d.i.e.

i been sitting around mulling over sunday's setlist for the last couple of days. around wednesday i realized that we had enough music for two sets, only one of them worked well so i decided to let the 2nd set breath a little by adding some of erik satie's short pieces from his sports and divertisments. my first experience was playing satie (as well as machut, biber, terry riley, and vivaldi) was at csuf in the diverse instrument ensemble created by lloyd rodgers. it was first affectionally known as the scratch orchestra (based on cornelius cardew), but the university rejected the ensemble title for the course catalogue . eventually the students have settled on the shorthand version; d.i.e.

although i have many influences as a composer, performing in this group was probably my most important musical and intellectual experience.

the philosphy of the group revolves around these ideas

just because they are dead, it doesn't mean their music has to be also.

should great repertoire be only performed by the "approved" instrumentation?

is history really a one-way train in which only the future holds the best and most beautiful music?

are the "classics" only written for the orchestra?

unlike cardew's scratchers (whose anarchist politics were probably more important than the music they performed) the main reason for our group was to rescue and perform music from the "dustbin of history" with the musicians we had available. this could have easily become a joke (and i wince when some groups "goof" on the classics), but we always played what was on the page (making musical realizations not arrangements). of course not all music (classical and romantic) works well in this format, but many medieval, renaissance, baroque and postmodern compositions fit the ensesemble quite well.

i realized that unlike most commercial and orchestral playing that i was doing (playing trombone in an orchestra is like being joey in friends, you come in and say something stupid to move the story along). i had to come up with interesting ways to fit into the ensemble's texture. i used a variety of mutes, strange mouthpieces and i once played a sackbut to cover the alto(viola) line in the pergolesi stabat mater. the music was full of challenges again and the repertoire was endless.

to bring this all together, playing satie on sunday night will bring a small part of our past onto the stage. back then erik, scott, sean(now in the nyc), and i had no idea where this would be going, but for each of us the excitement we talked about the music and rehearsals we had really set the tone to the music we make and perform today. its good to know when i need subs d.i.e. is the first place i look. i know that they will be a flexible musician who is ready to try anything and doesn't need the approval of the status quo.