Brian Eno is in Sydney curating Luminous. A festival of music, light, ideas and performance. Having decided to stay home for the winter, instead of a Europe adventure, I have treated myself to a number of events for the festival.
Jon Hassel and Maarifa Street was the first. Totally sublime………..
Here is the moon being dwarfed by Eno’s ever changing projections on The Opera House.

Here is a link to the web cam of the Opera House http://luminous.sydneyoperahouse.com/sails.aspx

Eno’s ’77 million paintings’ an installation with sound and slowly evolving images is gorgeous and one could happily inhabit it for days and come out the other end significantly closer to resolve.

Last night was a “conversation” between Brian Eno and Jon Hassell. Which was funny, intelligent, inspiring, affirming and hmmmmmmmmmm slightly disturbing in terms of the usual questionable white male gender and indigenous politics still being present ….even in these the most admired of my creative thinkers. Over all though wonderful to be present for it.

This was their starting point.

“We both come from an artistic frame of mind which assumes that art is in some sense practiced philosophy, that the decisions an artist makes aren’t separate from the world view that he holds and that art can be seen as a ‘working out’ of social/philosophical/cultural ideas. ” Eno 2009, Sydney Opera House

There is much I could say on this as it really is a very lived reality for me which is both wonderful and fraught with difficulty, as so many of these ‘creative’ decisions seem to be at odds with prudence. Prudence a word which i have been exploring the meaning of on a daily basis of late. I digress, I digress, I digress…. I could go on….. but i won’t for now ……….heading off to Canberra to engage in 2 creative collaborations with 2 old friends……more on that later… I am blessed!

Definition from Wikipedia
Prudence is the exercise of sound judgment in practical affairs. It is classically considered to be a virtue. Virtue is the ability to judge between virtuous and vicious actions, not only in a general sense, but with regard to appropriate actions at a given time and place. Although prudence itself does not perform any actions, and is concerned solely with knowledge, all virtues had to be regulated by it. Distinguishing when acts are courageous, as opposed to reckless or cowardly, for instance, is an act of prudence, and for this reason it is classified as a cardinal (pivotal) virtue.

In modern English, however, the word has become increasingly synonymous with cautiousness. In this sense, prudence names a reluctance to take risks, which remains a virtue with respect to unnecessary risks, but when unreasonably extended (i.e. over-cautiousness), can become the vice of cowardice.

i received a lovely parcel in the mail this week from Greek Australian musician currently living in France, Jim Yamouridis. His new album Travelling Blind is brilliant. It came with a lovely card saying good things about my music. And yes so easy to feel appreciated when one is appreciated by one one appreciates : )

That’s funny……. One of my photo’s from the machine translations tour in 2001 which i posted on Flikr has been chosen to be used in an online travel guide to Chicago. The web is a weird thing……….

see the rest of the photos here in my Flikr site
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mahriautumn/

and here is a link to the guide here

Oscillations with Suraya Hilal, Sarah Hamilton and I at Casula Powerhouse went well. It was a good audience and we further developed existing pieces as well as discovered a new piano piece for Suraya Hilal and I.

Her brief was ” something modern…. abstract…. like Kandinsky… ” Which has got to be one of the most wonderful briefs I have ever had. We improvised it the first day of rehearsals dancer and musician working together, delving into the unknown ….beat by step by move by melodic structure. We then spent the rest of the rehearsal period trying to recapture it and create a loose structure which could guide us through our improvisations : Create a syntax and variety of dynamic shifts.

It was kinda scary but in the end the most fun of the program. We also did a totally improvised frame drum piece. The GREAT news is I have now been invited to drum for the workshops in Dusseldorf, Germany in July. I AM GOING! I feel i can not possibly say no. Exciting!! My drum mentor Egyptian drum master Ibrahim el Minyawi will be there as well as dancers from all over Europe. Fantastic!

I recently wrote a song about the beauty and compelling nature of musical improvisation and creative collaboration. Inspired in part by late night jams at the Illawarra Folk Festival and generally by the often confusing nature of love, music, creativity, passion, eternity, spirit, matter, energy, sexuality………. MUSIC.

Here are some of the lyrics

devour me, i’ll devour you
together we will cease
through the beats between the beats and the notes between the notes
2 as 1, 1 as 1, all as all, all as all
from nothing to nothing
what is it we fear
eternity is split in half when we’re apart

if its love that loves through me
then why is it looking through your eyes
through your mind
through the dance of your fingers
through you

Last month met a wonderful musician/flute player/performer/dancer/choreographer Markus Kuchenbuch. A chance meeting at a friends house alerted us to the fact that we have similar creative interests : Improvisation combining rhythm, drums, singing, movement, dance and melodic instruments : Improvisation which draws on everything and nothing we have ever heard or imagined: Improvisation which frees the mind from the inanity and insanity of day to day existence and places the musician and the willing listener within eternity – where somehow the only reality is the relationship between melodic phrases and rhythmic beats – total absorption in communication through sound patterns. He lives in Berlin and so 2 weeks after we met he returned to the winter of his Berlin. Fortunately before he left we managed a recording session where we captured some of the potential of our collaboration. He has invited me to Berlin for some recording and performing which, funds permitting, will happen sometime over the next 12 months. Here is a snippet from our recordings : mmweb

Photo : Sound checking at Mt Kembla with little girls hanging close. Love that look in their eyes. The one that says ” hmmmmmm women don’t play drums like that on TV??? ”

It was a warm sublime afternoon. The orange sun traversed the forest wrapped mountains and settled on our smiling faces as it gently dawned on us that perhaps we were indeed a community. A group of people with shared concerns, inspired by the creative juices that swim amongst us, jointly developing regular means of spending time together and collectively striving for a more sane, sustainable and meaningful existence. Of course later that week it was discovered that we hadn’t drunk enough alcohol to make the pub happy with us. Ahhhhh well. Time to organise some gigs in local halls.

I am really excited that legendary dancer/choreographer Suraya Hilal will be performing for the first time in Australia on Friday MAY 8th. The program will also feature work by dancer/choreographer Sarah Hamilton and live improvisations for Piano, Accordian and Drum from me.
See here for background on Sarah’s and I work.

Training in Hilal Dance has been absolutely invaluable to me. I believe the dance form holds important value to contemporary performance art, life, health and the continuance of a meaningful, rich and beautiful human culture. Suraya Hilal’s work has had an enormous influence on the development of Middle Eastern dance in Europe and Australia. This is a unique opportunity to see her perform in Australia. I was first introduced to Suraya’s work through Canberra based dancer Helen Way who i learnt dance from and then went on to work with as a drummer. In 1999 I attended a drum workshop with Ibrahim el Minyawi, master Egyptian drummer who has worked with Suraya Hilal for over 15 years. The improvisational language between dancer and drummer and the equality of the relationship totally captivated me. Not to mention the intricacy of the rhythmic language which is incredibly melodic, fluid and expressive in the hands of Ibrahim. I managed to get funding through the Ian Potter Foundation to travel to London and study with Ibrahim over a 4 week period in 2001. An incredible experience which has totally informed my playing of all musical instruments.

Since then I have been training with Sarah Hamilton a professional member of the Suraya Hilal Dance Company and developing work together as dancer and musician. Performing with Suraya Hilal, a job usually done by my mentor, is an incredible honor for me and the result of ten years of continual training, teaching and performing. I am also really excited to share the work that Sarah Hamilton and I have been developing as it draws on the essence of these traditions but is also true to our complex cultural and creative identities. I believe it is valuable work and hope that people will enjoy and be inspired by the outcomes!

Suraya Hilal has also been conducting yearly workshops in Australia and this years workshop will begin the day after the Sydney performance. I highly recommend her workshops, she is a great inspiration and she has much to share with dancers of all levels of experience.
For more information on the workshop contact Sarah Hamilton www.hilaldanceaustralia.com.au Sydney 9-13 May, 2 days, 3 days or 5 days, Newcomers are welcome to enquire about a 1 day try-out, Discount prices apply if you have booked for the performance

CONTACT CASULA POWERHOUSE FOR BOOKINGS of the SHOW OSCILLATIONS
BOOK FOR TEN AND GET TICKETS FOR $23 each

I recently spent 3 days in Melbourne catching up with wonderful old friends from 3 separate phases and cities of my life. Rejuvenating as always. An absolute treat to spend hours in my favorite book shop “The Basilisk” and as often happens I bought so many books I was forced to buy a new bag to lug them home in. One of the scores of the day was Rudolf Steiner’s “Christianity as Mystical Fact and the mysteries of antiquity”
He quotes from plutarch: ” .. not only is the death of fire the birth of air, and the death of air the birth of water, but the same process of change may be seen still more plainly in man. …. What existed yesterday dies today: what is here today will die tomorrow. No person endures or is a unity: we become many persons, even as matter flows around one image, one common form. For if we were always the same how could we take pleasure in things which formerly did not please us, how could we love and hate, admire and blame opposite things, how could we speak differently and give ourselves up to different passions, unless we were endowed with a different shape and appearance, and with different intentions? For no one can come into a different state without change, and one who is changed is no longer the same: but if he is not the same, he no longer exists and is changed from what he was, becoming something else. Because we have no knowledge of true being, sense-perception has led us astray into taking appearance for reality”

I also scored 5 volumes of teachings from Swami Satyananda Saraswati. After years of practicing yoga and meditation on and off on my own, I have recently returned to regular yoga classes. I find it invaluable in maintaining focus in my life. I am prone to getting way to excited about too many things at the same time. Being pulled in every direction at the same time tends to create a stand still. i really appreciate the groundedness of the Satyananda approach and the fact that they introduce people to the breadth of yoga from the beginning. The physical exercises, the breathing, the relaxation. the chanting and the meditation. I also really respect the fact that they tend to do great work in the community, in prisons, schools, retirement homes etc…. There is also no need for color coordinated out fits or the perfect body. There is a healthy anti authoritarianism amongst the people who practice it and an interesting relationship between Australia and the Indian Ashram. There has been a strong relationship between the two ashrams here and in India since the seventies.

I was first introduced to the relaxation and creative imagination practices at the age of eleven as part of my youth theatre workshops. It has always stayed with me. And helped me through the more challenging times of my life.

Back to Melbourne: Here is some footage of the installation by Ruth Allen. We are now looking at making some glass instruments which I am very excited about. Its wonderful to work with long term collaborators. After recently coming out the end of yet another failed ” relationship” my creative relationships seem of even more value as continuity and depth of relatedness mean even more at these times. My creative relationships have often seemed more compelling to me than any and often perhaps the cause of strife in my “love” relationships. Enough for now………
[QUICKTIME https://mariantheloucataris.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/orbe2.mp4 146 120]
This is a clip off my phone. The installation is in a window box and can be seen by the car focussed culture who drive past. The sound was an accidental throw together of the sounds: from the street including some very well timed truck noises, the sounds that were actually being pumped onto the street of mine, plus an overlay of some of the sounds i did for the installation (bowed piano) and a layer of Brian Siskind’s (FOGNODE) lap steel to top it off. He has a gorgeous EP, all lap steel, called “porch music” check it out HERE.

There is a lot of dissonance going on in this accidental 3 min phone vid mix job …but somehow in a rather soothing way.

Some highlights from the Suraya Hilal Dance Company & the Mozaic Dance Company performance at Casula Powerhouse May 2009 featuring Suraya Hilal, Sarah Hamilton and me on piano and frame drum. The beautiful Oud piece is a recorded piece by Joseph Tawadros and the rest was played live by me.