Another clip from Saint Petersburg 9-27-09

Here is another improvisation from our concert in Saint Petersburg.

Allen & Stolyar, St. Petersburg, Sept. 27, 2009 GEZ-21

GEZ-21 is an Experimental Sound Studio on Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg, Russia. We gave our first concert there last night with the young Russian saxophone player, Ilia Belorukov [www.myspace.com/belorukov]. The audience was amazed to see a harp (and a harpist!) playing in this setting. Here is a clip of Roman and me in our opening duo of the set:

Red Square, Moscow, 9-26-09

On the first day, Roman and I wandered the streets of Moscow until our train left for Saint Petersburg that night. The lady with the loudspeaker is advertising personalized tours of the area. You can see the Kremlin Wall, as I pan past Lenin's tomb, and finally rest on St. Basil's Cathedral. Ivan the Terrible commissioned St. Basil's in 1555 and it was so beautiful, it is said that he cut the eyes out of the architect who designed it, so he would not be able to enjoy the fruits of his labor. Each of the 8 domes of the Cathedral had a chapel beneath it. A ninth chapel with spire was added in 1588 to house the tomb of its namesake, Basil the Blessed. The eight domes form an eight-sided star, with the spire of the ninth dome in the center that is also a symbol of the Christian Church. Originally, the domes were unpainted and the carved designs on them stood out vividly against the red bricks. In the next two hundred years, the swirling designs were painted. The interior of the cathedral is rather cramped and dimly lit and is decorated in delicate floral designs. The cathedral has escaped destruction many times since its creation.

28 hours countdown

I leave my home at 4 AM on Friday morning and arrive Moscow at 11 AM Saturday morning - they are 11 hours ahead of us so that will be midnight Friday/Sat. in California. Roman was on Moscow radio yesterday explaining how we met in 2005 - I Googled "free improvisation Siberia" and got his name - it is an amazing story. The harps are all confirmed for Saint Petersburg and Moscow as well as Novosibirsk! Here we go! Stay tuned for video and daily updates on my trip!

Moscow Webcam

Look here for a live webcam from Moscow:

http://www.mdmbank.com/webcam

Here for Saint Petersburg:

http://www.livecam.ru/huge.php

Here for Novosibirsk, Siberia:

http://webcam.lnd.ru/

A photo of the Ob river running through Novosibirsk:





I have the kayagum case - it is beautiful. If you ever need a custom ATA case for anything, go to Philly Cases - Dan was the man who made mine and it is amazing. The kayagum just slipped right in, tight as a bug in a rug. Just packing now with my pickups and amp wires....improv kit with super balls, picks, quake hold for the pickups for the harp and kayagum...I leave Friday morning at 4 AM!

Russia schedule!

Here is the final schedule for the Russia trip:

Sunday, Sept. 27 Concert at GEZ-21 (Experimental Sound Gallery)in Saint Petersburg at 8 PM with Roman Stolyar and Ilia Belorukov

Here is a photo of Belorukov and Stolyar







Monday, Sept. 28 Harp Master Class P.I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Moscow






Tuesday, Sept. 29 Concert at DOM www.dom.com.ru
at 8 PM with Sergey Letov, Roman Stolyar and Ilia Belorukov




Friday, Oct. 2 Meeting and class at the Novosibirsk College of Music

Photo of Novosibirsk, Siberia




Saturday, Oct. 3 Concert at Vagrant Dog Club (www.sobaka.su) at 5 PM with Roman Stolyar

Sunday, Oct. 4 Concert at Niikuda Art Club (www.niikuda.ru) with Sergey Belichenko and Roman Stolyar

Tues, Oct. 6 recording session

Wed., Oct. 7 Concert at Novosibirsk Museum of Local Lore with Roman Stolyar, 7 PM

Various things...

Still preparing for the Russia trip. I have been billed for the new Kayagum case so I expect to find it on my doorstep any day now. I have my visa, and all the reservations, so it is exciting that everything is underway. CalArts orientation is this week and I am meeting all the new students. They are all such wonderful musicians and I look forward to working with all of them! Meanwhile, I keep working regularly with my wonderful trainer Chris Chandler who is helping me change my lifestyle and body in great ways. www.pathofmotion.net