Showing posts tagged passing strange

A look behind the scenes at New Line Theatre’s production of Passing Strange.  Warmups, tuneups, fine-tunings, cherries on top and how it all comes together.  See the band, cast and director Scott Miller prepare for preview night in a montage of footage from behind the curtain. 

A note to self that fixes a quick-page-turn moment:   going from fuzzy ascending chromatics with wah embellishment (plane taking off - “can be energetic” according to Scott, director —> but NOT with fifths - octaves only)  to clean finger-picking progression.  So I wrote it on the bottom - no page turn needed :)  This part doesn’t scare me anymore.  View high resolution

A note to self that fixes a quick-page-turn moment:   going from fuzzy ascending chromatics with wah embellishment (plane taking off - “can be energetic” according to Scott, director —> but NOT with fifths - octaves only)  to clean finger-picking progression.  So I wrote it on the bottom - no page turn needed :)  This part doesn’t scare me anymore. 

A little note to myself that calls for a small embellishment of this Gmaj9 - I call it the Sinatra chord cause it’s so cheesy-classy and fits right in at the end of this number.  Try it out!  This shape can actually be used as a lot of different chords depending on where you assume the root note to be.   Here it’s on the fifth string:   View high resolution

A little note to myself that calls for a small embellishment of this Gmaj9 - I call it the Sinatra chord cause it’s so cheesy-classy and fits right in at the end of this number.  Try it out!  This shape can actually be used as a lot of different chords depending on where you assume the root note to be.   Here it’s on the fifth string:

 Maj69

Taped this binder hole in this page to make it stronger after a very thoughtful and caring yet strong and frenzied conductor turned my page for me.  It was actually a hilarious and pleasant surprise the first time it happened: there’s lots of difficult page turns and I’ve actually written on the bottom of any page that requires a quick turn the part I need to be playing next so I don’t have to mess with it.  But on this particular song I hadn’t made any notes I guess and Justin saw (or remembered from rehearsal) it coming in the score.  Justin - how did you know seriously? I’m playing my stuff and getting near the end and just in time BAM! An arm reaches across and turns the page and I was all “WTF and then like Woah no shit - that IS helpful,” and kept playing :) View high resolution

Taped this binder hole in this page to make it stronger after a very thoughtful and caring yet strong and frenzied conductor turned my page for me. 

It was actually a hilarious and pleasant surprise the first time it happened: there’s lots of difficult page turns and I’ve actually written on the bottom of any page that requires a quick turn the part I need to be playing next so I don’t have to mess with it.  But on this particular song I hadn’t made any notes I guess and Justin saw (or remembered from rehearsal) it coming in the score.  Justin - how did you know seriously?

I’m playing my stuff and getting near the end and just in time BAM! An arm reaches across and turns the page and I was all “WTF and then like Woah no shit - that IS helpful,” and kept playing :)

Trying a scene from the 1st act in Passing Strange - “Amsterdam” specifically and that one part…

me practicing “sweet solo lines” for “Passing Strange.”  In the opening number, Prologue,  I might be playing the narrator’s part since he’s not playing a live instrument - or is that the other guitarist’s job?  In any case, in the closing bars I think I’ll play what’s heard on the recording as opposed to making up my own “sweet solo lines - ad lib.”  But hey, you never know.  Might be inspired with some sweetness of my own…