Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Sergio Mendes, recent activities

Colin O’Donohoe
Pangean Orchestra

What’s new?
I have been very busy lately on some great projects!
First, I wrote and recorded my very first Country song that I’m very proud of. It was a lot of fun, and I like it.
Second, the website for the Pangean Orchestra should be up very soon. I’ve had a lot of fun finding cool video’s/songs to put up on it. It will be a great representation of the music and things that you’ll find when you come to a show, or watch online.
Finally, I finished another song for my upcoming album. The new album isn’t titled yet but is based on Buddhist Sutra’s.

I don’t think the whole multi-segment blog is working for me so well so I’m going to scratch it for now. I’ll still mention a song or band that I love though and write a little about it.

If you’d like to hear the country song I wrote send me an email and I’ll see what I can do.
codonohoe72@gmail.com

Songs I adore: Sergio Mendes Brasileiro
I especially love the first two songs.

This album begins with an amazing array of percussion. The song then breaks into a great groove and a upbeat dance tune that will make you move, unless you are dead!
My favorite song on the album is the second one: Magalenha
There is this one part of the song where a male singer is rapping/singing very fast and rhythmical. The best part of the song occurs when the women singers come in. They come in with these very straight eighth notes that completely juxtapose what you just heard from the male singer. They then break into a unison rhythmic figure and repeat the straight eighth notes one more time. I listen to the song just for that part sometimes! It is so worth it. It’s like being a kid and watching an R rated movie in hopes to see “romance”, and when there is, it’s totally worth the boring parts you just sat through. Not that I ever did that, but I’ve heard it’s like that.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

MLK and Barack Obama

January 19 2008
Pangean Orchestra
Colin O’Donohoe

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

I’m a father. Every St. Paddy’s day we listen to a lot of Irish music. Every MLK day I sit with him and show him video’s of Dr. King’s speeches. Both are enjoyable, but lead to very different conversations.

I don’t want people to think, feel, or say that the dream is realized on January 20 2008. It isn’t. It is far from realized. We take a beautiful step towards the realization, but nonetheless find many more mountains to climb after that foot is planted in the ground. Maybe we feel that Obama is the one that can lead us towards the realization, but don’t think that the game is over.

I interpret Dr. King’s dream to be one where we can go about our days with “race” being nothing to be afraid of. We shouldn’t be afraid to acknowledge our differences or similarities. How can the dream be realized when there are still many people afraid that Obama is a “secret muslim”. Can the US have a Muslim president? Gay President?(openly that is). Can we have an openly gay, muslim, right to life, woman of Mexican decent president?

Is President the only place where the dream can be realized? I feel like the entire country and its inhabitants (meaning us) have to work towards that realization.
Enjoy the festivities as I will. This is a historic event that I am so excited about. I feel that Barack Obama is an incredible man who will lead us out of this mess we are in. Just don’t let this moment allow you to disown your own responsibility towards making King’s dream a reality.

If you love his message, love humans, and think the goal/dream is worth achieving; don’t quit now. The momentum just swung in our favor, but there is still a lot of time on the clock.

ps -
Go Steelers!!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Pangean Orchestra
Colin O’Donohoe
www.donohoemusic.com

I want to thank a few places that have featured me in their podcasts/websites:
Bohemio Radio
http://www.live365.com/stations/ews

Robkast Radio
http://blog.robkast.nl/


What’s New: A few weeks ago in a blog I asked about music from Afghanistan and I was fortunate enough to get a few leads. Here is one musician that I was introduced to through the splendor of youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR8yUmzZPDM
I strongly recommend taking a listen, it is prety cool stuff.
I’ve been in Paris Texas now for about a week. I’ve taken in one of their most famous cites the Eiffel Tower (with cowboy hat that is :) I was inspired while here to write a country song. Who knows, maybe I’ll record it and be able to share it with “y’all”

I’m also moving ahead as best I can with my plans to form the worlds first truly world orchestra with instruments from as many countries/continents as possible (the Antarticans have a wonderful icicle flute) As more information becomes solid I will definitely share it with ... “y’all”

Region I’m looking for this week: Biwa and other gagaku music. The Biwa is such an incredibly cool instrument. It is like the Chinese Pipa except that the musician plays the strings with a hair comb. Does anyone know a Biwa player? Anyone play it? I’d LOVE to talk to a musician of this instrument!

Region/Topic I can share: Here is a link to a Biwa video on youtube for anyone curious about what the instrument it: (just ignore the intro, it is a good video) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnIQl5CZRr8


Songs that I adore:
Miles Davis: (Album) Kind of Blue - (Song) Blue in Green
I’m starting to forget the pieces that I’ve listed here. One song that I really love is Blue in Green. There is a radio station in Phoenix AZ called KjZZ which plays this album every night. I think they should just call themselves the “Kind of Blue” station. I know that this album is overplayed, but it still has amazing recordings on it.
My favorite track on the album is Blue in Green. The entrance of the trumpet by Miles Davis is amazing. His musicianship on this track is just heartbreaking and incredible. There really aren’t words for when a musician hits this level of mastery on his/her instrument. He transcends being a person playing an instrument and allows it to be the sound system of his soul.
I strongly recommend taking a listen to this song if you haven’t already heard it. If you have, listen again, and if you’re in Phoenix, just turn on KJZZ and I bet it is playing right now!
PS- I apologize for the sentence structure of that last sentence.
Have a great week!
Colin

Monday, January 5, 2009

Pangea, what's new, Persian music, Laos-khaen, 16 tons

Colin O’Donohoe
Forming the Pangean Orchestra - reuniting the world through sound
Pangea

What’s New:
I’ve been writing a lot of different music lately. I just had a song of mine recorded called “Burning Whiskey Blues” I’m also trying to move forward with plans for the Pangean Orchestra. Hopefully, I’ll have more to report on that front by February.
I’m thinking that 2009 will be an amazing year for all of us. I had a great time in ’08 and am even more optimistic for ’09. I’ve been taking some time to look back on my successes and failures of ’08 to see how I can do even better this year. I don’t like to dwell on the failures, but I’m trying to see what went wrong to change it for this year. The successes are much more fun to look at. It is like practicing music, it is always nice to play a song you know rather than practice the parts that kick your butt!

Region I’d like to learn more about: music of Iran.

Do I have any Persians in the house? Can you give me some names of some Persian master’s that I should check out? Any Persian songs that are famous and have survived numerous generations? I know I have to have at least one reader who knows about this stuff, so come enlighten me!

Region I can share with you. Laos - Khaen

Have you ever heard of a khaen? Have you ever heard of Laos? It’s ok, a lot of people haven’t.
This instrument is a lot like a harmonica. The weird thing that I find with it is, you don’t get any tone unless you cover a whole for a certain pitch. Most wind instruments that I’ve played give you a note regardless of where you put your fingers. The khaen only sounds once you put your finger on a hole. Also- you can play as many notes as the holes you cover. Each hole is a certain note, unlike the flute/sax/and other western wind instruments that only allow you to play one note depending on the comination of how you place the fingers, the khaen keeps adding notes as you add fingers allowing you to play chords.
I think it sounds a lot like a Casio keyboard from the 80’s, but that’s just me.
To check it out, go to this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egdC4HJpWJg
Enjoy something new :)

Song I adore: 16 tons.
This is a pretty cool song. I like the lyrics and I like that it is a bit of oral hisory. It is one thing to learn about the company mining towns, it is another to hear a song about a miner who is explaining just how difficult it really must be to be a miner. Take a listen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBkrAESUbyI
When you listen to it, see if you think it reminds you of the recording from the “pirates of the Carribean” ride. Remember, it’s a pirates life for me? They have a similar wind interlude. Besides that, it is a pretty cool sounding old school jazz/pop song.