thirteen ways

In the middle of a typically bitter Chicago winter, 8bb was fully ready to embrace all things LA: sun, shorts-wearing-temperatures, smog, and even the frustrating, sit-in-your-car-for-10-hours-per-day traffic:

The Phot and I took part in two interviews at LA’s home of classical music, KUSC. One was a pre-record for a four-hour, all-8bb-all-of-the-time evening show(!) with Jim Svejda (who, strangely, uses a Martinu piano quartet as his signature tune), which will be broadcast before our Orange County performance next month. More info as (and if) it comes.

They did manage to roll out the red carpet. Rock stars:

Our reason for staying in LA for four days after the last of our Ayre tour concerts was to perform as the “star attraction” at an Ojai Music Festival fundraiser. The venue? An amazing, multi-purpose (parties, advertising shoots, film set) space in Hollywood, featuring a bizarre, faux-Cuban backstage “villa” overlooking the room:

Below, the real star-attraction at the Ojai Fundraiser: A high-octane, cowboy boot-wearing auctioneer, who sang his way through an intriguing auction (during which we were “sold” for $2500), while still managing to play up his down-home southern twang, much to the amusement of participants:

We squeezed in another meeting of Ojai minds in advance of “our” 2009 festival. If these  artistic brainstorming sessions can feel like one-step-forward-two-steps back, then trying to get six strong musical personalities to agree was always going to be challenging. I’m not “spoiling” any secret negotiations if I reveal that there will be a lot of very interesting, collaborative chamber music on the 2009 program.

Below, “Bloody rentals!”:

Finally, a very big thank you to Richard Beene and the Colburn School for allowing us to use their spectacular new music building in downtown LA for rehearsals during our time in sunny California. The school’s facilities are quite breathtaking; it is easily the most well-kitted-out music institution I’ve seen in a long while. And all of this is provided for just 100 students. They have even moved the Lloyd Wright-designed (FLW’s son) studio of Jascha Heifitz from the old master’s backyard, rebuilding it in a large open space at the school, where it is used for violin lessons.