by Kurt Knecht | Jan 11, 2012 | Carter Albrecht, kurt knecht, Uncategorized
(N.B. This is not so much of a story about an actual gig as it is an example of the colorful characters you get to meet when you live the life of a wandering musician. In this case, the specific character is Carter Albrecht who was tragically killed in Dallas. You can...
by Kurt Knecht | Jan 7, 2012 | Ficino, kurt knecht, Uncategorized
I have been re-reading some of Marsilio Ficino’s commentary on Plato’s Symposium. Ficino was writing in 1475 at the beginning of the Italian Renaissance. He is basically continuing the Platonic thought in the tradition of Plotinus. Beauty and Love are very...
by Kurt Knecht | Jan 5, 2012 | kurt knecht, Manly Men's Chorus, Mannenkoorts, Uncategorized
This performance was sent to me by Mannenkoorts, a gay men’s chorus in Holland, a few years ago. It is still one of my favorite performances. I love hearing it sung with the Dutch consonants.
by Kurt Knecht | Jan 4, 2012 | gigging stories, jason mendelsohn, kurt knecht, Uncategorized
One of the unspoken rules of gigging is helping your fellow musicians when they receive unwanted advances from listeners. If someone comes up to the stage with a song request, there are ready made phrases to thwart them. Normally, you say something like, “The next...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 30, 2011 | aesthetics, education, kurt knecht, St. Austine, Uncategorized
In De Musica, St. Augustine continues to refine his artistic theory in the tradition of Greek thought. Musical rhythm is related to the rhythm of the universe is related to the rhythm of the body is related to the rhythm of vegetables grown ad infinitum. The passages...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 24, 2011 | go tell it on the mountain, kurt knecht, Uncategorized
So, the story of this piece is, I had this thing called the “little big band” at my church gig. I was writing charts for them. One Christmas, I wrote a chart for “Go Tell it on the Mountain”. After we played it, I thought it would work as a...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 21, 2011 | Uncategorized
Last night, my dear friend Tinsley Silcox and I were texting about TTBB rep. It reminded me that I actually did write something for TTBB chorus other than the all too ubiquitous Manly Men’s Chorus. Here is the fabulous Gary Packwood conducting the Louisiana All...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 20, 2011 | aesthetics, kurt knecht, St. Augustine, Uncategorized
In De Ordine, St. Augustine seems to be under the full sway of Plotinus when it comes to the idea of artistic creation. He argues that you can get your soul “out of tune” by immoral actions.“For to the soul that diligently considers the nature and the power of...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 19, 2011 | gigging stories, kurt knecht, organist, Uncategorized, wedding
I always wanted a great wedding story. Every organist has a wedding story, and for years, I did not have one. When we gathered for our secret organist meetings to complain about brides requesting “It’s a small world after all” for a processional and grooms requesting...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 17, 2011 | gigging stories, kurt knecht, Uncategorized
In the late seventeenth century, there was a fantastic musician named Dietrich Buxtehude. He landed a sweet gig as music director in the city of Lübeck.. He could play the organ so well that people flocked from all over Germany to hear his concerts on Sunday...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 15, 2011 | Advent, Jonah Sirota, kurt knecht, SPACE, St. Mark's on the Campus, Uncategorized
One of the great places of peace and enjoyment in my life is our Wednesday night service at St. Mark’s on the Campus. It’s filled with incense, candles, and lots of silence. We sing Gregorian chant and say old prayers in new ways. The service usually...
by Kurt Knecht | Dec 8, 2011 | Uncategorized
(If you missed part 1, you can read it here.)I didn’t see Pate for a few years until I received a phone call for an industrial show in Naples. “Hey Jenn,” I said. “I just booked a gig in Naples to play with Smokey Robinson.”“Really?!!!” she gasped.“Yeah. Who’s Smokey...
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