trisha
June 14, 2008
!!! now this is what i'd call a site for soar ears !!! i just ordered a cd !!! keep up the good work !!!
SonicAnta: YOU
JokesFunnn
April 16, 2008
Do you know how to save a drowning lawyer?
No? Good!
Tim
April 2, 2008
Fantastic stuff! Thanks for sharing your work.
Blake
January 27, 2008
I was treated to your work this week. Blown away by it all. Thank you.
Thomas Kushin
October 31, 2007
I am still exploring all the nooks and crannies of this site, but everything I have heard and seen so far has been extraordinary. The music is extremely fascinating and wonderful. Thank you!
veclickomg
October 26, 2007
hello
nice site yo
Lemsamawn
October 7, 2007
Excellent!
Simon Wilkinson
September 30, 2007
The Monsoon (D) Construction downloads are very interesting. There is certain an aquatic dynamic to the first and third installments. The second is certainly a gnarly entanglement of growth. A jungle of sound. Keep up the good work. S.W. --- Perth
Ashley J. Williams: aka: Ash Holt
September 25, 2007
one word for you john +++
*** tool~shed ***
BIG GAME HUNTER JOHN ROXTON
September 23, 2007
These sounds plunge me into an astonishing world that time has forgot. A place where giant reptillian behemoths rule the land. Thanks hombre.
FOZWAD
September 10, 2007
~~FOZ-WAD APPROVES~~
JRR Talkin Jive
August 30, 2007
...!BRAVO!...
Tiger Rose (No Relation To Jon)
August 28, 2007
PEOPLE OF TWO-SUNS ARID-ZONE-A(and beyond!) Solar Culture needs you now! If YOU care about keeping art alive on planet earth PLEASE send an email to the officials listed below or send a few $$$.
TOGETHER WE CAN STOP GLOBAL CULTURAL PASTURIZATION !!!!
scratching your head? read on->
++++++++++++++
~~~ AN EMAIL FROM STEVEN EYE DATED 8/26/07~~~
On Sunday August 26, 2007 the Arizona Daily Star came out with an article called,
“Warehouse dangers pose risks to artists and public”
here is what they say about our building,
It was written up by several inspectors for sagging floors that don't have adequate support for the load they bear, and for an exterior wall deteriorated and cracked from long-term water damage that may have reduced its stability. An Army Corps of Engineers inspector called the building "dangerous" in 1999.
For 20 years now I have rented the historic Wheeler and Perry building
at 31 E. Toole ave., we now call it Solar Culture Gallery.
From the very first day I got there, I fell in love with this building,
and have done my best to fix every part that I could. I have never stopped
working on this building making it stronger, and stronger.
I truly believe with all my heart that this building is safe for the public.
Now the Daily Star is accusing me of endangering the public by not telling people about the dangers of coming to Solar Culture Gallery.
I am here now to tell you,
YES it is dangerous to come to Solar Culture.
If you come to our building,
you will get inspired
and you will have to create something.
this is dangerous
when you create,
you empower yourself and others with love and inspiration,
you will be motivated to change the world
this is dangerous.
The government who owns our building,
and the city where our building is located
all say they don't have the money to help our building
they say it is up to us to fix everything.
And we have fixed many many things, but not everything.
Until we can prove to the city that Solar Culture is
up to their standards of what they consider“safe”
we CANNOT have larger shows here
I don't know how long that will take
we will try to move our larger shows to other venues
stay tuned in to our website........
If you love Solar Culture Gallery
this is your time to make your voice heard
tell people what you feel when you come to our building,
and how important it is for you.
Please write a letter and call the mayor and council
and let them know what is in your heart
call hotline – 791-4700
Mayor Bob Walkup - email_mayor@tucsonaz.gov - phone - 791-4201
Jose Ibarra - jose.ibarra@tucsonaz.gov - phone – 791-4040
Carol West - ward2@tucsonaz.gov - phone – 791-4687
Karen Uhlich - ward3@tucsonaz.gov - phone – 791-4711
Shirley Scott - ward4@tucsonaz.gov - phone - 791-3199
Steve Leal - steve.leal@tucsonaz.gov - phone - 791-4231
Nina Trasoff - ward6@tucsonaz.gov phone - 791-4601
we really need your donations now
please go to the bottom of our website
and click on the paypal button to help with our renovations
Solar Culture Gallery, Inc. is a tax exempt organization under sec. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. We are classified as a public charity under sec. 509 (a)(2). Contributions are tax deductible under sec. 170 and Solar Culture Gallery is qualified to receive tax deductible bequests, devises, transfers or gifts under sections 2055, 2106, or 2522 of the Internal Revenue Code.
thanks,
Steven Eye
Glenn Weyant
August 28, 2007
Greetings Raspop,
I guess one could also simply Google Jon Rose etc.
Rose's work is very inspiring and influential.
As I mentioned, perhaps we'll find a way to collaborate someday.
A suite for walls and fences perhaps?
The interesting thing about bowing metal, is there is no "standard."
It's not like you go to the music store and get a stock item off the shelf and tune it to a specific set of notes.
Everything is left up to the artist to interpret: from materials to performance to recording technique.
In the early 1980s while living on Long Island we bowed all kinds of stuff: bridge cables, garbage drums, phone wires, guard rails. It was all part of searching for sound.
I actually "played" the Verazzano Narrows Bridge one time when my van broke down mid-way and I was waiting for a tow.
But earlier than that as a kid I can remember tapping out sounds on the pipes in the basement of my grandparent's apartment building.
I suppose everything is an instrument if you choose to approach it as such.
And there are so many artists performing innovative experimental music simply for the joy of it.
One of the pleasures of the internet is more people are coming out of the shadows with what they do.
Previously without corporate funding or academic backing you were restricted to a very small circle of friends if any audience at all.
There is actually a rancher in TX. who claims his great grandfather kept a violin bow in his saddle while on the trail to "play" the fences on his land at night.
I'm pretty sure he wasn't being "avant garde." Just a guy making sound in the southwestern night.
Imagine if he'd had a MYSPACE page...:^)
Glenn Weyant
August 27, 2007
Greetings Raspop,
Thank you for the kind words and link.
Rose is doing some wonderful work. Perhaps he and I will find a way to collaborate someday.
Imagine a simultaneous event w/multiple musicians around the world playing walls and fences.
That would be something...
Stay tuned,
g.
raspop
August 27, 2007
keep on keepin on
go see
jonroseweb.com
Adam Cooper-Terán
August 24, 2007
Absolutely inspiring~ I would love to document your project in action~ I'm a native Arizonan-freelance-media-artist working with various local artists, some of them primarily focused on the Border...thanks for sharing your work~
Cheers-
a.
Joan
August 23, 2007
Apparently an inversion is present in the lower part of a cap.
MUTLY
August 23, 2007
HEY WHAT BECAME OF STOP THAT PIDGEON????
Muttley you snickering floppy eared hound,
When courage is needed, you're never around!
Those medals you wear on your moth-eaten chest,
Should be there for bungling at which you are best!
So, Stop The Pigeon, Stop The Pigeon,
Stop The Pigeon, Stop The Pigeon,
Stop The Pigeon, Stop The Pigeon
Stop that Pigeon How ?
Nab him - jab him - tab him - grab him,
Stop that pigeon now!
You silly, stop sneaking it's not worth the chance,
For you'll be returned by the seat of your pants!
And Clunk, you invent me a Thingamybob,
That catches that pigeon or I lose my job!
So, Stop The Pigeon, Stop The Pigeon,
Stop The Pigeon, Stop The Pigeon,
Stop The Pigeon, Stop The Pigeon
Stop that Pigeon How ?
Nab him - jab him - tab him - grab him,
Stop that pigeon now!
Marie Laveau
August 16, 2007
Powerful Spirits without the Gris Gris. Had me some good listening tonight.
Kiyo
August 1, 2007
joan the obtuse. these posts of yours burn me up. time to take a quantum leap off a short quark.
Joan
July 31, 2007
Momentum p = h / L and wave velocity W = C**2 / v, where L is the de Broglie wavelength, v is the ordinary velocity of the associated particle and h is Planck's constant (6.6*10**(-27) erg-sec), while C is the speed of light (3*10**10 cm/sec).
Glenn Weyant
July 30, 2007
Stevie-O,
Thanks for the support and kind words.
Plenty of new projects (and a few tracks from the vaults) are on the way so stay tuned.
Joseph Bertolozzi and I have emailed ideas about playing public structures in recent months and I think he is doing some interesting work.(Joe: If you’re reading this I still think you should consider experimenting with a belt sander to “bow” the steel and cables!)
However, what Joe is doing and what I am doing are apples and oranges.
The Anta Project, recorded under the ever suspicious eye of armed government agents is about transforming the divisive symbolism of a wall/the US-Mex. Border and helping encourage dialogue about migration, borders, and human relations beyond nationality, race, gender and so on.
Joe’s project, on the other hand, is embracing the state supported symbolism of this bridge and its relationship to the river it crosses (Whether the bridge is symbolic of humans triumphing over wild nature… that’s not for me to say).
The Anta Project cost about $100 to record and was performed over a 10 hour period utilizing numerous border sound sources to create a one time organic ambient work.
Joe is attempting to use the bridge as an precise instrument, isolating notes/sounds in a conventional manner, and writing a score so the “song” can be reproduced at a cost of over $1 million.
(Perhaps some money from this project could go to a Hudson River environmental group such as www.riverkeeper.org . I imagine $1 million would go a long way to helping with river education/etc.).
And so forth.
But at the heart of what we’re both doing is the notion of playing public structures/ found objects which is as old as humans themselves (Think about it. What did our earliest ancestors create sound with? Rocks, sticks, skins. Found objects all.)
None is “better” than the other.
It’s all a matter of taste and how you listen.
Just as one person’s music is another’s noise.
Personally I look forward to seeing this performed.
Imagine taking it all in from the decks of The Clearwater.
That would really be something.
Stevie-O
July 29, 2007
hola-hola-hola,
most excellent site youve got goinghere.impportant pioneering work with a social conscience. the world really islistening. have you heard of joseph bertolozzi (bertolozi? bartollozzi?)hes your dark-side. he wants a two million dollars toplay a bridge in newyork over the hudson river. he claims to becelebrating the river, but instead,heis celebrating man dominating nature!!!! isnt that weird? in the tuscon weekly you played bridges too. lets here someof that music!!!! i bet it didn'tcost twomillion dollars!!! keep upthe good work :")stevie-o
Joan
July 27, 2007
The clapper could be seen striking the bell. but the sound which it produced could not be heard because there were no particles inside of the jar to transport the disturbance through the vacuum. Sound is a mechanical wave and cannot travel through a vacuum.
Buck
July 24, 2007
Hi Glenn, We met in the mountains of east Tennessee (picking party w redneck hottub) a couple of weeks ago. I just checked out the site a bit and I am interested in going further into it, hopefully over the weekend. I get into some soundscape stuff as well. I hope all is fun and groovy by the wall. Buck
Joan
July 18, 2007
An adjustable hose clamp used with a rubber blanket stops a pinhole leak. If nothing else is at hand, use a C-clamp, a small block of wood and a rubber blanket. In a pinch, try applying epoxy putty around a joint where a clamp won't work. The pipe must be dry for the putty to adhere. Turn off the water supply to the leak and leave the water off until the putty hardens completely on the pipe. If you don't have a clamp or putty, you can still stop a small leak temporarily by plugging it with a pencil point.
Joan
July 17, 2007
July is Fireworks Eye Safety Month, and the American Academy of Ophthalmology urges families to attend public fireworks displays, instead of using fireworks at home. According to the United States Eye Injury Registry, approximately 12,000 Americans are treated in emergency departments annually for firework-related injuries, and approximately 2,000 of those injuries involve the eye. Almost half of those injured are simply bystanders.
Larry Lotus and The Feaster Bunny
July 4, 2007
Beautiful, baby, beautiful.
Red Tailor Head
June 10, 2007
in-stall-ation nat-ion rat-ion-al on-the-way hey-hey-hey
Laura Franqui
May 27, 2007
Hi there. How are you? Last year I heard you on the radio then read about you in the P. New Times. I kept meaning to download this but never did. Then yesterday, my freind says YOU'VE GOT TO HEAR THIS! And it was you again! I still haven't downloaded anything but he did. LOTS OF STUFF!!! He's going to burn me a few CDs and we're going to go for a long night drive. Thank you! Have a great day. L.F.
TREVOR G.
May 21, 2007
Great site. Certainly IPOD worthy. Thanks.
Glenn Weyant
May 6, 2007
The first four-disc box set of the ambient installation: EXTRACTED EARTH: A Sonic Work Without Listeners is now available.
Click ~ NEWS for details.
mBi
May 4, 2007
You hAve a good site. Very much good MusIc. Flourish.
Glenn Weyant
April 26, 2007
--- Perhaps some Extracted Earth will cure me down? Isn't that baby due by now.
Slow train coming but likely in early May. Stay tuned.
Red Tailor Head
April 25, 2007
JAH HA! You edited my pearls into oblivion. Okay I get it. Bogus is untouchable. Slacker! Bob Dobb will hear of this. But perhaps some Extracted Earth will cure me down? Isn't that baby due by now?
Sam Valdez
April 22, 2007
Excellent work. Nothing lasts forever.
carlos brown
April 1, 2007
anything new coming soon? more prepared guitar please!!!!
Necia Hummingbird
March 19, 2007
well done.
email on the way.
Donald The Duck
March 14, 2007
!!!!QUACK!!!!!
Glenn Weyant
March 10, 2007
New NAME THAT WALL 3.0 contest underway.
Every correct answer is a winner. Click NEWS NOW for details.
You gotta be in it to win it...
Gibreel Baal and The Chamcha Trio
February 25, 2007
The girl is big with full red carnival brain. A leaden cherub and lengthy expert. Yes, this scientific boy IS champagne important with ideas listening now. The Velvet Red Bug is calling. Are you?
Lightnin Jimi Jay
February 22, 2007
Better keep playing that border acoustic! Plug--in and go electric? YiYAH!
Lesser Cow
February 13, 2007
either way i love the sounds
Glenn Weyant
February 11, 2007
Thank you L.C. for the perspective. This site is about all things SonicAnta.
The whole Tucson Weekly/J. Boegle thing was a tempest in a tequila bottle and I'd like to see it drift away.
I'm pretty sure what T.T.C.C. is getting at is the publication's decision to start running a racially charged column about Mexican stereotypes the week a shooting in cold blood on the border left three migrants dead and two injured (not to mention all the other deaths known and unknown).
If you ask me, I'd agree with T.T.C.C. :
Not much different than running a column featuring Jewish stereotypes during the height of the holocaust.
Lesser Cow
February 11, 2007
What on earth are you talking about Tom Tom? Who is Jimmy Botox and why should I care? It's all about The Anta to me.
TOM TOM CAN CAN AND THE GREAT CHICKEN HEAD
February 10, 2007
Laughed till I split in two when I read the editor-who-must not be named was all wiggy about a pun using his name (Okay no more Bogus! But how about James Bromo? Or Jimmy Botox? HAH!) That overstuffed son of an earth-rapist runs racist, bigoted, cracker endorsed dreck in his pub. then gets his panties in a knot over a pun about his name?!?!?! Too damn funny. HAR-DEE-HAR-HAR. Glass houses man, glass fuckin houses...
The Other William Faulkner
January 17, 2007
THE SOUND THAT ENVELOPES THE VOID SMUDGED WITH THE PAINTS OF DESIRE. THIS SOUND OF SILENCE FILLS THE VOID AND THE MINDS ARE SUFFUSED WITH TINGLING.
...carry on...
hobo
December 27, 2006
Thanks!This is a great site. Will share it with friends.
santa
December 25, 2006
ho. ho. hon. no lousy border fence is goning to stop my midnight run. but i might drop some coal on a minute man vigilante or two. ho. ho. ho.
HULDI
December 17, 2006
the moment sonicanta was heard
~~~ huldiu
tribal body dies impersonally, capricious dope crashes perfunctorily, undisciplined dream whispers dimly, unhoped degeneration defers irritably, undisciplined language defines bleakly, foul dream overflows dryly, concrete vessel sheds unholily, deliberate degeneration falls bleakly, concrete sheep defines balmily, uniform rider whispers terribly, tribal vowel vexes awfully, ignominious sack crashes angrily, aggressive condescension stoops undesirably, concrete sheep falls awfully, ignominious vowel looks caressingly, throbbing vessel looks thinly, upright light defies finally, vibrant entry sullies immortally, vestigal feces nags perfunctorily, concrete enticement envelops bleakly.
Marie Fenner
December 2, 2006
I read about the Anta Project in the Phoenix New Times. Hearing this music was better than the words could provide. Clear Lights harmonic beauty transforming division and pain is a joy. I've downloaded everything, and anticipate new works. The prepared guitar duets set everything free. Thank you for making all of this available.
Glenn Weyant
November 26, 2006
Looking for SonicAnta information now?
http://www.sonicanta.com/news.html
Updated every seven earth revolutions give or take a lunar eclipse or soul-r flare-up...
Michele K
November 14, 2006
Keep up the good work!!
Kevin Parkinson
October 20, 2006
I love the music; especially the drone. This seems to be an integral part of our physical bodies and of our formless parts. When other sound or things rub against it it seems to awaken parts of us; create sometimes shocking realizations.
Glenn Weyant
October 15, 2006
You're right.
Creating sound solely for listener consumption is a one-way medium.
But that is not the case with The Anta Project.
This sonic work is designed to open dialogue, as your post clearly demonstrates.
"Playing" Holy Cross is a wonderful idea. As would be the border tunnels, burnt out car wrecks in the desert, Minuteman beer coolers/lounge chairs, and so forth.
In time I hope to expand the project and I'll definitely keep your suggestion in mind.
Thank you for your insight.
Stay tuned and listen deep.
One who lives on the border
October 15, 2006
Your post on the NYT forum includes the following:
"For example, when a listener learns that the recording was made by amplifying a wall separating two countries, a line of inquiry is organically presented:
Why was this wall built?
Who is being kept out?
Who is being kept in?
What are the social, moral, political and emotional impacts of this wall on the people living on either side?"
So why do you want to limit the discussion to sound creation? Don't you want your questions answered?... or do you allow only a one-way dialogue with only you being allowed to speak?
Living in the area of the Nogales wall, I can tell you that no one is being "kept in", and few are being "kept out". For you to imply otherwise is pure BS.
How about applying your music to the sound of US hospitals (such as Holy Cross in Nogales) sinking under the weight of providing heathcare to illegal aliens? That ought to make a giant sucking sound.
...Wouldn't be too musical, though, would it?
Glenn Weyant
September 26, 2006
Greetings folks,
So far this month the guest book has had about 2,000 visits which works out to roughly 66.6 hits per day. Beside being the mark of the beast, it appears 66.6 is an indication of popularity. I want to see this page stay up, but I would also like to see comments retain their focus on sound creation, The Anta Project and other related issues. Thanks.
Stay tuned and listen deep,
Glenn
Peace. Phoenix.
September 24, 2006
Peace. Phoenix. I've no idea where Tom Tom is getting his facts from but people in Tucson DO know about what Glenn is doing and his project with the wall. I for one get most of my news from NPR and that's where I first heard about him. I know many, many others do as well. I've also seen his work mentioned on Web sites, including this one. From time to time it even comes up in conversation as in... Did you hear about this musician who...I am surprised the project has not been covered locally but I'm not sure the usually conservative, not so much politically, although that too, but more conservative as in afraid to offend, media in Tucson (the Star, Citizen and Weak Knees as I saw it duly dubbed here) has had a chance to absorb the impacts or the concept. The whole thing pushes boundaries in ways that leave many uncomfortable. Especially for those who expect "music" to be presented in a traditional package: rock, jazz, dub, funk etc. Still it does have some merit worth exploring and hopefully it will be covered eventually, although I worry that could be the death rattle for it. As soon as it is embraced by the mainstream it will be avant garde Spinal Tap which is what I think Tom Tom was getting at. On the subject of border issues, I urge everyone to get a copy of The Arizona Daily Star today (Sunday). They have begun an amazing bit of journalism, by sending out reporters to interview 200 people who live in the US and Mexico demarcation zone from Pacific to Atlantic. It will be a week long series looking at the border wall and efforts to seal off the US from Mexico, and you know what they found? IT WON'T WORK. That's their headline today. Word for word but without the capital letters. I expect they are going to get some well deserved recognition for this series. And this is the coverage the corporate daily is dishing out. Too bad Tucson Weak Knee's editor Jimmy Bogus was too busy being snarky about The Star in his blog and reporting on the weather to give the border wall the coverage the Star is giving it. But again not surprising from a guy who calls Las Vegas home. So Tom Tom don't underestimate the average Tucsonan. We know what's going on long before we're told, otherwise I probably wouldn't be here now would I? Peace. Phoenix.
TOM TOM CAN CAN AND THE GREAT CHICKEN HEAD
September 24, 2006
Okay, now that you wrote a story for Signal To Noise about playing the wall and people from Peoria to Istabul know what you are doing, its only a matter of time before Tucson catches on.
Then you'll become a slave to the grind doing appearances at Jim Click and hitting the bottle hard to cope: "Oh once I was an artist!"
Savor your freedom while it lasts.
Carlos Bancroft
September 19, 2006
Glenn,
Fantastic story in Signal To Noise! First time I heard about what you do was on NPR but I only heard a little bit. Now I know about this site and what you do. Good luck in all your endeavours.
Grendel
September 10, 2006
You music keeps me in my cave at night. No longer is it my desire to terrorize the villagers and gnaw upon their bones. I must send Hrothgar a mix-disc. Perhaps then we can all get along and sip martini's.
james mapson
September 4, 2006
i love it. wwrrt? what would your ronald reagan think? you know, mister gorbachev tear down this wall and all. i bet he would have approved. but then he wanted to nuke russia as well. quite a sticky wicket.
Glenn Weyant
August 20, 2006
A recent check of SPEW reader stats showed nearly 700 people have perused this page so far this month, and half are unique visitor (which mean roughly 350 or less are repeat customers).
A few posts here have been a bit like car wrecks, which I'm guessing has added to the attraction.
Kindly remember that this site is about sonic exploration first and foremost.
At the same time, if you have some sonic ideas, structures that need to be played etc. feel free to offer them up or drop me an email at any time.
Now on with the show... -G.W.
TOM TOM CAN CAN AND THE GREAT CHICKEN HEAD
August 17, 2006
hmmmm.... what is going on round here???? strange doings??? come out to PLUSH this week and I'll be there. and'a be sure to check out your tucson weekly editorial. the editor actually blames his staff for endorsing a candidate... weird time in monsoon-ville...
~~~:::robin hulse:::~~~
August 14, 2006
:::imlistening to all of the downloads on two discs and stole the art from the front page to make covers while listening to rain blown against the windowpains in darkness by the lake:::the perfection of sounds in motion:::this is the end of summer:::soaked in laptop glow:::beautiful to make this available:::
Richard T.
August 10, 2006
Matter comes in a variety of forms. But nothing really matters does it? Fill out a variety of forms if you need to find out. Or ask the Velvet Red Bug. I did but he just shrugged and said: "In a physical or chemical change, matter is neither created nor destroyed but merely rearranged." A glass falls to the floor and shatters into a more disordered state. Life goes on.
What Happened To My Comment????
August 1, 2006
Hey! What happened to my comment?
--- There were a few tech. problems. A few were lost. But please post again and thank you for your support and thoughts.
---- G.W.
Jesse Glass
July 29, 2006
Got yrs in the mail today! Thanks! Am listening, listening listening and will give it a mention at ahadada books. Jess
Zebra Head Strip III
July 28, 2006
Couldn't find the new Red Bug tracks until I rolled down the page. You should move it up. But once I did it was burned and played over and over. An invigorating exorcise for the heardrum.
Glenn Weyant
July 24, 2006
I appreciate the support and comments but I'd like to keep this section of the site from becoming a dumping zone for rants etc.
So kindly keep comments in line with the vision of the site.
Stay de-tuned and listen deep,
Glenn
Ear Heart One
July 24, 2006
let's keep comments about the sounds.
Tom Tom Can Can
July 24, 2006
I've been reading with some interest the comments about The Tucson Weekly's coverage of music on this Web site (which I though was about building unity but apparently has left some visitors using this forum as a bully pulpit instead).
As a Tucson ex-pat serving time in the snare of highways and byways that is LA, let me bring some perspective.
First and foremost The Tucson Weekly is not what it was even ten years ago. But I'm not sure it was what everyone remembers it as having been back then.
When I had a band in Tucson, it was like pulling sharks teeth to get the paper to cover our event. And when it did, the writer was more often than not horribly uninformed about our performances (fire, sound and pointy objects).
The Tucson Weekly despite their constant proclaimations of being "hip" and "alternative" is an amazingly mainstream mishmosh with a hybrid mix of stogy-snarky.
Being pro-gay, pro-porn, pro-profanity but conservative on envrionmental, political, development and immigration issues just don't cut it. It's exactly the same with people who get a tattoo and think they have arrived but fail to notice that 9-out-of-10 people have tats.
Excuse me for the rant, I seem to be digressing, back to the point at hand: Tucson Weekly music coverage. From what I've observed, the writers (and I assume this comes from the top down) only seem to cover music with a capital M. You know: Ozzfest, Bob Dylan, Beck. All those folks whose music you can buy in Wal-Mart. Scant if any attention is paid to Tucson's guys and dolls working late into the midnight hour, playing for a handful of drunks at closing time and hustling a few buck with discs they burned on their computers at home.
Here in LA The Tucson Weekly would be laughed off the streets as a conservative poser in hipster clothes.
You could say The Tucson Weekly suffers from the Gannett syndrome, dulling the edges and staying safe.
(Movie moment quiz: So tell me: Is it safe? Oh yes it's safe. Very very safe.)
The same I am sure would be the case if a publication of The Tucson Weekly's caliber appeared on the streets of Chicago, or Detroit, or even *gasp* New York.
The Tucson music scene is vibrant, and it deserves better than what The Tucson Weekly dishes out.
That said, I still play gigs in Tucson from time to time and have freinds who still do. And sure as a spider likes to suck the guts out of a nice cockroach, I'm delighted when my band gets a mention in the publication.
So love them or hate them unitl some other "alternative" publication The Tucson Weekly is all you've got, so you better suck up and erase this entry as soon as you can.
Live long and prosper,
Tom Tom Can Can
Jesus H. Christ
July 23, 2006
You are my chosen one.
Tina Ray
July 21, 2006
The wall must be heard. Thank you for this site and sound.
The Blog-O-Sphere Observer Is Done
July 20, 2006
From now on you can Google yourself: From--- http://peterwall.blogdns.net/archives/2006/06/charms_to_sooth.html
June 15, 2006
Charms to Soothe the Savage Beast
First, listen to this story from NPR:
Listener Glenn Weyant lets us listen to his performance of music on the wall that divides Mexico from the United States. Weyant put contact microphones on a section of the wall near Nogales, Ariz., then uses a cello bow against metal on the wall.
Then go to his website and listen to some of his other work. Fascinating stuff. (However, like most of the people I recall from my undergraduate music days, his political critical thinking skills could use a little tuning. Why do musicians buy into this idea that if we would all just shut up and make music, the problems of the world would go away?)
At any rate, listening to some of the work of Glenn Weyant got me thinking about something one of my music professors used to say. He frequently bandied his "definition of music," which was that "Music is sound organized by a human mind." It's a nice, broad definition that has the benefit of offending nobody by saying their work isn't music — if a person worked on it, then it's "organized by a human mind," no matter how much anybody else thinks it's just randomness. But something always bugged me about that definition and I was never able to figure out what. Until this afternoon.
There's no such thing as pure "sound organized by a human mind." All sounds have an element of unpredictability and randomness in them. The same note played by the same player at the same instrument twice in a row will never sound exactly the same, even if the instrument is electronic, because all sound, regardless of the perfection of its generation, has to interact with other, changing features of its environment before the brain perceives it. For instance, even if an electronic synthesizer twice sounds a note of the same pitch, duration, timbre, it will reverberate from moving surfaces that have changed position, and even your own ears will probably have moved in some way. Perhaps the pulse of blood through the vessels near your ears will affect the sound.
But that example is only one end of the continuum. At the other end, there are far more random sounds, like that shushing noise that happens when wind blows through trees, or the sound you hear when you walk on a gravelly path. In between, there are sounds with all different levels of human organization. For instance, if you walk down a gravelly path and deliberately make a particular rhythm, is it music? What if an elephant walks down the same path? What if the elephant is walking down the path because you told it to? Is it music if no one is listening? (Those were the kinds of philosophical questions we music majors asked ourselves. Yes, I know it's stupid.)
At any rate, no matter how much control we try to exert in the organization of sound, there will never be a pure "sound organized by a human mind." But I think a better definition is lurking in there, if you just turn things around a bit: Music is sound in which the organizing force of a human mind can be perceived. I.e., if you can hear something and say to yourself, "I can tell that someone did something to cause that sound to have some of its characteristics," then perhaps you can call that music. It's more subjective, or at least makes the listener the subject, rather than the music-maker.
Or not.
But when you're a law student and you're tired and you need to think about other things, this subject will do nicely.
Posted by Peter at June 15, 2006 05:50 PM
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Comments
Seems like maybe just walking down the gravel path might not be considered music, but were you do walk down the gravel path with the purpose of making music, that would be the difference.
Or am I just rephrasing your professor's definition?
Posted by: Adam at June 15, 2006 07:35 PM
Under his definition, if the person doing the walking was intending to make it sound a certain way, then it's music.
Under my definition, if the person listening to the sound recognizes that a person is controlling one or more of its characteristics, then it's music.
It's possible for a person under my definition to perceive music where none was intended, and it's possible for a person under his definition to intend music where none is perceived.
Mostly, it's just an intellectual exercise — an attempt to formulate an objective definition of music. In reality, I think that music will always be subjective — if you call it music, then it is.
Posted by: Peter at June 15, 2006 07:45 PM
Right, I think I'm more with you on that one.
The Blog-O-Sphere Observer Returns Again and Again
July 20, 2006
Ah ya, its a-old von but thought it was a note. Still vatching you Mister Glen.
Full site: http://www.hlswatch.com
Homeland Security Watch
News and analysis of critical issues in homeland security
June 14, 2006
The surreal sounds of border security Filed under: Border Security, Humor — by Christian Beckner on June 14, 2006
From NPR:
Listener Glenn Weyant lets us listen to his performance of music on the wall that divides Mexico from the United States. Weyant put contact microphones on a section of the wall near Nogales, Ariz., then uses a cello bow against metal on the wall.
Definitely listen to the full clip.
The Other Jackie O
July 20, 2006
when will the red velvet bugs arrive? not too soon. never too soon. you better be careful playing them with that cello bow.
Ssshhhhhh!!!!!!
July 18, 2006
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Julie Dole
July 18, 2006
Thank you for sharing your music and ideas. I'll never look walls the same way again. Its very liberating.
Music Vs. Cartoons
July 17, 2006
Glenn, I read in the NOW section of your site (June 30)that The Tucson Weekly editor does not think playing the wall is a story worth covering because he has "concerns about how this will play out as a text-based article."
Glenn, quit your friggin whining boy!
This is the same paper that barely covers KXCI! This is the paper that thinks its "liberal" because the editor saw Bill Clinton speak some eight years after he's out of office (Next thing you know they're going to state that they are "liberal" because they supported Lincoln's position to free the slaves).
Hell this is the same paper that runs Red Meat, Life in Hell, The City and K-Rat like tiny postage stamps but then some high school newspaper shit called Tom The Dancing Bug (which is the editor's friend by the way).
So Glenn, here's what you need to do. Move on. Let go. Drink a beer. You're in Tucson where everything worth knowing is unknown.
Keep up the good work and get us some more downloads.
Who knows, maybe you can get a gig on the Seychelles Islands. I see that people there are tuning in. :^)
July 13, 2006
very nice work w/ padma soundsystem at yoga oasis! am overjoyed we randomly picked 12 july to stop in...
Ground Control
July 11, 2006
An ideal soundtrack for floating in a tin can, far above the world, when planet earth is blue and there's nothing you can do.
The Blog-O-Sphere Observer Returns Again
July 9, 2006
Here's another one.
Glenn, you should be paying me for this.
From: http://ilexcassine.livejournal.com/
Sounds of the Wall
So, remember that entry where I suggested the stupid boarder fence our government is wasting tax payers dollars on be artful and esthetically pleasing? Well, its not visual art, but somebody (Glenn Weyant) has at least made some cool music out of the fence (NPR report). Here is the home page for the project (SonicAnta). I want to get this album of his, it sounds (by the descriptions) like it would be perfect noise for a Sunday afternoon.
What This Commuter Heard
July 4, 2006
Glenn, Thank you for this site. I listen to Clear Light on my IPOD every morning while riding the train to work. Please put up more downloads as they are available.
Tim Goodheart
July 2, 2006
not surprising your local alternative paper decliend to cover the story. today alternative means four letter words and sex ads but little in the way of serious cutting-edge journalism. if you're really alternaitve in a small town like tucson your going blow your advertising wad and then where will you be.
post more border sounds soon!
The Blog-O-Sphere Observer Returns
June 21, 2006
One more. This time from Sarah Beth Jones. I think you should send her a disc. This person gets it.
This ya gotta hear
I caught a short segment on NPR (yes, I'm one of those people) yesterday of this guy, Glenn Weyant, who is a self proclaimed sound sculptor - mind you, not a musician. His new medium involves using a contact microphone to amplify the sounds made by bowing objects. In the segment, he PLAYS the wall in Arizona which separates Mexico and the US. You've got to hear this.
What I love about this, other than that he thought to play a wall, the results of which are a soul-chilling sound, is that at the end of the segment, he talks about wanting Mexicans and Americans to join on either side of the wall to play it, thereby changing the very definition of the wall - by playing it, it ceases to be a boarder and instead becomes a musical instrument.
Now, I'm cynical enough to recognize highfalutin idealistic artist speak when I hear it but the fact remains that power is gained, and lost, through definition. Karl Rove is a master of manipulating definitions. He is a big part of why "liberal" has become a dirty word (I don't even say it in the bedroom) and that redefining is a big part of why we're stuck in the midst of a second term of shameful presidency.
The Blog-O-Sphere Observer
June 21, 2006
Thought you'd be interested in this one from someone called THE INFORMANT (Creepy Eh?)in Eugene, Oregon. Kind of like a review.
He seems to appreciate the music but at the same time....
On All Things Considered, listeners can submit sound recordings that they make of "cool," "interesting" (their words, not mine) or "retarded" (my word, not theirs) things. On Wednesday's show, listener Glenn Weyant from Tucson submitted a sound recording that he thought would add to the current immigration debate. Glenn took a contact microphone and a cello bow down to the border (the US-Mexico border, not Taco Bell) to "play" the fence separating the US and Mexico. Mr. Weyant wants to get a bunch of Americans and a bunch of Mexicans to meet on either side of the fence on a certain day (surprisingly, he hasn't really planned this out completely) and use the fence as a musical instrument. I don't know what his plan is after that. Probably just smoke a joint. I don't know Glenn very well but I am sure that almost all of his ideas start and end with smoking a joint. Here is the sound clip. You should probably download it because you'll want to put this on the ipod. I promise that the 196 seconds you spend listening to Glenn's art will be the best 196 seconds of your life. Oh yeah, Glenn says he is a professional sound sculptor. I think that is what David St. Hubbins meant when he said if he couldn't be a rock star he would be a full-time dreamer.
Coffeepotter
June 14, 2006
Astounding. Takes me back to my youthful joys of amplifying rubber bands stretched across the dresser drawer handles. You'll prob'ly be hearing from Eno soon. Thanks,Kev
God
June 14, 2006
You have rocked my world.
coolness
June 14, 2006
i really like the symbology of the project and i think it is really awesome. plus the site is cool.
nephesh
June 13, 2006
a friend of mine brought your segment on NPR to my attention a few minutes ago, and i must say your ideas are brilliant, and your productions are captivating. have you still got copies of the anta project?
Steve Hahn
June 12, 2006
Hey Glenn, I love the way your work has evolved from the Kestrel to sonic-environment projects. There's this abandoned bridge up in Cameron, AZ with great sounding cables I've been thinking about...
Sherry Rollins
June 12, 2006
Glenn, This is very impressive. It is sort of a Koyanisqaatsi of sound and I really like it. Jim and I had traveld around New Mexico going to various Indian ruins one HOT summer and "listened" to the past. This is such a trip into unknown possibilities. Keep up the good work.
Chris Weyant Sound Gobbler
May 24, 2006
Hey Glenn! Great job with the site! Get the audio up -- I'm dying to hear what you recorded!!! Very cool indeed...