Harmony & discord

Last night I went to a Muslim mosque for the first time in my life. I am not a religious person, and I never intend to be. It doesn't suit my need for individuality. But this was to observe a sacred dance and hear the accompanying music.
While listening and watching the trance-inducing ceremony I staved off any hypnotic effects. Such beauty in music and visuals can really tempt one to put faith in historical texts.
Then I began thinking about the very different scales played in Islamic religious music, as opposed to those played in Christian and catholic ceremonies. The intervals in the scales conjure such vastly different moods.
The long intervals and mysterious-sounding slides of the Middle East avert resolution and prolong the musical experience. Western music, with the half step at the end of the scale, seeks resolution desperately. Neither of these forms of music is better, and different people will have their preferences (probably based on what they grew up with and are accustomed to).
The presence of music in religion is profound. Musicians from antiquity supported themselves by composing for sacred institutions. This was dictated to them by law and necessity.
The music is the backbone of religion, and the conflicting harmonies and scales reflect a different ideology.
Eastern music eludes immediate gratification while western music may elude it- but it is seeking it with urgency.
I wonder how many of our world's wars and conflict are the result of this divergence in perception. People may not recognize it, as it may afflict them on a more subconscious level, but the stark contrast in harmony shows profoundly how our consciousness is shaped by the sounds we hear (or do not).

like the mist rolls off the hilltop - Ben DLG and Aaron McCoy

hmmm...the new album-The culmination of 3 decades of hard work? 5 bucks aint too steep for that, though these are hard times they say, so who knows. That's like a gallon of gas or some shit. Buy the album if you want to, and i welcome all listeners. Like the Mist....

i have run 5 times a week in them including up & down a 2000 foot peak twice, biked 100s of miles, worn them to work daily, plus any additional walking. They remain in near-perfect condition, I have no injuries, and they don't smell. Converse All-Star is hands down the best all-around shoe on the market.

I am home

it's cool 2 be able to stop cutting my hair, visit a seamstress down the street to try to get customized silk shoes made, buy some strange star-shaped Mexican fruit and eat it. just to be yourself without being judged has so much value. it's hard to envision any scenario that'd be sufficiently compelling to make me leave.

Carpe Diem? Really?

I've been thinking about the tendency for time to move faster when you are rushing to fill your day with activity. Time moves at a far slower rate when you move steadily and calmly, quietly considering the nuances of life and what each moment has to offer.

The....

I have a lot of new songs and I'm going to record them. Songs inspired by life and real people who live in a world that tests their patience.

goings on

Feeling good in California. I went out and bought a skateboard yesterday and have been riding around. I hadn't stepped foot on one in about 15 years, but I was pretty good back then. It came right back.
I'm also writing a bunch of new songs, mainly on the guitar alone and looking to add another player or two to the mix. I've stopped cutting my hair.
That's about it. Hope all's well with my readers.

I've been out in California for about a week now. I've got some good friends, a place to stay, a job, and a lot of hope for a great musical future.
I found a great lake to swim in after work and the sun's usually shining then.
I've been extremely fortunate to have such a positive turn of events in my life recently, and I am excited to bring forth some new music, with a renewed spirit.

Hip Hop at its Purest is High Art

If you follow any of the music I make, then you know I play a whole lot of different styles.
I have to say one thing though. The most open-minded musicians I run into are Hip Hop heads.
It might be because rap music is a DIY thing- there's no school for it. You do your own thing and try not to bite anyone else's style. That's a good philosophy for life.
Of course there are a whole mess of rappers who aren't original and that's a damn shame, but the good shit stands the test of time. Just because I do other styles of music does not make me any less devoted to Hip Hop as an art form. I love the music and it courses through my veins.

2 More Gigs in CNY

I have 2 shows that I'm doing with Colleen Kattau. I copied and pasted them below from her email. After these shows I'll be moving to California, so this will be the last time for my hometown folks to hear me play for a while. This is not my solo music. I play lead electric guitar with her backing band.
From Colleen:

Saturday, April 28 8pm Kellish Farm 3192 Pompey Center Road, Manlius, NY we're so glad to be back at this venue. just looking at the americana artwork in the barn is a night of entertainment.

Sunday, April 29 4pm Rongovian Embassy Trumansburg, NY Ithaca area CD release of the benefit compilation CD Singing Clear: Clean earth, air, water 'round here. with Aro Veno, Marie Burns, and special guest, award-winning biologist and writer, Sandra Steingraber.

jam session with my niece

Love Vs. Time

I am playing during the first act of a modern adaptation of Shakespeare sonnets titled "Love vs. Time". The concept is in regards to waiting for the ideal love or settling in favor of more immediate gratification.
The play/musical runs 6 different days during two consecutive weekends, starting next week. I play all nights except for 4/20, druing which they'll be playing a DVD of my performance.
Here is a link to tickets:
Love vs Time Tickets

Cool Calm Pete Live Acoustic Remix

As if the heart were not enough

" as if the heart beat wasn't enough
they got us using drum machines now
the hums of the machines
tryin to make our drums humdrums
tryin to ???? our magic
instruments be political prisoners up inside computers
as if the heart were not enough
as if the heart were not enough "
-Saul Williams

My New Cover Song - Beyonce - Disappear

Jaco Pastorius

Doing Looping in the 70s!!!!!

words today

Based upon several online "conversations" I had over the course of the last week, it's becoming more and more clear to me that people misread each other all the time. Everyone has their own unique way of writing. There's really no preferred style anymore, which is interesting but leads to quite a few misunderstandings.
Music may be one of the last pure forms of communication. You either communicate your raw emotion to someone, or you don't. If you hit a nerve, then there's no gray area.
So I'll stick to making music.

Feb 18 show

Playing some lead guitar with Colleen Kattau at this concert on 2/18 in Ithaca. Just doing one or two songs. There are a lot of acts on the bill.

http://jonimitchell.com/csma3.pdf

Opium

"Contrary to general belief, there is no federal law against growing P. somniferum."—Martha Stewart Living

"Regarded as 'God's own medicine,' preparations of opium were as common in the Victorian medicine cabinet as aspirin is in ours. As late as 1915, pamphlets issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture were still mentioning opium poppies as a good cash crop for northern farmers. Well into this century, Russian, Greek, and Arab immigrants in America have used poppy-head tea as a mild sedative and a remedy for headaches, muscle pain, cough, and diarrhea. During the Civil War, gardeners in the South were encouraged to plant opium for the war effort, in order to ensure a supply of painkillers for the Confederate Army."— Michael Pollan

jig saw puzzles

currently training my brain to do some new things. Nothing is impossible.

heart problems

it's a bit of a dilemma when your greatest strength as a musician is writing love songs, and love is also your greatest fear.

New Song with Words