11.07
Hotel OK, Rome.
Morning View I…
II…
The Noise Pollution Unit at the morning’s feeding trough was set to Witless Rock-A-Pop! Destroy! Destroy! No-one was to blame for this; no-one was responsible for this: not for the NPU, the volume, what it played. The questions that arise, unbidden, when I find myself assaulted by Sonic Aberration Of The NPU Kind (in contexts conventionally claiming to serve my personal interest) are these:
who chose to switch this on?
what function does this serve?
who chose the music?
who is listening?
The plastic flowers on my table were strong, and didn’t wilt under the ongoing attack.
Good coffee with hot milk & a reflective time protected (to a great extent) by Noise Cancellators.
22.13 Lobby call at 11.30 with Roberto. To the rehearsal room, the Roman
day registering 41C. Brief rehearsals with The League of Crafty Guitarists (director Hernan Nunez) before a light lunch, then back to the main part of our day’s work.
This began with a statement of aim from the participants. My own declared aim: to see to what extent live performance is part of my (future) life as a professional musician. Then more rehearsals, a run through of an outline set; a break, and a second run through at around 90 minutes.
The LCG playing with Soundscapes is a new development. This requires some focus from the Soundscaper, plus firing-up his brain & hands to play several pieces with the League. My guitar playing & musical thinking is in a different place, so a rapid recalibration of the playing–person is underway.
Back at the hotel, we continue to be unable to get online, despite the superb wifi signal. If getting online defeats even John, it can’t be easy.
Very hungry. Takeaway salad from around the corner. Exhaustivo. Dribble dribble.
"Listening changes what we are listening to."
