Chris Corsano and Bill Orcutt performed at Avalon Island.

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The Civic Minded 5, Timucua Arts Foundation
and Gallery at Avalon Island presented
a Chris Corsano and Bill Orcutt  concert at the Gallery at Avalon Island (37 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, Florida 32801).

The evening consisted of solo mini-sets by Corsano and Orcutt followed by a duet set.

Guitarist Bill Orcutt could be described as a raw, outsider Country Blues guitarist or a radical, Post-Minimalist composer. Or he could be a Noise or No Wave musician gone acoustic to play chestnuts of American Vernacular Music. Checking all these boxes would also lead to a fairly functional description. It’s also fair to say that Bill’s international appeal in the last half a dozen years comes from his singular, dynamic approach with a partly de-stringed and re-tuned acoustic guitar.

Chris Corsano is a drummer who has been at the intersections of free improvisation, noise, and avant-rock musics since the late 1990’s. He has worked with saxophonists like Paul Flaherty, Joe McPhee and Evan Parker; guitarists such as Sir Richard Bishop, Heather Leigh Murray, and Jim O’Rourke; and one-of-a-kind artists like Björk and Jandek.

The moody lighting and improvisational music was inspiring to sketch to leading me to let go of my tried and true methods to get an image on the page.

The Timucua White House is granted a Conditional Use Permit.

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Benoit Glazer and The Timucua Arts Foundation has been providing world class art and music to the Orlando community free of charge for a long while. In 2007 Benoit built a custom home that was built around an acoustically perfect music hall with two levels of balconies overlooking the stage. The living room concert venue is completely soundproof so that neighbors never hear the music. Dozens of performances happen each year, most of them free of charge. Guests bring wine and food to the venue for each concert which cultivates a true sense of a community potluck. The Timucua Arts Foundation, is a benefactor to cutting edge music organizations like the Accidental Music Festival and the Civic Minded 5. The White House has established itself as a culture beacon for the Central Florida Music scene.

The home is in an area zoned for residential use, so the Orlando Municipal Planning Board demanded that Benoit apply for a conditional use permit. That type of permit is typically issued when the city wants to allow an
activity beneficial to the community despite zoning restrictions. Without the permit, one of the
most enlightened cultural lights in Orlando
would be be extinguished. An online petition was established to try and save the White House. Over one hundred people signed it in the first hour. In all 832 people signed the petition.

At 8:30am on April 19th, Benoit and his wife Elaine Corrivev, sat in the City Counsel Chambers to hear the Planning Board’s verdict. The Chambers were packed full of supporters for this home spun cultural institution. Jeremy Seghers sat in the row in front of me and Diana Rodriguez Portillo sat next to me to chat. There were so many friends of the arts in the room. The chair, Jason Searl, said he had to abstain from the vote since his little daughter takes piano lessons at the Benoit’s house. He clearly couldn’t be impartial. With in a matter of minutes, the Conditional Use Permit was granted. There was an audible sigh of relief and then most of the people in the room got up to leave. Exited conversations began and the celebration continued just outside the chamber doors. The concerts will continue with some conditions: Glazer will have to
formalize a parking agreement with the city for use of nearby spaces at
Wadeview Park, limit attendance to 99 guests and guarantee events end by
10:30 p.m. In some small measure, the bureaucrats won, but music and art will continue to shine at the White House. 

This, we believe:

Art and music belong to everyone.

Art and music are the highest manifestation of our humanity.

Art and music should be enjoyed in the most intimate venue: the living room.

Every community is better when art and music are performed and nurtured within it.

Mary Halvorsen Septet

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On Monday July 1st at 7:30pm there was a free Concert by the Mary Halvorson Septet at the White House (2000 South Summerlin Orlando FL).  Mary Halvorson is a multiple award winning musician leading the charge towards a new musical landscape. She learned much with Anthony Braxton over the years and plays with a septet of the best musicians around. Presented by the Atlantic Center for the Arts and the Civic Minded 5.

Mary Halvorsen has been an artist in Residence at the Atlantic Center of the Arts and she teamed up with the jazz musicians who used to perform with the great Sam Rivers who unfortunately passed away.

The visual artist for the night was Woody Igou. He had a kinetic sculpture set up in front of the stage which mostly consisted of thick PVC tubes. He poured two compounds into the tubes and a chemical reaction caused a yellow foam to ooze out much like a science fair volcano project. The musicians eyed the sculpture with suspicion before they played but once they knew they were safe, they began playing Mary’s original compositions. The music was new aged and cutting edged.

Seated in the top balcony, I lost all light when the sun set. I had to guess at which colors I was putting on the page. In some ways working in the dark was like the music which didn’t adhere to classic forms. Sometimes you have to let go of expectations and search blindly in the dark. The White House concerts have become increasingly popular since I first started sketching there.   

Mark your Calendar!  The next free White House Concert on Sunday, Aug 11, 2013 features P.J. Rohr who will play jazzical music
(Claude Bolling and more)
with her favorite pianist, Lee Lallance. Visual art will be by Maryse Jupillat. Doors open at 7PM and the music starts at 7:30PM. The White House is at 2000 South Summerlin Orlando FL.

Jazz at the White House

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The Civic Minded 5 presented reed player Trevor Watts and pianist Veryan Weston, a longtime duo and storied members of the British improv scene at the Timucua White House, (
2000 South Summerlin).  This free concert presented cutting edge new jazz, where mastery met sensibility and the joy of the moment. The visual artist for the evening was going to be Martha Jo Mahoney, but she couldn’t make it. Bernie Martin was working on a watercolor at stage right and I was sketching in the balcony so the visual arts were represented. I was surrounded  by a family who took some interest in what I was doing. I recognized the husband but couldn’t quite place him. Finally after a short conversation, I realized it was Mark Simon, who wrote a book called Storyboards, Motion in Art. I have that book in my art library and refer to it anytime I get a storyboard assignment. What a small world. This was the first time Mark and his family attended a Timucua concert. They were in for an explosive, experimental treat.

The music was edgy and on the verge of  pure cacophony. As I worked, I realized I didn’t have a rag to wipe off my brushes. I used the sketch itself to wipe clean the brush. I worked in a frenzy driven by the music and the panic of the moment. Both performers had thick grey hair that swept around the back of their skulls reminiscent of friendly poltergeist clowns. I’m considering growing my own grey  lion’s mane to duplicate this bohemian look.

After the concert people socialized around snacks and wines in the entry foyer. I caught up with Wendy Wallenburg, who helps out at the social hour, and her friends, Sarah Austin and Nikki Mier.  Nikki suggested I should start wearing outlandish clothes as a fashion statement so people can spot me at events.  I still prefer to blend in with the wallpaper. Elaine Corriveu, who is Benoit Glazer‘s wife, and the hostess for the evening, wanted to see my sketch. I honestly believe she appreciates what I do. If you haven’t been to the White House, then you are missing out on a gem of the local music scene.

Accidental Music Festival

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The Accidental Music Festival will feature 10 nights of concerts, lectures and films celebrating creativity in music. The festival was started by Christopher Belt. He asked to use the space at Urban ReThink and it just happened that The Civic Minded Five, another music group had scheduled concerts the same week. He said to Patrick Green, “It’s like an accidental music festival.” The name stuck. On the second day of the festival, I stopped into Urban ReThink to see Jason Kahn and Bryan Eubanks perform.

I arrived sweaty after a full day of painting the Mennello Museum Mural. I waved to Pat Green in his office and headed straight to the bathroom. Opening the men’s room door, I was startled to see two young women. The woman directly in front of me had her shirt off, wearing a black satin bra. She shouted raising her hand up. Time slowed down. I responded, “Whoops, sorry!” as the door slammed shut. I sat on a small stack of chairs in the hall which shifted awkwardly under my weight. I waited for a while, then I decided they might need privacy, so I went to grab a beer.

The instruments were a huge tangle of wires. Jason sat behind mixing boards, coils, contact microphones, and a sound recorder that played back ambient sounds of the room. A synthesizer processed and modulated sounds, creating feedback loops. Bryan who built many of his instrument components, used guitar effects pedals, a master mixer to mix sources like radio frequencies, ambient room noise and sound clips he randomly collected over the years. He used Super glider,a computer program, to generate sound. All the sounds were generated live in real time.

Initially the sounds generated reminded me of the THX sound system audio played at the start of movies. Brian described their music as a collaborative structure with both players seeking a balance to fill it out. The music generated was unpredictable. Both musicians sought control but the form was complicated by movements or unexpected shifts. This would knock the musician out of the ring, out of control, as he adjusted. Lisa Bates shouted out, “Just like in life!” Jason agreed feeling their music corresponds to the vast barrage of information generated by social networks today. The music was completely intuitive with balance and disruption. It is not your typical acoustic sound. The sound generated inspired me to attack the drawing aggressively my hand moving in syncopation to the changing, unpredictable modulations.

Two young college girls inspected my sketch. One was an artist herself. She did a pencil sketch of Bryan during the performance and gave it to him. The artist seemed annoyed at me, but her friend was enthusiastic and affable. I told her about Urban Sketchers and said she should take a look at the sight. I wondered if these were the women I had interrupted in the bathroom. I couldn’t be sure. In shock, I forgot to look at her face. The Accidental Music Festival will continue through September 13th. Admission to all the events is free but donations are accepted.