Alexandra Gardner | Building Noises

Already the leaves are changing big time in Maine!! I always feel clearer after a trip up north – like I’ve been internally realigned. Maybe it’s the air…or the lobster! The concert in Baltimore went very well! Full house, good music. I particularly enjoyed Ingram Marshall’s Sea Tropes – his music, which is very sparse [...]

Thanks to Bernard for pointing me to his video on the New York Philharmonic website. That our musical institutions are providing a deeper look into the creative process through media and technology is a Very Good Thing. I like B.’s description of the significance of bells and how that plays out in the piece he [...]

Those years working in public radio have finally come in handy! My podcast, or rather Mobcast, is available on the Mobtown Modern website, and on iTunes. It’s a little tour through my composition Tourmaline, which Brian Sacawa will be performing on Mobtown’s October 1 “Sound Ecology” program. Look forward to seeing you there! ***** Here [...]

The onslaught of September reminds me that my “body clock” is still tuned far more to the academic year than the calendar year. Moving from summer to fall always feels like a Significant Event, and clearly I am not the only one in this boat, because suddenly the phone is ringing and the schedule is [...]

The wonderful Steve Smith has written a lovely profile of composer Kaija Saariaho, whose rising success is heartwarming. Her music has been a great inspiration to me for many years; it makes me think of the most finely wrought gold cloth, shimmering in moonlight. As a lefty, I especially like the extra bit Steve included [...]

This is turning into a deliciously summery summer, with plenty of exercise (jogging and tennis are my favorites!), fresh vegetables and fruit, spontaneous friend gatherings, sunsets watched from the roof deck. I am heading out once more to North Carolina, this time for a little beach romp at Blackbeard’s home. Having spent nearly every summer [...]

Has anyone read this article in The Atlantic?? I thought I was just becoming really scattered; turns out my brain is being reformatted, and it is totally catching! Truthfully, since entering into a more “webby” existence, my book reading habit has slowed to a crawl…measures are being put in place to fix that. After all, [...]

Some tidbits regarding the National Perfoming Arts Convention, in no particular order… Overall the convention seemed well organized. If there were train wrecks, I missed them. Because this event was all about the AmericaSpeaks process, many caucus meetings were attended. The week also involved numerous martinis. Had the martinis been integrated into the caucus meetings, [...]

The view this afternoon….

There are so many guitar and saxophone duos in the world! Who even knew?! I think that most (if not all) of them were in North Carolina for the festival at UNC Wilmington, and it was a huge treat to hear them play. They have wonderful elegant names too, like Ryoanji, Sygyzy, Degre 21, Remeleixo, [...]