New Religions, Performance Art and Social Activism

I've been always fascinated with the voice inflections, body language, and gimmicks of new fundamentalists, motivational speakers, and always try to concentrate on their technique. More than once it has come across my mind as performance art. The I found this clip of Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping. My first naive impression was that this was another crazy authentic religion. It turns out he is Bill Talen, a performance artist, who's turning into a high-powered anti-consumerism activist.



I liked this Talen's quote from an article published yesterday in The New Yorker magazine: “One time, I was arrested at a Buy Nothing Day Parade. We went in and exorcised a Starbucks cash register, and, sure enough, I got thrown in the holding tank at Fifty-fourth Street. And the cops that arrested me were really upset that they were missing this.” But this one, by Talen's associate, Reverend Michael O'Neill really caught my attention: “Community isn’t recognized unless it’s mediated through monetary transactions.”

YouTube: Latin Youth Orchestras

Hace unos meses me suscribi en YouTube.com de modo que el webiste encontrara videos con descripciones que incluyeran las palabras "orquesta" y "sinfonica". Aca he escogido algunas orquestas infantiles y juveniles latinoamericanas que he encontrado. Los dos ultimos de Gustavo Dudamel con la Sinfonica Juvenil de Venezuela. La respuesta del publico no le envidia nada a la forma en que el publico respondio a Paul Simon en el Radio City Music Hall...

A couple of months ago I subscribed to YouTube.com, so that the website would find videos with descriptions that include the words "orquesta" and "sinfonica". Here I have chosen some youth and children's orchestras frfom Latin America. The last two clips are of Gustavo Dudamel conducting the Venezuela Youth Symphony. As for the audience cheers, they have nothing to envy compared to the response to Paul Simon at the Radio City Music Hall...

OSIM (Orquesta Sinfonica Infantil de Mexico/Mexico Children Symphony Orchestra)(Oct./ 22/2006)


"Fotos de la gira de la Orquesta Sinfonica Juvenil "Jorge Peña Hen" de la Universidad de la Serena, en el Septimo Encuentro Nacional de Orquestas en Antofagasta":
"Pictures of the Universidad de la Serena's 'Jorge Pena Hen' Youth Orchestra, ou tour to the 7th Nacional Orchestra Summit in Antofagasta":


Raúl Zurita, premio nacional de Literatura y Orquesta Antonio Vivaldi (publicado el 25 de oct. 2006)
Raul Zurita, national Literature Award and the Antonio Vivaldi Orchestra (posted Oct. 25th 2006)



"La Conga del Fuego Nuevo"-con la Orquesta Sinfonica Juvenil de Chiapas y la direccion Arturo Marquez- el autor(13 Ago. 2006)
"New Fire's Conga" with the Chiapas (Mexico) Youth Symphony, conducted by the composer(Aug. 13th, 2006)



Dudamel/Sinfonica juvenil de Venezuela: 5ta de Beethoven y ovacion (Mayo 2006)
Dudamel/Venezuela Youth Symphony: Beethoven's 5th and Cheer (May 2006)


Dudamel/Sinfonica Juvenil de Venezuela: Mambo (Mayo/May 2006)

Paul Simon en/in Radio City Music Hall

Stephen took me this time to the Paul Simon concert at RCMH. It was fun!

Picture of the concert by Rahav Segev, as published in the New York Times

Picture of the concert by me, as published in this blog

Paso' una semana llena de emociones!

Que semana fue esta!!

El lunes Stephen me invito' al Concierto de Barbra Streisand en Madison Square Garden. Aunque su articulo (con que el que estoy 200% de acuerdo) no fue muy favorable (de hecho, el concierto fue una mierda...), bueno...era la Streisand....Oprah y su famosa amiga estaban ahi en primera fila, asi' como Tony Bennet, Audra MacDonald, Diana Krall y Rosie O'Donell(si, a todos ellos los podia ver desde mi lugar)

Streisand en escena

Streisand en la pantalla (cerca de la ENORME pantalla/apuntador)

Tony Bennett y Diana Krall

El martes fue una de esas ocasiones en las que agradezco haber elegido la carrera que elegi. La tienda de Baccarat en Madison Avenue organizo un evento benefico para Orpheus. el quinteto de vientos de la orquesta interpreto' cuatro movimientos de "La Tumba de Cuperin" de Ravel. Fue un deleite. La mezcla de impresionismo Frances en el marco de cristal fino frances que unica.

El miercoles Stephen me invito al concierto de Audra MacDonald en la Sala Allen del Jazz at Lincoln Center. Este escenario tiene como telon de fondo una vidriera gigantezca que ofrece una vista espectacular del Parque Central y de la Calle 59. El concierto estuvo magnifico. No se puede comparar con la presentacion tan bochornosa de la Streisand.

El jueves fue el conceirto de paretura de la temporada de Orpheus en Carnegie Hall, que se presento con Emanuel Ax interpertando dos Concewritos para piano de Mozart, ademas de la Obertura de Cosi fan Tutte y la Sinfonia "Haffner".

Y el viernes, consegui un boleto para la presentacion de la compañia de danza de Merce Cunningham, en la presento su pieza con iPods. El publico tenia que bajar la musica del website de Cunningham, o prestar uno en la entrada del teatro. La presentacion tambien incluia musica amplificada en la sala, asi que la partitura es una mezcla de lo que cada persona escucha en su iPod, con la musica en la sala. Una experiencia verdaderamente unica para cada persona.

Y hoy, domingo, tuve una presentacion con la orquesta New York Symphonic Arts Ensemble en el lado este. Tocamos la 6ta de Tchaikovsky, y el 2do Concierto para piano de Chopin.

An exciting week went by!!

What an great week this was for me!

On Monday Stephen took me to the Barbra Streisand concert at Madison Square Garden. Although his review (with which I agree 200%) was not favorable (actually the concert sucked!), it was Barbra...well...whatever. Oprah and her friend were there, Tony Bennett was there, Audra MacDonald and Diana Krall were there, Rosie O'Donell was there (yes I could see them all from my seat!)...

Streisand on stage

Streisand on screen (next to the HUGE teleprompter)

Tony Bennett and Diana Krall

Tuesday was one of those days that you are thankful of being in the career you are. The Baccarat store on Madison Avenue organized a benefit event for Orpheus. The orchestra's wind quintet performed 4 movements of Ravel's Le Tombeau de Couperin. It was delightful. The mix of French impressionism and French fine glass was unique.

On Wednesday Stephen took me to Audra MacDonald's concert at the Allen Room, in Jazz at Lincoln Center. Once again, I was mesmerized by the view of Central Park as the visual background for the concert. She was fantastic, cannot compare to Barbra's lousy, cheesy, ridiculous performance (well, there, I compared it...)

On Thursday, Orpheus had its Season Opening Concert at Carnegie Hall, with Emanuel Ax playing two Mozart Piano Concertos, plus Orpheus playing the Overture to Cosi fan Tutte and the ""Haffner" Symphony.

And, on Friday I got tickets to Merce Cunningham's show at the Joyce Theater, in which they premiered Cunningham's new "iPod" piece. Audience either downlodad the score from Cunningham's website, or could get an iPod shuffle at the entrance. The score also included amplified music, so you could have a unique expeirence of the piece, by mixing the sound from your ipod, with the msuic from the Pa system with the dance.

And today, Sunday, I just had a performance with the New York Symphonic Arts Ensemble on the east side. We played Tchaikovsky's Pathetique, and Chopin 2nd Piano Concerto.

It was a fun, busy week!