Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Lady Gaga and why she amuses me

I can't explain it. I don't usually like mainstream pop female vocals- usually the songs are bad (there's only so much American Idol shit I can take) and Miley Cyrus type videos and it's just bad. But sometimes, what's proportedly bad is really really effing weird. Like Lady Gaga. It's like Of Montreal on crack, in terms of the music videos. And I love it. The tunes are like a cross between Cher, Madonna, and Gwen Stefani (all Italian NY woman who died their hair, just like Lady Gaga.) And the tunes aren't great. But the videos and the weird fashion and sci-fi details and Blade Runner stuff is freaking amazing!

Take Bad Romance, for example. What the hell??? So many weird and fabulous things- the opening with the weird glasses, the creepy tombs with plastic sheeted bodies (remind me of Pan's Labyrinth and that character with the eyeballs) So many amazingly odd effects: the vertebrae popping out of her back, the crazy 12-inch heels, the bearskin dress...it's just ridiculous all over the place. It's everything weird that popular music should be...only stranger and less predictable. If only her songs didn't remind me of Cher's "Do you Believe in Life after love." It's that autotune stuff that kills it everytime, and that gemstone ensemble. Overall, it's amazing.
I also really enjoy Paparazzi, because of the ridiculous yellow outfit she wears in the end with the Mickey Mouse shit. It's so eighties and I just want it, but I'd never wear it.

I mean, gosh, I wouldn't wear any of this shit to school...ruffles aren't really practical to play viola in, but sheesh! I always wondered who paid attention to high fashion, and now I know! It's great to see clothing as art, rather than as brand names and prices and "in" looks. Everything she wears is so out there it's not even wearable. So anyway, I'm intrigued. And I think she's spoken for gay rights, so ha! She knows her fan base well.

Listening to: the new ANIMAL COLLECTIVE EP

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Crazy Bitch in the Kitch: Part One

I thought I'd share some of my FAVORITE recipes and recipe alterations/tidbits for your seasonal days of baking, if you're into that. Let's start simple:

The Ultimate Oat Flour Cookies (technically, these are wheat-free, but depending on the celiac needs of your friends, there may be traces of wheat in the flour, and you should use another flour)---adapted from the postpunk kitchen www.theppk.com

1 3/4 Cup Oat Flour (organic is yummiest)
1/2 tsp baking soda (try to avoid arm and hammer- they test on animals)
1/4 tsp salt (sea salt!)
1/4 cup brown sugar (or raw turbinado sugar)
1/2 cup sugar (evaporated cane juice sugar, or I just combine the sugars to make 3/4 cup of what's on hand)
1/3 cup canola oil or melted margarine
1/4 cup soy milk
1 TBSP flax meal
1 tsp vanilla (alcohol free)
3/4 chocolate chips (milkfat/butterfat free)

So this is the easiest recipe ever- I can make it in like 6 minutes. Sometimes I race against my oven to see if I can beat it's preheating cycle. But anyways, mix the flax seed and soy milk together in a cup- this will be your "egg". Mix all the dry ingredients in one bowl, all the wet ingredients in another bowl, then combine them. Add yourself yo' chocolate chips, and you're in business. First of all, this is one of the yummiest batters ever, and it's vegan and there's no eggs. Bake them at 350 for 11-12 minutes for good gooey-ness, or for longer for softish.
Top secret optional alterations:
-substitute canola oil for a tasty peanut or walnut oil for a fab nutty flavor
-add spices of your choosing, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, cardamom, etc, to make a really zesty cookie
-add dried cranberries and/or nuts to make it look more wholesome.

Julia's favorite applesauce cardomom Bundt cake: this is adapted from a food and wine mag submission from a few years ago that my dad passed on to me. I just veganized it, since I never have eggs on hand.
  1. 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting: Use non bleached flour!!!!
  2. 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar: see above
  3. 2 teaspoons baking soda
  4. 2 tsp cinnamon
  5. 2 tsp ground cardamom : You can always do more with the spices- you can never have too much!
  6. 1 teaspoon salt
  7. 1 teaspoon ground cloves
  8. 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  9. 2 cups unsweetened applesauce: Make sure there's no high fructose corn syrup in your Mott's!!!!
  10. 2 TBSP flax seed meal
  11. 4 TBSP water or soy milk
  12. 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  13. One 12-ounce bag semisweet-chocolate chips
  14. Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

This is a pretty self explanatory recipe as well- mix the flax seed and water/milk into a paste as you did before. Mix all the dry ingredients and all the wet ingredients separately, then add them and stir in choco chips. Pour into a 12 cup Bundt pan, which has been buttered/sprayed/floured. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hr, 15minutes then let cool for 20. Do the toothpick trick for the cake if you're unsure of doneness. If you're not into vegan stuff, just check out the original recipe and add your eggs in as needed.


Lastly, here's a seasonal link for your christmas tune enjoyment.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Hmm!

On Sunday, I had the good fortunate of winning (yes, me!) a competition (that involved viola!). This was indeed a rare occasion, since:
1) I learned the piece in 2 weeks.
2) I had been feeling quite poorly about my performance, intonation, and abilities as a musician for the week leading up to said competition, mostly due to Melissa Matson and the dreaded RPO audition.
But, I triumphed over my demons of doubt, which is a big deal, and now I get to play Harold In Italy in February, possibly on a much nicer viola than my own. Sigh. I also just discovered that I don't have to rerecord my NWS video, and that my computer was just being stupid and misreading the DVDs! That thrills me, since I have been having a hard time focusing.
But back to me and my competition. The best part is that there had been a lot of animosity from other competitors about the competition, especially from the other studio, and a lot of ego's were competing for the limelight. I laid low all last week, since I still felt badly about how I was playing, and in the end, I only wanted to do my best and not humiliate myself. Erin and Norbrian were so excited when I finished, they thought it was an amazing performance. I just thought I did ok. :) I also made sure to go to meditation 4-6 (good call!) and tried to just focus on confidence and success. And it worked- I just happened to win. But winning was never the goal-the competition just made me work hard and try to outplay myself.

So suck that, haters.

listening to: mgmt, various yo gabba gabba cameo videos.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

being

Things have been recovering quite nicely- I had a really dramatic November 22nd, what with the RPO sub audition, and the continually perplexing behavior of our excerpt coach towards me. But my ego has resurfaced, as least with more confidence. Partially because I talked to Carol about it, partially because she wouldn't let me play meekly in my lesson, partly because I realized that I don't do music because I want to please other people. I do music for myself and for the music itself- the language of the dead and the living, which can only be translated by a small group of people. If nothing else, I have encountered repeated rejection here at Eastman: rejection by adjudicators, peers, and my body. But, I have also encountered sincere support from Carol, form Erin, from MJ: people who believe that I'm both a musician and a great person, and that I'm worthy. When the world is hailing hate, they're a fuzzy blanket that I can tie around my shoulders like a child superhero. Their kind words give me the ability to regenerate my own confidence, even if it takes days or even weeks. And the suffering? Well, it sucks, but better to do it now, when performances will neither make nor break my career. I wouldn't have it any other way.

listening to: department of eagles, grizzly bear