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Oct. 21st, 2009 02:55 pmI'm going to do another list, just because I have lots to say and I am listing (to the left, in case you wanted to know) from tiredness.
1. Simone Penkethman (of whom more anon) and Chanel Cole (the Australian Idol Chanel Cole - it appears that she's not only a local but a friend of Simone [of whom more later]) are doing a review in early December. I don't normally get to things because of the finances and it's about time I did something for the pure joy. Does anyone want to go with me? You would be saving me from the dread of late night busses alone. Simone is a talented songwriter and musician (yep, of this more anon, just hang in there) and Chanel Cole is Chanel Cole, so it must be good. Can't see it being anything else.
2. It's 28 degrees outside. Our dams are 52% full. The flowers and grass peek through white fluff, which accumulates in delicate drifts and looks like snow with little white eyes. Of course, this description is influenced by the fact that I can't actually breathe much when I go outside, being sensitive to the white stuff and all. My skin doesn't like it, either. This means that it looks suspicious. Heck, it probably *is* suspicious.
3. My personal cure for the white stuff (the right stuff for the white stuff?) is ventolin, antihistamines and lots of chocolate icecream.
4. Class today was totally amazing. Simone Penkethman was our guest and she taught us a bunch of stuff. A bunch. Technically, she workshopped how to write the words for blues and ballads. When my students had words, she put some of them to music, but when the student had a sense for the music, she had them sing their songs themselves once she'd worked out accompaniments. I loved the way she used the idiosyncrasies of the writing to create the melody and rhythm - the poem that was little tripletting gasps of internal rhyme became reggae, for instance. We want her back (with guitar)!
5. Yes, I wrote songs today. No, you do not get to see them. Yes, my mind is singing in progressions of three chords. In G major. I don't know why my mind resonates in G major - Simone played in a bunch of keys.
6. I am so proud of my students. One won a prize for his Mental Health Week video and another came second in the Mental Health week poetry competition.
7. A student wrote a ballad specially for me today, because she was so happy to be in my class where I make funny jokes and not in the TAFE class. I wondered who this 'Gillian' was she was singing about, until an extra-long line crept in near the end with the words 'writing class'. It was totally, totally awesome.
8. My Wednesday class deserves every good thing that comes along.
9. We nearly wrote a "Ballad of Mt Ainslie" today. Simone (who has 2 MySpace pages - one under her name and the other under Simone and the Soothsayers) suggested a rather effective progression. Chromatic. Each time a new group joined the mob on Mt Ainslie, they were to get a whole verse, a semitone higher than the previous verse. It's a pity we ran out of time, because the Sex Party was to have been verse 2 and I so wanted to see what it said.
10. And that was my Wednesday morning.
1. Simone Penkethman (of whom more anon) and Chanel Cole (the Australian Idol Chanel Cole - it appears that she's not only a local but a friend of Simone [of whom more later]) are doing a review in early December. I don't normally get to things because of the finances and it's about time I did something for the pure joy. Does anyone want to go with me? You would be saving me from the dread of late night busses alone. Simone is a talented songwriter and musician (yep, of this more anon, just hang in there) and Chanel Cole is Chanel Cole, so it must be good. Can't see it being anything else.
2. It's 28 degrees outside. Our dams are 52% full. The flowers and grass peek through white fluff, which accumulates in delicate drifts and looks like snow with little white eyes. Of course, this description is influenced by the fact that I can't actually breathe much when I go outside, being sensitive to the white stuff and all. My skin doesn't like it, either. This means that it looks suspicious. Heck, it probably *is* suspicious.
3. My personal cure for the white stuff (the right stuff for the white stuff?) is ventolin, antihistamines and lots of chocolate icecream.
4. Class today was totally amazing. Simone Penkethman was our guest and she taught us a bunch of stuff. A bunch. Technically, she workshopped how to write the words for blues and ballads. When my students had words, she put some of them to music, but when the student had a sense for the music, she had them sing their songs themselves once she'd worked out accompaniments. I loved the way she used the idiosyncrasies of the writing to create the melody and rhythm - the poem that was little tripletting gasps of internal rhyme became reggae, for instance. We want her back (with guitar)!
5. Yes, I wrote songs today. No, you do not get to see them. Yes, my mind is singing in progressions of three chords. In G major. I don't know why my mind resonates in G major - Simone played in a bunch of keys.
6. I am so proud of my students. One won a prize for his Mental Health Week video and another came second in the Mental Health week poetry competition.
7. A student wrote a ballad specially for me today, because she was so happy to be in my class where I make funny jokes and not in the TAFE class. I wondered who this 'Gillian' was she was singing about, until an extra-long line crept in near the end with the words 'writing class'. It was totally, totally awesome.
8. My Wednesday class deserves every good thing that comes along.
9. We nearly wrote a "Ballad of Mt Ainslie" today. Simone (who has 2 MySpace pages - one under her name and the other under Simone and the Soothsayers) suggested a rather effective progression. Chromatic. Each time a new group joined the mob on Mt Ainslie, they were to get a whole verse, a semitone higher than the previous verse. It's a pity we ran out of time, because the Sex Party was to have been verse 2 and I so wanted to see what it said.
10. And that was my Wednesday morning.