Hotel Acceptable And Gently Tired, Boulvard Haussman, Paris.
We are arrived.
Boulevard CafÈ, Boulevard Haussman.
Ah, Paris. The Fripp kids have been visiting here since 1956, and we visited when I was 11, 13 & 15. Crimson have been coming to Paris, in different ways, since 1970. The Horse and I came here for a romantic three days in 2001. And I am able to order coffee in the native tongue or, as we parle ici, la langue. The entire Team Crimson, band & crew, flew here from Madrid and were collected by a white bus. The driver was unhelpful in a particularly Gallic fashion: he arrived at the wrong level, then parked where we couldn't put our luggage onboard.
Backtracking --
Sunday 6th. July: the performance space in Madrid was an open courtyard at the centre of (I believe) a museum. Very very hot. Soundscapes began at 21.32, preceded by several flashes. Crimson went onstage at 22.00, following an announcement on photography. Ade also made a no-photos announcement following Level Five & before ProzaKc. Ade's announcement was followed immediately by a flash, just to let us know.
Then, no flashes until the last bar of Red, although there was an infra-red cameraman during the show. Following Red, I left the stage to the other Crims for the photocall.
The sound was strong. A comment from one of the promotion team: he was surprised at how powerful KC is/was. He had seen Crim the night before, and was impressed with the music. Tonight, he sensed the power. This is a power that the band can deliver, given certain circumstances. The planning & arranging of Crimson tours is set up, wherever possible, to prevent this power moving from potential to actual. This is not a deliberate aim, merely an inevitable outcome of a whole range of factors. That Crimson can deliver, where conditions are propitious, is wonderful. And frustrating. It sets a standard that, when not met, breaks my heart.
Which brings me back to an ongoing personal topic: performance satisfaction. The presence of photographers waiting to pounce was palpable. It is a constant, ongoing threat that confirmed the decision that followed Valencia: this is not the way I can live my performance life: playing with the constant threat/presence of violation. As I was afraid it would be from the beginning, when the first plans for this Eurotour being presented too late to reject, this is The King Crimson Farewell Tour Of Europe (2003).
The history of the band should teach me never to say never again, that nothing is final. So, instead, this: I cannot foresee any conditions under which I can be part of a King Crimson that tours Europe in the future. Ade loves touring Italy, so convince Italian Crimson fans not to take photographs. Poland is remarkably supportive of Crimson, so find an appropriate venue. And so on. And so on.
In sum: Madrid was another Crimson show where I might as well accept, I can't go back until the performance practice changes radically.
23.43 New strings, practising.
"A beginning is invisible."
