I sent out an email blast to my personal mailing list, and I thought I’d share that here as it probably best reflects my thoughts on this past year for me as well as some of the exciting things coming up for the new year! So here it is:
Happy New Year, folks and I hope you had a great holiday break (if you had one). It’s been over a year since I’ve sent you a message and that one was a rather bleak one, as I recall (due to the death of my brother, Joe).
But I couldn’t resist sending out an email with the Subject line: “Yo-Yo Ma, Klingons and Central Asia!” And, well, that just about sums up the last quarter of my year (2011). This is one of those epic sub lines that becomes the stuff of legends like the baconcat. Though the reality of it is just a little bit less awesome (well, maybe for you folks, but for me–NO!) because sadly the three things mentioned don’t have anything to do with each other (other than how I overlap them).
But rather than make this a long and involved email letting you folks know what I’ve been up to, I’ll just post a link to more info (for those interested) as well as a one sentence description.
- First: I had the wonderful opportunity to play with Yo-Yo Ma just a couple of days before my birthday. More about that (plus photographic evidence) here.
- Second: For the Star Trek fans — I am now the “foremost Klingon Cellist” and composer on, um, Earth. More about that here.
- Third: I’ve become as immersed as possible (as someone with all the musical projects I have) in Central Asian music and drumming. More about that here.
As I said, the majority of the above has happened within the last three months, and really, things are only getting more exciting. I already have nearly as many shows booked for 2012 as I had in 2011–and the year has barely begun. In fact, the first show I have this year is with a new (to me) ensemble–Bourbon Baroque— which will begin a new “First Friday Cantata Series” that will be a part of (for those of you in the Louisville area) the Friday Trolley Hop. We’re doing two shows this Friday–one Handel Cantata with the wonderfully gifted soprano, Kelly Ballou, and one Handel Organ Concerto. Yeah, just what I need right–another ensemble in a completely different style than what I usually perform–hah!
Some highlights for the upcoming year:
- Spring Tour — I’ll be doing a short solo tour in the Spring down to Disney World (where I will play with the Floyd County Youth Symphony) and then back up.
- Fall Tour — I’ll be making my way up to Madison, Wisconsin to do two days of installation/performance art pieces with a long time collaborator, Christine Olson.
- Solo Cello Recital — likely late Spring or Early Summer. I’ve vowed to do at least one solo recital a year if not every semester.
- Recording projects — I have several recording projects that I should have finished well before year’s end. A couple likely by Spring!
And of course, the Klingon and Central Asian music projects are continuously being developed!
As usual, you folks can keep in much more direct touch with me through my facebook page or through email. The quickest way to find out when/where I’m performing next is through my website Events page which is currently only updated with confirmed shows through mid-March though I should have it more fully updated by week’s end–I haven’t even begun adding the 2013 dates!! Also, I often blog about the state of the Arts and about being an entrepreneurial musician at my wordpress page here.
Again, a happy new years to all of you and I hope it brings you great prosperity and joy. Or, to put it another way, “Live Long and Prosper.”
Mae Mai 