Take Two on Take 6

Tue, 09 Mar 10 00:00:00 -0500

Does the Constitution of the Blogiverse prohibit double dipping? The Pianobabbler has rhapsodized before about the glories of Take 6

Ambition and Monocular non-Eclecticism of the Mass Mind

Sun, 28 Feb 10 00:00:00 -0500
Two words every musician must consider: Ambition. Eclectic. The Pianobabbler has ambition. Ambition to what? To make it.

Music Biz Now: Never Worse, Never Better

Sun, 21 Feb 10 00:00:00 -0500
Oy! Woe is me. Aaaaaagh!! Howl. Howl. Howl. We hear these cries made by the species of foul (sic)

New Wine, New Bottles, No Sweat

Sun, 14 Feb 10 00:00:00 -0500
This post deals with music consumption today. But first... The Pianobabbler: habitual news addict. Magazines every week, papers every day, tele

The Ups and Downs of Art and Julie Andrews

Wed, 10 Feb 10 00:00:00 -0500
On the 18-hour state of suspended animation, misnamed "flight", to Beijing, pinched between consciousness and slumber, no longer able to rea

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 5

Fri, 05 Feb 10 00:00:00 -0500
_____ The Pianobabbler is touring Asia, managed by The East West Entertainment Group&l

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 4

Mon, 01 Feb 10 00:00:00 -0500
_____ The Pianobabbler is touring Asia, managed by The East West Entertainment Group&l

The Pianobabbler's Jazzman-ifesto

Sun, 17 Jan 10 00:00:00 -0500
When the Pianobabbler's turns off the babble, he turns on the piano. When he turns on the piano, he makes music. When he makes music, he ma

The Music of Unmusic

Sun, 10 Jan 10 00:00:00 -0500
Boys and girls: the Pianobabbler remembers a time when, to open a door, you had to pull it by hand. A time before arugula, sushi, probiotics, and

10 for 10 and the 10's

Fri, 01 Jan 10 00:00:00 -0500
The Pianobabbler does not resolve with the the New Year. He has No New Year Resolutions. Not to say the Pianobabbler doesn't resolve at all. O

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 3

Fri, 25 Dec 09 00:00:00 -0500
_____ The Pianobabbler is touring Asia for 6 weeks with vocalist Irene Atman

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 2

Fri, 18 Dec 09 00:00:00 -0500
_____ The Pianobabbler is touring Asia for 6 weeks with vocalist Irene Atman

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 1

Wed, 16 Dec 09 00:00:00 -0500
______ The Pianobabbler is touring Asia for 6 weeks with vocalist Irene Atman

New Music- Better Music?

Sun, 13 Dec 09 00:00:00 -0500
The Pianobabbler listens. And he often hears. And he often hears people talk about music. And he often hears people talking about music talk about new

The J-Oy Vay of Touring

Mon, 07 Dec 09 00:00:00 -0500
This time next week, the Pianobabbler returns to Asia. Asia. The, perhaps post-colonialist, name groups diverse countries and cu

Michael Jackson, Glenn Gould, Genius, Death and Hysteresis

Wed, 02 Dec 09 00:00:00 -0500
______________ There follows a tale of two documentaries the Pianobabbler recently saw: GENIUS WITHIN: The Inner Life of Glenn Go

What WIll I Think of Next?

Sat, 21 Nov 09 00:00:00 -0500
Often they ask: What do you think about when you're playing? A curious question. Do they ask lawyers: What do

It's the Truth, Not My Opinion!

Sun, 15 Nov 09 00:00:00 -0500
The Pianobabbler went to the theatre last night. August: Osage County. A celebrated modern play. Lots of prizes. Molten hot revi

The Greatest Novel Ever, With Music

Sat, 07 Nov 09 00:00:00 -0500
The Pianobabbler is a piano / babbler. Not a novelbabbler. Not a fictionbabbler. Not a musicologybabbler. Still, good enough for Oprah, good eno

Yooni, Money, Music, Art

Sun, 25 Oct 09 00:00:00 -0400
Incredible music. So what. Moving. Big deal. Deeply artistic. Ho hum. Brilliant. <

Jazz, Phish Jazz, and the Phuture

Sun, 18 Oct 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pianobabbler had a read of Dog Gone Blog the other day. The Dog Gone blogger (aka the Pianobabbler's nephew&l

Worse than bad: Mediocre

Sun, 11 Oct 09 00:00:00 -0400
How could they? Tom Stoppard towers over English language playwrights. I call him the third 'S' (after Shakespeare an

Confessions of an Edit Fiend

Sun, 04 Oct 09 00:00:00 -0400
Do you care? If Miles Davis' legendary Sketches of Spain recording was born only through extensive surgcal editing- do you

Can't Rant Grant Cant

Sat, 26 Sep 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pianobabbler has tried. He has. Several times. Federal. Provincial. Municipal. No luck. No grants. Craps. Craps. Craps. That's my discl

Music Matter?

Sat, 19 Sep 09 00:00:00 -0400
When you wake up. When you're in the shower. When you eat. When you drive. At your desk. At the cafÃ©. While you walk. While you w

Everyone Complains But...

Sun, 13 Sep 09 00:00:00 -0400
The music you hear nowadays is crap... I can't stand the [insert music format here- pop, jazz, whatever] you hear

Whatsa Pianobabbler?

Sun, 06 Sep 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pianobabbler has been babbling pianistically for just under a year. As we enter the Fall, it's time to re-introduce him. Me. It. Us. The P

Great! and Other Ways to Tell Someone They Suck

Sun, 30 Aug 09 00:00:00 -0400
You've come to see your friend perform. She's a wonderful woman. Warm. Bright. You know she works non-stop at her music career. Making ca

More for Darwyn Aitken

Sun, 23 Aug 09 00:00:00 -0400
Last January, the Pianobabbler paid homage to his late music and piano teacher Darwyn Aitken. It was by way of a column in

Bob Dyl(ignor)an(ce): The Artist's Oblivion

Sun, 16 Aug 09 00:00:00 -0400
Why would anyone take on an arts career? It's highly competitive. Lots of aggression as you elbow for gigs and territory. &

Camraderie and Competitive Non-Competitors

Sun, 09 Aug 09 00:00:00 -0400
Athletes: someone wins, someone loses. Lawyers: they lose. you win. Ahem. Politicians. Manufacturers. Poker players. Same thing. Many sectors

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 8: Apothegms and Epigrams and Fractionated Fillips

Mon, 03 Aug 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pinobabbler has amassed these thoughts and observations over the past months in New York: *** Edith Wharton (The Age of Innocence<

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 7: Handwashing Pizza Music Happy

Mon, 27 Jul 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pianobabbler is a fervent handwasher. But nothing prepared him for New York. Never have I had to was my hands as often as I do here. Scrub scru

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 6: Sir Paul Up High Melissa Below

Tue, 21 Jul 09 00:00:00 -0400
New York is the best walking city in the world. Paris may compete. Nothing comes near NY. So, the Pianobabbler walks. A. Lot. This day, it'

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 5: Unlustrous Stars

Mon, 13 Jul 09 00:00:00 -0400
Iridium Jazz Club- 51st Street & Broadway Iridium is famous. It stands with the Blue Note and the Village Vanguard as a jaz

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 4: My Night at Smalls, My Lunch with Nicole

Thu, 09 Jul 09 00:00:00 -0400
Living in Toronto, the Pianobabbler is accustomed to celebrity. There goes Renee Zellweger. Hey, that's Colm Feore. Hi Measha Brueggergosman,

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 3: Fireworks That Work

Sat, 04 Jul 09 00:00:00 -0400
Midtown West - Hudson River No one but no one does big as well as New York does big. It's the 4th of

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 2: The Canadians Sing

Wed, 01 Jul 09 00:00:00 -0400
Joe's Pub - NoHo Canada Day. Yeeha! Jeff Breithaupt, Cultural Affairs Officer at the Canadian Consulate in New York, has

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 1

Sun, 28 Jun 09 00:00:00 -0400
Harlem Michael Jackson died suddenly last Thursday. Sad. Tragic. Michael Jackson was an artist of great talent. Genius, eve

Never Hide Stride Pride

Fri, 19 Jun 09 00:00:00 -0400
William told the Pianobabbler the other day that he loves to work with Fats Waller playing on his iPod. William is 15 years old. His work&

The Bogeyfication of the Club Owner

Sun, 14 Jun 09 00:00:00 -0400
There was a meeting in Toronto recently. Town hall. Musicians. Mostly jazz musicians. A handful thought club owners were getting the better of them

It Hurts to Record

Fri, 29 May 09 00:00:00 -0400
Someone clicks a photo of you. They're using a super-hi resolution camera. 10 billion billion billion pixels. A closeup. Extreme closeup. You hav

Piano Starts Here: Art Tatum

Sun, 17 May 09 00:00:00 -0400
Art Tatum. Talk about shock and awe. The vagaries of taste impose caution. The "best", the "most", and the &

The Labour of Music

Sun, 10 May 09 00:00:00 -0400
They walk on stage. They play. They make beautiful music. Everyone has fun. They walk off. The crowd cheers on and on. The lights. The gla

Mommy- what's a "CD"?

Sun, 03 May 09 00:00:00 -0400
When was the last time you went into a CD store? When is the last time you saw a CD store? When was the last time you bought a CD?

The Scottish Name... Don't THINK About Mentioning It

Sun, 26 Apr 09 00:00:00 -0400
Theatre people will never talk about Shakespeare's Macbeth. They only talk about The Scottish Play. It'

The Best Things In Life Are Free. Sometimes.

Mon, 20 Apr 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pianobabbler spent this past weekend toiling. Working his buns off. For free. A charity event. The event was successful, thankfully. But it

Billy Bob, the Brazilian, and the Misplaced Gaze

Sun, 12 Apr 09 00:00:00 -0400
Two major arts events this week. One spectacularly public. One hermetically private. One a thoughtless wisp. One a thoughtful universe. One

"If there is a future of peace for humankind...it will come from the artists."

Sun, 05 Apr 09 00:00:00 -0400
The Pianobabbler is not the Piano-babbler for nothing. he has things to say. His own things to say. Once in a rare while, though

Was It Something I Said? or How I Learned to Live Without a Juno Award

Sun, 29 Mar 09 00:00:00 -0400
As a working jazz pianist based in Toronto, if I can utter one generality about Canadian musicians, itâ��s that we have made a commodity out of

The Jazz of Silence

Mon, 23 Mar 09 00:00:00 -0400
To talk or not to talk. To shush or not to shush. The Pianobabbler is producing a new jazz series at Toronto's venerable Old Mill Inn. Upscale

Ataraxia & the Jazzer

Sun, 15 Mar 09 00:00:00 -0400
Ataraxia: freedom from disturbance and pain that characterizes a balanced mind and constitutes its first step toward the a

The Day Jazz Became Classical - Pt. 2

Sun, 08 Mar 09 00:00:00 -0500
Some of my best friends are over 30. In fact I am over 30. But... The Pianobabbler was surveying his audience recently. Great pe

The Day Jazz became Classical - Pt. 1

Mon, 02 Mar 09 00:00:00 -0500
Pianobabbler was talking to a late-teen saxophone player not long ago. He had applied to get into a university jazz program. He was nervous. He had to

Music as Manual Labour

Sun, 22 Feb 09 00:00:00 -0500
I want to take a moment to acknowledge the manual labourers we call 'musicians'. Making music is bodily, physical,, corporeal, muscular

On The Sublime: Take 6

Wed, 18 Feb 09 00:00:00 -0500
Do you know the music of Take 6? Many do. Most don't. But for me you may as well ask 'Do you know the music of Bach?&#

A (Orches-)Tree Grows in Windsor

Wed, 11 Feb 09 00:00:00 -0500
I've just come back from a week of outreach for, and playing with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra (WSO), rolling out my Symphronica

What, No Improv? Jazz's Little Secret

Mon, 02 Feb 09 00:00:00 -0500
One of my music idols is Art Tatum. If you don't know who Art Tatum is, and you play piano, listen to him, and be prepared

Slumdog Trite, Amal Bright: Who's the Millionaire?

Sun, 25 Jan 09 00:00:00 -0500
A tale of two Indian movies from 2008. Similar themes. Money. Love. Parents. One of the movies is brilliant, nuanced, and fascinating. The other i

For Darwyn Aitken

Wed, 21 Jan 09 00:00:00 -0500
My keyboard column in the latest issue of Canadian Musician is about my late, and truly great, piano teacher Darwyn Aitken

Let 1000 (Jazz) Blossoms Bloom

Mon, 19 Jan 09 00:00:00 -0500
Remember the song Where Have All The Flowers Gone? Well. today's question, ladies and gentlemen, is Where Are All The

VOTE FOR DANIELA NARDI!

Mon, 12 Jan 09 00:00:00 -0500
Daniela Nardi has been nominated Female vocalist of the year. Please consider voting for her at:

The Cartesian Nature of Music Business Advice

Mon, 01 Dec 08 00:00:00 -0500
The philosopher RenÃ© Descartes said: "Of all things, common sense is the most fairly distributed: everyone thinks they are so well

Organic Music and Symphronica

Mon, 24 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0500
I sometimes joke that I am less a professional jazz musician than a failed classical one. Like many kids of my era, musical training began with Co

Chambers on Popeye

Tue, 18 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0500
We all know remarkable people. Few can be as remarkable as Jack Chambers. A scholar of renown, Jack travels the world as a celebrated expert on soc

Small Numbers, Big Task

Sat, 15 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0500
If you've poked around my website, you know I'm releasing a CD in Toronto this coming Thursday. I'm fortunate to be able to hold th

The Knocks of the Music Biz and Richard Twardzik

Sun, 09 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0500
News Flash: It's really really really hard to make it in the music biz. I've been a litigation lawyer. I've been an award-winning Ph

Jazzers on Obama

Wed, 05 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0500
Although I am a white Canadian male, my life is soaked through and through with the American music of largely African-American provenance: Jazz.

The Bestseller- My New CD

Mon, 03 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0500
OK. A blog shouldn't be marketing propaganda. If I want to sell you my new Cd, I should hawk it elsewhere. But it come not to praise 'The

Awards Shmawards

Sat, 01 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0400
We're heading into awards season. In music, the big ones are the Junos (Canada) and the Grammys (U.S.) It's great to win an award. Any mu

RonDavisBlog - The Mission

Sat, 01 Nov 08 00:00:00 -0400
Welcome to my blog. Music. Jazz. Classical. Arts. Piano. I love piano. Anti-fuzzy thinking. Anti-prefabricated positions. These will be the subjec

Ron Davis - Blogs

Take Two on Take 6

Ambition and Monocular non-Eclecticism of the Mass Mind

Music Biz Now: Never Worse, Never Better

New Wine, New Bottles, No Sweat

The Ups and Downs of Art and Julie Andrews

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 5

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 4

The Pianobabbler's Jazzman-ifesto

The Music of Unmusic

10 for 10 and the 10's

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 3

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 2

An Account of the Pianobabbler's Asian Adventures- vol. 1

New Music- Better Music?

The J-Oy Vay of Touring

Michael Jackson, Glenn Gould, Genius, Death and Hysteresis

What WIll I Think of Next?

It's the Truth, Not My Opinion!

The Greatest Novel Ever, With Music

Yooni, Money, Music, Art

Jazz, Phish Jazz, and the Phuture

Worse than bad: Mediocre

Confessions of an Edit Fiend

Can't Rant Grant Cant

Music Matter?

Everyone Complains But...

Whatsa Pianobabbler?

Great! and Other Ways to Tell Someone They Suck

More for Darwyn Aitken

Bob Dyl(ignor)an(ce): The Artist's Oblivion

Camraderie and Competitive Non-Competitors

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 8: Apothegms and Epigrams and Fractionated Fillips

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 7: Handwashing Pizza Music Happy

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 6: Sir Paul Up High Melissa Below

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 5: Unlustrous Stars

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 4: My Night at Smalls, My Lunch with Nicole

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 3: Fireworks That Work

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales- vol. 2: The Canadians Sing

The Pianobabbler's New York Tales - vol. 1

Never Hide Stride Pride

The Bogeyfication of the Club Owner

It Hurts to Record

Piano Starts Here: Art Tatum

The Labour of Music

Mommy- what's a "CD"?

The Scottish Name... Don't THINK About Mentioning It

The Best Things In Life Are Free. Sometimes.

Billy Bob, the Brazilian, and the Misplaced Gaze

"If there is a future of peace for humankind...it will come from the artists."

Was It Something I Said? or How I Learned to Live Without a Juno Award

The Jazz of Silence

Ataraxia & the Jazzer

The Day Jazz Became Classical - Pt. 2

The Day Jazz became Classical - Pt. 1

Music as Manual Labour

On The Sublime: Take 6

A (Orches-)Tree Grows in Windsor

What, No Improv? Jazz's Little Secret

Slumdog Trite, Amal Bright: Who's the Millionaire?

For Darwyn Aitken

Let 1000 (Jazz) Blossoms Bloom

VOTE FOR DANIELA NARDI!

The Cartesian Nature of Music Business Advice

Organic Music and Symphronica

Chambers on Popeye

Small Numbers, Big Task

The Knocks of the Music Biz and Richard Twardzik

Jazzers on Obama

The Bestseller- My New CD

Awards Shmawards

RonDavisBlog - The Mission