv II
Third Relation
circulation IV
Austurias

Post-performance, we meet with aspiring Circler Scott and discuss what he has been working on over the past week, and how he has been assisted by the mid-week group. This is followed by some variegated circulation, + 2 - 1 and + 3 - 2, and Growing Circle while making faces.

Rehearsal items include Calliope, with a note being made about the rhythmic directionality of note groupings (i.e. a group of three has a different "shape" than a group of two because of the way the notes rise and fall into each other in a periodically defined space, or pocket), and much discussion of Intergalactic Boogie Express, with a few corrections and playthroughs.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #11, 11-20-11

2011-11-24T22:42:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev, David

Full team present tonight for the first time in a month. As we circulate to check sound, Victor notes that we are not falling into a natural pulse as we begin, and reminds us that in this regard it is useful to keep the number of note-passers in mind. For a more conventional warm-up, we turn to Askesis and Calliope.

A long silence and a little humor in the green room before we go on to perform the following set:

when ready, begin
circulation I/improv I
Growing Circle
circulation II
Where's the Nurse
Morning Has Broken
improv II
Blockhead
improv III
Love is Green
Askesis
improv IV
Calliope
Voices of Ancient Children
improv V
Eye of the Needle
improv VI
Austurias
circulation III

For our post-performance rehearsal we investigate our latest addition to the repertoire, Voices of Ancient Children. The sectional transitions have been flimsy during performance, so we begin by playing through with Chris counting out loud for continuity. After giving it a few cracks, there are still discrepancies in our individual understanding of the structure, and much discussion ensues. Eventually, Chris suggests a different count for the melody players, which breaks down thus:

Intro: four bars of 5/4
A: 13 + 13 + 13 + 6 (45, or nine bars of 5)
B: 9 + 9 + 9 + 3 (30, or six bars of 5)
A: same
B: 9 + 9 + 9 + 9 + 4 (40, or eight bars of 5)
C: 8 + 10 + 8 + 6 (32, or seven bars of 5 ending on '2')
Outro: (after melody comes in) 13 + 13 + 13 + 5 (44, or nine bars of 5 ending on '4')

Rick, Dev and Brad spend some time on Blockhead with suggestions from the group on dynamics, tempo and time feel. Afterward, there is a little logistical discussion and then we are tearing down late, to be out around 11:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #10, 11-13-11

2011-11-23T00:46:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev

Some minor technical difficulties as we set up tonight, with coffee machines and (sound) mixers. We prehearse Bicycling to Afghanistan at Victor's request and also run through the nascent Voices of Ancient Children.

We perform around 7:40. The (approximate) set list:

circulation I/improv I
Batrachomyomachy
circulation II
Eye of the Needle
circulation III/improv II
Thrak
Rick and Chris
Voices of Ancient Children
Growing Circle
Q & A (how much do you practice during the week?)
Calliope
circulation IV/improv III
Haydn's canon
Where's the Nurse
imrpov IV
Austurias

For rehearsal, we're joined by a new player, Scott. Victor asks Scott if he would like to join the performance team and gives him the run-down of what he will need to be prepared for it; this dovetails into a demonstration of navigating the entire neck of the guitar in C Major using tetrachords. Victor then takes Scott downstairs for some one-on-one work while the remainder work on Blockhead and Love is Green.

We start wrapping up promptly around 10:00.

Small group, 11/17/2011, Brad's Apartment

2011-11-17T16:47:00.001-08:00

In attendance: Rick, Brad, Chris.

Rick is first to arrive; some discussion about some current circle topics (as well as the interview that Victor, Dev, and Brad gave the night before) over coffee and cannele. With Chris's arrival, we set to work.

An opening circulation, beginning in A-flat Majorish and ending in A minor. A short improvisation follows.

Rick suggests a simple but interesting strategy for circulation: whoever begins a circulation can, at any point, play a note out of turn, to create a "double-stop" with whoever is playing at the same time. That person then begins the next pass around the circle, with the same option to double-stop when they like. In a three-person circle, this is fun and sounds quite musical; it'll be interesting to see what happens in a larger group.

Chris suggests some more work with C Major tetrachords, and with circulating them. Instead of 3 octaves, we stick to the middle 4 strings, with multiple passes up and down. An off-the-cuff remark about singing at the same time results in us repeating the process while singing our note (vocal octave of our choice). This is really useful, and Brad notes that when we miss our note on the guitar, we never sing the right note (and usually aren't even able to hold a pitch). This leads to a short discussion on our various strategies and approaches for mentally hearing notes as we play. Some more of the same circulation work with the diminished scale (half-whole in G) across the fretboard.

Some extended discussion about George Russell's Lydian Chromatic theory, and about horizontal vs. vertical harmony. High-falutin' stuff.

Leading from the diminished scale, it only seems appropriate to pay a visit to Batrachomyomachy. Following the first run, Brad asks to try it again, and switches guitars with Chris. Having been edified, guitars are returned to their respective owners.

Rick asks to be shown the rest of the lead part for Growing Circle; Chris runs him through this. A full run through, with a couple of starts and stops for clarification. From here, we pay a visit to Bicycling to Afghanistan; we have no high lead, but Rick has just finished learning the mid-lead, and wants to begin ironing out his own part. It's a little empty-sounding, but enough information is available to run down the parts and help clarify some parts for Rick.

Another piece revisited is Blockhead. Brad attempts the Bert part, with Chris and Rick reprising their Paul and Hideyo roles, respectively. A bit of clarification of the arrangement, and other arrangements from others. A mention of topping out of abilities results in a pretty good discussion about the nature of pushing our abilities.

Rick asks if he might hear Hommage. Chris and Brad oblige several times over, with some useful direction from Rick.

A final circulation to end the afternoon, and Rick and Chris retreat into the early darkness.

Small Group 11/14/2011, Rick's House

2011-11-17T16:09:00.001-08:00

In attendance: Rick, Brad, Scott, Dev.

Dev and Brad arrive at Rick's place, and are pleasantly surprised to see the newest member of the circle is attending as well. Scott is a recent newcomer (having just attended an intro course this past summer), and tonight is the second for him to really get to sit and work with some of us.

An opening circulation, largely C Major, followed by a good improvisation.

Scott is very new to this way of working, which gives us a great chance to reconnect with some primary exercises. Dev takes the opportunity to lead us through an extended second primary exercise (A string only). Following this, a chance to let shoulders and muscles de-tensify. We then ask Scott for permission to run a piece of repertoire. Askesis follows (with one false start) at performance tempo.

We then introduce Scott to the 16-bar Exercise. His guitar's lack of cutaway (leading to a mention of Ralphie G.) is somewhat restrictive, so we modulate down to F#min in order to allow him to work.

A break for the bums afterward, with chatting about Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, and other chatty subjects.

Back in the circle--Brad and Scott switch places. Another circulation and improvisation. Checking in with Scott about C Major, we choose to work with circulating 3 octaves in various manners. Some useful work with this. Afterward, Scott ducks outside for cough drops, while Rick, Brad, and Dev blast through Calliope at what is definitely too fast of a tempo. We know this primarily because we're already finished before Scott comes back inside the house.

With Scott's permission, Brad calls Intergalactic Boogie Express, and is followed by Dev calling Flying Home. The latter feels quite good, but this bunch of players being what it is, we decide to give "performance tempo" a shot (Curt aims for 104 bpm!). Brad drops out in the first D section, followed by Rick somewhere around the midtro, which makes Dev the Flying Home Champion. Aim high. . .

A final circulation to end the night.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #9, 11-6-11

2011-11-10T22:28:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev

Our space is downstairs tonight. Brad and Chris get a few performance pointers from Victor while awaiting Dev, who arrives during a reading of Derailed at the Junction. Brad, Chris and Victor also give Bicycling to Afghanistan a whirl as they consider repertoire possibilities for the quartet.

After a few guests arrive, we decide it is time to begin the performance-proper and meet in the "green room" a little after 7:30. The set that emerges is laden with improvisation:

circulation/improv I
Eye of the Needle
improv II
Bicycling to Afghanistan
improv III
Intergalactic Boogie Express
Hommage a JSB
circulation II/improv IV
Q & A (how was Seattle?)
improv V
Thrak
improv VI
Where's the Nurse
improv VII
Growing Circle
circulation III/improv VIII
Austurias
circulation IV

Some talk after the set regarding the next step and our current successes and failures. Returning to a rehearsal mind, Victor asks the team what they have been working on this week in their own personal practice, and Chris proffers a small bit from a project he is undertaking with Slonimsky's Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns. Then we work on Voices of Ancient Children with Dev teaching Victor the melody in small parts and a few full-group run-throughs for good measure; we have some homework.

Tear-down and out late, after 11:00.

Small Group, Rick's House - 11/9/2011

2011-11-10T06:47:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Dev Ray, Brad Hogg.

Dev and Brad arrive at around 8:20 p.m. Fresh coffee in hand and stools set in place, we immediately set to socializing and catching up. Eventually, a guitar does make it out of its case, and the other two follow suit.

An opening circulation, followed by a "no messing around" count-off into Askesis.

Work on Voices of Ancient Children. Brad picks up the pulse/structure part (or a facsimile thereof) in order to give the piece a complete airing; this will likely get moved into the setlist soon.

After a bit more joshing around (we're a rowdy bunch), Brad presents parts of a piece he has been working on. We spend a little bit of time getting it into our hands, then some more time while Brad administers some tests. Good work.

Another circulation.

Where's The Nurse? leads to some very focused spot work with regards to togetherness and note-lengths and picking patterns. The general feeling is that the Circle plays this piece very well, but that there is always a bit of fuzziness in certain parts. With this addressed, the resulting clarity is very noticeable.

Intergalactic Boogie Express. Once we've finished playing this, Dev works the leads on their re-entry towards the end of the piece (when the bass lays out). Some hard work on this, which really cleans up.

A final circulation, which almost becomes an improvisation, but then simply ends instead.

A bit of parting discussion, and Brad and Dev take off into the night.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #8, 10-30-11

2011-10-30T22:36:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, David

A small crew on deck tonight. Chris is the last to arrive, shortly after 6:00, and the lighting and gear is mostly set up. Brad runs the board. We will be taking on Sunday night football and an October snow storm.

Before the performance, we haven't talked yet about what we can actually play as this particular quartet. Some minimal versions of IBE, Eye of the Needle, Flying Home and Batrachomyomachy are proffered to us in prehearsal, and Morning Has Broken is also a suggestion. Having duo pieces pays off with a Bartok duet and Moving Force, and Brad has a fresh solo piece to bring to the table.

We're on for an audience of three at 7:30, and the set comes out like this:

circulation I
Where's the Nurse
improv I
Eye of the Needle
Hommage a JSB
circulation II/improv II
Third Relation
Moving Force
Q & A
Askesis
Flying Home
Prelude in D minor
Morning Has Broken
improv III
Lark's Thrak
circulation III/improv IV
Austurias

About forty minutes of music. We tear down quickly after guests depart and linger a bit afterward to touch base on promotion and considerations for a possible third season. We're out the door no later than 9:45.

small group meeting, Rick's House, 10-24-11

2011-10-25T00:32:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev

We meet at Rick's around 8:00, and enter a discussion regarding our need as a group to 'reset', to mentally step back from the activity our work in the Circle has generated for us and reconnect with what is essential.

Once we are seated with guitars, we begin with a circulation that travels forward and back and lands in an A Major tonality. Dev calls Third Relation, after which Rick calls Intergalactic Boogie Express. We make note of an important transition in Third, and discuss strategies for having command of transitions in general, including muscle memory, having a mental image, and aural anticipation. Chris has the urge for Where's the Nurse, and Brad picks Eye of the Needle, which is played without a main lead voice; Rick offers Dev a right hand pointer.

Rick presents some working parts for an original composition, beginning with a circulation exercise wherein notes are passed on a quarter note pulse, but are half notes in duration ("the idea is to pay as much attention to the end of the note as the beginning," Rick says). We do this as a quartet in G minor until Rick adds the stipulation that one of the players is to play quarter notes in the same key (but never consecutively on the same string) on the backbeat of the pulse. We take turns being in the "hot seat" of the backbeat, and change key to D Major for Dev and F Major for Brad. After this, Rick presents some "shreddy" parts for us to run through as an ensemble.

With a few minutes left before a predetermined dispersal time, Dev brings up Voices of Ancient Children, which he and Chris worked on in a prior GC course. Dev shows the "claw" part to Rick, and we make two or three attempts to run through the piece, eventually arriving at the end of the bridge. We end the meeting around 10:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #7, 10-16-11

2011-10-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris, Brad, David

The performance space this week is brimming with lanterns which have been made by the local community for an upcoming evening parade around Jamaica Pond (at which we will also be performing), but it is easy for us to adjust. When we are seated with guitars, we reflect on what we have learned about the technique of circulation so far this season: how to address the ambiguous dilemma of an interruption of flow in real time, and the challenge of being the 'third man'. We also talk about the structure of a Whiz circulation - beginning, ending, and finding a continuity. There are a few other prehearsal bits, including Bicycling to Afghanistan with some notes on energy changes.

We're on at the usual time for a small audience. After the performance, a few of the team are out the door quickly on family business, and the remainder tear down and are out by 10:30.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #6, 10-9-11

2011-10-24T14:10:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris, Brad, Dev, David

Several of us are running late, so set-up and soundcheck are tight. The order of the set (without improvs):

Eye of the Needle
Flying Home
Intergalactic Boogie Express
Hommage a JSB
Aspiration
Calliope
Q & A
Lark's Thrak
Batrachomyomachy
Where's the Nurse
Growing Circle
Haydn canon
Austurias

After the performance, Rick makes an early departure on family business while the rest of us stay for a bit longer for work with guitars. Victor brings up a point about 'seeing' scalar/harmonic relationships happening during circulations and improvs, rather than 'thinking' about them. Chris and Victor run through Derailed at the Junction, and then Brad, Chris and Victor give Bicycling to Afghanistan a whirl as a trio; this leads to a talk about how energy can change between and within pieces of music.

Tear-down and out of the space by 10:30.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #5, 10-2-11

2011-10-09T22:33:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev, David

We all arrive between 6:00 and 6:15. After getting ourselves set up, we play a game with guitars wherein a circler is chosen to decide the timbre of a circulation - this could be a note played on a certain part of the neck, in any relation to the soundhole, picked, thumbed, plucked, slapped - so that the other players must listen and follow suit. We go around until everyone gets a chance to be "it", and then we prehearse Intergalactic Boogie Express and Calliope before a pre-show dispersal.

Victor has an idea in the green room for a circulation using mirrors before we head on around 7:40. There is a false start to Love is Green, but a heavy silence falls following the complete performance. We are asked for an encore and oblige.

After the audience has left, we get some constructive feedback from a special guest, and turn our attention to working on Opening as a large group. The quartet circulation needs extra time to get on their feet, and apply some of the strategies that were used in the small group meeting earlier in the week (with the added spacial distance contributing even more challenge). It is a lot of effort, though our guest approves of the direction of the work. After we have given it our best for a while, we tear down and are out not long after 10:30.

small group meeting, McCarthy Ranch, 9-26-11

2011-10-02T11:34:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev

We're gathered a little past 8:00. After a salutatory circulation, Chris brings up the possibility of reviving Opening with a new arrangement: four seats taking the high ostinato (as opposed to three) and two seats taking the low. For the high part (i.e. the present company), that means circulating in triplets across four seats. We begin by working with a metronome on the first bar and simply trying to "do it", but with little success. We then bring the tempo down and discuss strategies for keeping with the pattern, including counting, visualization, foot tapping, etc. For further simplification, we take time to clap the pattern without guitars, which leads to our first taste of success. When we return to guitars, we are able to circulate much more steadily, and note the value of relaxation in this process. At concert tempo, we begin to experiment with adding more material from the full piece, with and without metronome, until we have the entire first section. Here, we decide to take a short break.

We briefly return to make a pass through some current and working repertoire, including Where's the Nurse, Batrachomyomachy, Bicycling to Afghanistan, and Hommage a JSB. After a valedictory circulation, we depart around 10:45.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #4, 9-25-11

2011-10-02T11:30:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev

We arrive, set up, and do a little prehearsal before showtime; as usual, we review what repertoire is available with a less-than-optimal configuration of the group. Where's the Nurse and Love is Green get specific attention before we go on around 7:35. A fun set: strong improvisations and Lark's Thrak making an unexpected appearance, worthy of the approbation of upstairs and downstairs audients alike. In the green room we discuss some performance/publicity opportunities that are opening up, then tear down early to support another performance in the area by visiting friends.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #3, 9-18-11

2011-09-25T11:06:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Chris (scribe), Brad, Dev, David

Chris, Brad and Dev get together at Brad's apartment about an hour prior to normal GCS set up time for some extra work together (in lieu of a small group meeting over the week). After beginning with a short circulation, Chris suggests looking at triads in G minor, in connection with the Haydn canon currently in the GCNE repertoire. The plan is to begin with a pattern and see how far it goes: Chris playing roots, Brad 3rds and Dev 5ths. After going up to the highest D (the 5th of the highest G minor triad), we descend and alternate intervals - Chris on the 3rd, Brad on the 5th, etc. Before moving on from this, Chris makes a request to be able to hear some 'counter-subjects' happening over the canon, and the resulting experiment offers a clue that natural minor is not the best choice for improvising in a harmonic minor context.

Next up, we run through Batrachomyomachy, retaking it from the "frogs" with Brad playing on a different part of the round. Finally, Dev indulges Brad and Chris by listening to a recital of Bartok's Hommage a JSB, and has a pointer not mentioned on their previous Sunday's close work with the piece. The group heads out soon thereafter.

Everyone is gathered at the performance space by 6:20. Victor needs just one more shot at the mirrors in Where's the Nurse during prehearsal, and we are on around 7:30 for a 45-minute performance.

Post-show with guitars, we play a game involving a search for the "last note" of a phrase as the notes are passed around the circle; several report that this is harder to do at faster speeds when the thinking turns to being on point, rather than being present with the circulation as a whole. Afterward, we play another game searching for the tonic in a series of circulated notes: eight seats forward, then all chime in for a group chord with their "answer" to the question.

Tear down and out by 10:45.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #2, "opening night", 9-11-11

2011-09-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Chris (scribe), Brad, David

Chris arrives a bit late while the rest of the team is doing a sound check. After getting set up, we run through a few circulation ideas with a note to pay attention to the timbre of individual notes clashing or blending with that of the full group sound. Love is Green gets prehearsal refreshing before a brief pre-show dispersal.

Our performance runs for about forty minutes and closes with Growing Circle and a cadential circulation, and has lots of circulation and improvisation in general. After the show, we do a group exercise before David has to make an early departure, and talk a little about musical phrasing in regard to the intentional placement of a phrase on or around the "weight" of a beat*. Chris asks for an example to help him with practice at home, and Victor and the team oblige.

The exhibition with Chris dovetails into a Hommage a JSB (Bartok) recital where Chris and Brad get individual and collective performance pointers for bringing the short piece to life. Following this, Victor works with Rick to pick up the mirror part in the final 10 + 9 section of Where's the Nurse, and gets a question on the bass part in Intergalactic Boogie Express answered.

Tear down and out by 10:45.

Guitar Circle Sundays s. 2 #1, "soft opening", 9-4-11

2011-09-11T11:55:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Brad, Rick, Victor, David, Chris, Dev

All are present by 6:30. Brad and Rick got here early to set up lights and get stools and equipment going. We have a new mixer.

A little prehearsal before our performance tonight: Third Relation, Eye of the Needle, Morning Has Broken, the Haydn canon. Some review of the canon is necessary, after which we give a go in an organized manner.

We continue along preparatory lines with Flying Home when the first guest of the season comes in off the street, having seen the words 'guitar circle' with an arrow pointing on a sandwich board outside. At 7:35, we take this as a sign of the beginning of our performance. We play for about forty-five minutes.

We pow wow after the guests depart and, among other things, follow up on the konokol exercise Victor presented last week; tonight he offers another and other suggestions for further experimentation. We decide that the best use of our time is for rehearsal and get to work. Some of the items addressed are Intergalactic Boogie Express, with Victor picking up the bass, and Love is Green as a trio with Chris, Victor and Rick.

Tear down and out by 10:30.

Guitar Circle Sundays s.2 rehearsal, 8-28-11

2011-09-03T11:30:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor, Rick, Dev, Brad, David, Chris (scribe).

We're all here by 7:30. We spend about forty-five minutes setting up equipment and making sure we're ready to go for next Sunday - gear-wise, at least. Rick repairs a few of the wobblier stools and investigates the coffee station situation with Chris. We're using a different mixer than normal so setting up sound requires some extra trial and error.

A long silence precedes the guitar portion of the meeting. We begin with an improvisation, following which Victor introduces a konokol exercise which works with accelerating groups of five; this segues into a discussion of the extended present moment of melody and rhythm. At this point, we break from guitars to consider some practicalities going forward to December 11th, before turning our attention to getting David up to speed on what he needs to know for Guitar Circle Sundays. In turn, this talk leads back to guitar work with variegated circulation.

After a formal break, we experiment with a quartet set-up for a performance in-the-round, which proves to be quite viable, sonically. This is also an opportunity for a mini-recital from Dev, Chris, Rick and Brad, who have been meeting autonomously throughout the summer. Victor has some performance notes throughout, and has something in particular he would like to try. But before going there, we give Third Relation a hearing, at David's request.

Following an exhibition, Victor asks Chris to pair up with Rick and for Brad to pair up with David, and for the four to head on stage (there is a small stage in the auditorium-like room). In each pair, one of the partners is to speak only in gibberish, accompanied by gesture, while the other partner acts as translator to the other pair, who cannot understand that group's gibberish speaker. From this, the two groups are to improvise a scene to entertain the audience (during the exercise, Brad is swapped out for a heckling Dev). Much fun is had by all and worthwhile observations are shared, with a clear analogy to musical improvisation within the Circle.

We tear down, and are out before 11:00.

small group meeting, Rick's House, 8-16-11

2011-08-20T22:48:00.000-07:00

Rick, Dev, Brad and Chris (scribe). We tread some well-defined tonal space during our opening circulation which leads to a question about listening to tonality as it morphs during a free circulation; then for a warm up, we tackle the "hammerhead" variation of a familiar left hand exercise at a moderate tempo for a few minutes.

For repertoire work, we begin with a take of Eye of the Needle which leads to a comment and retake of the ending. It is here that we turn to our performance the previous Sunday for guidance on what to work on tonight, and Flying Home is first on the chopping block. After one take, Dev says that the biggest problem with our performance of the piece is the basses and leads not being in the pocket together; we then take turns pairing up a lead with a bass (conveniently two of each present) while the remaining players listen and offer performance notes in this regard. It sounds better when we do a full-group take again, and we even give it a shot at concert tempo with fleeting glimpses of success.

The small group takes some time to help Chris with his work on playing fast, offering some pointers and an exercise. As a group, we take on a speed-oriented version of a left hand exercise and have some fun pushing our limits.

After a short break, we return to work with Third Relation. Chris is apparently familiar with a part that makes a full-reading of the piece possible with the present configuration of the group, and that reading is given two hearings and some bass treatment. We play Calliope after some discussion of the fingering of a certain part in the bass, and we work some more on our time feel. Then a take of Bicycling to Afghanistan, Thrak, and an improv to end our work for the night.

small group meeting, Rick's House, 8-9-11

2011-08-11T15:10:00.000-07:00

Rick, Dev, Chris (scribe). We begin with a circulation. Dev says he has two things in mind he wants to focus on: Thrak and Morning Has Broken. In Thrak, Dev and Chris take on different parts in the middle section than those they normally play, and time is taken to loop the section and break the part down to its individual components. After this, we approach the piece head-on from the top, but the take falls apart. We bring a metronome in and notice we are losing the time frequently. After some notes and a few more retakes, we remove the metronome and are eventually able to manage a workable rendition.

Dev says that some of the details of the Morning Has Broken main melody, such as phrasing and certain ornaments, are not clear on our recordings of it. We work on putting these things together and get a clearer melody. We follow a similar vein for a trio version of Batrachomyomachy. A closing circulation, and our guitar work is done.

small group meeting, Chateau McCarthy, 8-7-11

2011-08-11T15:05:00.000-07:00

Rick, Dev, Brad, Chris (scribe). We begin our meeting with a short circulation, and warm up with a brisk version of Askesis; from this, we gravitate toward moderation on Third Relation.

An upcoming performance poses the question of what a set list would look like for this truncated group. The first piece along these lines to be looked at is Batrachomyomachy, which we approach in two configurations. After the two takes, there is some detail discussion of the melody line which leads to a memetic exercise we explored with the full group about a month earlier. Next we work on Morning Has Broken. We play through once as a trio, after which Dev says he is ready to learn the main melody; we spend some time with this, and give it two takes as a full group. Before the break, we hit Flying Home as an experiment, twice.

We take a moment to write down the set list we generated and also to discuss some logistic items, as well as share thoughts going forward into another performance season. We return to work with guitars with takes of Blockhead and Where's the Nurse. Brad and Chris give Moving Force a shot, and Chris gets some help and suggestions with his part on that piece. The last thing to be looked at before a closing circulation and send-off is Thrak, which also requires some reconfiguring for this group.

Summer recording session #2, 7-31-11

2011-08-04T23:40:00.000-07:00

Victor, Rick, Dev, Brad, and Chris (scribe). We are loading in equipment by 6:30. An adjustment is being made to our set up to include a monitor system; we spend some time testing this out, and listen to a few takes and improvs from last week.

We begin our session with four improvisations, and listen back. While we are at it, there is an airing of the remainder of the previously recorded material, with which perspective we decide how to proceed. We return to Eye of the Needle, having not arrived at a satisfactory performance of it last week, and take it twice; then two more takes of Where's the Nurse. Chris, Rick and Brad then give Morning Has Broken a shot as a trio in several retakes, eventually arriving at enough material for a complete performance. We play a false start and two takes of Growing Circle, and Intergalactic Boogie Express for fun, twice.

We tear down, and are once again out around 11:00.

Summer recording session #1, 7-24-11

2011-07-31T12:06:00.000-07:00

Victor, Rick, Dev, Brad, and Chris (scribe). Location: the gymnasium of Thacher Montessori School. We load in equipment and begin making decisions about where to set up, how to arrange the group and what mics to use to achieve a good sonic balance on the recording. There is some creativity and a lot of trial and error involved in this process; Dev takes some pictures of the final arrangement, and the other players aid him by committing their own places to memory.

Then, testing the water with some actual recording. Eye of the Needle is the first piece up to bat, then two or three takes of Third Relation, Where's the Nurse and Growing Circle. In between and to wrap things up we attempt some improvisation, with the suggestion to 'just have fun' being made for the last one of the night. We tear down and are out by 11:00.

small group meeting, Rick's basement, 7-19-11

2011-07-20T13:58:00.000-07:00

Rick, Dev, Brad and Chris (scribe). We loosen up with circulation and improvisation, and dive into the work of marching and playing Eye of the Needle. We do three takes: first, at 66 BPM, clockwise in a small circle; then again at 63 BPM; and finally at the same speed while counting the bars; observations are shared between each take. Dev suggests we try this approach with Askesis at 88 BPM, which we do once. We have a lot of fun and get some useful observations from the team.

After a short break, we are seated again and venture to practice The Sunken Cathedral via a recording (made by Rick) which fills in the parts of tonight's absent players while providing an accented click. Rick puts the recording on a set of surround sound speakers and we play along with it once, and share thoughts afterward.

We give Growing Circle a quick hearing without a click, and then Where's the Nurse. Third Relation gets metronome treatment, and we play through it twice, the second time with some suggestions from Dev. We talk a little about our next meeting on Sunday, and depart around 10:00.

small group meeting, Rick's basement, 7-17-11

2011-07-18T23:05:00.000-07:00

The first GCNE-related gathering after a two week hiatus. We have been looking seriously at doing an EP length recording over the summer, and have season two of Guitar Circle Sundays coming up in September.

Chris arrives at Rick's shortly before 8:00 and the two chew the cud before Dev and Brad roll in. Unfortunately, circumstances have prevented a needed full group meeting, but the work of the smaller group (although not well-defined at this point) supports the larger circle in subtle and significant ways.

A preliminary improvisation is the way to begin, which develops from a simple circulation into a sympathetic improv that stretches the guitarists' tonal and textural palettes. Following this keynote, Rick calls for a recital of Bicycling to Afghanistan. This piece has been out of the current repertoire since October, and is challenging for the group to work up on the fly. They are not able to make it all the way through once, and opt to work on something more manageable and to come back after warming up (maybe on a different day); Where's the Nurse fits the bill, and is also under consideration for recording.

There is some accompanying discussion to the Nurse takes, and then some talk regarding the upcoming weeks and how best to use available time going into the second season.

There was a curious amount of speeding up in the quartet's (already too brisk for comfort) takes of Bicycling and Nurse, so a metronome is employed for the next portion of rehearsal. First up is Flying Home, and interesting discrepancies and psychological experiences occur for the players as they play against the click. To push it, they take it again at concert tempo, which is much faster than the GCNE plays the piece as a group. After this, Askesis at its written speed seems very doable, and they do it, taking extra time to loop a specific section with standout unsteadiness. Dev pinpoints where the time is slipping, and the players go around individually playing their loop and receiving pointers. The last few minutes are spent on two takes of Eye of the Needle, which turns out to be strangely difficult to play against a click.

Dev has a conference call and the chaps part ways, scheduling another small group meeting during the week.

June 16-30, GCNE Small Group Recap

2011-07-01T05:14:00.000-07:00

Just a recap of what the ancillary group within GCNE has been up to:

-Reviewing various pieces of repertoire, including The Sunken Cathedral, Askesis, Third Relation, Growing Circle, Eye of the Needle, Calliope.

-Plenty of improvisation

-Presenting of an arrangement of a theme from Super Mario Bros 3 by Chris Paquette

-Presenting of an original from Rick McCarthy

-R & D on a theme from Brad

-Revisiting an exercise that was used on the Atlanta 2003 Level III course

-Plenty of coffee

Flower Communion Service, TPUUC, 6-12-11

2011-06-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

Alex and Chris arrive at the Theodore Parker Unitarian Universalist Church in West Roxbury around 9:00 AM. Rick, Victor and Brad are already there setting up equipment, and Dev comes in shortly afterward. Today we will be providing music to accompany a service which is part of a series the church has been holding on the seven UU principles. It will be a different challenge for this group, and we're not fully sure what to anticipate.

We will be playing in quasi-circle form (as opposed to semi-circle) in the alcove of the main hall of the church, behind the pulpit. For this occasion, we will be in stereo, using two of Victor's smaller PA speakers. We take turns playing through the system to get a rough idea of tone, panning and volume in this space, and then tighten it up as a group. Things aren't too buggy and we're able to get our sound quickly.

We touch base with Rev. Lili Nye who will be leading the service and get a rundown of the procession of events from Victor. The focus of the service is the Flower Communion, wherein participants each bring a flower to offer the group and take a flower in turn, symbolizing reciprocity and the interconnectedness of life.

The service begins at 10:30 with an improvised prelude from us as people enter the church (as an interesting sidelight, the prelude form was originally improvisatory and strongly associated with the lute, and served a function similar to this). Once the congregation is more or less assembled, Rev. Lili offers some introductory words and opens the floor for community and personal announcements, followed by a reading from Black Elk Speaks and a prayer offered by some children from the community, and a hymn.

Then, the Flower Communion begins with some improvisation from us. Following the procession, the congregation gathers in a circle around the pews and offers another hymn in the style of a round in two sections. There is then an extended moment of silence for meditation and reflection; eventually, we gently bring the congregation back with some music, and Rev. Lili can begin her sermon. During the offertory, we offer a cool-headed Where's the Nurse. Some final hymns and words to complete the service, and a "postlude" from us while people disperse around noontime.

Since we're all here anyway, we decide to meet & eat after tearing down, and enjoy a spicy lunch at a Thai restaurant.

GCNE Small Meeting, 06-09-2010, Brad's Apartment

2011-06-09T21:48:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg

Rick arrives earlier, around 11 a.m. Some general chatting and banter for a while, until the need is seen to start warming up. A couple of variations on the "Hammerhead" exercise, mostly involving inverting and reversing the pattern and moving up and down the neck. From there, we revisit Driving Force to get our fingers and minds moving together, taking time to clarify a couple of chiming bits.

Chris eventually arrives, to the joy of circlemates and dog. Some tuning, adjusting, and silence, and a circulation to begin the meeting. Where's the Nurse gets the nod, and it's a pretty in-depth one. We start off with three runs of the piece: once to get ourselves going, again to run over bits that we missed, and then a third slow run (being inspired by the traditional Turkish music that Tony Geballe had played us when he first taught the circle how to play this). From here on, it's all about tiny things: whether to hammer on or pick a note, the picking pattern of a section, whether to legato-fy a single note in the lead part. Small things, but quite illuminating to look at.

At Rick's suggestion, we move back to Driving Force, running the intro and opening Amin/Dmin section. Playing to a click proves to be very difficult at a slow pace (official performance tempo is 130, but we are running parts sub-100 while we are learning the parts), but slightly less difficult at a slightly faster pace. Some bits and bobs about putting the sections together, followed by a necessary break.

Back in the circle, Invocation is reviewed, in the case that it comes up for the church service on Sunday. Following this, we work with a simple chromatic power-chord circulation, from Eb to Eb. The form is simple enough: 3 up, 1 down, repeat (this would read as Eb-E-F-E-F-Gb-F-Gb-G etc.), and the same pattern in reverse on the way down (3 down, 1 up, or Eb-D-Db-D-Db-C etc.). The bugaboo is the shift in the pattern at the top and return to the bottom of the scale*, which throws us for a loop and gives us more work than we had expected. Making it through a few runs, there is a final bit of circulation for Chris, who takes his leave shortly after demonstrating his proficiency at his day job. Rick remains for a short while longer to run over some parts he is teaching Brad, as well as to help workshop a couple of small ideas that Brad is working on, and then takes off himself.

GCNE Meeting, 6-5-11

2011-06-08T15:05:00.000-07:00

Around 7:30, and the GCNE-ers begin congregating at their old haunt and rehearsal space for their first formal meeting since the close of the Guitar Circle Sundays performance season. We have had a few weeks off to rest and assimilate our experience undertaking the performance challenge, and are ready to begin discussing the future as circlemate banter wisps about the chilly air.

When we reach the loft upstairs, we arrange ourselves in a circle according to the sequence used for GCS, as opposed to the semi-circle form usually adopted in this space, in a natural way. We have no amplification and will be playing acoustically. We begin with silence. A couple circulations to get us going, brief, and rich with accidentals and a few accidents. A couple baton cues for group chords.

Perhaps following up on some of the possible work hinted at during the prehearsal of our last performance, Victor calls the circulation pattern, "two forward, one back." We pass a note to the person two seats to our right, and that person passes to the player one seat to the left, ad infinitum. This pattern is easy for us to grasp and even takes on some velocity. To mix things up, Victor adds the stipulation that notes being passed to the right are to be played from C minor on the 5th and 6th strings, while notes going to the left will come from A minor on the first and second strings.

A new pattern: two back, three forward. This form is not as compact as the previous one, and is harder for some of the team to visualize happening. As an experiment, we attempt "glance" circulating, which involves looking at the person we are passing to in the eyes without making any sound; this is of course a very odd thing to do, but somehow progress is made with internalizing the pattern. The next game is passing words, using the circulation pattern to form peculiar sentences (this would make for a poignant performance piece on "Bloomsday").

Back to business, and we are a little more confident with the form. Now, it's: "on the downbeats, two forward, one back; on the upbeats, two back, three forward." So, a double circulation with the two forms happening concurrently. When this proves to be difficult, we set aside playing notes and instead circulate the words "down" and "up", corresponding to which form we are passing as part of, while pointing to the next person in that respective pattern. Eventually, we make a complete pass using this method, and after a brief attempt with guitars stop to talk about logistics for Sunday.

We will be taking on a different kind of performance challenge by providing music for a service at a local Unitarian church. Because some portions of the service will be of indeterminate length, we decide that improv and a handful of appropriate pieces are the way to go. Victor refreshes the parts for Invocation with the group.

We take a break, but this turns to necessary talk regarding some possible upcoming Spring projects, GCS season II, and a recording project. The discussion winds up concluding the meeting around 10:30.

GCNE Meeting 06-02-2011, Rick's House

2011-06-03T20:19:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Dev Ray, Brad Hogg.

Dev and Brad arrive at Rick's house just after 8pm. After a bit of organizing and collecting ourselves, we sit down and begin with an opening circulation (Dmin?). Some tuning follows, and then we jump in with Askesis (two basses, one lead) as a warm up. At roughly 88 bpm, it's maybe a little fast as a warm up, but no reason to stop now. A moment is taken to clarify an octave double in the bass. 3rd Relation (two basses, one lead) comes next. Still spritely, but we're finding our bearings. This is shaping up to be largely focused on Crafty repertoire.

A bit of talking, and then we give Calliope a shot. Interesting to hear with two basses (no mirror) and mirror lead. Flying Home also gets more than a passing nod (two basses and one straight lead), with a question following about how the lead is played, and incredulity at the answer given. Bicycling to Afghanistan is mentioned, but considered to be currently out of reach. At the urging of one Dev Ray, Moving Force (one bass, one lead) is played instead, to the mock boredom of Rick (only serious players tonight).

After a moment of more gabbing, and following a noodle from Dev, Brad shows Rick the first part of the lead on Driving Force to Rick. This has been bandied about recently, and Glenn has mentioned that he sees this piece being a viable option for this Circle. A couple runs through the section, and stopping before the bridge, gives us a good workout and some useful homework.

A circulation after this, leading into an improv with a fairly energetic and clear ending, followed by a brisk run of Where's the Nurse. Following the Tony Geballe line, we pick up Batrachomyomachy, with Brad jumping ship from bass to lead after the first half of the "mice". Some work with the mice (including several runs of the canon section) closes it out, and we opt for a break from the stools. This leads to a lengthy chat that ends up running longer than our actual playing time, but this is difficult to avoid with gossips such as us. Calling it a night shortly after midnight, we all head our separate ways.

GCNE Meeting, 05-26-2010, Brad's Apartment

2011-05-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Brad Hogg. Dev for the last half an hour, due to travel difficulties.

Rick arrives at Brad's place at about 10 a.m. Dev is running late due to some unexpected travel difficulties. This is the first time anyone has met since the end of the season, so we warm up a bit with the 16 Bar exercise at a slower pace, somewhere in the 75 bpm range. Mirrors are added as desired. A few minutes of this, and then a few more minutes at something around 88 bpm to bring up the blood pressure. A brisk run through 3rd Relation to get the mind running along with the hands is probably a little faster than we should attempt, after the break, but assume the virtue. . . .

Diving into experiment mode, Brad presents a bitonal exercise. The first side is a simple ascension in Dmaj, on the 2nd-4th strings, using the I, the IV, and the vi chords. The second side uses the same chords in Emaj, descending in contrary motion. Rick gamely gives it a go, and then suggests the same approach, but using Abmaj instead of Emaj (the Bartok approach). A second twist is added by hocketing each side, with Dmaj on the downbeat and Abmaj on the offbeat. Then a false double-time feel is added every other chord (playing twice as fast, but remaining on that chord for an equal amount of time). We switch hockets (Dmaj on the offbeat) to further explore the idea, and decide that this is something that has quite a bit of value. We'll come back to this later.

A bit of discussion on various off-topic topics, along with a couple of possibly bright ideas about potential repertoire pieces.

Moving on, Rick shows a 7/4 figure in Gmaj to Brad that is the beginning of a piece that he has been working on for some time in a rock band context. Once Brad has this, then the next bit is shown: the same figure in Amaj, with a climb back to the Gmaj figure, with mirrors added. The next sections are slowly added on, with a couple of hocketing figures, a restatement in octaves, and a rejoining in Amaj. Challenging, but fun and listenable. As we finish working on this, Dev arrives at long last.

A circulation and improv with some good moments and very unusual key centers for us to play in.

We bring Dev up to speed with the bitonal exercise. A stated area-of-less-aptitude-than-others gives us a chance to focus on some chord shapes, which brings us up to the necessary leaving time for the two journeyman. A closing moment, a piece of watermelon, and they're off, leaving Brad to type up the minutes.

Guitar Circle Sundays #18, "Finale", 5-15-11

2011-05-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

It is gray, damp and comfortably cool today, and we are meeting early at the space in preparation for the final performance in the Guitar Circle Sundays series (season one...?). Hard to believe this is number eighteen!

Matthew Merchant has come down from Canada to join us for the show, and is with Brad at SC when Chris and Alex arrive around 2:30. Downstairs, another group is getting ready for a graduation party, making for concurrent convivial convocations. We set up for a circle of eight by giving one of the house bar stools a long-needed repair.

As we are setting up sound, a technical difficulty arises concerning our amplifier, and Victor is forced to depart to retrieve a replacement. While he is away, the group keeps focus and goes over common repertoire with Matthew. After about twenty-five minutes, Victor returns with an amp and is able to finish the mix, which, with Matthew in the eighth seat, has a more 'circular' sound. We wrap up repertoire work with Matt and take a dinner break around 5:20.

The 'party' portion of the party downstairs gets underway during this time, and when we are seated again there is an enticing mix of salsa and contemporary pop thumping through the floorboards. Victor gives Matthew the skinny on our improvisational tendencies and some of the circulation forms that commonly come up in our performances, with the group providing examples. We then move on to special group repertoire, giving the most attention to The Sunken Cathedral, Love is Green and Prelude No. 1.

As always (well, more or less), we go on at 7:30. It is our best house so far, volume-wise, with 25-30 people. A set a little more on the repertoire end, with Victor mostly calling the shots. We play for about fifty minutes, with no encore. Audience response after the performance is highly positive, and it seems like there will be a future for the group. We roll-up quickly, and head out as a group for a post-series celebration.

Guitar Circle Sundays #17, 5-8-11

2011-05-14T15:34:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day. We are pumped for the mothers to come out, and prepare our performance space accordingly. During a soundcheck circulation Victor observes that something about the guitar circle format is more "direct" than when we look on as spectators in a conventional concert setting, for better or for worse.

We play a modest-length set for a small audience. There is no encore, but a question and answer session is called for, followed up by an unplugged Askesis. After guests depart, we pow wow for some time, in anticipation of next week's finale performance.

Wake Up the Earth Festival, 5-7-11

2011-05-07T15:51:00.000-07:00

Brad, Rick and Victor meet at the space around 10:00 AM to begin moving equipment down to the festival grounds. Chris arrives shortly afterward to lend a hand.

There have been some doubts about the weather, but for the moment it is a gorgeous day: a few roads have been blocked off, and people are busy setting up banners, stands and musical equipment for the festival. The Circle is set up in front of a train station and next to a lawn where other activities are taking place.

We are instructed that a mythological parade will arrive at our location, perform a ritual dance on stilts accompanied by a drum circle, and disperse, at which point we will begin our set. So, same old, same old.

Our set is a condensed statement, moving briskly through some of our more concise repertoire and lively improvisation. As we play, a cold front comes in, and dark clouds can be seen looming over the horizon. Invocation appears for the first time in four years, and ends up closing this special set as clouds roll in.

Guitar Circle Sundays #16, 5-1-11

2011-05-05T13:20:00.000-07:00

Tonight is our final appearance downstairs, and we are without Glenn or Rick.

The room is a little untidy, and the bar stools we have been using as our seats are mostly being used by the group upstairs. But we can make it work.

We take some extra time to move props and puppets from the bar into the adjoining art room, and seek out a few black padded stools to fill out the circle of seats. Our current opinion regarding our regular stools is that they wobble, and are generally in need of repair; these new substitute stools, however, are maxing out our perspective on the possibilities of dubious butt support.

No recording is being made tonight. Whatever we play will be lost in the aether.

Dev arrives as Victor is setting up the mix with the rest of the group; a few others, who are not members of the GCNE, are also arriving around this time (we are running a bit later than usual). For a warm-up we play through Askesis, then go on to consider what repertoire is available to our truncated group. From this, a few piquant prehearsal items emerge.

A good turnout - there are almost no empty seats. It's a short, light-hearted set featuring some official repertoire debuts, including a Bartok duet and a short canon by Haydn. It was also a good opportunity for the Circle to navigate through distraction, with bathroom-goers and furniture-movers coming and going from upstairs.

Dev and Victor are on a somewhat tight time table, so we talk about logistics for Saturday (Wake Up the Earth festival) and tear down by 10:00.

GCNE Small Group Meeting, 04-28-2011, Rick's House

2011-04-28T18:11:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Brad Hogg, Dev Ray, Chris Paquette.

Dev and Brad arrive from their drive south to find Chris and Rick waiting patiently with a pot of coffee and cakes of taste waiting in the fridge. Our training being what it is, and opportunity being a working point for some this week, we all seize the moment and dig in.

Post-mastication, up to the loft (yes, there's a loft here, too), where we arrange ourselves and take a moment to begin the meeting. An opening circulation, and a call is made for a warm-up. Bicycling to Afghanistan is suggested, attempted, and understood to be a pretty ballsy warm-up. A call for something a little less demanding leads to Flying Home. Still a bold choice, but the virtue is assumed to completion. Following this, a short discussion and resolution regarding an issue that has come up about the final show of the season at Spontaneous Celebrations, to be held a little over 3 weeks from today.

We begin work with the Eb Major Pentatonic scale that we were working with the other day. A quick review of the scale (3rd Primary style, at the 3rd fret), and we proceed to work with rhythm in circulation: in 8th notes with different players on the beat and off, in triplets while shifting the "pole position" around, and in 16ths with shifts in pole. We seem to get a lot of really good work out of the triplets, and choose to go for broke and work with quintuplets. This is quite difficult, as a five-note division naturally goes against the grind of most Western divisions in music, and we have four players to play these. This leads to some curious overlaps that really throw some wrenches into the works. But this gives us some useful challenges to work with. After about 15 minutes of this, Brad admits to being fried, and we take a short break.

Following the break, Chris asks to work back in the triplet mode again. Here, we are no longer in Eb Major, but in F minor. This is a real-time test of an adjusted arrangement of Opening, to be introduced once the season has ended. Some good work with this, and quite instructive.

We choose to close the meeting with a free circulation, accompanied by (or rather existing alongside) exuberant singing from one of Rick's daughters, followed by a difference of opinion between the pair of daughters. A moment of silence, followed by some short discussion of what will be following over the next week, and Dev, Chris, and Brad all take their respective exits.

Guitar Circle Sundays #15, 4-24-11

2011-04-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

Brad, Chris, Rick and Dev are meeting at Brad's apartment (about a mile from the space) prior to the regular performance tonight for group work on Eb pentatonic major. Group scale practice in this context tends to be much different than individual scale practice, and has a variety of benefits.

Our primary material this afternoon is the said scale beginning in the third position, with three notes occurring on each string. Brad, Chris and Rick get warmed up circulating this sequence while awaiting Dev's arrival.

Dev is briefed on the work and our strategies for approaching it, and joins us to take it further. Our aim is fluency in the pattern from multiple possible perspectives (e.g. Brad beginning, Rick beginning), and we try different methods to get there:

* saying the scale degree of the note that we play (e.g. one, two, etc.);
* saying the name of the note we are playing;
* listening to the progression of the scale from a musical standpoint to determine where we are.

Each of these has different strengths and limitations and bring out different discrepancies in understanding (scale structure knowledge, fretboard knowledge, etc). Our last exercise is to circulate the pattern as quickly as possible; this produces a curious qualitative difference in our playing. But faster than you can say blood cake, we are off to Spontaneous Celebrations to help set up for tonight's Guitar Circle Sundays.

At the space, we are running a little late, but are otherwise okay. We have set up to record once again. We even manage to find time to run through The Sunken Cathedral.

After last week, we are conscientious about keeping the performance shorter than an hour. Some of the scale work is peeking through the imrpovs. The GCNE calls its own encore, an Easter stomp between bunny and Chris that has the whole group hopping into a sanguine send-off (no doubt to the piquant delight of Dev).

We make time to rehearse after the guests depart. At Dev's suggestion from last week, we play through The Sunken Cathedral a number of times in succession, and count it as well (which is making a big difference in our timing). Although we had thought to do this without much talking, we are not quite there yet, and somewhat lengthy forums occur between readings.

Also on the chopping block are Intergalactic Boogie Express and Opening, both of which pose 3-against-2 challenges for the group, as well as others. We are finishing up by 11:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays #14, 4-17-11

2011-04-20T09:29:00.000-07:00

Today, some of us are arriving from an afternoon at Guitarcon 2011 in Fitchburg. We were asked to vibe up the convention this weekend by playing in the entrance lobby. This was a new kind of challenge for our group; a small team represented the Circle at this conference of gear-nuts on both Saturday and Sunday, sporting mouse amps and Ovations. For better or for worse, we even found our way onto the main stage!

For the evening's regular performance, Rick and Victor have suspended two diametrically opposed room mics from the lighting rig. We have been recording our shows fairly regularly for our own critical listening, and are now looking to step up our game with an eye toward mining material for a general purpose demo.

With a good mix, we engage in some pre-show rehearsal (prehearsal?) in which we revisit Prelude No.1 and Love is Green. In between, we play through The Sunken Cathedral; Brad would like to begin bringing in the piece without a count-in.

We're on at 7:30. A good mix of new and old faces. This set was on the longer side at over an hour. There were some extended-length improvs and strong readings of Prelude No. 1 and Opening, and a curious moment during a circulation where everyone was passing the same note. No encore was called.

We pow wow after guests disperse. Tear down, and we are out around 10:45.

Guitar Circle Sundays #13, 4-10-11

2011-04-15T21:23:00.001-07:00

Long rehearsal today. Some new repertoire to be looked at, other current repertoire to be refurbished . . . and of course, addressing the simple need of playing together.

We arrive between 2:00 - 2:30, and set up as we normally would.

Before we decide what to do with our time, we begin with a circulation, ending on three "chords" cued by Victor. Then, Glenn cues three chords - and so on, until everyone has had a turn at the baton, twice. Curiously, each circler generates unique harmonic feedback from the group. This little game serves as an invocation for our work this afternoon.

The first task on the docket is some focused work on Shostakovitch's Prelude XXII. The piece is originally for solo piano and is made up of a winding chromatic passage over a rhythmic scaffold, and a chordal accompaniment in the bass (there's some play with the structure throughout). Our arrangement features a circulation of the melody between four players and a section playing the bass part.

Following a preliminary effort as an ensemble, it becomes clear that the challenges facing the two parts are quite different, and we opt for individual section work.

The leads begin by going as far into the melodic passage as their memory of the note order will take them, but this turns out to be an ineffective strategy. Victor suggests breaking the melody down into the smallest repeatable circulation pattern (which happens over two bars) and tackling the resulting "cells" one at a time. This gives us an easy way to dissect and follow the melody; at the same time, we are beginning to listen to the music, rather than becoming absorbed in the mechanics of the note order and circulation. This process is slow, but the circulation is becoming coherent.

The basses later report that their work involved looping entire sections and recongifuring parts to make certain passages more playable.

Break around 4:30. Plans for the fall are beginning to take form.

Returning, we pick up on a piece that has "sunken" into our backlog repertoire over the past few weeks (for various reasons), The Sunken Cathedral, a kind of program piece by Debussy (also originally for solo piano, arranged for eight guitars by Brad). Little is said, and coming out of the gate the music already has something of an inner life. We hit a speed bump during a specific section, however, and need to take some time to clean up the mess of different ideas regarding tempo and timing. Unlike the Shostakovitch prelude, we aim to have this ready for performance tonight.

We take the floor at 7:30. An enticing set emerges, which seems to dwell on moods rather than visit them. The Sunken Cathedral, Opening and Austurias form the end of the set with a circulated coda in D minor, still in the audience's ears.

There are a few performances after the audience departs. Chris, Dev and Alex take the stage to debut Voices of Ancient Children to their curious circlemates. Later, it is Brad and Chris reviving Hommage, their take on Bartok's take on Bach. An encore performance of this is called. To wrap things up, Victor introduces a canon by Haydn to be used as a catalyst for improvisation. A fun rehearsal for all, and the "ginger after sushi" following a good day of work.

Guitar Circle Sundays #12, 4-3-11

2011-04-05T14:45:00.000-07:00

Glenn is taking a break from the Circle this weekend to keep up with work.

Alex and Chris arrive at the space around 5:30. We are supposed to be downstairs this week, but there are is a conference going on there . . . Chris makes a call to Brad, who confirms the situation and asks us to hang tight. As the meeting lets out around 6:00, there is a salsa class also needing to use the same room for the next hour - apparently, the men's group upstairs is not on the house manager's schedule, creating a conflict. Fortunately, the salsa class graciously relocates to an adjacent art room, and we are able to begin setting up.

On the bright side, Rick has repaired the fried tweeter in one of the PA speakers over the week and we are back in business, mix-wise.

Otherwise, a straightforward set-up and sound. We spend a few moments looking at what repertoire is available without Glenn, including (of all things) Morning Has Broken. This arrangement of Cat Steven's arrangement of a Christian adaptation of an old Gaelic tune has not been heard for a few weeks and is given a go, sounding surprisingly good, up to a point.

There is a bit of an extended wait in the green room before showtime, as the men's group is going into overtime with meditations and lectures on Buddhism. We fracture into small groups for further warming up on various pieces. Chris and Brad consolidate their understanding of Bartok's Hommage a JSB and land it one or two times. Victor has an idea: imagine that the men's group has had an uplifting experience. What music do they hear first coming down the stairs? This is our keynote for the evening.

We go on about 8:05. Our tendency is improvisational: no set list, something thrown in entirely on the spot, an idea tried and followed at our own risk. We are getting better at this. Pantonal circulations flow in and out of fluttering, effervescent embroideries. There is an improv moment between Rick, Chris and . . . Dev? with the rest of the group taking their own part when ready. A circulated coda concludes the performance after Austurias. At a certain point (there is later general agreement), this performance seemed to take on a higher level of intensity.

After the show, we listen back to the recording we made of it (a good approach to take in our own personal practices). A distinction comes up between the quality of practicing performing and performing, and some critical discussion follows. The time feel of our circulations and some repertoire also comes up, which is obliquely a part of the former question. On the practical side of things is talk of life after the performance series and an upcoming gig opportunity.

Tear down, and we're out by 11:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays #11, 3-27-11

2011-03-31T10:45:00.000-07:00

Chris and Alex arrive at 5:45. Brad is here, already setting up the circle with a tape-measure and some math.

The team goes about its usual work, and others arrive intermittently. Thanks to a unique busking effort yesterday, we are anticipating a few more new faces and maybe some different energy tonight. Salsa classes are taking place downstairs.

Sound is relatively hassle-free, although something odd is going on in the mix (this would later be revealed to be a fried tweeter in one of the cabinets, the part of the speaker that is responsible for upper-end frequencies). For warm-up, rather than playing through entire pieces, we are looping sections of Askesis and Flying Home for some early guests. Later in the green room, before going on, there is some additional warming up of a different kind (featuring an unfortunate coloration of a familiar exercise), where we are freeing up our awareness:
first, we are on the exercise;
then, we direct some attention to sensation in the right hand;
keeping this, we put a little more attention toward visualizing the count of the exercise;
if we can, also feeling the pulse happening in the body.
After a little work, Victor reminds the group that music is not multi-tasking. Curious.

And with this, we go on for a performance that goes everywhere. In the very beginning, a double circulation (where two notes are independently circulated) occurs spontaneously, much different in quality than its more common, single-note cousin. There are some fluttering, harmonically lush tapestries next to chomp-and-stomp chording. A savory chromatic circulation is another jewel of the evening. Everything is supported by a strong sense of form, within the improvisations and the set as a whole. The performance ends on an improv.

There is a good deal of post-performance rehearsal tonight. We spend a lot of time tightening some screws on Debussy's The Sunken Cathedral, steadily making it sound more "together". We even give Shostacovitch a whirl.

Getting out late, at 11:00.

Mr. Eraser Man

2011-03-21T00:59:00.000-07:00

Glenn filling in as scribe for Chris.
I arrived around 5:40. Brad was there already. Victor, Rick, Dev and Alex, arrived not long after. The usual chair, speaker and wire organizing took place with a sound check beginning around 6:50. A few guests came up the stairs and listened in the wings as we warmed up (Askesis, Third Relation).
The Circle took the stage just after 7:30. About 8 in attendance, including 3 young people (ages approximately 3 7 and 13). Victor had suggested we keep things light and fun for the kids, and although there were some dark harmonic passages, it was a sprightly night. We played a good number of interesting improvisations, including one for an absent toy friend named Mr Eraser Man which involved lots of string scraping and rubber bandish bent notes. The composed pieces we played included Flying Home, Where is the Nurse?, Eye of the Needle, Third Relation, Growing Circle and Block Head. Conspicuously absent was Asturias. This was interesting because someone had just mentioned last week how it seemed inevitable that we end with that piece. Not so!
No encore tonight. Victor left our post-gig circle right away to socialize with his guests. I took a break from the group, as serves me best after a performance, munching a salad downstairs. After the guests left we had a long band meeting, talking quite a bit about promotion. Hey, if you're reading this and haven't come to see us, what are you waiting for? Victor also told us about a conversation he'd been having with his kids about what makes a good person. Also, 'how to know the will of the group.' Discussion. Space reset. Heading out around 11pm.

Guitar Circle Sundays #9, 3-13-11

2011-03-18T21:23:00.000-07:00

Alex and Chris arrive: 5:30. There is daylight remaining!

Alex tends to his own business upstairs while Chris, taking a cue from a vivid dream he had the previous evening, makes tending the bathrooms his first task (this would turn out to be a misguided premonition, as a meeting was taking place in the adjoining room downstairs that would make any more than a quick effort . . . peculiar).

Brad arrives close to or around 6:00, and reports that both Rick and Victor are dealing with challenges that may preclude their respective appearances in the Circle for tonight's performance. The reduced crew is left to continue set-up (oddly more work with fewer people) and assume a circle of five seats. But on the bright side, the performance space is once again jungle-themed and even slightly reminiscent of a luau setting...

Meanwhile, somewhere on the Mass Pike, Rick musters a plan to get out of a roadside predicament and calls to announce that he will arrive ready-to-go at 7:30; this news is received with gaiety on the other end and serves as a morale boost to the team, but leaves them with the problem of reconfiguring the circle for six seats.

At first glance, a circle with six evenly spaced points seems straightforward: just take either all the odd or all the even numbers off the face of a clock, and there's a model. However, lacking the requisite mathematical formulas, and using only approximate measuring tools (e.g. a 1/4" cable and half a bottle of diet coke), it is a slippery slope indeed, and Dev and Alex retool the seats quite a bit until a satisfactory circle is reached.

Backstage Rick arrives as promised, and the GCNE goes on at 7:40. Tonight's performance will be captured on film, via Glenn's digital recorder on the roof of the tiki bar.

A good showing with Third Relation feeling particularly in-the-pocket; Blockhead also has some extra juice. There is an improvisation that begins with a slimy, low bass note circulation and evolves into a slinky stomp, with added percussion and slapped accompaniment. Compelled strictly by the spirit of the moment, a Victor-less Batrachomyomachy is given summons, with Dev, Glenn and Brad taking on the acerbic lead part. As an encore: a spirited, unplugged Calliope.

A little after-show talk, and a tear down to be out by 10:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays #8, 3-8-11

2011-03-08T20:19:00.000-08:00

Dev is back from two weeks on the road, but Rick is sick and taking rest time; Victor is indisposed and without a babysitter but will be making what is called a "heroic" effort to be part of the performance; Glenn is arriving late from Connecticut; and the show will take place in the downstairs room for the first time. All-in-all, it will be pretty touch-and-go this evening at Spontaneous Celebrations.

Alex and Chris arrive around 5:30. This week's performance space is a jungle-themed converted-cafeteria, now used mostly for various meetings and workshops, and as an arts & crafts space. Luckily, the room is clean, but there are still some decisions to be made about it, such as "plugged or unplugged?" and "how do we set up the gear without blocking an entrance to the bathrooms?" Moving stools and speakers downstairs and back up will be laborious. Meanwhile, a disco rages overhead.

The circlers arrive and begin setting up sound. The guys have opted to use amplification for tonight's performance, which is a much different beast in the new room. Victor has an assistant sound engineer, Elspeth McSurely, who aids during this painstaking process with advice and gestures of support and solidarity. She does not care for the group's slow pacing, however, and some repertoire is decided upon to propitiate her. It is seen whether or not Opening will be possible for tonight, with Alex taking up Rick's part.

With hats and lollipops, the Circle goes on a little after 7:45. A brief set of mainly improv, with some liberties in form and style being taken during certain portions of the program. An encore is called for, which tonight includes Love is Green and Opening.

After the show, Victor has a few words about some upcoming events, and is out the door to relieve a generous last-minute babysitter. The group will have the first page of the recently-introduced Shostakovitch prelude (accompanied by a rather ominous warning from Tuning The Air 's Curt Golden) ready as a priority for next week. Tear-down is left to the rest of the group, who are finished before 10:00.

Guitar Circle Sundays #7, 2-27-11

2011-03-01T21:09:00.000-08:00

The circlers begin arriving around 5:30 and commence preparing the space. Dev is still on tour, so it will be another night of six players.

As Glenn and Chris finish in the bathrooms, Victor is teaching Alex, Rick and Brad parts to a short but stately canon by Haydn; when the group is assembled, this is set aside and a formal soundcheck and warm-up begins. Askesis is the first piece, with some interrogation of the basses acting wonky in the "bridge" section. Calliope and a slow Batrachomyomachy each receive a briefing, and Victor makes a timbre suggestion for the melody section of Where's the Nurse.

At 7:30, the Circle is on. The mood in general is almost somber, and there are strong showings of Eye of the Needle and Where's the Nurse. The improvisation is more restrained than last week, but sinewy and coherent, with a thoughtful solo from Brad as a highlight. Meditative circulations cushion many of the pieces in the near-hour set.

After the performance, there is a conference between the circlers, who opt for some extra rehearsal before tearing down. The group reconvenes work on the Shostakovich prelude, addressing mainly the pattern of the melody circulation, then adding a few bars of notes. The Debussy prelude, which has been left out of the set with Dev's absence, gets a hearing in anticipation of his return (with counting out-loud as an added challenge/aid).

After this, some cleaning up and out the door by 10:40.

Guitar Circle Sundays #6, 2-20-11

2011-02-23T19:24:00.000-08:00

Tonight will be the first performance in the Guitar Circle Sundays series with less than the optimum number of circlers, as Dev is out of town and on tour with Lindsay Mac. One of the main ideas behind GCS is the commitment to put on a performance every week for a defined period of time, whether there are six players or two - the quality of intention brought to the undertaking changes what is possible for those undertaking it, and in this sense Dev is not far in tow.

Previously during the week, a 'Girls Rock' seminar was held at Spontaneous Celebrations (catering to such fast-rising genres as 'country-punk' and 'awesome'), and there is some head-scratching as to how to cope with missing equipment (actually relocated by the girls). Thus the GCNE is running a little late.

The show goes on, however, eventually, to a house of twelve. There is a lot of energy and a peculiar sense of adventure in the improvisation of this circle of six. Squeaking, bending, 'outside' playing and guitar-box percussion all find application throughout the night. There is a stretch of tonal fabric over/under which soloists emerge and recede. It isn't all underground gardens, though, as selections of Cat Stevens and Jeff Beck recall a distant world of pop music.

For the second time during this series, the Circle is called back for an encore. The group offers 'Thrak' as a return, and opts for Bach's No. 1 from the Well-Tempered Clavier. It happens that Andrew Alexander, a professional Boston-area singer, is in the audience, and on the spur of the moment Victor asks him if he can accompany the group's Bach circulation with Gounod's famous Ave Maria vocal melody. Andrew obliges, does one 'false take', then delivers a captivating reading of the piece with the Circle, deftly navigating around the missing bar.

The audience is lively after the performance. Once they have departed, there is some talk in the group about a website revamp, future guest circlers, and possible filming. As it is late, there is once again no after-show rehearsal.

Guitar Circle Sundays #5, 2-13-11

2011-02-19T21:13:00.000-08:00

Normal load-in, set-up. Some of our stuff has been used, however.

Quick soundcheck and addressing of repertoire which is burning to be played this evening. Some further refining of Opening is undertaken. Specific use of accents and dynamics occur in both primary voices of the piece, causing them to collide, undulate and overlap in a distinct way. One suggestion is for the piece to be played louder overall.

Some guests arrive, unsolicited, who have been to a previous performance, and the pressure is on.

Showtime at 7:43. A feature of this performance is the intelligent quality of its improvisation. There are circulations occurring spontaneously over a vamp, and a soloist stepping forward from an embroidery without disrupting it. Brad, Rick and Chris are called on to begin when ready, and the remaining ensemble comes in to accompany/counterpoint as a group unto itself; generally, there is a predilection for 'mini-groups' to form and reintegrate into the full Circle at a whim.

The Circle receives its first call for an encore, and offers a recital of Debussy's The Sunken Cathedral. The performance is about an hour long (the entire show, that is).

Afterward in rehearsal, Glenn has a new piece to introduce to the group - Shostakovich's Prelude XXII in G minor, a Seattle Circle/Tuning the Air favorite. Glenn's arrangement sports an elegant circulation pattern for the melody accompanied by a bass/chord section. The melody section attempts the first few bars, but Rick will have to look it over on the run.

There is some discussion of logistics and repertoire for the GCNE's upcoming radio appearance on Wednesday. With this, Love is Green, Bicycling to Afghanistan and Batrachomyomachy all receive a hearing, but which will make the cut?

Guitar Circle Sundays #4, 2-6-11

2011-02-09T15:20:00.000-08:00

We arrive at the normal time for load-in, between 5:30 and 6:00. Our process for preparing the space has streamlined somewhat, but this week there are two oddities to keep in mind: first, there is the men's group that meets on the first Sunday of every month. They have already given us permission to use the larger room upstairs for this session, but we will need to know how to accommodate their program while taking care of our own business . . . second, we will be competing against the Super Bowl as Sunday evening entertainment. This will impact our draw and, as we would soon discover, our parking.

With the men's group gathering and socializing downstairs, it is a good time for the Circle to warm up. Victor calls out a tonal progression: A minor pentatonic, to A harmonic minor, to C symmetrical, to C harmonic minor. There are motions happening in different places in the circle at different times, but they mostly lack assurance, resulting in an ambiguous, chimeric improvisation. Victor suggests to listen for something to happen in the music before making a change, similar to our approach in the "twinkle" section of Austurias. The second take is more sure-footed, and the grounds for something to explore in the future.

The performance is slotted around 8:00, slightly later than usual but with people continuing to wander up from downstairs and in from the cold. Overall, it is a strong set from the Circle, featuring a coherent, compellingly diatonic imrpov; a stomping surprise duet from Chris and Rick; and a Blockhead with a back-and-forth guitar breakdown from Glenn and Victor over the polyrhythmic coda. To put a period on this fairly action-packed evening, the Circle kindly asks permission to debut a new piece: Debussy's The Sunken Cathedral. This prelude makes a good conclusion to the set.

A forty-four minute performance for another generous, and highly receptive, audience. Afterward, Victor is called away to familial duties, and given the late start, the rest of the Circle decide to tear down a little early.

Guitar Circle Sundays #3, "Opening Night", 1-30-11

2011-02-03T17:32:00.000-08:00

Victor, Chris and Alex are at the space around 5:20 . . . S the karate instructor is here and concluding his own practice. The trio get to work in short order, and as other Circle members arrive there is a sense of both urgency and quiet that accompanies the practical work. It is a transitional kind of performance for the Circle tonight, venturing from the confidence of friends and family to (hopefully) the consideration of an indifferent listening public.

Luckily, there is extra time for soundchecking and warm-up before doors open. The guitar levels in the speaker mix are a bit strange . . . Victor asks the group to play any two-note vamp from A minor pentatonic to get a better gauge of the surround. With six guitarists, the result billows, recedes and pulses through the space in a way reminiscent of an early Guitar Craft piece, All or Nothing. A quintet version of Morning Has Broken soars through the rafters.

The performance proper begins at 7:40 with a motion from Victor: he raises and lowers the headstock of his guitar in a cadence, and a splash of harmony from all points ripples and undulates into the first improvisation of the night. A Q-&-A session later provides the audience with an opportunity to get to know their favorite Circlers; instead, tonight, they raise questions regarding the significance of instrument design and the rules on clapping.

Because of the style and intimacy of GCNE performances, it is often apparent to audience members that applause is not required between pieces of music/improvs. As a performance group, the Circle aspires to responding in the moment to what is right - and encourages its audience to do the same. It may sometimes feel 'risky' having this choice, but it is also an opportunity for real communion between listener and performer.

Altogether, a performance of about forty-seven minutes. After a little mingling, the Circle holds a pow wow to discuss performance notes. Of particular importance are some remarks made regarding the kind of energy brought to the beginning of a set. Rehearsal again falls to Brad's arrangement of the Debussy prelude, The Sunken Cathedral; there is a special connection the unfolding of this piece has had to the group's embracing of this endeavor and space.

The equipment is put away, and the Circlers are moving out by 10:40.

Guitar Circle Sundays #2, 1-23-11

2011-01-27T20:26:00.000-08:00

Victor, Dev, Alex, Chris, Rick, Brad, Glenn

Various Circlers arrive between 5:30 and 6:00. R, C and A are the first present and go about setting up the performer-seats. To do this, a mark is made using masking tape in the approximate center of the playing area; from here, a speaker cable is employed to make the stools roughly equidistant from the tape and from one another. The resulting circle will be the framework for the performance space, including the lighting arrangement, which has been tampered with since last week.

Other members of the team begin to make their way in from the cold - some get to work setting up equipment while others clean and prepare the venue, as necessary practical tasks seem to delegate themselves. The condition of the bathrooms is now being taken into consideration, for the available use of the bold and daring in need.

During the practical work guests arrive, and are guided upstairs to where the Circle will shortly be holding a soundcheck and brief warm-up.

For this, there are some "probe" circulations and parts of pieces called. The group also visits a familiar exercise which is given some new colors, probably a suitable variation given the presence of patient listeners.

Tonight, a set around forty-minutes which is received enthusiastically and with curiosity. Subjectively (for the writer), a strong showing.

Some mingling after the performance, followed by a pow wow with snacks. Discussion revolves around a new priority entering the realm of Circle life: promotion. This is how we make our presence known in the world - speaking of which...

Come see Guitar Circle Sundays! Yes, you! If you are in the Boston area, what better way to relax on a Sunday evening than being surrounded by seven guitars mixed in quadraphonic sound, a sonic landscape where arrangement, improv, angularity and elegance form one continuity? Here's the next show:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=161435913902865

Free admission - be there or be . . . well...

Afterward, there is some rehearsal of Debussy and Cat Stevens, both of which will soon be premiering in the repertoire. After a long night, the meeting ends at nearly 10:30.

Guitar Circle Sundays, 1-16-11

2011-01-19T14:41:00.000-08:00

Victor, Alex, Chris, Rick, Dev, Brad, Glenn

C and A arrive at the space around 5:20, where V is present and already warming up on guitar. There is some extra work to be done before the first performance of Guitar Circle Sundays this evening, and some Circlers are arriving early to clean, set up equipment, and tweak lighting, among other things. The group will also be getting a sense of a time table of necessary tasks involved in preparing the space.

When all are assembled, still working, a moment is taken to discuss ideas for a group exercise to be used while present in the performance space. This exercise of attention is to help the Circlers stay grounded amidst the energy and emotions that come from performance, and this kind of performance project in particular. D offers a suggestion which receives consensus.

There is a little time for group warm-up after practical work, during which Lindsay S. arrives (along with another of B's pals, Simon). Lindsay shared a 'bill' with the Circle last March and tonight is generously acting as doorperson for the group on somewhat short notice. It is anticipated that the audience tonight will be mostly family and friends, which is useful and appropriate at this beginning point of the undertaking; no larger-scale promotion has been done, other than a sandwich board outside.

The Circle goes on around 7:40 to an audience of eight or nine quiet, strong listeners.

There is some brief socializing after the performance, and a pow wow after the audience departs and the dust settles. Some points of performance are discussed, including how to handle mistakes individually and as a group. There is another note to be careful about judging audience response by appearances - the Circle has been applauded by hecklers and imbibed by silent auditors.

Without a babysitter, R is forced to depart around 9:00, and the remaining Circlers decide that it is most profitable to spend rehearsal time on The Sunken Cathedral. After forty minutes or so of work, there is a tear down around 10:00.

GCNE Meeting/Rehearsal 1-9-11

2011-01-13T14:24:00.000-08:00

full group: Victor, Brad, Chris, Alex, Dev, Glenn, Rick

Today is an extended meeting for the Circle in preparation for Opening Night of their performance series next week. Also, over the past few days a scheduling conflict has arisen with another group that uses the space, and this problem will need to be assessed and dealt with.

C and A arrive around noon, where B and V have already been working for two hours, engineering an equipment set-up to be used for performance. The rig has been outfitted with a pair of matching PA speakers for full quad sound and a direct input box to help streamline cables; serendipitously, eight bar stools were discovered on arrival by B and V, potentially preventing a talked-about GCNE expense.

A soundcheck with the four, and a few bits of repertoire, including a Hideyo-less Blockhead. A first nod is given B's arrangement of The Sunken Cathedral; D arrives during this time. Some visits to other repertoire with D, then a return to TSC. G arrives, and the first break is called at 1:40.

There is some discussion of the logistics and repercussions of a time slot conflict with another group, which the primary contact for Spontaneous Celebrations was unaware of during his correspondence with B. Once a month, this said other group - a men's group, numbering between 30 to 70 - would need the room on a Sunday, during the time that the Circle would be performing. There is another room below the main one - perhaps (depending on what they are doing) the men's group could be negotiated with to move operations there? Maybe do some performances at a different venue? Or, perhaps it is a sign that SC is not the right place for the Circle?

With such things in mind, the group returns to rehearsal mode in silence around 2:00. V calls an improvisation, which in turn leads to some spirited circulation - some Circlers are on the edge of their seats! R's arrival marks the attendance of the full group.

With R, more repertoire is called, and Opening in particular receives a good deal of attention. To go with the six or the seven seat arrangement? That is the question, and at the moment the former appears the more stable of the two. More work in this vein until 4-ish, where a second break (for lunch) is called. This recess lasts about forty-five minutes.

When the Circle returns, they are anticipating the arrival of a karate instructor whose class may require them to move downstairs. V calls a few circulations to get the group engaged after the lengthy break, and repertoire work continues, without interruption (the instructor graciously deferred to the lower room). Work is able to proceed until the advent of the men's group around 5:45.

Sure enough, the men's group does require the larger space, and it is time for the Circle to quickly set their gear aside. They reconvene downstairs in the smaller room, which is a kind of community space, but also oddly suited to an intimate performance. For now the guys are unplugged, and decide it is a good occasion to take TSC by the horns (during this, there is plenty of chanting and dancing coming from upstairs). A final break is called at 7:00, after which, a few full takes of Cathedral. The group aims to be off-book with the piece by next week.

Although the men's group needs the main space for their work, B reports that they are willing move their social period from the beginning of their meetings to the end - accommodating, and perhaps bolstering, a performance downstairs by the GCNE at 8:00. There seems to be a general consensus that SC is worth a shot, with three upstairs performances and one downstairs each month. Naturally, there is much talk of remaining preparation for next week. D and R volunteer to come in during the week (barring horrendous weather) to tweak the lighting. The group is currently looking at some miscellaneous refurbishment of the upstairs room, and will be in touch with their contact for the space.

With their bases covered, the Circle return upstairs to clean up, and are out the door by about 9:20.

GCNE Meeting/Rehearsal 1-2-11

2011-01-05T14:26:00.000-08:00

Victor, Chris, Glenn, Dev, Rick, Brad

This week, the Circle have their first formal meeting in a new performance/rehearsal space, Spontaneous Celebrations in Jamaica Plain, MA. SC is a converted cathedral become cultural center which hosts classes, work groups and performance geared toward cultural awareness and community development.

The team begins arriving around 6:30. V, C, G and D get to work unloading equipment from V's car (including four P.A. speakers, which will be used for the group's first adventure into quad sound); all is brought upstairs to the large room the Circle will be using for its nearing performance series. R is not far in tow.

B arrives just before 7:00, and the Circle is in full gear-set-up mode. For tonight, they will be working with the amp and mixer in the center of the circle. Also noteworthy: two of the four speakers used for tonight's space probing will be exchanged later in the week for a pair which better matches the classic set.

With V at the mixer, a sound check is underway: some circulations, in various configurations; Growing Circle; Flying Home (with V outside listening on behalf of the neighbors). The room is "live", meaning that sound made in it carries easily and with generous reverbaration. For the circle, perhaps ironically in light of their augmented speaker set-up, this means a minimum of amplification is required.

The plan is to play through some repertoire and improvisations with alternating circlers listening in the center: one piece, then one improvisation and switch. The lights g down, and the set unfolds as follows:

Eye of the Needle, with R in the center;

Askesis > C;

Bach Prelude > D;

Bicycling to Afghanistan > G...

Various comments are offered regarding inter alia the balance of guitars, the dynamic range of the overall sound, and the challenge of playing together in such a "wet" sonic space (not to mention the physical distance the group is unaccustomed to).

A break is called at 8:30, which returns the group to a continuing discussion of certain logistics. One salient concern is the placement of the mixer and the arrangement of cables so as to facilitate maximum elegance and practicality for both Circle and audience. Another is the task of refurbishing the space, which will involve cleaning, spackling, painting, replacing old mirrors, acquiring drapes, etc. The "blurb" V wrote on behalf of the group and to be used for promotion, leads to talk of group identity and group aim, specifically how individual members of said group can be aware of it for themselves.

Back at 9:50.

Some more music...

Where's the Nurse, circulation, Austurias > B

Finally, Opening receives a full-group hearing with its new bass part.

A quick tear down, and end around 10:20.

GCNE Meeting/Rehearsal 12-12-10

2010-12-14T18:32:00.000-08:00

Victor, Glenn, Brad, Rick, Dev, Chris

C sloshes in around 8:30 while the rest of the Circle Thraks, Circulates and Batracho's. With all arriving group members now present, a moment is taken to check sound using recently-acquired PA speakers.

With the performance series drawing near, V suggests that the group continue to run through repertoire, to refresh and to see how the Circle is faring with various pieces of the past, present and (later) future. It falls upon the late arrival to call the set:

Calliope;
Flying Home;
Prelude from Bach's WTC;
(an attempt is made to call Third Relation);
Chrysanthemum;
Love is Green (a few false takes required);
Bicycling to Afghanistan (with B on Bass and G sitting out to balance the sound);
Opening.

The latter piece has a new bass part being introduced to it and is given special attention; D picks it up quickly and the full group is given a hearing, to general approval. V is confident to finally extend the arrangement to its scored length, though work is still needed.

Break at 9:54. During this time, it is noted that Martin B. gives excellent, if not bear-like, hugs.

Returning to practice, V expresses concern over persistent rushing (the unintentional speeding-up of tempo) that is present in the group's handling of pieces. In his experience, solid time comes from having a holistic vantage of the sequence in motion; for example, rather than having one's attention absorbed by the difficulty of a single passage or section, one is aware of all parts of the music while the action is taking place. To do this, he proffers, a part of the performer needs to be relaxed, regardless of the intensity of what is going on around (the 'point' of vantage, for instance).

Following this, the group dedicates some time to working through B's arrangement of Debussy's The Sunken Cathedral. Nobody is 'off-book' with this piece yet, and there is no complete recital of it. However, each section is addressed, and it seems promising that the arrangement will soon be on its feet.

To close the evening, Askesis! and a second hearing of Batrachomyomachy, with R counting in.

The meeting ends at 11:40.

GCNE Meeting, 12-05-2010, The Loft

2010-12-05T22:07:00.001-08:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes. The rest of the circle is out due to various circumstances.

8 pm finds Victor and Brad beginning to swap out the speakers in the loft's PA system for the speakers that the circle will be using for the performance series (the plan is to experiment with quadrophonic sound, with the circle playing in the round). Glenn arrives shortly after, and we take the necessary time to tune and warm up.

Victor puts forward the question of "What would we play, were we to have a 35 minute set ready, right now?" Several pieces are mentioned, including Chrysanthemum. Victor and Glenn take a bit of time to review this piece and relearn some parts that haven't been played for a while. Thrak also gets a nod: how would we play it as a trio? This leads to Brad learning a separate part and retouching a part he'd already been playing, with some group work on the piece.

From here, we take an extended moment to actually properly run a short set, which roughly consists of (no particular order):

Growing Circle
Intergalactic Boogie Express
Askesis
Improv
Derailed at the Junction
Thrak
Circulation
Chrysanthemum
Improv
Flying Home
Circulation
Where is the Nurse?

This lasts around 35 minutes, after which we take a break and talk about dude stuff.

Following the break, we spend some time going over the Sunken Cathedral arrangement. With only three people of a desired seven, it's a little thin, but the section that we end up working on (bars 22 through 63 or so) allows us to at least look at a few of the parts and make some decisions about timing and preference for pick vs. fingers. Following all this, it's acknowledged that the meeting is done, and we call it a night at around 10:15 p.m.

GCNE Meeting 11-28-10

2010-11-30T20:59:00.000-08:00

Victor, Alex, Chris, Rick, Dev, Brad, Glenn

Everyone has arrived at the loft by about ten minutes after eight o' clock. For the earlier circlers, there is some preliminary Calliope-ing and circulation.

Since there is a working date and location for an upcoming performance project, it seems appropriate to the group to consider the undertaking as imminent and to set aside guitars for a serious discussion addressing specifics. An inquiry into the availability of the individual circlers reveals that there will be only one full rehearsal before the group enters the space in January.

The first thread of discussion addresses the basic question, "what will the task be?" What time of day, and for how long? How much time for preparation will be needed? Will rehearsals be closed or open? A dispute breaks out over the role of refreshments.

The second consideration is promotion, the effort made by the group to become known in the world-at-large. There are a plentitude of radio connections with this group, and it is felt that the best application of these opportunities is toward the middle of the project, around early March, to capitalize on the energy of an established process; propagation via various content-hosting websites is discussed as an obvious recourse - names are named; the kind review of a reputable critic is somewhat wistfully brought up as a valuable asset, and again something felt to be more opportune later in the project than earlier; and posters, in the right places.

In connection with promotion, the question of having a recording is brought to trial. There is a general consensus that having a recording would be useful for promotional purposes, but its role in relation to the performance experience (i.e. an affirmative response to the common after-show request for a recording) is less clear; several options are discussed, including memory sticks with select cuts and a special bonus track.

The final question is in regard to what name the group will call itself by; the proposal of this question is followed by a peculiar silence. V has a strong sense about the present name, and the suggestion is made to consider naming the performance series instead.

R departs at 9:45, as does the rest of the group not long after at around 10:10.

GCNE Meeting/Rehearsal 11-14-10

2010-11-16T17:09:00.000-08:00

Chris, Victor, Brad, Dev

C arrives upstairs around 8:00, without guitar (at the luthier's for much needed renovation) to the sound of V and B rehearsing the lead section of Calliope: tonight, B has picked up the mirror for this part of the piece.

C is kindly offered the use of a guitar brought by V. This guitar has action worse than that in the shop, but possesses an other-worldly passive pick-up - an adjustment in the mix is needed to accommodate its bodacious presence. A mixer tutorial is improvised to assist C in this purpose.

The meeting formally begins, as many do, with silent acknowledgment. Following this, V asks C, "what were you doing?" to which C replies, "sitting still." This begins discussion and role playing that brings the inquiry to bear on all members of the group, which ties into the previous weeks' thread of having a sense of the impulse of the group's and our own individual work, rather than falling back on habit/convention/appealing to scriptural authority. For additional commentary on this matter, V proffers his favorite Zen anecdote and recommends the work of R.H. Blithe.

There will be guitar playing, however. B decides that it is best to have a larger group presence before continuing work with his arrangement of Debussy. V asks what the group would like to work on; D would like to improvise, with which B is comfortable, and C suggests Calliope. A thirty-minute improv with some intense moments ensues, and a break is called at approximately 9:08.

Back at 9:26

Calliope is given a hearing. There is some talk of the best way to phrase the bass part for the main section. The basses and leads are both given independent run-throughs, and the appraisal is similar: the phrasing of the notes, in terms of grouping (e.g. da, taka, taka dimi) is somewhat lacking. It is suggested that such work is not laborious, but merely requires a small period of extra attention.

The group tackles Batrachomyomachy. A click track is used to keep this piece steady, and much section work follows. A new lead configuration (V, B and D) works out the arrangement for the round in the "frog" section, and several attempts are made before this is played accurately. A question arises regarding the role of vibrato and the significance of just intonation.

The meeting ends, in silence, around 10:30.

GCNE Meeting/Rehearsal 11-7-10

2010-11-09T17:09:00.000-08:00

Victor, Brad, Glenn, Chris, Dev

C arrives at the loft at 8:00, where V, B and G are already set up and sharing experiences of large fruit.

Before beginning, C offers feedback he received regarding the GCNE's Bean & Leaf performance two weeks prior. This leads to a lengthy discussion of the different perceptible stages of education and having one's own understanding of the work. Apropos to B's discovery of an ideal performance space, there is also talk of the group's vision for an upcoming performance project with points being brought up and addressed from last week. Some concerns include how to facilitate adequate rehearsal time on a weekly schedule, as well as the challenge of remaining creative in a continuous moment. D arrives during this talk, which lasts over an hour.

Guitar work for the evening focuses on B's new arrangement of a Debussy prelude. Initially, there is some confusion regarding timing, but as this is redressed the work of learning the notes proceeds smoothly. Several sections are given repetition as they are learned, and eventually the group is running through bar one to bar nineteen. Unlike most other pieces in the group's repertoire, this portion of this piece is played fingerstyle; some pointers are given to the inexperienced.

After 45 minutes of work, D excuses himself from the circle, and work continues for about fifteen more mimutes. The meeting concludes with a long silence at 10:20.

GCNE Meeting/Rehearsal 10-31-10

2010-11-01T19:13:00.000-07:00

Chris, Brad, Rick, Dev, Glenn

Most of the team has arrived by 7:35, and the PA is set up for the meeting which begins around 8:00.

There is one circulation to check levels, and a second circulation which continues into pass-to-the-person-of-your-choice, as G arrives. There is a short improv which occurs before G is seated, which begins quietly then bubbles dynamically, and then tapers away.

The team of the evening is gathered and seated by 8:17, and the meeting begins with a discussion which encompasses the status on finding a weekly space; logistics related to this, including budget and location; talk of alternative performance projects, including monthly performances and house concerts; the value and options of recording a demo; the challenges of a weekly performance, and the idea of having an extended-length rehearsal once a month. This talk lasts for about fifty minutes.

A question is then put on the table: "Is there anything anyone would like to work on?"

B's new arrangement is brought up as an option, but not everyone is prepared. It is decided that next week the group will aim to be familiar with the first nineteen bars, or approximately first page, of the piece. C announces that he has a new arrangement of his own, to be looked at in the near future.

C suggests Intergalactic Boogie Express as a piece which needs detail work. Per request, a slower play-through than has been normal recently. Following this, there is some section work and a faster reading. Much talk of pulse and the precarious split between the bass and leads, as well as feeling the triplets. B offers to count in a third take, which shows signs of improvement.

Next, D suggests Calliope, which is taken around performance tempo (88 BPM). Speeding up is noted, particularly in the "cowboy" section. Valuable dissection ensues, with some correcting of notes being played, to looping the main bass part with an ear toward playing the last note of each phrase more staccato. G offers advice to look at the phrase as it falls on a grid, seeing where notes are rhythmically on specific parts of the count.

G suggests Eye of the Needle, based on last Saturday's performance. There is one play-through which is felt to be "nice" by the players. C is given a note on the dynamic trajectory of the burbles, which can come out as a third voice as the harmony unfolds in the second F# section.

A break is called at 10:05, and lasts for about ten minutes.

The final piece to be looked at is Where's the Nurse, via R. Before launching into this, the finale is given a test run by the two lead players, and a needed adjustment in the mix is made. D confesses to his feeling duress under the gaze of B during this section, who for many months longed for D's part; a switch is made. Two play-throughs, with commentary on the dynamics of the melody section.

The meeting ends in silence at 10:38.

GCNE Meeting, 10/17/10 - The Loft

2010-10-19T19:31:00.000-07:00

At 7:43 the CT contingent, Rick M., Brad and Victor are at the loft setting up. The meeting opens with a discussion of logistics regarding Saturday's upcoming performance at Bean & Leaf in New London, including transportation, load-in/arrival times and detailed talk of back line and available equipment.

Rehearsal begins with a play-through of Eye of the Needle. V makes a performance note pertaining to ringing strings and harmonics at the end of this and other pieces; Growing Circle is also given a hearing.

Following these two pieces, V switches gears to a warm-up using the legato-staccato exercise the group has been focusing on for the past few weeks. The first portion of this work involves playing in the first position on the neck and switching the finger playing a legato note (while the others remain staccato) on call, beginning with the first finger and moving successively to the fourth. For the second portion the same fingering pattern is moved up the neck to the 12th fret, with the legato finger changing in the same succession with each change in position, and back.

The group returns to repertoire with Third Relation. V prefaces this with a note on the function of the first bar of a phrase establishing its order. Next, Askesis is given a run. This is followed by some section work focusing on the clarity of (in this case) the first transition, at incrementally faster tempos. A similar approach is taken with the next piece, Calliope, with some words on the art of tempo/rhythm change in a set.

Where's the Nurse is the final piece to be looked at before a break, and performance notes from all corners are offered, including discussion of the character of the arpeggios and the place of a crescendo in the bass transitioning to the finale.

Break at 9:13. There is discussion of business card layout and function, as well as the obligatory CP stand-up yarn.

The "luau team" returns to active service for a play-through of Blockhead, with V adopting the role of listener/click track. A few false takes, but an 8th note count-in does the trick. V suggests hearing the 16th note pulse throughout the piece and especially during the final chordal section, and takes up drum sticks to assist.

Glenn arrives at 9:46.

With a now expanded ensemble, a number of pieces are given hearing. First is Opening, which is given two or three complete play-throughs. Next, Where's the Nurse and Calliope both make second appearances. G, C and V play Love is Green, which while expressive has "glitches"; advice is offered to C to let the melody notes sustain and perhaps to start singing his part, to become familiar with it as a melody.

The Prelude is played, with many brown/jazz notes, but with improving flow.

Finally, the group runs through Morning Has Broken, with a suggestion for the possible addition of a low part for some of the verses. Jocularity ensues, and a final improv concludes the lengthy meeting at 11:10.

GCNE Meeting, 10-08-2010, The Loft

2010-10-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

In attendance: full company, with Victor McSurely, Chris Paquette, Glenn Hughes, Dev Ray, Rick McCarthy, Brad Hogg, Alex Lahoski.

Rick, Brad, the Connecticut contingent, and Victor all arrive at the loft at roughly 7:30, and begin to warm up in the circle at about 7:45 with some circulation. Shortly after we begin, the doorbell rings once, letting Glenn up the stairs. Dev follows shortly after, and both join in as they are able.

After 45 minutes of circulation and improvisation, Victor calls Where is the Nurse?, Growing Circle, and Intergalactic Boogie Express, to check in with these pieces. Afterward, he puts forwards some comments about working with rising energies in an improvisation or otherwise, and then suggests work on Opening. Since the basses need to visit their own circulation (now at 3 people), the leads choose to go out to the hall and work on Love is Green. Dev, having no current part on this piece, opts to work on Batrachomyomachy in the next room over.

Roughly 15 minutes later, the leads come back into the loft, with Dev in tow. They run through Love is Green, and then the Opening team opens an inquiry into Opening. The first section is up to snuff, so we run this section a few times. After this, Alex and Brad take to the hall to work on the second section. While they are out there, the rest of the team tackles Calliope, focusing on the bass part (since the leads got such a workout the week before). On Alex and Brad's return, the team runs the 1st and 2nd sections of opening as a dual 3-person circulation, with some degree of success.

Following this, Brad begins to present an arrangement he's been working on for the circle--this is postponed, as it seems to be more appropriate to send out the files to the circle when it's completely finished. With this, there is some discussion regarding the gig that is coming up in two weeks, and we close the night at around 11 p.m. From here on out, Chris Paquette will be assuming minutes duties for each week's meeting.

GCNE Meeting, 10-03-2010, The Loft

2010-10-07T10:36:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes.

As Glenn arrives at around 7:45 or so, Victor, Chris, and Brad are beginning to play through Calliope. We play through it once, and Glenn is able to join in for the last bit of it. Another run through (at about 74 bpm), and we move on to working with the staccato-legato exercise. An initial run through the fingering at a higher speed prompts us to back it down to 69 bpm, running at 16ths through the patterns (1st finger legato, then 2nd finger, etc.). We also find that certain patterns want to be rushed more, with respect to where the legato note falls within the beat--something that welcomes a personal practice approach.

Moving on from this, we jump into actual section work with Calliope. There is only one bass player tonight (Chris), but he is doing a pretty heroic job of keeping up with three lead players. With respect to the leads, the dynamics and accenting of the high melody are what seem to jump out as most necessary to work on--Victor does mention that this used to be accent picked, and that it might be useful to reapproach this piece as such. Most of the work with this is running at 78 bpm or so, but we'll need to bring it up to around 84-88.

Here, there be breaks to be had.

Back in the circle, more circulation work. Victor has us work with arpeggiating a Cmaj chord, and then presents an exercise: starting from Glenn and moving to Victor, each person will be the "one" for four beats, as we circulate in turn (changing our note as necessary). This turns out to be a little trickier than we anticipated, so we fall back to clapping in time. Eventually, we move to running notes, in order to get the feel of each position, and running the exercise as originally intended. It's actually very interesting to hear when we "get" the exercise and start playing musicially, as well as hearing the difference between permutation as the one gets shifted around the circle.

This work takes us up to 10 p.m., when we close the meeting. Next week, we'll likely be working with Opening again (with a 3-person circulation in the bass).

GCNE Meeting, 09-26-2010

2010-09-28T20:03:00.000-07:00

In attendance: a full house with Victor McSurely, Dev Ray, Rick McCarthy, Alex Lahoski, Chris Paquette, Glenn Hughes, and Brad Hogg.

All in the circle at around 7:50 or so, with a circulation to set levels. This ended up going a little longer than "just setting levels", with a clear ending. With no specific agenda to address, Victor suggests simply running some repertoire, unless someone has a different request. With the only requests being repertoire, we jump right in. (Not the exact order.)

Growing Circle
Eye of the Needle
Third Relation
Where is the Nurse?
Bicycling to Afghanistan
Calliope
Prelude Circulation
Flying Home
Intergalactic Boogie Express
Blockhead (from the luau team)

Tweaking and reviewing parts as needed (some of these haven't been played for a while), with Afghanistan being revisited (it is beginning to move from a trio to an ensemble again) and Calliope getting some work after a couple of false starts. Blockhead gets some refining work on the polyrhythm section as well. Chris has managed to gain a new nickname: "Natch". A last call for repertoire requests, and a necessary break.

During the break, various discussions ensue, including further work on possible spaces for the weekly challenge. Also, differing practice regimens are presented, with a fair dollop of jocularity.

Back in the circle, Morning Has Broken is called, prompting a clarification of certain parts. Next, we run Opening, and decide to move again towards a three-person circulation in the bass, aiming for next week.

Next up, Victor runs through the English bell-ringing changes again, introducing the pattern to Dev and Glenn, and reintroducing it to the rest of the team. This moves into circulating with return and circulation +1. This begins with notes and moves to clapping for some time, before finishing with guitars. This signifies the end of the night at 10:30, with a bit of post-rehearsal gear talk.

09-19-2010, GCNE Meeting, The Loft

2010-09-19T20:53:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Dev Ray.

After a brief sound check at 7:45, we begin the meeting proper with a moment of silence, followed by a direction of attention to breath. This attention is maintained as we move to a three-note circulation exercise, and further maintained as we work with the staccato-legato exercise we were given earlier in the week:

1------------------------------4--3--2-- -2--1----------------------4--3--2-41-3- --3--2--1--------------4--3--2--1-----4- ---4--3--2--1------4--3--2--1----------- -------4--3--2-41-3--2--1--------------- -----------4--3--2--1-------------------
Following this finger pattern, one would play this with all notes staccato, and then with each successive finger legato:

1234
1234
1234
1234

After working with this for a bit, and moving to 3 and 4 as successfully legato, Victor calls Askesis. Once through. He then calls for Blockhead, which the luau team dutifully runs. Some persnickitiness in the polyrhythms prompts some clapping work with this section, with one last run sounding better than before. Before a break, Chris requests a rundown of Intergalactic Boogie Express.

During the break, with guitars off, we learn about Elan S.'s decision to take on a weekly performance challenge, and are asked to help in any way we might be able to, with respect to footwork and organization. Extending from this, the discussion of our own weekly challenge arises, and what may be done to facilitate that. Eventually, a rough game plan is established, and we are all in.

Back in the circle, we jump in with some circulation work. With a Cmaj arpeggio, we work with circulating with return (with 7 players, it'd be 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-6-5-4-3-2), with a definite pulse. There's an attempt to play this with ascending diatonic triads (Dmin would be next), but this gives way to circulating numbers in a six beat pulse (1-2-3-4-5-6-1-2-3-4-5-6). Once we have this established, we begin moving the pattern backwards. So, from here (italicized numbers are the place in the circle, and non-italicized is the count):

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-6-5-4-3-2
1-2-3-4-5-6-1-2-3-4-5-6

we move to:

7-1-2-3-4-5-6-5-4-3-2-1
1-2-3-4-5-6-1-2-3-4-5-6

and then:

6-7-1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1-6
1-2-3-4-5-6-1-2-3-4-5-6

And so on. Once we have a definite pulse, we then move back to guitars and leave the pattern, simply working with circulation-with-return. After this, Victor calls the Prelude Circulation. Some frogginess, and we abandon the end, working directly with the pulse and counting of the circulation (5+3). This having been established, we play the Prelude once more, with a much better ending. A very musical free circulation, and we end the meeting at roughly 10:30 p.m.

GCNE Performance at All Asia Bar, 08-31-2010

2010-09-02T21:33:00.000-07:00

Circulation/Tuning the Space
Growing Circle
Askesis

Where is the Nurse?
Flying Home
Morning Has Broken

Eye of the Needle
Blockhead
Asturias

In attendance: Alex Lahoski, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, and Glenn Hughes.

Scheduled for a 9:15 downbeat, but more of a 9:25 start, with finishing at easily 10 minutes to the hour. Numerous technical difficulties for this gig led to an abbreviated setlist. The set seemed to be well-received, regardless, and we had a very enthusiastic and happy audient thank us afterward.

GCNE Meeting, 08-29-2010, The Loft

2010-09-02T20:54:00.000-07:00

Generally anecodotal in nature, as no notes were taken during the meeting tonight, and a lot of material was covered.

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Victor McSurely.

All except Victor arriving at the space within about 10 minutes or so of each other, we head up to the top floor at about 7:35 and set the space. In the circle at roughly 7:50 pm, and beginning with some circulation, moving towards faster speeds. Moving to running the setlist for the gig on Tuesday (a last-minute booking), we start work with Growing Circle, twice (once for attention to dynamics). Askesis next; as we are running this, Victor walks into the space. We eventually find ourselves working for some time with a click track on the middle parts of the piece, following direction from Victor.

From here, we end up running other parts of the setlist, including Blockhead, Where is the Nurse, and Morning Has Broken, with a real eye towards having these pieces ready for the gig. During a break, strawberry and pumpkin oat bars are consumed. Eye of the Needle and Asturias close out the night.

GCNE Meeting, 08-22-2010, Victor's House/Studio

2010-08-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Alex Lahoski, Brad Hogg, Chris Paquette.

All arrive at Victor's place at the same time, shortly after 8 pm. Taking a few minutes to organize, we circle up as Victor tends to domestic matters, and warm up with some very basic 2nd primary work. Eventually, Victor comes down to the studio, and we begin the meeting with a long moment of silence, followed by a free circulation.

After this, Victor presents the night's work, which is circulation patterns using English change ringing patterns. The concept is as follows: the pattern begins with one single pass around the circle. Each person has their note, and it does not change. (For our work, we're utilizing a descending Cmaj pentatonic scale.) Once it has circulated once, the pattern starts over again, but skips the first person and moves directly to the second. It then moves to the first, and then to the third, and continues to the end of the circle. For the next pass, the first person is again skipped, moving directly to the second. This time, however, the second passes to the third, who passes to the first. The first then passes to the fourth, and continuing normally around the circle. The pattern continues to do this through the rest of the circle. So, in a five-person circulation,

1 2 3 4 5
2 1 3 4 5
2 3 1 4 5
2 3 4 1 5
2 3 4 5 1

At this point, the pattern shifts one person. The last circulation could be seen as the first circulation in position 2, and fittingly, the pattern lays out as such:

2 3 4 5 1
3 2 4 5 1
3 4 2 5 1
3 4 5 2 1
3 4 5 1 2

The pattern then progresses through the rest of the circle , and ties seamlessly into the beginning again.

This takes a few times to really sort out, as we are learning the pattern as we play it. After about 25 minutes of playing, we make it through the full pattern one and a half times. The next couple of attempts don't make it around the full circle, prompting Victor into a discussion with regards to our work with the tetrad last week.

Following this, we take another few stabs at the pattern, and eventually succeed with two passes, occasionally shifting the pole positions. We eventually end the night with a solid pass through three full cycles (ending in the middle of the fourth). A moment of silence to mark the end of the meeting proper at about 10:10, followed by gig scheduling talk afterwards.

GCNE Meeting, 08-15-2010, The Loft

2010-08-18T14:17:00.001-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Alex Lahoski, Victor McSurely.

All except Victor arriving around 7:30 or so, and up to the loft. We begin to prepare the PA for rehearsal, but Alex suggests that we remain unplugged for the initial part of the meeting--this ends up being the case for the entire night.

The meeting begins with a circulation. After the last note fades out, Alex mentions that our circulation abilities have been on his mind this week; though this happened to be a good one, this is not the general rule, and so one of his intents for the night is to work on this tonight. First, though, he calls Blockhead--as we are running this down, Victor walks into the space. Taking a seat, he waits until we finish, and then asks us to run the set from the luau.

Interestingly, the set seems to go a bit better tonight than at the luau. Afterwards, this seems to be the consensus among the players, when prompted by Victor. Guitars come off for a bit, as we recapitulate. Alex notes that, for him, the biggest group issue seemed to be circulating in time. Brad and Rick both commented on needing to "be the guy" (Rick's words) to be able to play the part, especially in a smaller group. Chris's point of view, shared by the rest, was that it had been a "satisfying and honourable performance", with "a supportive audience that was also distracting". Some additional discussion, and Victor notes that there are some things he'd like to work on with regards to our comments.

Guitars back on, and Victor chooses to try out some things in circulation. A lot of working with attention to breath.

After this, guitars back off, and an in-depth discussion of the pentad, as well as how the tetrad, and how they relate to each other and to the circle.

To finish the night, Victor puts on the recording of the Improv ORG performance, to give us a chance to hear the work that was done that night. At 10:20 pm, a moment to acknowledge the end of the meeting, and we take our leave for the night.

GCNE Meeting, 08-08-2010, The Loft

2010-08-09T18:38:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Brad Hogg, Chris Paquette, and Alex Lahoski.

Beginning the meeting at about 8 pm, we start with some circulation to check levels. With no key announced, this moves gently from Cmaj to A Hijaz (a Phrygian scale with a major 3rd and major 7th). We then warm up with some basic 2nd Primary work--first the initial exercise, and then moving to displacement of different harmony notes, working with this for about 10 minutes or so. Chris then offers a counting exercise in 6/4, derived from the bassline of a song by Gentle Giant.

This eventually prompts Alex to move to working with the polyrhythms in Blockhead, and counting while playing them. We first mainly work with the "Paul" part (which is the quarter-note-pulse-with-a-bump part), then move to Bert's 3-against-4-in-15 part, and finally to Hideyo's 5/8 part. After working with all of these for a bit, we then begin looking at the other parts of the song, and each learning all the parts. At 9:25, we take a break, just in time for Brad to take a call from Dev.

Back in the circle, a few minutes later, Alex brings us back to the fifth mode of D Harmonic Minor, teaching a figure that is played almost entirely on the 3rd string. This turns out to be parts of the CG composition "Trapiche". Work on this takes us up to 10 p.m., and a moment of silence to acknowledge the end of the meeting.

GCNE Performance, 08-07-2010, "The Luau" in Rhode Island

2010-08-08T09:14:00.000-07:00

Circulation/Tuning the Space
Growing Circle
Askesis
Introduction

Circulation (A Hijaz)
Where is the Nurse?
THRAK
Morning Has Broken

Circulation/Improv
Eye of the Needle
Blockhead
Asturias

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Alex Lahoski.

The performance begins for the circle at 4 pm with some attention exercises, as we all start our traveling towards the location: Martin Bradburn's house in Rhode Island. All arriving at about 6:30 or 6:45 pm, we begin warming up as a group at 7 pm.

Scheduled to take the stage at 7:50 pm for setup, and 8:00 pm to play. The previous band ended up running a little long, so our performance ended up starting at 8:12 pm. After we finish, we leave the stage, take a moment to acknowledge the end of the performance, and then tear down.

Following the performance, we opt to hang out and socialize for a while--beautiful weather, and a lovely location next to the lake. Eventually, the night is called at 11 pm, and we all head home.

GCNE Meeting, 08-01-2010, The Loft

2010-08-04T12:14:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Alex Lahoski (the "luau team").

We begin the meeting at a quarter of 8pm. A moment of acknowledgment, and then improvisation initiated by Alex. A bit of organizational discussion, with regards to the upcoming luau gig on the 7th, and we jump into working the set (not quite a list yet, as there is no defined order as of this writing).

First up is Intergalactic Boogie Express. A false start, and then a full go at it. With only one bass player, though, we quickly decide to leave it for this gig. 3rd Relation next--this settles in once we actually get into the piece. We spend a little time touching up the final descending run, to give Alex a chance to get used to playing the Dancing D's part, and make a note to revisit the piece before the end of the night.

Growing Circle, next. Once through, with comments from Alex to remember to play the dynamics. A comment from Brad, regarding the playing of this at the Midway gig--Alex has us run it again, with both comments in mind. With this small of a circle, it helps to enter more strongly than we might with more players.

Moving on to Blockhead. This gets two runs, with a quieter entry into the polyrhythm section, the second time. This is a fun piece to play, and a good addition to our repertoire. Where's the Nurse is up next, and gets a good ten minutes of spot work. The Turkish spirit in mind, we continue with Askesis, and give some extra attention to the middle tricky bits, as per request. Flying Home gets some time spent with it, as we are missing an ornamental part for the end--this is also run twice. A break at 9:15 or so.

Back in the circle at 9:25 with Morning Has Broken, with parts as follows: Rick and Alex on melody lead (Rick takes the tremolo picking in the last verse), Chris on chordal accompaniment, and Brad on the Glenn Special. Everyone having addressed their parts, this will be a good addition to the set list for Saturday (and also its premier performance). A bit of a digression, here, as Brad takes a moment to ask about logistics for arrival--this leads to a couple of further digressions, including a recipe from Rick (given below in the comments!).

Eye of the Needle next, with the notes from last week in mind. Chris makes a point of reminding everyone about keeping with the tempo as counted out. A couple of runs with this, and then once more through 3rd Relation, with attention to open strings. A circulation to close the night, starting in C Major and moving to areas more ambiguous. With a moment of silence, we close at about 10:25 or so.

GCNE Meeting, 07-18-2010, The Loft

2010-07-21T18:07:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, and Dev Ray.

Glenn, Brad, and Rick arrive first and head up to the loft. As we're setting up the room, Chris calls Brad to let them in, as the door buzzer and bell are apparently not working.

Starting at 8 pm with some circulation to set levels. Dev hasn't arrived yet, due to a bit of day-job-related preparation, so Alex asks to review the ornamental parts for Morning Has Broken. Glenn agrees to this, and we spend roughly the next 25 minutes or so relearning the parts and rehearsing the piece. For the August 7th luau gig, it looks like the ornamentation will go to either Alex or Brad (to be decided next week). At this point, we take a bit of a break, as we prepare to dive into other luau matters; Glenn chooses to bow out, due to impending work of his own.

Dev arrives a few minutes later, and Brad heads back down to let him in. We make it back to the top to the sound of Blockhead. Alex is presenting this piece specifically for the luau team, and so we dive into it for roughly 45 minutes. At the end, we're able to run it all the way through, and have it definitely on call for the gig.

Flying Home is called next, to see how this will play out in this line-up. The leads have a high lead part that is usually played by Glenn; this might be left out for this particular gig. A few more pieces of repertoire are mentioned, and Brad requests to hear Eye of the Needle with Dev laying out. After running the piece and working in some suggestions from Dev, there's a bit more discussion of the logistics of when we play, where we meet, and other practicalities, and then we call it a night at around 10:25 p.m.

GCNE Performance, the Cloud Club, 07-10-2010 - Improv ORG

2010-07-11T18:49:00.000-07:00

Full circle in attendance: Dev Ray, Alex Lahoski, Glenn Hughes, Chris Paquette, Rick McCarthy, Brad Hogg, Victor McSurely.

The circle arrives in bits and pieces over the course of an hour, at Northampton Street in Boston, around 9-10 pm. A friend of Victor's has asked us to play a set at Improv ORG, a private party held at the Cloud Club in Boston. Those in the know will recognize this place as one of the mainstays in the Boston counterculture movement (our host, Mali Sastri, plays in/is Jaggery, one of the better bands in Boston). A bit of warming up in the green room on the second floor (the entire house is like one big surrealist painting), and then we find that we're about to go on. So, up the stairs with stools, guitars, and cables.

10:35 or so, we're on. The performance space is on the top floor, and is very tight. We take our space, circle up and plug in (battery amplifiers for this one). Once the incidental music comes down, a moment of silence for us, and then we're in.

35 minutes later, we finish a set that is at times wonderful and other times quite intense, and have a moment of silence in the room before enthusiastic applause from the crowd. Back down the stairs to the green room, where we complete the task for the night. Once our things are put away, Victor discusses more of the Systematics pentad as it applies to us, within the context of the circle. Then, some talk* about what our upcoming work is: upcoming gigs, gigs that have yet to be acquired, musical tasks, etc. Finally, we agree that we should take Sunday off--having two performances in a week, followed by some more work with the pentad, seems to constitute a full week's work. Most of us are gone by 11:45 or so, and a couple stay behind. A good week, and a great night.

*This talk is punctuated by consistent floor pounding from the performance space above us: Amanda Palmer, Mali Sastri, and the rest of Jaggery are playing MIA's "Paper Planes" directly above our heads.

GCNE Performance, at the Midway Cafe, 07-07-2010

2010-07-08T10:54:00.000-07:00

Full circle in attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Dev Ray.

The night begins with a warm-up at Brad's place, which is conveniently located three blocks from the venue. Victor, Chris, Rick and Brad spend roughly an hour playing and running repertoire, in order to get the hands working correctly. After this, a walk (and drive) down the street, for load in at 7 pm. Sound check at roughly a quarter of 8, to make sure that everything works, and a little more repertoire with the full group. Once we're finished with this, Victor and Randy Wooten set up for their opening slot (an ambient/looping project with Randy on drums), amidst a small amount of heckling from some of the bar regulars ("Aw, man, where's the eighth guitah playah? The sign says eight! Hey, you should do some covahs, you know, like 'In the Jungle', and have one guy doin' chords, and annuddah doin' the lead, you know, like 'ah-wheeee'. I'm just sayin'. . .")

Victor and Randy begin their set a bit before 9 pm. Great music, and the first time that they've played out in this format. Once they've finished their set, we strike the stage and reset for the circle. There's a bit of consternation between the house sound man and the circle, with regards to how the house mixer should be set, but it seems to be resolved simply, within a few minutes.

A bit of circulation, and then addressing a technical issue. And, at about 9:45, we're off!

No set list--this seems to be a good way for us to work, and really lets us gauge the momentum of the show. Opening with Flying Home, and closing with Asturias, with a fair amount of improvisation and repertoire in between. Intergalactic Boogie Express gets called in the middle of the set; we haven't played this in rehearsal in about 4 months, so some tricky spots are a little trickier, but it is surprisingly well played. Thrak is LOUD, the way that it should be

Once we finish the set at about 11 pm, we unplug, leave the stage and circle up. As we do so, the house sound man immediately turns up the house music to a slightly uncomfortable level, which is a little distressing, but we're able to finish and complete, regardless. The show is well-received, and everyone that is there (granted, not many, but it is a Wednesday night) is vocally impressed and pleased.

We fully strike the stage, enjoy a beer or two, and call it a night. Over all, a good performance.

GCNE Meeting, 06-27-2010, The Loft

2010-06-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski.

A bit of a late start, tonight. In the circle at 8 p.m., we open with an improv that slowly establishes itself in A minor--very good. There's a different, more mature feel to this than some of what we've been playing, recently.

Fittingly, to start in with repertoire, we begin with 3rd Relation. Some brown notes on the last descending line, and some lumpiness in the bass, so a bit of spot section work to address this. Where's the Nurse, next--disregarding some bass issues, it's not bad. This seems to be a piece that is easier to play with a larger group, though that can also mean more timing inconsistencies. Some spot work on this as well.

Askesis, next.

Growing Circle, with three leads and one bass. There's a bit of a dynamics issue that was brought up last week, so we play through twice, to catch it the second time around. Next up is Flying Home; the only really pertinent difficulty is maintaining the tempo throughout. The bass part is quite repetitive, and it can be really easy to rush the piece and mistake rushing for playing with intensity.

Morning Has Broken comes up next. In this small group (which will extend into the full group), it sounds really quite good, and with a bit more personal practice, will be solid for the gig on the 7th. With this, we take a break at about 9:15.

Ten minutes later, we're back in the circle, and we review the Chrysanthemum exercise, both to revisit it and to teach it to Alex. 20 minutes later, it's under the fingers, and ready for personal practice. We close with an improvisation that is even better than the opening--more avant garde, eventually landing on a D tonal center. Lotsa fun, and a good indicator of where the circle is at. The meeting closes with a moment of silence at 10 p.m.

Some discussion, afterwards, of the pentad.

GCNE Meeting, 06-20-2010, The Loft

2010-06-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Dev Ray (late due to a cross-ocean familial ambush!).

No notes taken during the meeting, so this will be mostly anecdotal. Quite hot, and just starting to get a little dim at about a quarter to 8 when we started. Started out with a warm-up presented by Glenn as a way of working through the modes by using a descending tritone pattern, and the relation of the tritone to its place in each mode. Interesting way to look at them, and a useful way to hear the place of tension in each mode. Moved on to identifying modes by ear, as they are played, and responding in the correct mode.

Continuing on, we reapproached some repertoire that we haven't worked for a while. Askesis, Third Relation, Growing Circle (at this point, we turned the lights on, which helped), Opening (this may not approach the three-seat bass circulation in time for the gig, but we're still hoping), the Prelude Circulation, and Batrachomyomachy. Some counting issues still, but nothing that some personal practice won't fix. With this, a break.

Back in the circle, we take on the last parts of MHB, which include all the harmony and ornamentation parts. Though the tradition has been for everyone to know all parts, and trade off throughout the piece, we're choosing to stick with assigned parts for the sake of the gig coming up. A couple of runthroughs, and a long moment of silence.

With this, Victor presents the pentad of the guitar circle (as it applies to our work). Things to consider. Meeting closes at about 11 p.m. or so.

GCNE Meeting, 06-13-2010, The Loft

2010-06-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Dev Ray.

The meeting begins at roughly 7:35 with a clear moment of silence. "When ready, begin."

Following this, we jump into working with CMaj, as well as the rest of the church modes, focusing on C as a tonal center. The approach is "bright to dark", echoing a very good presentation from Steve Jolemore:

Lydian (Major scale, augmented 4th)
Ionian (Standard Major, perfect 4th)
Mixolydian (Major Scale, minor 7th)
Dorian (Minor Scale, natural 6th)
Aeolian (Natural Minor Scale, minor 6th)
Phrygian (Minor Scale, minor 2nd)
Locrian (Minor Scale, minor 2nd, flatted 5th)

The focus is a bit more on ear training, tonight. After short improvisations in each mode (knowing what they are beforehand), Victor's next exercise is to have the circle improvise and respond in the mode that he lays out, without telling us what he will play. Interesting work, and interesting comments, especially with regards to "What key are we actually playing in?". This leads quite organically into "real life", or having to discern tonal center and modality by ear. After a bit, Victor leaves it and has Glenn choose a few keys. Glenn notes that it strikes him how important it is to know exactly what he's going to play before he plays it, in order to give the correct tonal bed.

With this, we take a slightly extended break. Victor plays a couple of recordings of the Beatles concert that he put on with his students at the Montessori school. Wonderful music. A quote from one of the parents really stuck with the scribe, as well: "Instead of performing for us, they were showing us themselves."

Also, during the break, we start hammering out details of the gig, such as who is opening, what rehearsals we have available to us, and what the setlist may involve. Currently, repertoire includes most of the major themes (EotN, Askesis, 3rdRel, Asturias, Growing Circle, Flying Home, Thrak), along with Batracho, Where's the Nurse, and the Bach Prelude. Morning Has Broken and Opening as well, possibly. Certain pieces are in the bag, but there are definitely those that need to be touched up and revisited. The problem is scheduling rehearsals where everyone is present. Additionally, we are considering a busking night in Canton, but this is still a little up in the air. We eventually decide that it will be easier to work out scheduling through e-mail (since two people weren't able to make it in, tonight).

Back in the circle for some more work. Glenn touches on the Chrysanthemum exercise, again, adding the additional challenge of tapping out the quarter note beat and saying the bass note of each triad as they come. A little tough, but very helpful. After working this for a bit, he then clarifies the melody part in MHB (specifically, the rhythmic variations from verse to verse).

Batracho is next. Glenn, Dev, and Victor on lead, with Chris and Brad on bass. A bit hairy, with Brad playing bass for the first time, and Dev in a different slot than what he has played, but it should work itself out--most problems are related to personal practice more than anything. Where's the Nurse after this. Not a bad runthrough of this, considering we haven't rehearsed it in some time.

Another very clear moment of silence at 11 p.m. to end the night.

GCNE Meeting, 06-06-2010, The Loft

2010-06-06T21:19:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, and Dev Ray.

Getting started a little earlier than the week before, we begin with a bit of a pause before jumping straight in with the opening 16 chords of Chrysanthemum, presented by Glenn. Work on this is pretty direct: the sequence is long*, and there's a couple of jumps thrown in that are not difficult, but are hard to remember where they are. The most difficult part of this, for the scribe, is reconciling the root movement and the suggested fingering of the notes. Work on this takes us straight up to 9 p.m., and a break ensues.

After some small talk, we reconvene, and discuss the upcoming gig on July 7th: who will open, what we might do. After this, we make some very clear headway with MHB, having both the chordal structure and the primary melody down. A circulation and improv to close the night, and we finish at about 10:15 or so.

*The sequence of the root movement will be in a comment on this post.

05-30-2010, GCNE Meeting, The Loft

2010-06-02T16:04:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Alex Lahoski, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg.

Not too many people for this one, so we choose to play in the round, unplugged.

Meeting starts at 8:18 p.m. with a clear moment of silence. As a warm up, Alex presents a circulation exercise given to him by CG: each person is given a time signature (5, 7, 9, or 11), as well as two notes from CMaj (from Bdim and CMaj7). With a low C as a drone, we then circulate around, each playing on the last and first beats of our measure, with the aim to track the beats lining up as they go around the circle. After a bit with 5 through 11, we back down to 3, 4, 5, and 7, and then drop the drone. Then we shift the pattern one seat, retaining our assigned notes.

After working with this for a bit, we move on to diatonic triads in CMaj, singing and playing the notes. We then work on circulating these. Break at 9:25.

"Hi, this is Toady Gerbil, and I'm here to talk to you about Batracho Bits!" One had to be there.

Before beginning work on Opening, Brad asks Chris if he had any observations about playing the piece on Newbury Street, the previous week. Chris replies that what struck him most was that, when we'd go offrail during a section, we'd "find ourselves" at the beginning of the next section, and be together for most of that, before having it go sideways again. Tough job, this.

We work for the next 45 minutes or so on pulling the beginning section together and getting the order right (Seat 1: Brad, Seat 2: Rick, Seat 3: Alex, playing the duple-time bass part as a 3-person circulation). We then have Chris come in, playing the lead part to provide the triplet overlay. Some words about timbre and correct positioning on the neck. Another very clear silence at 10:30, to close out the night.

05-23-2010, GCNE Busks on Newbury Street

2010-05-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Glenn Hughes, Brad Hogg, Chris Paquette, Rick McCarthy, and Victor McSurely.

In response to the weather (and suggestions from Victor), the circle chooses to forgo "life-changing work on C Major and the 7 modes" and play outside. After first rendezvousing at the loft, we all load into Rick's vehicle and drive over with amps and stools, arriving around 8:15. Finding a spot in front of the Boston Architectural College, we set up, warm up, and start playing around 8:30.

As before, there is no setlist, but circulation and improvisation play a big part in the presentation. Repertoire includes some of the usual suspects (not in order): Eye of the Needle, Askesis, Growing Circle, Third Relation, Calliope, Batrachomyomachy, and the Prelude Circulation. We also play Opening and Where's the Nurse 3 times each, at varying points. Opening is tough--we haven't played this for a few months, as a group.

Finally completing around 10 p.m., we call it a night and count up the offerings: there's enough for ice cream, as well as a little left over for the band kitty. At JP Lick's, Chris unsuccessfully tries to convince us that he's unentertaining, and we all end up on camera at one point or another. A good close to the night, with a few more people in town becoming aware of the group.

Back to the loft, and a final shifting of materials. We all head home for the night, around 10:45 or so.

GCNE Meeting, 05-16-2010, The Loft

2010-05-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, and Glenn Hughes.

Starting the meeting with a quiet bang, Chris mentions that he'd like to work a bit with an approach to Opening that he's developed. The motion passes, and we slot it in for a little later in the meeting. Both Glenn and Victor note that we need to begin revisiting CMaj and the 3rd and 5th primaries, and the agenda of the meeting is born. It is still light outside, so we don't bother with the room lights.

Tuning, and then an improvisation.

After this, we begin working directly with the 3rd primary, first playing and naming the notes, and then singing and playing the scale. This is played both ascending and descending, the latter of which provides some interesting jumps to sing. At this point, it's getting just a little too dark, so Victor turns on a light, which seems to have a noticeable effect on the team. We then work with the exercise of playing the scale at the 5th fret C on the low G, adusting fingering as necessary.

Following this, Chris presents an exercise he's developed for approaching the triplet circulation in Opening, which seems to be related to a circulation exercise that Claudio Lafalce presented in Sassoferrato, in March. Partway through this, Rick has to take leave, in order to play "Dad". After about 30 minutes or so of working with this exercise (and Opening in general), we elect to take a break. Some mild conversation, with a bit of discussion of gigs. A few minutes in, Rick returns, having been relieved of his parently duties before he made it home.

Back in the circle, we return to CMaj. Starting off with a circulation of CMaj, 3 octaves, low C to fifth fret 1st string (which only takes a couple of tries), we work with a simple 3-note ascending pattern (c-d-e-d-e-f-e-f-g etc.). Conceptually, this is not difficult, but holding the pattern is a little challenging, and it takes a number of attempts to get it right. Brad brings up the story of Curt Golden crystallizing CMaj on the guitar by being on the sidelines during a Guitar Craft course circulation that took roughly 3 hours and mentally playing every note with the circle (though he had no guitar in hand). After a few more minutes, we make it up and down again, and then make a go at diatonic triads, which is successful in a more timely fashion.

A little bit of talking, and a moment of silence to finish the night at roughly 10:20 p.m.

GCNE Meeting/Performance, 05-02-2010, The banks of the Charles River

2010-05-02T19:44:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Dev Ray, and Tim Butler (who is visiting from New York).

The weather is beautiful, today, so the circle has chosen to take advantage of this and unleash ourselves on the unsuspecting public along the Charles River. Brad is about twenty minutes late, unfortunately, but once he shows up, we're off! Victor mentions that we will be working with an awareness of the motion of breath, as we move through the day.

Roughly twenty-five minutes later, we park in a garage in Harvard Square (courtesy of Glenn's day job), and embark to the river. Once we arrive with thrones, amps, guitars, and ourselves, we find a spot close to a bridge (the John Weeks Bridge, apparently) and circle up. At roughly a quarter of five, we begin with a bit of circulation to get the blood flowing and check levels, and then jump in with an improvisation. Regrettably, Dev has to leave, in order to go to work, but we continue to circulate and improvise. We come to a stop, and Victor calls "Growing Circle". After playing this, we jump straight back in with more improvisation, but come to a halt when Dev comes back and asks Glenn to help him get back into the garage. As Glenn leaves, we decide to take a break, and continue on in a moment.

A few minutes later, we circle back up again (with Glenn coming back in about 10 minutes later), and proceed to play for over two hours, without actually stopping. Most of this involves improvisation and circulation, but plenty of repertoire is called: Eye of the Needle, Third Relation, Flying Home, Thrak, Asturias, Where's the Nurse?, Askesis (twice), Growing Circle (again), and the Prelude circulation. There's also a very lovely improvisation that feeds into the first Theme, Invocation. Eventually, we close with a final circulation/improvisation.

Over the course of two hours or so, we maintain something of a continually shifting audience, with some people very happy to see us. One or two people ask a couple of questions, and are very pleased to see what we are doing. Two happy accidents, as well: Andy Cahill, who attended the beginner's course in Sant Cugat, back in July of 2009, accidentally finds us playing; and another person named Jonathan, who attended one of the former beginner's circles, about four years ago. Over all, a very good set of events.

Victor suggests that, in lieu of a regular meeting, we instead go for Indian food at a restaurant in Harvard Square, where we can relax and discuss some matters of importance. Over the course of the meal, several big things are put on the table (not counting the food), and we're able to really get a scope of what opportunities we have available to us. Once the meal adjourns (thank you, Alex and Victor!), it's back to the cars and the loft, in order to switch equipment and people to necessary vehicles, and a farewell for the night. Meeting adjourned at roughly 9:45 p.m.

04-25-2010, GCNE Meeting, The Loft

2010-04-27T11:48:00.001-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Dev Ray. Chris is unable to attend, due to a last-minute situation with the day job.

Opening the meeting at roughly 7:45 p.m., with a moment of silence. There is still sound, however--the unit next to ours is playing Ella Fitzgerald quite loudly. Though this could be distracting, it also provides a pointed stick, as it were.

Victor begins by touching on something that RF gave him at the completion course in March, regarding areas of special study (for an explanation of this, RF has posted this on his own diaryhere), and alludes to how "performance" seems to be the direction that this circle is taking. An alternative way of putting this would be that "performance" is becoming very much a part of the circle's direction, along with the available option of "improvisation". Fittingly, several have brought LectroSonic Mouse amps, and busking is a posted option for tonight. Before we choose to do this, however, we elect to warm up and make sure that the amps are working. Victor initiates a circulation to the right, to check levels.

30 minutes later, we come up for air, from a long spontaneous improvisation. Observations are presented. At about 9 p.m., we take a short break, during which Glenn learns how to differentiate between black metal and death metal.

Back in the circle at about 10 after, we approach Morning Has Broken, again. This is the first time in a few months that we've had (almost) everyone here working on this, but progress is clear. We spend roughly 20 minutes with this, working from the intro through the second verse (same as the first), and agree to stop before the second bridge, where the key changes. Moving on, we take a few moments to revisit some repertoire we haven't played for a bit: Where's The Nurse? and Flying Home.

With another very short break, we then put our guitars away and review the morning sitting exercises that Victor gave us, the week before, and discuss some of the more inward work that we undertake. The meeting is finished at roughly 10:20 p.m.

GCNE Meeting, 04-18-2010, The Loft

2010-04-21T09:59:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Alex Lahoski.

Victor arrives at about 7:35, and we all head inside and up to the loft. After setting up (and returning Chris's metronome to him), we begin the meeting at about 7:45, with an unspoken instruction: when ready, begin. Delicate playing.

Roughly twenty minutes later, we step into circulation work. The work is very focused around how we organize ourselves in time, and in pitch or key; one circulation that is quickly stopped provides a great example of a clearly defined motif--how might we recognize this, and respond to it? What would follow something as clearly defined as this?

Victor guides us through several exercises. The first is simple enough: sing the note that the person before you played, and then play your own note. This proves to be a little much, so we simplify it to a Cmaj pentatonic scale. After a bit, we move to any note from Cmaj, and then singing the previous note and playing our own note simultaneously.

Next, we continue down this same rough trajectory, by having one person playing a note, and then the next three attempting to play the same note in turn, with eyes closed. (Victor gets a kick out of seeing the self-satisfaction on everyone's faces when they get a note right.) Following this, we play another circulation (key center is E, with an ambiguous key), with a noticeably more cohesive feel.

Break, at about 9 or so.

Back in the circle, Victor gives us an exercise, to be used as an extension/expansion of the morning sitting. We then take another look at Morning Has Broken, and revisit the intro, as well as the first/second verse, and the first bridge. It's clear that the primary challenge is remembering all the chords (and there are a great many chords), but this can actually be more manageable by knowing how the chord sequence fits into the key signatures of this song (Dmaj and Cmaj).

To end the meeting, we revisit circulation work one more time, with an emergent key signature of C ambiguous, and ending on a high G. Silence at 10:20 p.m.

GCNE Meeting, 04-11-2010, Brad's Apartment

2010-04-11T20:06:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Chris Paquette, Dev Ray, Brad Hogg.

We get going a little later than usual--some aren't able to attend, and so we have to re-plan the night. Dev shows up around 8 or so, with Chris finally making it in around 8:40.

In Brad's living room, we jump in with the 16 Bar Exercise, to get warmed up. Dev points out, as we play, that we don't need to play a note louder because it's on a different string. Afterwards, he notes that, as he warmed up, he'd grin every time he hit an open string, to just let it go by.

Flying Home, next. The first time we run this feels alright, though with a couple of mistakes--Dev suggests just letting them go, and concentrating on the task at hand. So we play this again, and actually make more mistakes. Chris observes that when he adopts the practice of not dwelling on mistakes, he experiences the reverse effect and tends to be less attentive, thus allowing for more mistakes. Dev then suggests that we play through, again, and apply a division of attention exercise and count the piece out loud as we play it (in 7s, not in 4s). As we play through, this time (discounting a false start), there's a few mistakes that work themselves out, and a few new ones, but we make it through to the end. The time tends towards a rush, due to the nature of this piece, but maintaining a count through the end is a good accomplishment.

Chris then suggests visiting Morning Has Broken, so as to get a little time in on that. Dev has not worked on this yet, so Chris and Brad help him get through the intro, with its picking pattern and chord shapes. They then do a full runthrough of the form of the song (just chords, no melody), with a mind to have this ready for the next week. Dev excuses himself for a moment; in the interim, Brad tests a small arrangement idea with Chris.

When Dev returns, Chris asks to try an arrangement of his own, of a Gentle Giant song. This looks like it will be fun, once all the parts get put together, so we'll be looking forward to it, next week. Brad then asks to do some work with circulation, so we start with a free circulation (C Ambiguous, ending on a Cmin chord). Dev guides this work into some "really fast" circulating with a few choice notes, eventually simplifying into a single Cmaj triad.

"Really fast" quickly becomes 96ish, so not quite so fast, but still pretty quick. Brad quickly gains an appreciation for just how difficult the lead circulation in Opening is to play, especially the 2nd part. We trade chairs a couple of times, to get a feel for the different spots, and figure out the difficulties of each chair.

At this, we decide to call it a night, at roughly 10:40 p.m. We're all looking forward to next week.

GCNE Meeting, 04-04-2010, the Loft

2010-04-04T20:23:00.000-07:00

In the circle: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, Dev Ray.

Glenn, Rick, and Brad are the first ones to arrive, with Victor arriving shortly after. After setting up, and a moment of silence, Victor shows us a couple of circulation exercises that he picked up while in Sassoferrato. As we are working with these, Dev shows up. And, as things often turn out, we opt to catch up on what happened at the course in Italy, just as Dev is ready to play.

What follows is roughly two hours or so of discussion: with the completion course having completed, and the future of this work wide open, there's a lot to be done and undertaken.

A little after 10 p.m., we take a bit of a break, to give our posteriors a chance to recoup, and then visit a couple of exercises, including reviewing the circulation exercises we tried at the beginning of the night. When asked for requests, Alex suggests Flying Home into Thrak, like we did at the gig the week before. Very good: the spaces in the polyrhythms are really present.

Concluding the meeting at 10:30 or so, we all bid adieu, and look forward to next week.

GCNE Performance, 03-24-2010, Outpost 186 in Cambridge, MA

2010-03-25T18:51:00.000-07:00

Growing Circle
Intergalactic Boogie Express
Eye of the Needle
Bicycling to Afghanistan

"When Ready, Please Begin."

Prelude Circulation
Where's the Nurse?
Third Relation
Askesis

Circulation

Calliope
Flying Home
Thrak

"When Ready, Please Begin."

Asturias

Brad, Rick, Chris, and Chris's brother Matt (in town to check out the Art Institute, and to participate as an audient) arrive a little before 6 p.m. at the space. The foreman, who is also named Chris, lets us in, with just a reminder to lock up when we're done. Glenn arrives shortly after, and we load him in to the space, with Terry and Alex both arriving before 6:30. Glenn's drummer also arrives at about 6:45 or so, to load in his equipment. Once we've prepared the space, we begin to do a quiet soundcheck. As we're doing this (not too much as David hasn't arrived yet), Lindsay and Armand, who are closing the night for us, arrive and let themselves in. A full soundcheck, as best we can do, and the space is ready at about 8:00 p.m.

Overall, a very good night. Glenn's group, the Church of Flying Dreams, open for the Circle--this with Glenn on loops and electric/acoustic guitars and his friend Sean on drums*. Very cool set.

Some connection "backstage" to the course in Italy, and to our respective aims. The Guitar Circle New England take the stage at about 9:00 p.m.--probably more on schedule than many groups usually do. Glenn realizes after the first song that he's forgotten to hit "record" on his laptop, does so, and we continue with the set. The acoustics of the room are a little funky, and lend to some difficulty in timing, but this is a niggling point. We even have a brief appearance of Blue Oyster Cult in the set!

The circulation in the middle of the set is a very powerful moment, as is the twinkling of Asturias. Overall, a good effort from us.

Lindsay Straw and Armand Aromin close the night for us with some traditional Irish music. They choose to run without any amplification at all, which is very fitting for this music and this room. A very fun and welcome closer. Check them out.

With the end of their set, that's the end of the night. Glenn, Brad, and Rick restore the space to a better state than where we left it, and after a bit of talk about what comes next (in a larger sense, not specifically for the circle), we bid adieu for the night. Our next meeting will be a week after March 28th.

GCNE Meeting, 03-21-2010, "The Loft"

2010-03-25T17:43:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Alex Lahoski, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, David Kuznick, and Terry Tungjunyatham.

Rick, Brad, and Terry are in the space first; Brad is a little early, due to Glenn being gone, so the three of us head up to the loft to get set up. A little talking, and some circulation, and a little more talking, with everyone else showing up at roughly the same time.

Once everyone is plugged in and ready to go, some circulation to set levels. An interesting thing to note is that a lot of the circulation has been drifting to D natural minor, instead of the more common C Major (which is easily available due to NST). A bit of discussion, regarding what to wear for this gig (codpieces and chaps are turned down rather quickly), times to arrive, etc. Then some practice entering and exiting the space, and we sit down to run the set list for Wednesday.

Growing Circle first. Sounds good, so we move on to Intergalactic. This is hairy by nature, and we manage to put a little extra on it. Some spot work on finding the one in a couple of tough spots, and we run it a second time, due to a complaint from Brad about mix levels, and it runs a little better. Eye of the Needle next, which sounds very good. From here, it's a pretty straight run of the setlist, leading up to Askesis, and a bit of spotwork for the unison and tricky bits.

Here, there be breaks! Some talk about logistics and photography, while some of the circle runs lead parts from Flying Home.

Back in the circle, we circulate a bit, and find ourselves switching directions and casting notes in different directions. A lot of fun work. Moving on to Calliope, with attention to the transitions in the piece, as well as making sure that the cowboy sections don't sound like we just came out of the saloon.

Flying Home: generally, this sounds pretty good, though there's a bit of funky intonation going on in the basses. We try out a dynamic idea in the F section, which seems to work well, and then use this to go directly into Thrak out. Notes for this entry read: "Flying Home --> Thrak - Wow!"

Finalizing some bits about Asturias, as well as some explanation from Alex, who was taught all the parts by Bert Lams, the composer of the piece. A runthrough sounds very good.

With some final discussion of what the schedule will be like, after the gig, and after Victor and Dev get back to the States, there's a very clear feeling, which is articulated by several in the room, that the course in Italy is very present with us. Whatever happens, the momentum that we've built up will certainly be useful for us.

But for now, we end in silence, a little after 10 p.m. Next stop, Cambridge!

GCNE Meeting, 03-14-2010, "The Loft"

2010-03-17T16:50:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Alex Lahoski, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Terry Tungjunyatham.

In the circle at about 8 p.m., with some circulation to check levels. We start warming up with the 16 Bar exercise--as we're playing, Victor McSurely walks in to check on us. This is his last Sunday before flying to Italy. When Glenn asks for another calisthenic exercise, Brad suggests the 28 Bar exercise. A few are unsure on the form, so Brad begins to show it, but it becomes quickly obvious that it's alotta chords. Victor suggests approaching just the first 4 chords, for calisthenic purposes. Several people in the circle begin this exercise as 16th notes, but by the time we finish, we are all playing in 32nd notes (the tremolo part of the exercise).

Bicycling to Afghanistan, with Terry on lead, Chris on mid, and Glenn on bass. Unusually slow tempo. Some clarification on the lead part, from Victor, and a bit more of this at a more appropriate speed. Choosing to look at this, later tonight, we move to 3rd Relation. After playing this, Victor asks who in the circle was holding the tempo back, prompting a second run with attention to tempo.

Eye of the Needle. Only one person on bass, as David is not here, tonight, but well-played, with a decent balance of parts. Where's the Nurse, next. After we play this, Victor asks Brad if he's ever played bass in a band. When answered, "No," Victor advises him to play more assertively, and to listen to some bass players over the next couple of days. A second runthrough.

Askesis, next. There is a question about the clarity of "the tricky bit", which boils down to playing the parts accurately, so that the clarity becomes available. Victor also mentions how the piece was written in an hour or so, and how it was the first theme not written by RF.

Bum break. Glenn mentions that the Myspace salute didn't work, as we didn't have the entire URL of the website in the photo, and pulls out his camera. As he's arranging the shot, Victor takes a moment to ask us all to really consider what's coming up, in addition to the gig. Some form of participation at a distance with the completion course is suggested, as well as a different, less attached practice. Important words to consider.

Myspace Salute 2.0! One wonders what exactly prompted Rupert Murdoch to come up with this. With this, Victor takes his leave, for the night, with wishes for safe travels following him.

Calliope, back in the circle. There are some parts that need to be relearned in one of the leads, but otherwise, this should be good. Flying Home, next, with some clarification of both lead/mirror lead parts and bass (as well as attention to tuning).

Prelude, with Alex in pole position. One false start, due to some unintended contemporary reharmonization, and then a full run. This comes out much better than we had expected. Some discussion of arrhythmia in some parts, and another run. Intergalactic Boogie Express, next. This is a touch slower than some recordings, but the groove is much tighter--it feels like the right tempo for this circle. We address the outro chords, and then move back to Bicycling. Some more work with this.

"When ready, begin." Two parts to this, with a moment of silence in between the parts, and a longer holding of the moment after. We call it a night at about 10:15 p.m.

GCNE Meeting, 03-07-2010, "The Loft"

2010-03-08T14:19:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, David Kuznick, and Terry Tungjunyatham.

All arriving tonight roughly within 10 minutes of each other. Tonight is Terry's first night back in the circle since roughly this time last year.

Beginning with a quiet moment at roughly 7:45, we begin with a bit of circulation to set levels, followed by some basic calisthenics with the 16-bar exercise. Glenn then calls Eye of the Needle. Played pretty well, with a touch of rushing in the leads. Glenn's suggestion for this piece (and as a general rule) is to really nail the transition points throughout the piece, so as to glue the parts together.

3rd Relation, next. Some rushing and open strings. We run the descending chord outro a few times, to firm that up. Calliope, after this. It sounds good, but there are some parts that are a little unclean. We work on this for a bit, and decide to come back to this, later tonight. Flying Home: a couple of problems throughout the circle, but nothing major--simply a matter of momentary loss of attention. There are some indiscrepancies in the bass part, which turn out to be due to excess tension in the left hand, as well as clear tuning problems, which are addressed.

"When ready, begin." Glenn attempts to pull the circle into Asturias, coming out of this improv, but it doesn't work, as either no one hears it amidst the rest of the circle, or no one is listening. An instructive moment.

After this, Brad asks to try an idea that he got [brazenly stole] from Tuning the Air: working on Thrak at a soft level. This gets slightly misinterpreted as "working on Thrak with no amplification", which is fine. We play through the song, and it is interesting to hear how we play when not relying on volume or force to bulldog our way through the piece. Additionally, it's also surprising how quiet some of the players play.

Glenn takes this a step further, and asks everyone to stand up and stand in a circle, facing each other, and has us play the piece again. We then work both the straight magic-chord 5s and the polyrhythms. And then, seeing as we're all standing up, and essentially unplugged, we choose to take a break.

During the break, Glenn takes the opportunity to have us all pose for a "Myspace Salute!" Apparently, in order to regain control of a myspace page, it's necessary to pose for a picture with a handwritten sign with one's personal or band name on it (depending on the nature of the page). Curious, but fun.

After the break, we jump in to Intergalactic. This is very much a "don't fall off the boat" piece, and we manage to prove it a couple times. There is a bit of rushing all around (and a bit more in one of the leads), and we take some time to tighten up some areas (the re-intro is particularly difficult, due to a very long pause).

Moving on to Growing Circle: played well. Terry suggests Bicycling to Afghanistan, as he knows the lead (though he needs a refresher). This falls apart roughly 2/3 of the way through, but will likely be ready and waiting for the gig, within the week--very good news. Moving on to Askesis: this is generally sounding pretty good, with only a couple of things that really need to be worked on (tension in the hands, and the spaces after the "tricky bit" and last verse into the outro, especially in the basses, who have a big jump up the neck).

Addressing Asturias, we recheck parts and a couple of fingerings, and then play it through. A few words about playing cleanly.

Brad asks to try a concept from the OCG II course. "When ready, begin." Not bad, from the scribe's point of view.

Rick points out that we need to run Where's the Nurse, and so we do. A couple of spots reviewed, with one more runthrough. Ending the meeting in silence at roughly 10 p.m.

GCNE Meeting, 02-28-2010, "The Loft"

2010-03-03T12:23:00.000-08:00

In attendance: Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, David Kuznick, and Dev Ray. Alex is feeling unwell, and cannot make it.

Starting a little late, at 8 p.m., we find ourselves 7 in the circle, with the return of David to the circle. This is the first time in roughly a year that David has been here, and he is welcome back.

A light comes on, and Victor calls, "When ready, please begin."

Following this is some discussion--this is the first meeting with Victor since the Montessori gig, and he invites some comments from the performance. Dev mentions that in the middle of one of the songs, he looked out at the audience and saw a writhing mass of movement, and had been surprised by it. Victor notes that the audience--both kids and adults--were very appreciative, and enjoyed the performance very much. The energy in the room was very present and positive, but the kids were pretty excited. When asked, he also noted that there weren't too many questions, the day after the gig, likely because he is teaching them all.

There was also an official recognition of the gig coming up at the end of the month, for the non-Italy contingent ("the special performance project GCNE team!"). As this is coming up fairly soon, the decision was made to do some full circle work, after which Dev and Victor would sit out and observe (with comments as necessary).

Growing Circle, first. Eye of the Needle, following. There is some rushing going on, especially in the leads, so we play through again, with more attention to time, as well as to the dynamics in the outro.

Moving to Opening. This is played once, but with a bit of lead section work before hand. After the full runthrough, some comments are offered, in regards to the rhythm/time-related issues with this. The duple-against-triple feel comes through, occasionally, but mostly isn't quite making it, though it clearly wants to.

Where's the Nurse is next. The first time is pretty fast, probably in the 84-88 bpm realm (it feels at least as fast as Tuning the Air's recorded tempo), and the timing is a little sloppy, so we play through it again, a little slower. Much better, though dynamics aren't quite as dynamic. This leads into the Bach Prelude, which, after a false start, just about falls apart halfway through, due to dropped/wrong notes. But, we keep it together and finish it, and then elect to play it again, now that we all remember our parts. The time is still a little too jazzy, but we at least are able to make it to the end.

Thrak is called, next. Played twice (I think). Not quite as cohesive as at the gig, but not bad. A break comes after this, with some talk about how the gig will work, when we'll be playing, where it is, who will be playing. In a word, logistics.

After the break, Victor and Dev elect to stay out of the circle and let the abridged performance team do their work. 3rd Relation is up, with some rushing. Glenn stops the circle, and asks us to return to playing just the intro with the same delicacy we had approached last week. A couple instances of this, and then through the piece. This is pretty effective.

Flying Home, called by Brad. This isn't played nearly as fast as last week, but sounds a lot better (Victor's comment: "You guys are fun to listen to!"). Some talk about minor/major points of performing this piece. Before we move on, Victor asks us to circulate, which is very clearly in C Major. At this, Victor and Dev take their leave, and we continue on. Growing Circle again, with this "new" organization of personnel, followed by Nurse, with three leads and one Brad.

Eye of the Needle. With five in the circle, and five parts, the balance sounds excellent, and this probably lends to the success of this run-through. Calliope, next--no mirror lead, but it doesn't sound bad, though the lead part in the intro is overpowered by four bass parts (one player switches parts between sections).

Intergalactic Boogie Express: this is becoming unlikely for performance, though when it works, it works. It's more a problem of lead players remembering which parts go where. 3rd Relation again, to revisit this, and it does sound a little better. Asturias up next, with parts getting redistributed and learned--this shouldn't be a problem.

One last requested improv, to finish the night, and we end in silence at roughly 11 p.m.

GCNE Meeting, "The Loft", 02-21-2010

2010-02-24T12:57:00.000-08:00

In attendance, tonight: Alex Lahoski, Glenn Hughes, Brad Hogg, Chris Paquette. Victor is in California, Rick is experiencing some un-wellness, and Dev is in the middle of a tour of the Northeast.

Everyone arrives at roughly the same time tonight, and is suited up and ready to go in a fairly short amount of time. After bringing the PA up, Glenn asks if there's any calisthenic exercises that we'd like to address. Chris explains an extrapolation of the 16-Bar exercise that he's been doing, using the middle descending section of 3rd Relation as source material. This ends up being a little confusing, so we instead use a modification that Glenn used on his Level 3: instead of playing 4 bars of each form, we cut them down to 1 bar, so the changes come much faster. We then go over some extensions of the 1st primary, including the Hammerhead exercise from Tony G. and a couple of modifications from Bill Rieflin. All interesting exercises.

We then bring up the subject of the potential gig at the end of March. Brad has put forward the suggestion of playing in Boston on March 25th to mark the anniversary, as most of the circle will not be going to Italy for the completion course. This is still up in the air, as we need to secure a venue first, before we make an official gig announcement. We run a list of songs that we'd be able to reliably play the gig with, without having to worry about missing someone for a part. A couple of old faces have also offered their availability for the gig, so even with Dev and Victor gone, this might still be a large group.

Moving on from logistics, we tackle Where's the Nurse? There's been a bit of rhythmic shifting the past couple of times that we've played it, so we move in to address those. Chris brings up a small but notable matter of ringing D strings, which is adjusted. Once more through, and we go on to Flying Home. This is played once, and fast, around 88 bpm. It is a little sloppy, but not a trainwreck (though close to it at one point), so we elect to keep that one on the "maybe" list, resolving to work on it privately.

With Victor gone, the lead section of Opening will have to be assisted by Alex. The lead team tests this out with the first chord, and it seems like it might be a viable option. File that one away, as well.

At this point, Glenn re-presents Morning is Broken, the Cat Stevens song. Working through it in sections, it's some distance from being ready, but might come together a little faster than we think. We take a break.

Back in the (abridged) circle, we play through 3rd Relation. We are still speeding up, but it's not as bad as it has been; however, there's little dynamic movement. Another runthrough, with return to the last descending section, and then on to Askesis. This falls apart in the middle, but we keep going, and end (mostly) together. Chris asks about a timing/transition issue in the bass section, and Glenn points out that there really isn't an easy way to pull off the jump up the neck. We run the piece again, and also decide to keep this one available for the moment.

For the last piece, we take on IBE. Chris and Glenn on bass, and Alex and Brad on lead. This falls apart entirely, but more due to some confusion about who is jumping where. Ending the meeting in silence at 10 p.m., we all take our leave for the night.

GCNE Performance (!), 02-11-2009, Thacher Montessori School, Milton, MA

2010-02-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

Dev and Brad arrive a little late, due to a bit of a late start (the previous day's weather wreaked havoc on poor Dev's schedule, the day before), at about 10 a.m. The gym/hall is already set, with risers set up and Victor sound-checking Alex and Chris. A few minutes later, Dev and Brad are getting levels set, with Glenn walking in then. Some circulation work for checking levels, as well as getting ourselves warmed up.

We run a couple of bits to get used to the sound of the room; it's very live, like most gyms are, and it's a little washy. This will change once the kids arrive.

At 10:40, we head off to the "green room". At 10:50, we're on.

Setlist:

Growing Circle
3rd Relation
Victor talks, and into Batrachomyomachy (the audience loves the Toady Gerbil joke)
Opening
Where is the Nurse?
Love is Green (not played)
Thrak
When ready, please begin ==> Asturias
Prelude Circulation (moved from earlier in the set)

The kids are eating it up, but they are also squirming all over the place; with the excitement of having a show put on for them, as well as the unnecessary snow day on Wednesday, they're going nuts. With respect to a progressively rowdier audience, Victor chooses to skip the Prelude after Batrachomyomachy and go straight into Thrak, with a note to let the kids know that it's alright to cover their ears, if it gets too loud. A couple of them do, but for the most part, the audience rocks out. To the scribe's ears, this might be the tightest we've played this.

Thrak ends, and Victor attempts to calm the kids so that we can move on. This doesn't really happen, so Victor gives us the instruction, "When ready, please begin," and jumps straight in, which does a much better job of getting the kids to focus. Dmin establishes itself fairly quickly, and it turns out to be one of the better improvs we've played--a very good springboard for Victor to begin play Asturias, which has all the shape it needed the other night.

Asturias ends to applause, and we decide to play one more piece for them, the Prelude. And with that, the show is over--we stand, unplug, and walk off. A good performance.

Back in the green room, a moment of collection. Then, a few minutes later, we head back into the gym, for a question and answer session that is markedly less formal. Some good questions all around ("How much do you practice?" "What kind of guitar is that?" "What's your favorite music?" "What kind of music do you play?"*). At twelve, we bid them adieu, and free dispersal. There is a short photo session afterwards (necessary), and then teardown and restoration. Some discussion afterwards of when the next meeting is, and we all take our leave, with the exception of Victor, who has a class to teach.

Photos coming soon!

*This might seem like a silly question, but even the long-time guys have a hard time answering this one.

GCNE Meeting, 02-07-2010, 'The Loft'

2010-02-10T12:32:00.000-08:00

In attendance: a full house, with Victor McSurely, Rick McCarthy, Chris Paquette, Brad Hogg, Glenn Hughes, Alex Lahoski, and Dev Ray.

Victor and Dev have just arrived from the Guitar Craft "Professionals" course (quite literally, as they drove straight from the location in New Jersey to Boston and the loft, not even stopping at home) to find Brad waiting at the door. Everyone else arrives at roughly the same time, 10 minutes later, and the circle is assumed.

A gift is presented to the circle, from RF: fresh picks! A small, kind, and mutually appreciated gesture. Very good.

The theme of the night is the coming Thursday, and as such, there is little warming up, save for a short circulation. When Victor asks the key that we were playing in, the answer of Dmaj (with a borrowed chord from Dmin) is provided--a glance back at last week's work. From here, we jump straight into repertoire, mostly playing straight through the pieces.

Growing Circle, once through, followed by Eye of the Needle. Eye comes out sounding a touch flat, but only needs a little bit of personal attention to dynamics. 3rd Relation is next, and the same thing comes up; timing isn't as much of a problem as it has been before.

Moving on to Asturias, some basic arranging is worked out (who plays what twinkle, who's going to bring it in). We play it once, and the general consensus is that the twinkle section sounds pretty shapeless. A couple of questions about small details (shaping the twinkles dynamically, a difference from recordings), and we move to Thrak. No "Lark's" section tonight, but it sounds good and tight. Where's the Nurse is next. Very good playthrough--Victor's reaction of, ". . . Well, moving right along. . ." is a good summation.

Before moving into work on Batrachomyomachy, there's a bit of mention about the fact that we'll be playing for kids, which brings up a couple of recollections about the last time the circle played at this school ("This weekend, I got a chocolate egg!" "How many strings are on your guitar?"), and plenty of laughter. The basses (which are two, and the other two that aren't leads) move into the hall, while the leads remain plugged in. In the hall, Chris and Rick work their parts, while Alex and Brad look on and offer critique when asked. After about 10 minutes, they rejoin the leads, and some spot work is assumed, mostly from the middle and onward.

Philip Glass' "Opening" is next. A bit of work is attempted on this, but after a few minutes, it's pretty apparent that we need a break. So we do, though the basses--Rick, Brad, and Alex--take to the hall to run their parts (which aren't technically demanding, but the triplets-against-duplets feel can be very challenging, especially when conflicting parts sit next to each other).

Back in the circle proper, we jump back in with Batracho, with some more extensive work on this piece. Dev has been working the lead, and is still learning a bit of the part--admirable work. At least one full playthrough, and we move on to the trio version of Love is Green. Once through.

Next is the Prelude Circulation. Twice through this, with some spot work--the rhythmic work on this is still challenging, though it's more appropriate to say that consistency is the challenge. On to Opening, again. Playing straight through the form (48 bars, twice through), there's points where it locks in, and points where it doesn't. We make it to the end, and silence pays a visit, for a time.

With some words about technicalities for the gig, we end the meeting at roughly 10:30 p.m.