Inna's Musings, Memories, Meanderings

Reasons to turn off your TV and tune in to the Interweb

Sun, 06 May 2007 06:27:18 GMT

Ok, so I may be a hopeless bore at the water cooler once I start hanging out around water coolers, but here are some reasons I don't miss not watching television (we did recently figure out how to get network channels on our TV, but much of what comes through is plain dismal).

To watch:

TED Talks - some of the most engaging speakers in the world, dreaming big and small. Good beginner video: Malcolm Gladwell on Spaghetti Sauce and happy taste buds: http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/20
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - how anyone keeps up with the news without watching the Daily Show is simply unfathomable - http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/index.jhtml
Youtube - infinite merriment...

These two above plus Netflix have been keeping us busy. Any more suggestions?

To listen:

This American Life - every week, the most touching, thought-provoking, inspiring show on the radio waves. People stories. One reason to get Showtime channel on cable is to watch the new TV version of the series...
On the Media - ditto. Tales of media innards, power and corruption, good and evil.

And all the other wonderful podcasts and radio programs from NPR.

The most wonderful thing is that you can enjoy most of the above anywhere you are in the world! Just to think that even a YEAR ago, much of this wasn't out online...

Portraits time!

Sun, 11 Mar 2007 19:42:56 GMT

Check out two wonderful portraits of me and thesoupasonic by the Brooklyn-based photographer Bill Wadman.
Bill is working on a series of portraits, one each day, for the entire year of 2007. You can participate in the project, too - it was really fun!

My picture HERE - taken during the snow storm on Wednesday, March 8th. I'd title it "She could kill with a smile..." :)
And thesoupasonic is HERE - taken during soundcheck before his show at Barbes.

And while we're in portrait-sitting mood, drop us a line if you'd like to experiment with portraits yourself. We realized we have next to none fun creative shots of the two of us.

On continuous play...

Mon, 05 Mar 2007 16:10:23 GMT

While unpacking and sifting through thesoupasonic's and mine CD collection after our move back to NY, I was thinking how out of this formidable wealth of musical expession, only three recordings have in some sense withstood the test of time for me.

These recordings are like good old friends - I never get tired of them, they comfort me, whisk me away from any troubles and gently caress me back to life. I am not quite sure what unites these three, but why analyze that which is quite simple: I am immensely fond of these recordings and if you have some spare time and cash, I hope you check them out:

The Velvet Underground by the Velvet Underground.
Nigunim by Frank London, Lorin Sklamberg, Uri Caine
Danubian Trances by Karoly Cserepes (this is the most recent addition, and I'm not sure whether you can get it in the States, but do check out the MySpace link with some of the tracks)

Happy listening!

Carnival Time in Mohács, Hungary

Fri, 02 Mar 2007 22:02:50 GMT

See our dear friend Sarah's chronicle of the amazing carnival traditions in Mohács, Hungary:
http://ganchoverseas.blogspot.com/2007/03/carnival-time-part-i-buso-kit.html

wish we could be there (though reading this blogpost, I feel lik e we have...)

Sometimes I feel...

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 04:18:54 GMT

It's always fun when law and music overlap in my life...
Sometimes that happens

when past fans become future colleagues (you know who you are),

or contracts and license agreements begin to make more sense,

or songs about lawyers strike my funny bone (my favorite of the genre is "My Attorney Bernie," immortalized by the great Blossom Dearie).

And most recently, something I learned in law school opened up a beehive of creative possibilities and collaborations.

This is where Creative Commons Licenses come in. Creative Commons Licenses provide a user-friendly legal framework for sharing your music and other creative works in ways less restrictive than Copyright. If you create and release something under a Creative Commons license, you are giving permission to use that work - with some restrictions - in ways that would be covered by Copyright. You could require licensees to give you credit, or you could allow using it only for non-commercial projects, or you could forbid changing the work in any way - it's as easy as checking of a few boxes, and voila! you've given a green light on future creative exploitation of your work under those terms. Much more on that at the Creative Commons Website. Note that there's a reason to be careful about stamping a Creative Commons license on your work if you ever plan to make it a huge commercial hit - revocability of Creative Commons licenses are questionable at this point (according to at least one Copyright scholar according to a recent talk I attended). But I digress...

Recently, I've been intrigued by the idea of collaborating online through sites like ccMixter and SpliceMusic - ccMixter (via Creative Commons) provides the legal framework for easy colalboration through Samples Licenses; SpliceMusic also offers a very impressive online sequencer and community tools for music collaboration with very little know-how and no upstart costs.

thesoupasonic has uploaded some very specific viola gestures and textures -- odd sounding notes, whacks, crashes -- sounds which can't at all be found in ordinary sample libraries. He also uploaded one of his newest tracks, an Indian-inspired "Heat Me Up", posting all the parts of the tracks (melody, bass, plucks, etc) and inviting a remix (see here: http://ljova.com/heat_me_up). Meanwhile, I uploaded an accapella version of the Spiritual "Sometimes I Feel like a Motherless Child", and in the near future, I'm hoping to record various vocal gestures, riffs, ornaments.

Several intriguing re-mixes have already been posted by users, but one collaborator stands out, and he goes by the name of Minimal-Art. For those of you in the know, it should be no surprize that this collaborator is from Budapest - the city where cutting-edge musicality is served with every sip of palinka.

So here is Minimal-Art's take on "Sometimes I Feel like a Motherless Child": http://ccmixter.org/media/files/minimal_art/9058
Enjoy!

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back in blog

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 08:38:47 GMT

After a prolonged unjustified hiatus, I'm back to blogging...

Why? Mostly as a platform for reacting to the myriad of experiences in my life, and a way to share recent discoveries in music, film, readings, etc etc etc. I've also discovered that I love reading other people's personal blogs - somehow daily activities of complete strangers or casual acquaintances are often more inexorably fascinating than novels by master writers. Call me a voyeur...

And once in a while, I'll engage in shameless self-promotion and bragposting. Because... why not? :)

Life update: So in the last couple of months, thesoupasonic and I got back to New York after a 4-month soiree in Budapest and beyond. Some of our stay in Budapest was documented at barmaljova.blogspot.com. We spent the first month catching up with friends and adjusting to the culinary shock to the system - our neighborhood has more Thai restaurants per square foot than all of Budapest, and a few more cropped up while we were away. One of these days, I'll blog on my favorite Thai restaurants in NY.

On the bragging front, we played a sold-out show at Joe's Pub in mid-January. It was a double bill with my band ROMASHKA and Ljova's new project THE VJOLA CONTRABAND. Ljova got a tremendous review in Newsday for the show, and Romashka was featured in the Global Rhythm Magazine, which favorably compared me with Edith Piaf , oui oui :) And the New York Observer featured a beautiful shot of both of our bands on the eve of the show (see above, photo by Nina Roberts).

And for the romantics among you, the New York Observer also featured our engagement story in their Love Beat column, see here:
http://www.observer.com/20070212/20070212_Daisy_Carrington_love_thelovebeat.asp

So that's the happy news so far. I'm enjoying a light semester at school, and devoting much time to all the activities I won't have time for in just a few short months - swimming, reading, surfing the web, walking, shopping.

And finally, a music recommendation: a wonderful recording of Gavin Bryars "After the Requiem" by Bill Frisell and members of the Balanescu Quartet. It'll seduce you into a meditative state, and caress you into blissful solitude. A cross between Philip Glass and Messiaen, with a healthy dose of electric guitar.

Art Credo

Tue, 12 Dec 2006 00:02:34 GMT

See here, by Guy Hoffman:
http://web.media.mit.edu/~guy/credo/

I think this is also a good way to evaluate art - is it reaching me at all three levels? should I be looking a little harder? or is there something missing?

Holiday Party Excuse Maker!

Sun, 10 Dec 2006 19:37:01 GMT

Flamingo Xmas
Originally uploaded by NPRDigiMedia.

You've GOTTA check this out: devilishly clever, cute, and so useful!

Holiday party excuse maker:
http://holiday.enlighten.com/

Enter a few details about the party, how you feel about your host, and voila! a ready-made party-pooping excuse - carefully customized to your needs. And the animation is just adorable....

Plus one creepy feature - it seems to be able to identify your geographic location! For my custom excuse, it helpfully mentioned that the reason I can't make the party is because "I'll be on vacation in Budapest..." - which is exactly right! (and that's where I am now)

A memento from Bucharest

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 11:33:22 GMT

BarmaLjova with Francis Ford Coppola
Originally uploaded by innabar.

Ljova is back from Bucharest, and here's a little brag-photo from his stay there (this is when I came to visit him last weekend).

We just got our tickets back to New York on December 30th!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now just hesitating on what to do for the week before our departure - Turkey and Israel are our options on the table.

In the words of the great DJ Joro-Boro of Mehanata:
"globetrotting, jetsetting, globalizing immigrants, you!"

Exposure pays?

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 09:49:36 GMT

Romashka
Originally uploaded by innabar.

There are times when my band is asked to play at benefits or other charity functions or parties ~~for free~~ for exposure... To this, one of our band members likes to pun that "Exposure kills"...

Here's a different spin from a little blurb I saw in the Daily Mail & Telegraph on my way from Bucharest to Budapest:

History is silent on whether the violinist has remained obscure...

Salut from Bucharest!

Sun, 26 Nov 2006 22:15:28 GMT

Bucharest - Mausoleum - BarmaLjova
Originally uploaded by innabar.

Inna ventured out to Bucharest to visit Ljova, while he's on his top-secret mission there. Bucharest has charmed me beyond all expectations...

Sure, its buildings don't sing in unison, and it's a few paint jobs away from restored grandiosity of Budapest...

But I fell in love with its dilapidated ornate structures, friendly sad stray dogs, and megalomaniac Communist-era architecture, all melting and accelerating into a fast-moving, majestic city of the future.

Sun, 26 Nov 2006 21:48:25 GMT

Amazing story of the Dwarf Jewish Theatre of Maramures, by Bob Cohen, the leader of Der Naye Kapelye and an all-around maven of everything klezmer and Hungarian.

Bucharest set to Taraf de Haidouks

Fri, 24 Nov 2006 21:25:12 GMT

Writing from Bucharest... This video from YouTube captures my initial impression of the city quite perfectly.... It's got some lovely buildings, grandiose boulevards, and relentless motion... It reminds me of Moscow or London, just feels a bit more forgotten by the rest of the world. That might be a good thing...

Flickr camera guide

Wed, 22 Nov 2006 22:01:52 GMT

Lifehacker article on Flickr stats on camera usage trends. Flickr now allows you to see trends in cameras used for pictures on the site, and Lifehacker suggests using the graph as a guide in

which cameras are most popular
what kind of shots are possible with each type of camera

I use a Sony DSC-T5 - I love how small it is, but I haven't been crazy about quality of the pictures (but then again, plohomy tantzoru... :)

Michael Richards' racist tirade and apology

Tue, 21 Nov 2006 16:16:02 GMT

(via mediabistro.com)
Appearing via satellite during Jerry Seinfeld's appearance on the Late Show last night, Seinfeld actor Michael Richards (Kramer on Seinfeld) apologized for his epithet-filled tirade at the Laugh Factory over the weekend. Said Richards: "For me to be at a comedy club and flip out and say this crap, I'm deeply, deeply sorry."

Video of the tirade here: http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlny/video/video_michael_richards_racist_tirade_at_the_laugh_factory_47912.asp
Vide of the apology on Dave Letterman here: http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlny/video/video_michael_richards_apologizes_for_racist_tirade_on_letterman_47916.asp

Watch both - it's intense, confusing, thought-provoking footage - Richards as befuddled over his tirade as those in the audience.

Kecskemet - Painted Palace in the Cutest Town in the World

Tue, 21 Nov 2006 07:04:07 GMT

Kecskemet - Painted Palace
Originally uploaded by innabar.

For y'all wanting to visit Hungary in the future - don't miss Kecskemet, a little town an 1.5 hr away from Budapest.

For contemporary music connossieurs - it's the birthplace of Kodaly and the location of his famous school.

And for everyone - it's a lovely town of squares upon squares, one melding into the other. The buildings are decked out in bright national ornaments and blissful peace pervades the town. Check it out!

Moscow traffic solution!

Mon, 20 Nov 2006 20:50:43 GMT

Ljova by the Kreml
Originally uploaded by innabar.

From the NY Times:
"Light Flashing, Siren Wailing: A Rich Muscovite in a Rush"
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/17/world/europe/17moscow.html

"Business Car Service promised to provide as an escort an actual police car and two traffic policemen for eight hours at a cost of only $900. The car is equipped with a siren and, most important, a flashing blue light to get you places fast."

$900/day for traffic-free existence? Sounds very reasonable for your run-of-the-mill oil mogul... If I had to live the traffic-hell of Moscow, I'd do it (if I were an oil mogul, that is). What are the deluxe services, I wonder? and how much?

Sat, 18 Nov 2006 10:20:33 GMT

Budapest Statue Park - Lenin
Originally uploaded by innabar.

kontora pishet...

Wed, 15 Nov 2006 20:34:45 GMT

from the naches-braggery dept:

while we've been frolicking around Hungary and elsewhere, a profile of Ljova came out in the Strings Magazine! (yes, there's a whole magazine - even more than one magazine - devoted entirely to everything string-instruments)
===>>Full text here - nice article on the process of creating his recent solo record, Vjola - World on Four Strings

hear some of his latest and best tracks on MySpace: myspace.com/ljova

On how to make a flight in 45 minutes....

Wed, 15 Nov 2006 12:48:10 GMT

For future reference and posterity - our friend Jeff Perlman's departure was a bit more exciting than anticipated. Jeff was supposed to fly Alitalia out of Budapest this morning at 7:15 am. I found him sleeping in bed at 6:30 am (!!!). We called a cab and then were at a loss...

Google led us to this page of tips on what to do if you're about to miss a flight. The essence of the tips: notify the airline immediately and be really nice! While Jeff was speeding to the airport in a cab, we were able to reach Alitalia at the airport, and they actually waited for him! He got to the airport at 7 am, they sped him through the airport, checked his baggage, and he was in his seat at 7:16 am!!!!!!!

One tip I might add to the tips above is that you might want to call the AIRPORT instead of trying to look for the airline's number. When we called the airport, they transferred us to the Alitalia desk, and people at the desk were able and willing to help. Reaching Alitalia's ticketing office would probably not have been helpful.

Jammin' at Siraly in Budapest

Tue, 14 Nov 2006 21:09:42 GMT

Budapest - Siraly - Jam!
Originally uploaded by innabar.

I think that part of the reason we came to Budapest was to blend into the city music scene, discover our musical soulmates here, and bring something of our own New York melting pot here.

But for much of our stay here, we've been listeners more than participants in the scene. We assidously scout club listings every week for "interesting" music, peek into every live music cafe, stalk unsuspecting locals carrying fiddles (a common sight here), and catch as many shows as possible.

This past Saturday, the stars & the moons lined up, and we found ourselves jamming away at a great new cafe in Pest called Siraly. All-star cast in the picture -
-- my fiancee Ljova Zhurbin on the viola
--Jeff Perlman on clarinet (visiting from NY)
--Sarah Gancher on violin - our new friend in Budapest (most recently from NY)
-- Bob Cohen on fiddle - the local maven on everything folk in Hungary and Romania
-- Gergo Barcza - the saxophone player and leader of the legendary band Besh-o-Drom

We started with oldies-but-goodies klezmer tunes, ventured into some bluegrassy-jazzy pastures, and catapulted into balkan/gypsy repertoire.

Meeting and jamming with Gergo was particularly special (this was the first time we met him) - I've spent countless hours listening to Besh-o-Drom in the last few hours, and Jeff took much inspiration from Gergo's saxophone playing from the recordings as well.

And finally, we got to play with Sarah and Bob - a pure joy of musical conversation after weeks of talking ABOUT music.

I say we, though I only sang one song - there was no mic. But I was taking pictures, so that counts :)

on Kashrut - found elsewhere on LiveJournal

Wed, 08 Nov 2006 10:39:11 GMT

Диалог Моисея с Богом

Б-г: Запомни, Моисей, чтобы соблюсти законы Кашрута, никогда не вари козленка в молоке его матери, ибо это жестоко.
Моисей: Ага! Значит, мы не должны есть мясо вместе с молоком?
Б-г: Нет, я тебе говорю, что нельзя варить козленка в молоке его матери.
Моисей: Г-споди, прости мне мое невежество! То есть ты говоришь, что мы должны ждать шесть часов, поев мяса, прежде чем пить молоко, чтобы они не смешивались в желудке?
Б-г: Нет, Моисей, я тебе говорю, что евреи не должны варить козленка в молоке его матери!
Моисей: Б-же, только не поражай меня громом за мою тупость! Значит, ты хочешь сказать, что мы должны завести отдельную посуду для мяса и для молока, и, если вдруг еврей ошибется, то он должен зарыть эту посуду во дворе?
Б-г: Моисей, делайте, что хотите!!

The Secret is out on PostSecret

Mon, 27 Mar 2006 20:04:57 GMT

I have a secret to confess - one of my favorite blogs in recent weeks has been a website called PostSecret, a website that encourages people to submit one-side postcards that reveal their secrets. The result is wondrous, beautiful, funny, and sad all at once.

I guess I haven't been the only one visiting the site - here is a great USA Today article about PostSecret.
"PostSecret seems to prove three (at least) things: Lots of ordinary Americans are artistic, lots of them are poetic, and lots of them have something to hide."

Annie Proulx on the Oscars...

Tue, 14 Mar 2006 06:13:46 GMT

a brilliant article in the Guardian:
http://books.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1727309,00.html

one of my favorite quotes:
"Despite the technical expertise and flawlessly sleek set evocative of 1930s musicals, despite Dolly Parton whooping it up and Itzhak Perlman blending all the theme music into a single performance (he represented "culchah"), there was a kind of provincial flavour to the proceedings reminiscent of a small-town talent-show night."

Just Snowed In

Sat, 11 Mar 2006 17:35:34 GMT

Just Snowed In
Originally uploaded by innabar.

Kartina Repina "Ne Zhdali :)

Ljova + me arriving at the doorstep of our friends in Princeton on the eve of the biggest snowstorm in history (Feb. 11th, 2006)

This is after a surreal evening of entertaining at a Russian Wonderland-themed ball in Princeton.