It is easy to get spoiled in this era of instant access. So let's just take a moment to appreciate what Recess Monkey has done. They filmed -- with six cameras -- their latest 54-minute kids show at Seattle's Teatro ZinZanni and put it on the internet for you to watch for free. It's from their "Tambourine Submarine" show this past summer and fall and, in addition, to their high-energy live show, the show features some clowning (beyond Jack's and Drew's and Korum's), hula-dancing, and acrobatics. I'd put the ratio at about 80% Recess Monkey / 20% circus, but close to 100% fun. (Also, props for the '90s and even '80s rock song shout-outs.)
Interview: Monique Martin (SummerStage)
Monique Martin is the Director of Family Programming for the Arts and Cultural Division of the City Parks Foundation in New York City.
What that really means (in part) is that she's responsible for putting together what might just be the biggest performing arts series for families in the country, the incredibly diverse in medium and style SummerStage Kids series.
After hearing Martin talk about booking kids shows at this year's Kindiefest, I thought that her views on what makes for a successful show and series would be of interest not just to musicians but also to fans and families who might be interested in bringing family music to their own communities. My conversation with Martin exceeded even my expectations. Do read on. (And, if you're a presenter and you're interested in helping to create new works of art, make sure you read to the end and drop Martin a line.)
Zooglobble: What are your first musical memories?
Monique Martin: I grew up in Berkeley with a dad, who was an amateur jazz musician. He'd play piano -- jazz, bluesy stuff, boogie-woogie, make up songs. He was also a beautiful whistler -- such a sweet sound, I have a very strong memory of that.
My parents were music lovers, and we all played piano. My mom was a theatre enthusiast -- we'd see touring Broadway shows and buy the show album. Dreamgirls and others. We listened to soul music, like the Jackson 5, the Spinners and James Brown.
Did you try to imitate your dad whistling?
Yeah -- we'd have whistling contests. There's another form of whistling my dad did, too, where you're blowing into your thumb knuckles and it makes a similar sound of blowing into a conch shell or certain birds. We'd try to imitate him with those.
How did you get to New York producing concert series?
I moved to New York City to work in theatre -- I was a stage manager on Broadway for ten years and also worked off-Broadway and with national and international touring productions. Then I worked in the music industry as a music tour manager.
I then worked as a theatre consultant and did some PR and Marketing. It was through that that I started curating shows -- Joe's Pub and elsewhere -- and cut my curatorial teeth. I worked with the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, which was one of creators of the River to River Festival in response to 9/11. I was mentored there by [then-Executive Director] Liz Thompson on presenting shows within a festival setting.
For those readers who are not in the New York area, can you tell me a little bit more about SummerStage?
The series is produced by the City Parks Foundation, which encourages New York City residents to become stewards of their city parks. It's part of the Arts Division, which seeks to brings arts to communities that might have limited access to arts interaction generally.
City Parks Foundation presents 1,200 programs in 700+ parks over the year, including sports programs, educational, dance, music and theatre programs. The family series includes over 100 programs from June through August in 35 parks.
How do you measure success of a show or the series -- are there different definitions of success?
Within a song, what can they (the audience) take away? What is the learning experience -- not in a moral sense, but did you learn that you can clap in rhythm, did you see an instrument that you've never seen or heard live before, learn a new word or two in another language? I don't come from an arts-in-education background, but I'm looking for artists that are not performing by rote -- I'm looking to see if they really have an understanding of who they're performing for, and care.
With funders, the question is, "what is the long-range impact of the performance?" Education is not shrinking at the same pace as other funding streams. The long-term impact of interest could be building community, is the community engaged. So how does one establish a residency within a festival setting? I've begun having artists return, so instead of the "fresher, better" approach to festival programming, you build on what you did last year.
There's a tremendous amount of diversity in the SummerStage kids' lineup. Is that a function of being in the diverse New York City environment or a deliberate effort on your part?
It's a combination. I feel like it's my responsibility to bring in artists who might not have thought of performing for kids.
I'm looking for musical, genre and cultural diversity. For example, there's a Family Day this Saturday, and I've got a guy who does juggling and magic, as well as another juggling duo. One of the artists was concerned about why there'd be two juggling acts on the same day, but they're very different -- one is very energetic with lots of audience participation, while the other is more about math and how it informs synchronization in juggling.
Sometimes with jazz artists or poets, there's not the respect for this family audience, they'll feel offended -- "am I washed up?" I tell them that it's like low-hanging fruit -- these audiences deserve good performances. There's something beautiful about the freshness of young audiences. I inherited this program and there had been some artists that had been there for years performing the same show over and over. I've gone to the effort to broaden the artist pool.
As for New York City itself, there are immigrants from all over the world, but it's not just as simple as booking Spanish acts in Spanish-speaking communities. For example, the Sunset neighborhood in Brooklyn has lots of different Latin communities, but there's also an Asian community and residents from the Caribbean. Once a community partner, after seeing a calendar, asked "Are you kidding? Three Latin acts? What about country? Roots?"
The world's more global now; it's the responsibility of the presenter to ask, "how can we reach deeper?" It's good for everyone.
It reflects my music growing up. Yes, we listened to a lot of jazz and R&B, but also music from Mexico, Africa and classical.
What is the response from artists who stretched, expanded into the family shows?
All are blown away by the enthusiasm of family audiences. There's no filter, no qualms about walking out if it's boring. They're surprised and delighted by the honesty. Some of the artists are thinking about the show itself; others as a pathway, "Great. Now can I get on the main stage?"
What are your future plans for the series?
One thing I'm interested in is contemporary circus. There's no fourth wall, it's created to be engaging. So we're putting on the first International Contemporary Circus Festival, with troupes from places like Columbia, Brazil, San Francisco, Montreal.
Even before I got here [SummerStage], I was interested in non-traditional artist collaborations. I want to know, "What would you love to do?" You see someone like Laurie Berkner, who has appearances with orchestras. She has the luxury of thinking big, but I don't know if that's just a result of her success or how she thinks as an artist.
"What is your wildest dream?," I would ask an artist. I would love to see an opera but broader, like the Lemony Snicket show. How can we make something on that scale accessible to everyone. I'm interested in a big show that can travel throughout the five boroughs. Not just your normal 45-minute concert.
If there are other presenters who would be interested in creating a show like that, they should get in touch.
Interview: Korum Bischoff (Recess Monkey)
It's can be hard to be the new guy, especially the new guy in the trio of beloved and very active musicians known as Recess Monkey, but new drummer Korum Bischoff seems to have pulled off the transition from longtime drummer Daron Henry with nary a hitch. Daron's announcement of his departure from the band well in advance of his actual departure helped to be sure, but having spent some time talking with Korum in Brooklyn during Kindiefest, it's also clear that Bischoff's a very talented musician with a friendly, thoughtful personality that meshes well with his two bandmates.
Bischoff answered some questions via e-mail post-Kindiefest, so read on to hear about playing with David Bryne, playing in a bear suit, and how kids are dealing with the transition from Daron to Korum.
Zooglobble: What are your first musical memories?
Korum Bischoff: My dad is also a drummer and my first musical memories are centered around hanging out with my dad in his home studio (which was rare in the '70s) with different musicians that would come through. There was always some group of disco musicians or punk rockers hanging out in the house. I remember watching election night returns sitting with the Butthole Surfers the night Reagan was first elected! When the studio was quiet, he'd let me bang on his drums and piano and we'd record little songs together.
What's your professional musical background prior to joining Recess Monkey?
Immediately prior to joining Recess Monkey, I was playing with fellow kindie musician Johnny Bregar. But before that, and prior to a 6-year hiatus after my first son was born, I was playing with a jazz-influenced indie rock group in Seattle called The Dead Science. We put out a few albums on an independent label and toured up and down the West Coast a couple of times a year. I still play non-kindie music with my brother Jherek in different configurations, usually orchestral in nature. We recently played at Seattle's Paramount and Moore Theatres and at Merkin Hall in Manhattan with David Byrne on vocals among others.
What if anything did you learn from working with circus folks [Bischoff previously worked for Teatro ZinZanni] that prepared you for life with Recess Monkey?
Interesting question! I think what I learned was whatever you do, you have to commit to your choice, that people will always route for the underdog, and that it's okay to look like a fool -- everyone can identify with the red clown. When we laugh at the clown, we're laughing at ourselves.
Were there any weird parts about replacing Daron in the band?
Truthfully, no. He gave the guys ample notice that he was ready to move on. I had been working with them all on the live circus production of "In Tents" at Teatro ZinZanni so it was really a pretty natural fit. In fact, I was playing a giant bear in the show who took over on drums at the end of the show and played "Human Cannonball" with the band. I guess it was foreshadowing in a way.
Does your presence (instead of Daron's) confuse some kids who are longtime fans of the band?
The first few gigs I'd end up with a kid at the merch table or at the front of the stage that would stare up at me in silence (I'm a lot taller than Daron [Ed: I can vouch for this.]) for a couple of minutes and then say "...you're not Daron." Many of these kids come to every public show we do. After a month or two they got used to the new guy and now they are my little buddies.
What have you been surprised by as part of the Recess Monkey experience, what have you enjoyed more than you anticipated?
The most surprising elements of the Recess Monkey experience are the amount of repeat audiences, Jack's tireless enthusiasm and efficiency, and Drew's incredible songwriting and pitch-perfect singing.
What were your favorite parts of recording the new album(s)? What songs are you looking forward to playing live?
It felt great to get deep into the creative mode like only happens with multiple days in the studio. I was a little apprehensive about going into the studio since I'd only been in the band for a little over a month, but once we got rolling we just turned into a machine. We've already started playing a few of the songs live. I enjoy "The Deep End" and "Fish Sticks" in particular because they are challenging to pull off live. But others like "Tambourine Submarine" or "Shrimp" can be [fun] to just rock out on.
You have 3 distinct jobs -- communications/PR guy, drum teacher, kids musician -- not to mention all the other jobs like parent, and so forth? What are your secrets to time management?
The funny and overwhelming thing about this question is that I actually have 4 jobs: I'm the Director of Communications and Events at Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island, Washington (an internationally renowned public garden), I teach private drum lessons, I play with Recess Monkey and I am a freelance graphic designer and keep about 6 ongoing clients along with clients that come and go.
I get your question a lot, and I don't really know how I do it. I just keep working constantly. Each job uses a different part of my brain so I think I never get bored which allows be to just keep going. When I do stop, as rare as it is, I really stop. My phone is off, my computer is put away and I go days without communicating with anyone.
So how are you getting along with Mayor Monkey?
Good ol' MayMo. We haven't seen much of him lately, he decided it was time for new adventures right around the same time that Daron left the band. Strange coincidence... but true!
Photos by Kevin Fry
Newborn: Bears and Lions
There are lots of words and pictures to share from Kindiefest 2013, and I'll be doing that shortly. But I didn't want too much time to pass by before sharing the music from Bears and Lions, a new band from Hollywood, South Carolina.
I think there were other sets that were more popular and frankly better at the industry showcase on Saturday night. But I'm pretty sure if I polled those of us huddled stage right, the set that had us laughing the most and saying something like, "I have no idea what that was, but it might have been brilliant" was from this duo of two guys dressed up as a bear and a lion wearing basketball uniforms and strumming guitars, telling the story in song of a bear and a lion who... oh, what does it matter? They played a song called "Mediocre Kid" which might just be an anthem -- yes, it's about an average -- maybe even mediocre -- kid, but the song somehow manages to be inspirational. For the song "Good Boy," they managed to get Recess Monkey's Drew Holloway to act like a dog. It was just a loopy, occasionally surreal performance that resulted in people loudly shouting "Pancake Sweepstakes!" in unison.
A lot of people were reminded of The Telephone Company, and I totally get that (duo? check; surreal? check), but the first band that came to my mind was The Thinkers (duo? check; surreal? check). There's even a touch of the late, lamented Quiet Two in there, at least if they had been influenced by Southern rock rather than the British Invasion. [Edit: Not to mention, of course, fellow showcaser Ratboy Jr., though their songs are more whimsical than Bears and Lions'.]
So I haven't quite made up my mind yet about them, but I can't wait until they're ready to unleash an entire album onto the world. Listen to 5 songs below plus watch a couple live videos (not from Kindiefest), and pick up a free track here.
Interview: Jack Forman (Recess Monkey)
If Recess Monkey aren't the hardest-working band in kids music, then there's some other band who's figured out how break the 24-hours-in-a-day rule. The Seattle trio has been cranking out a new studio yearly like clockwork, touring locally and nationally, and coming up with crazy-cool collaborative notions like Kindiependent, the Seattle-area collective of kindie rockers.
Their latest project, the recently released album In Tents, has also spurred a burst of creallaborativity (that's a word I just made up to reflect "collaborative creativity"), as it was the soundtrack for a kid-friendly circus show by Seattle-based troupe Teatro ZinZanni.
Last month bassist Jack Forman took time out during a "dingy, Kafka-esque Seattle morning" (his words, not mine), to talk about the album, the circus, and keeping things fresh when you're so busy).
Zooglobble: What are your childhood memories of the circus?
Jack Forman: I didn't go to the circus a lot. I did go to the Ringling circus with my grandma in Indiana. They had real Transformers and Truckosaurus, when I was 7 or 8 years old. I've been interested in that combination of humor and darkness.
What are your favorite types of circus acts?
Oh, the contortion stuff, acrobatics, gymnasts. There's this 11-year-old gymnast named Saffi Watson in the ZinZanni show, she's just insane.
Those are some of my favorites. They're so good you sometimes forget they're just people. I saw a Cirque du Soleil show recently, and when one of the trampoline gymnasts couldn't nail a landing, it was almost a good thing, because it reminded you just how hard these things are.
Yeah, there's the humanity, too. It's refreshing to see when they've trained their whole life.
What came first - the album or the show?
The album came first -- we've been thinking about it for a couple years. We kinda joked about it -- you know, hokey melodies for 3 year-olds, dinosaurs, clowns like you'd see at a teacher supply store. But then we decided we wanted to steal back the idea from the cheesy preschool store and make it our own. Give it a rich treatment, work with Dean [Jones, musician/producer].
Four months out from recording, I mentioned it to Korum [Bischoff[, who's a drummer for Johnny Bregar and who also works with Teatro ZinZanni, and before we knew it we spent 6 monhts with them working on a storyline. Now we're so excited -- it's the coolest live show we've ever done.
So it's awesome live?
It's the first time we've played a record this fully live. We've focursed on making our show dance-driven. It's a pretty intense set, fully high-energy, sing-alongable. Kids never sit and listen. That's just what works for us. So there are a number of songs we've never played live. For this show, we play 13 of the 15 songs from In Tents.
"Carousel" is my favorite musically, underscoring the performance. There are 8 performers with costumes, a ballerina with 10-foot wings. It's collaborative, complementary. It's similar in some ways to a Flaming Lips show -- amazing visuals, interactive. There are some moments where we're part of a larger team. It's a dream come true.
Are there other favorites from the album?
"House of Cards," we don't do live, but the lyrics are really funny, and was the song most changed by Dean. It started out as a ragtime song, then became a samba with a crummy Casio loop. "Bouncy House" is really fun to play live. You nailed the comparison to "Get Back" in your review -- yeah, even to the guest on keyboards. (It was Drew's favorite song at some point at least.)
So you're probably the "Hardwest Working Band" in kids music... how do you keep the music and performances fresh?
Well, thank you for the premise of the question, that it's still fresh. I was really worried a few albums ago (around Aminal House) -- how do you do it if you think it's the best you've done? And it's been satisfying to detect growth each time. We're playing more every year, which has helped as we've played new genres and can play new licks we couldn't do a couple years ago. We've got 75-100 shows 'til the end of the year, but there's time to think about next year. Maybe a concept record, maybe something more loose.
We really just enjoy each other creatively.
Other things you're doing to help with that?
On the business stuff, I took a year off to be with [my son] Oscar. I do the booking and other stuff. It gives Drew and Daron time to have more creative energy. That's worked, I think. It's helped to preserve the artistic core of the band.
What's next?
We're playing a lot -- a lot of time on the road with library shows and on the East Coast. We'll probably add some circus shows. [Note: They're playing a handful of shows in August and September.] And we're thinking about the new record -- themes, song ideas.
Photo by Kevin Fry
Review: Cirque du Soleil KOOZA (June 2012, Phoenix)
It has been awhile since I saw my first (and, 'til now, my only) Cirque du Soleil show -- Mystere, the first Cirque show, if I recall correctly, to set down roots in Las Vegas. I don't remember much about the show (of course, the web is now a big help in that regard), but I do remember being vaguely stunned as I left the theatre. The $60 or so per ticket we paid more than a decade ago, which seemed expensive -- hey, it is expensive -- felt like a bargain after watching the show. Some of the acrobatics of the Montreal-based troupe made the crowd gasp in ways you just don't often hear outside a sporting event.
Fast forward more than a decade, and the Canadian-based Cirque has 21 shows currently (or shortly) in performance all around the world. This month, their show KOOZA set up their tent in the parking lot of the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale (suburban Phoenix), and my wife and I went to the show's first Phoenix-area performance.
I have no doubt that there are Cirque du Soleil fanatics who have definitive preferences for particular shows, and who rate the stories in each show as part of their overall enjoyment.
I am not that person. Although I am generally a person who buys into highfalutin descriptions of cultural themes, the themes for Cirque shows seem a little... too much. I mean, I buy "an adrenaline rush of acrobatics in a zany kingdom" as a tagline. But stating that "[b]etween strength and fragility, laughter and smiles, turmoil and harmony, KOOZA explores themes of fear, identity, recognition and power" oversells the narrative a bit. Sure, I think I could identify the sketch that touched on each of those issues. But that's not why I (or, I suspect, most of the attendees at any given performance) attend.
It's to see the "Wheel of Death" and other feats of acrobatics which will literally take your breath away, if only temporarily. If you want to see what the "Wheel of Death" is, you can Google for YouTube links which, theoretically, are prohibited by the terms of agreement of seeing a Cirque show. But I wouldn't do that, not for any legal reason, but because a good part of the joy and excitement of seeing these shows is the not knowing what might happen next. I wouldn't say it's like people who go to a NASCAR race in the ever-so-slight hope of seeing a big car crash, though watching one of the teeterboard artists fail to nail her landing was an unintentional reminder that these are people doing physical things that might not succeed.
Most of the acrobatics are stunning -- besides the "Wheel of Death," which, trust me, will cause you to gasp several times, audibly, the High Wire, Balancing on Chairs, and the totally-underselling-its-appeal-named Hoops Manipulation acts were my favorites. To some extent, the show takes classic circus acrobatics and amps up the entertainment value by adding crazy costumes and hair extensions and innovative stage design. I'm not saying this as a criticism -- I'm saying this to illustrate the fact that Cirque du Soleil has figured out how to improve these forms in each and every way -- both talent-wise and presentation-wise. It's the difference, frankly, between a $25 ticket and an $80 ticket.
The clowning interludes, while occasionally pretty funny, are less essential to enjoying the show. There's a pickpocket, an annoying tourist, a king, and a bad dog. They are funny, occasionally employing a little PG-13 humor, and most of the time, I just wanted them to get off the stage so we could enjoy another acrobatic entertainment.
As for the story, the show "tells the story of The Innocent, a melancholy loner in search of his place in the world." I am here to tell you that the story is irrelevant to your enjoyment of the show. I think the Innocent found his place in the world - I just can't tell you where that place is. And throughout the whole piece there's a six-piece band (and vocalists) playing along. The music and lyrics are very non-specific in their sound -- it's vaguely Indian "World Music," which no doubt makes it easier to translate the show from country to country.
Should you bring your kids to KOOZA? Well, we didn't have our kids with us, but there were more than a few slightly older kids there. While it is no means a slow-moving show, it doesn't move fast enough to consider bringing your preschooler or more antsy young elementary school student. Kids ages 7 and up will probably ooh and aah over the gymastic/acrobatic portions. Their mileage for the clowning portions will vary.
As for you, kindly adult reader, KOOZA may be over the top at times, but to a large degree, that's just the point. As long as you're willing to be awed by some incredibly skilled performers, you will, in fact, be awed.
KOOZA plays in Phoenix through July 15, and continues its tour in Houston, Dallas, and Tampa before heading to the United Kingdom in 2013. Tickets and more information are available here. Note: My wife and I received complimentary tickets for a performance. No review was required or expected in return for our attendance.
