Last night started out innocently enough at Cat's Art MusikCircus. At first Michi Renoir played quite softly and I was a bit concerned that this would be a night of introspection which I've said before doesn't really fly me to the Moon. However, that softness was Michi going through one part of his range as his dynamics are a huge part of his show. Within a short time he kicked off some big drums and we were off and running in another fantastic show.
It was half an hour before Michi Renoir even paused for the first time as he loves improvisation and he will play a piece for as long as he feels it is necessary. In a previous show, he never stopped for the entire hour and that was brilliant as well. People sometimes think that jazz is the only genre in which musical artists improvise but that's not true at all as it's a different form of improv but it's not the only form and Michi shows that in every performance.
(Ed: Is that the blowaway part?)
Well, sure, I've been quite dazzled by his performances lately as it seems he is pushing himself to play in ways no-one will ever anticipate. The originality of his music and the fervor with which he delivers it are extremely impressive and I've said multiple times how I'd love to jam with him. We even talked of it last night while he played in that perhaps it will even be possible whenever I get a fast enough Internet connection.
And that is what brings me to the blowaway part that sent me to the floor!
Michi remixed "I Love Rats" and added his synthesizer work to the mix resulting in a fantastic version of the song. No-one had any idea he was going to do it except for him and he absolutely took Cat's Art MusikCircus by surprise. After the show I was gushing all over the place in my appreciation for what he did and it gets even better as he said he will email me an MP3 copy of the performance. I will certainly load that out onto the podcast and SoundCloud so you can hear it too.
Thank you again, Michi, for one of the most extraordinary moments of my musical life. As Cat said, you can give a man tools to build a boat but you need to give him desire before he will start. What Michi did was tremendously encouraging and the desire to build a boat may well be stronger than it has ever been. Danke, Maestro Michi!
And then came the second show!
When Reis and Aldo started, the echoes from what Michi Renoir had done still had not died down but they rose right to it and kept the MusikCircus flying.
In one of the first songs, I remarked that Reis Alter sounded like an angel but then Aldo Brizzi brought in some heavy drums and I said that it sounded like drums from a temple and that ancient priests in temples rarely treated angelic virgins very well. Soon after he took his synthesizers into sounds that brought to mind a volcano and I thought this could not possibly go well for a lovely angelic virgin. Cat then said that Reis was not faltering and then I added that she sounded like an angelic virgin but definitely not a timid angelic virgin. Neither Reis nor Aldo ever perform anything anyone would call timid!
They went on to set Cat's Art MusikCircus afire with Reis singing in her wonderfully angelic and ethereal voice while Reis drove it with incredibly imaginative percussion and his brilliant synthesizer compositions.
At one point Aldo Brizzi said the next piece would be avant garde and certainly it was in fascinating timing and not easily predictable changes. After it was over, Medora said, well, that was different and of course it was as Reis and Aldo never do anything the same as anyone else. In fact, I'd say that everything they do is avant garde as they are always taking their music as far as possible beyond anything anyone has heard before.
And one more picture because Reis always brings out the stars when she sings in a performance that is as exciting visually as it is musically!
And so they closed with "The Girl from Ipanema" and you may think, well, I have heard that before but I positively guarantee you have not heard it the way Aldo plays it and the sensual way Reis sings it. The show was yet another marvelously inventive performance from them and it was a delight from start to finish.
And Cat and I danced!
I liked this one because Cat and I are looking at each other so lovingly and also because many of our friends are in it. You can see Reis and Aldo on the stage in the background. Michi Renoir and Janeel Kharg are dancing just in front of the stage and Medora Chevalier is dancing on the right. Medora sometimes does the costumes and choreography for a show with Reis and Aldo and then dances with them and you can see she is quite a spectacle here.
Oh yes, Cat and I danced. This was the first time we could enjoy a show together since last Thursday and we were like schoolkids who had been separated over the summer vacation!
Thank you Michi Renoir and Reis and Aldo for a magnificent night of music and thank you Cat Boucher for making it all possible!
Thank you again to Michi Renoir as "I Love Rats" started out as a practical joke just to see what would happen to a song with a ridiculous title and it has taken on a life of its own. Michi Renoir has given it yet more life and everyone loved rats last night! Danke schön!
It was half an hour before Michi Renoir even paused for the first time as he loves improvisation and he will play a piece for as long as he feels it is necessary. In a previous show, he never stopped for the entire hour and that was brilliant as well. People sometimes think that jazz is the only genre in which musical artists improvise but that's not true at all as it's a different form of improv but it's not the only form and Michi shows that in every performance.
(Ed: Is that the blowaway part?)
Well, sure, I've been quite dazzled by his performances lately as it seems he is pushing himself to play in ways no-one will ever anticipate. The originality of his music and the fervor with which he delivers it are extremely impressive and I've said multiple times how I'd love to jam with him. We even talked of it last night while he played in that perhaps it will even be possible whenever I get a fast enough Internet connection.
And that is what brings me to the blowaway part that sent me to the floor!
Michi remixed "I Love Rats" and added his synthesizer work to the mix resulting in a fantastic version of the song. No-one had any idea he was going to do it except for him and he absolutely took Cat's Art MusikCircus by surprise. After the show I was gushing all over the place in my appreciation for what he did and it gets even better as he said he will email me an MP3 copy of the performance. I will certainly load that out onto the podcast and SoundCloud so you can hear it too.
Thank you again, Michi, for one of the most extraordinary moments of my musical life. As Cat said, you can give a man tools to build a boat but you need to give him desire before he will start. What Michi did was tremendously encouraging and the desire to build a boat may well be stronger than it has ever been. Danke, Maestro Michi!
And then came the second show!
When Reis and Aldo started, the echoes from what Michi Renoir had done still had not died down but they rose right to it and kept the MusikCircus flying.
In one of the first songs, I remarked that Reis Alter sounded like an angel but then Aldo Brizzi brought in some heavy drums and I said that it sounded like drums from a temple and that ancient priests in temples rarely treated angelic virgins very well. Soon after he took his synthesizers into sounds that brought to mind a volcano and I thought this could not possibly go well for a lovely angelic virgin. Cat then said that Reis was not faltering and then I added that she sounded like an angelic virgin but definitely not a timid angelic virgin. Neither Reis nor Aldo ever perform anything anyone would call timid!
They went on to set Cat's Art MusikCircus afire with Reis singing in her wonderfully angelic and ethereal voice while Reis drove it with incredibly imaginative percussion and his brilliant synthesizer compositions.
At one point Aldo Brizzi said the next piece would be avant garde and certainly it was in fascinating timing and not easily predictable changes. After it was over, Medora said, well, that was different and of course it was as Reis and Aldo never do anything the same as anyone else. In fact, I'd say that everything they do is avant garde as they are always taking their music as far as possible beyond anything anyone has heard before.
And one more picture because Reis always brings out the stars when she sings in a performance that is as exciting visually as it is musically!
And so they closed with "The Girl from Ipanema" and you may think, well, I have heard that before but I positively guarantee you have not heard it the way Aldo plays it and the sensual way Reis sings it. The show was yet another marvelously inventive performance from them and it was a delight from start to finish.
And Cat and I danced!
I liked this one because Cat and I are looking at each other so lovingly and also because many of our friends are in it. You can see Reis and Aldo on the stage in the background. Michi Renoir and Janeel Kharg are dancing just in front of the stage and Medora Chevalier is dancing on the right. Medora sometimes does the costumes and choreography for a show with Reis and Aldo and then dances with them and you can see she is quite a spectacle here.
Oh yes, Cat and I danced. This was the first time we could enjoy a show together since last Thursday and we were like schoolkids who had been separated over the summer vacation!
Thank you Michi Renoir and Reis and Aldo for a magnificent night of music and thank you Cat Boucher for making it all possible!
Thank you again to Michi Renoir as "I Love Rats" started out as a practical joke just to see what would happen to a song with a ridiculous title and it has taken on a life of its own. Michi Renoir has given it yet more life and everyone loved rats last night! Danke schön!
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