Proof that I Play Saxophone

[EDIT: Sorry, I don’t have these videos up on The Internet any more, but you can find plenty of other examples of my saxomophoning elsewhere on this blog. – MG, 3/4/23]

 
It has come to my attention lately that there are quite a few gigs going for background solo saxophone music, but for some reason people don’t always believe me when I tell them I am capable of such a feat. So for that reason, today I took steps to disprove the doubters by recording a few short videos of me doing some jazzy stuff on tenor saxomophone.

See? I told you I could do it!
 

On a Slow Boat to China

https://youtube.com/watch?v=uLTf54E2kBA%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

Misty

https://youtube.com/watch?v=G7SPJXLV7rc%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

Ain’t Misbehavin’

https://youtube.com/watch?v=7EXbSkoEd4U%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

Come Fly With Me

https://youtube.com/watch?v=HEoQJmo7PHc%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

By the way, that sheet of bright green fabric was worth every penny.

Video: Largo (from The Four Seasons), featuring The World’s Smallest Bassoon Quartet

Well it seems that, after all, blog posts are a bit like buses – you wait ages for one to appear, and then it doesn’t show up at all so you have to fork out £70 for a train journey that would only have cost you £35 if you’d had the option of booking it in advance! Sorry, just venting some Megabus-related frustration there. Anyway, what was I saying…

Oh yes, those miniature bassoonists have been at it again! You see, I was settling down yesterday evening to read a truly fascinating literature review on the subject of orbital-free density functional theory, when I was suddenly struck with a deep thirst for refreshment. Over the course of the (approximately) four minutes and fifteen seconds that it took me to brew a mug of Earl Grey, something quite remarkable occurred. For when I returned to my computer, I discovered four tiny bassoonists sitting on the keyboard and partially obscuring my view of the screen. They clearly had no intention of leaving until they had played some Vivaldi, and so, making the best of the situation, I fetched my video camera and captured their performance for all to enjoy:
 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=StMPYt4kvC0%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

This Sunday: Scarborough Concert Band at Filey Bandstand
On another note, if you happen to be in Filey this Sunday 23rd July, I recommend you make your way to the bandstand in order to see Scarborough Concert Band strutting their stuff in the summer sun. It starts at 2:00, and I shall be there playing my bassoon at 1:1 scale for a change!

P.S. If it’s raining then the concert will instead be held just up the road in St. John’s Church.

Video: The Entertainer, featuring The World’s Smallest Bassoon Quartet

Remember that quartet of tiny little bassoonists that look a bit like me who keep cropping up in unexpected places around the house? Well they’ve done it again! And it looks like this time they’ve branched out into ragtime…
 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=zD73YnK8aAQ%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

The Day I Made It to Vinyl

And not just any old vinyl – clear vinyl!

These albums are the result of a series of recording sessions I did at the start of this year, overdubbing bits of woodwind onto existing recordings of ‘classical’ arrangements of rock music. The result is a series of L.P.s (or C.D.s if your storage space is limited) with the music of Led Zeppelin, Genesis and Pink Floyd played on strings, piano, woodwind, guitar and percussion. Worth a look if you like that sort of thing! Just search for ‘The Coda Chamber Ensemble’ on Amazon.
 

 
By the way, I’m told that clear vinyl is the best type of vinyl for sound quality. The reason, apparently, is that the impurities that must be added in order to colour vinyl have an adverse effect when it comes to pressing the L.P., resulting in a reduction in audio fidelity. There you go, who says this blog is not educational‽

Now, to finish off, here’s a joke that I’m particularly fond of:

How do you turn a duck into a soul singer?
Put it in the oven until it’s Bill Withers.

Thank you.

Lots and Lots of MUSIC for You to Enjoy! : D

Good evening humanity!

Today’s post-of-blog is intended to introduce you to a number of creative things I’ve been doing recently which I hope you find fulfilling to some greater or lesser extent. But preferably a greater one.

First, here’s the latest video in my ‘World’s Smallest Bassoon Quartet’ series. This time I found them hiding in the garden, playing a certain Hungarian Dance that you may recognise…
 

Second, it occurred to me recently that I have written a lot of new music which has for too long been languishing in notebooks and on my hard drive. So I have created a playlist on YouTube with the imaginative title of ‘Original Compositions’, which I intend to keep adding to with recordings of stuff what I have written. Current joys that you can discover there include:
 

  • 2 string quartets
  • A bassoon sonata
  • An arrangement of ‘Won’t You Come Home Bill Bailey?’ in the style of Claude Debussy
  • A grand orchestral overture
  • 3 (out of a planned series of 12) miniatures for solo piano

Here is the link:

www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5fQXV4mFwD6tA2AOmZvUE9WDVd7HtzpD

I hope you find something there that tickles your fancy. If not, then, well, you can get stuffed.* Like whoever it was who put a ‘dislike’ on the final two movements of my second quartet…

* On the advice of my imaginary P.A. I would like to withdraw this comment. Apparently it is bad practice to tell your readership to ‘get stuffed’.

Rachmaninoff, Brahms and Strauss with Durham University Palatinate Orchestra

Rachmaninoff, Brahms and Strauss
Durham University Palatinate Orchestra
Thursday 22nd June
7:30
Elvet Methodist Church, Durham
www.musicdurham.org/event/dupo-easter-term-concert

Hello again everybody. I have an announcement today particularly aimed at my North-East-based friends, but nonetheless open to anyone else who may be interested too! For I will be journeying up to the land of Durham this week to get some coal for my steam train, and while I’m there I plan to join in with this concert that you see before you:
 

 
It’s a great programme, as you see, featuring Rachmaninoff’s Wrapsody on a Theme of Panini and other sandwich-related works. My plan is just to turn up with a bassoon and see what happens, and if you were to turn up as well (even without a bassoon) I’m sure you would have a truly marvellous evening.

Video: Humoresque, featuring The World’s Smallest Bassoon Quartet

Whilst looking round the house the other day in search of my copy of ‘The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations’, I was startled to come across a quartet of tiny bassoonists, all of whom looked exactly like me. They were playing a piece of music – Dvořák’s ‘Humoresque’, I think it was. I immediately found my camera and took a video of them, as proof that I am not telling lies:
 

I very much hope you enjoy this video, because there are three similar ones coming up in the near future!

DUPO Easter Term Concert 2015 – Now With HQ Audio!

So a couple of years ago I played in a concert with Durham University Palatinate Orchestra and I took a video of the concert and at the same time someone else took a high-quality audio recording of the concert, and originally I intended to combine the two in order to create a video that also had high-quality audio with it but I never got round to it, until recently that is when I’ve put together the two recordings and put them on YouTube, so now if you like you can watch the entire concert but with really good sound like you might get on a C.D. or something, and if you want to do that then here are the videos which I hope you very much enjoy:
 

Parker: A Londoner in New-York, Part 2

https://youtube.com/watch?v=r-jPKelGVD8%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2

https://youtube.com/watch?v=zj14qjKQWmk%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4

https://youtube.com/watch?v=feKIyxzEyng%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_embedded

And yes I did type that all in one breath.

The Pirates of Enfield, and much more!

It’s been a little while since I’ve updated the world in general as to my activities, and in that time I’ve amassed a small collection of nerdy photos for you to enjoy! First, though, let me tell you about this week’s gig and why you should come and see it…

The Pirates of Penzance
Wednesday 7th June – Saturday 10th June
7:45, with 2:30 matinee on 10th
Millfield Theatre, Edmonton, N18 1PJ
www.smptheatre.co.uk
 

 
This is the third time I’ve been involved with a production of this operetta, and I must say it is by far the most surreal! If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like if Pirates had been written by Monty Python, I believe this will give you a fairly accurate impression. Of course the music is all there, catchy as ever, as is the wonderfully witty libretto from Mr. Gilbert. Just don’t be surprised if things take a slightly bizarre turn!

Nerdy Photos
Right, here’s a quiz for you. Here are three photographs, one from each of the three shows I’ve done recently: Barnum, Legally Blonde, and The Pirates of Penzance. Using your knowledge of musical theatre orchestration, see if you can determine which is which.
 

 

 

 
Nerdy Video
As one final bit of excitement for today (I wouldn’t want to overload you now, would I?), here’s a video of me playing some bits of bass clarinet for one of the aforementioned shows. This will be of interest if you like the bass clari, or if you’re thinking of giving me a bass clari gig but need some evidence that I can actually play the thing. Also, if you’re struggling on the quiz then you may find that the title of this video gives you a little hint.