So this random 25 things post is going around Facebook and I thought I’d give it a whurl….
1. my favorite movie is Lost in Translation 2. I love sushi and my favorite restaurant in the whole world (yes!) is Sushi Town in Burnaby 3. I like being creative and creating! 4. I make my living as a software developer 5. I enjoy working at SAP BusinessObjects… smart, motivated people, interesting projects, career growth 6. I don’t play basketball but kind of wish I did, cause of my height 7. I enjoy running (mainly along the seawall), and will go in a few races this year 8. I am passionate about music and playing piano. 9. I get inspired to write music about certain people or events in my life. 10. I hope to get my new jazz CD duplicated next month, of my piano trio. 11. I don’t consider myself a food or music snob, more like an enthusiast. 12. I also enjoy food photography and am going to have a couple photos published in enRoute magazine 13. I was at SFU for 6 years. Good times! 14. I think the real world can be scary sometimes. Especially mortgages! 15. I am currently seeing someone and am in love. 16. I get really excited about travelling! 17. I don’t have cable tv at home 18. In grade 10 English class I read aloud the part of Romeo in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliette. I really like reading aloud and sometimes wish I could be on the radio!! Maybe I’ll start a podcast. 19. I recently got a video camera and have been making food and music videos. It’s fun but I have a lot to learn about video. 20. I am kind of allergic to li-chee nuts. 21. I love Vancouver and all the awesome people I know here!! 22. I am generally a pretty happy person. 23. I probably spend too much time on the computer, but it’s a window into the world for me. 24. I like hiking and I really want to go on some more hikes around the Lower mainland this year. 25. I am looking forward to the future!
With a swing comparable to an early down tempo Marc de Clive Lowe joint, Colin Pombo’s “Yoga Poses” leads you through an open minded meditation session of well colored chord patterns swirling around thoughtfully poised rhythmic snaps.
Reminiscent of the past’s Curtis Mayfield or today’s Jeremy Ellis, ‘Yoga Poses’ sets the mood with a soul inspired falsetto that softens perceptions with relaxed intentions, Supported by a rich sturdy bass like that of a Pariss Clemons slow jam, and layers that seem to be transported here from a classic 45, this track is sure to warm any room into a head noddin’ swing as the mind and hips are gently pressed forward in the same motion.
I downloaded Colin’s track from the site (click here) and am enjoying it… Colin has put a grooving bass line and warm electro-keyboard chords together with some soulful vocals and plenty of textures and layers to reward repeated listening.
I paid for the track using Paypal, and it was through a British company (Kind Selekta) so it came out to 1.64 GBP (British pounds), which worked out to $3.28 CAD after fees and exchange rates. I was a bit hesitant at first, being able to buy whole mainstream albums through Puretracks.com for around $10 CAD, but I’m glad I made the exception and supported an independent artist.
Both Kind Selekta and Puretracks are now selling non-DRM MP3′s, meaning I can copy the MP3′s to listen on my cell phone, in the car CD player, on my work computer, and in my living room! I think this is a welcome trend in the music business: companies are realizing that people don’t want to pay for music with restrictions on their freedom to play it on various devices.
A few weeks ago I was wandering the streets of San Francisco’s Chinatown late at night – this ambient/atmospheric piece captures some of the mystery of that evening. It is also inspired by the soundtrack of Lost in Translation, the song called “Alone in Kyoto” by Air. I used piano and synth for this track.
Please click below to listen and let me know what you think!
In March, Mark Greg and I spent three days doing a recording session in our home studio. I’m quite happy with the results. For your listening pleasure here is a sneak preview: an original composition called “Delicate”. Please let me know what you think! (Thanks to Alan for doing a great job of the mixing.)
Jazz straddles a dangerous line these days, teetering on the edge of resembling hotel lounge music or a regurgitation of the past. In an art form stressing the improvisation of the individual, there seems to be a general rubric for expressing that individuality. Artists rely on the structures and forms of the “greats” before them, adhering to a confined code of what “jazz” should sound like. [...] Concerning the trap that jazz musicians fall into when they improvise according to a predetermined structure, [pianist Brad] Mehldau suggests, “The listener is treated like a tourist, while curator-musicians guide them through specific corridors of jazz history.”
I’d somewhat jokingly argue that there is nothing wrong with playing beautiful, relaxing, and stimulating music in hotel lounges. Jazz, with all its history and sophistication, provides a rich framework for personal creativity and expression. It is a mature language that supplies a context and baseline for understanding and communicating musical ideas. I don’t think calling something “jazz” limits the possibilities of what can be musically expressed.
To me there is something seductive about a style of music that can instantly transform an ordinary place into a luxurious haven for the mind and soul. People who are privileged enough to enjoy traveling and who can afford to spend time in classy hotel lounges deserve to listen to jazz music. Would you rather that they listen to Indie Rock? (Maybe they should try it… in some funky boutique hotels! I enjoy some indie rock too…)
One of my favorite imagined settings of all time is the Park Hyatt Tokyo rooftop lounge which was featured in the movie Lost in Translation. I hope to visit there, or maybe even get a gig there someday.
Last Tuesday I played a gig on piano with Mark White (bass) and Colin Defreitas (drums) at Cactus Club in West Vancouver. (We are also playing there again this coming Tuesday March 11th at 8:30pm).
It was just about past my bedtime so I wrote a little pop song before falling asleep. One of my goals as a composer is to create beautiful music. If I am able to add a little bit more beauty to someone’s day when they listen to one of my songs, I feel I have succeeded. Anyways, please have a listen to my new song and let me know what you think!
Unless you play to concert standard, which I don’t, the piano is a lonely instrument. Jazz offers more of a chance to play with other people.
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But here’s the thing. For a couple of bars, at the end, I was in there, I was really doing it. Or who knows, maybe I wasn’t, but I felt I was and it was incredible. And even though I should have slunk home that night covered in shame I actually felt a kind of heady exhilaration.
I wrote a new composition tonight. It’s really slow and quite peaceful, but has quite a bit of sadness. I guess I was inspired by reading the first part of the graphic novel “The Dream Hunters” (the Sandman series) written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano. I’ve made a little recording of my song on the piano:
