Where Pianos Roam

Early On a Sunday Morning: This Is Not Goodbye

 
I have decided to take an extended break from blogging for a while.  So, this will be my last post here on WPR until some time next year.  This decision has not come easily because I love my little blog.  Other things, however, are calling my attention and will need it undividedly. 

First off, I hope (and pray) that work on my next album of music will get started.  There's a lot involved, and I need to just make it happen. 

Secondly, there's some visual art work that I want to work on as I continue to develop my online art store Tropical Shade of Green.

Then, of course, I've launched a new season of The Adventures of Oreo and Buttercup.  There are ten new episodes up and coming. 

Lastly, I have some living to do.  Being a resident in downtown Nashville is not something that I will take for granted.  I want to take the time to enjoy these surroundings and connect with people.  I love where I live right now, and it's important for me to embrace it all. 

There's one other thing that I'm working on, but let's just keep that a secret for now. 

So there you have it.  I have a good bit to do in my absence from blogging.  I anticipate a return to WPR in the spring of 2012, but we'll see how that goes. 

I'll be posting a bunch of links to some of the more popular and some of my favorite blog posts over the last three years in a couple of days. 

I will still be very active on my main website (gordonroque.com) and on facebook and twitter so I won't be disappearing completely. 

This is not goodbye, just a "see you later!".

So, from the entire cast and crew here at WPR, including myself, La Gordita, Courage (The bike), Elliot (The Coffeemaker), Petrie (the Rhinocerous Pillow), The Fawn (my travelling bear companion), Balthazar (the car), Edith (the giraffe), Mirabelle (the narcoleptic piano), Oreo (tiny grand piano), and Buttercup (rowdy bench), we are signing out until next time .  .  .

See you later.  (-:

-Gordo

 

Early On a Sunday Morning: Should WPR Continue?

I have a question for anyone who cares to give an answer.  I've been thinking lately about this blog "Where Pianos Roam".  While I do enjoy the opportunity it gives me to write, I'm wondering if I should continue doing it.  It takes up a good bit of time that could be spent developing more visual art, making more Oreo and Buttercup episodes, and working on my next album.  Besides, I'm not sure that what I give in this place is something that you can't get from other sources. 

So there, do tell.  Does anyone out there enjoy reading this blog?  Should I keep it going or lay it to rest?

I welcome anyone's thoughts and feed back through comments left here or on my facebook page.

Thank you.

-gordo

Early On a Sunday Morning: Today is my birthday!

So yeah!  Not gonna do too much today.  I slept in, and I've been reading all of the sweet birthday messages on facebook.  For all of the folks who have been kind enough to post a warm birthday wish on my FB page, I am deeply grateful, and as a gesture of my love in return, you all will be getting individual download codes to get free digital copies of my first album Seahorses. 

I am also still raising funds to record my next album.  To donate, please go here: 

CLICK HERE TO DONATE!!

Tonight, my Mom is cooking a sweet birthday dinner for me.  Life is good.

Tomorrow, the festivities continue.  I unveil something brand new .  .  .

Look for announcements and links on ALL of my websites!!!

Hugs from the Birthday Boy!

Piano Friday: Tori Amos Sings Baker Baker

The inspiring Tori Amos is releasing a new album this fall called Night of Hunters.  I count her as one of my influences and one of my favorite pianists.  She has released the first single off of that album which is called "Carry".  Unfortunately, the powers that be at youtube won't let me embed the newly released music video.

Instead, here is a clip of Tori performing a sweetly sorrowful and thoughtful little song of hers from her second full-length album "Under the Pink".  It's one of her classics and one of the few songs of hers I've covered in public.  What I love about Tori's music is its ambiguity.  While you can get a sense of what the song is about, she nevers tries to hit you over the head with anything defined and concrete.  Its meaning plays itself out in any number of ways depending on the eyes of the listener.  With Tori, one can only hover around something substantive and true.  The truth can be an elusive, tricky thing afterall.

To me, this song has always felt like a prayer--the kind of prayer in which one longs after a former lover.  It is oh so tender. 

Baker Baker .  .  .  .

 

Thank you, Ms. Amos.  I am looking forward to hearing the new album. 

If you see a piano, say Hi.

(-:

Early On a Sunday Morning

I have had a full week of activity and discovery.  It's been quite fun actually.   Today, I wanted to share a little bit of what I've been up to! In my room, I have two potted plants that were in dire need of some tender loving care.  

With the expert help from my Mom who's been gardening for years, we were able to spruce them back up and give them new life.

I think James Dean would approve. 

Admittedly, I am a thrift store junky.  Mind you, I don’t buy oodles and oodles of pointless stuff.  I have a rule to only walk out of a thrift store/Goodwill with no more than two items.  I absolutely have to either really want them or really need them.  Each items gets a full trial in my head as to whether or not it is guilty of becoming a possession of mine.

Once in a while, I come across a true find.   This week I stumbled upon a vintage gem amongst a dusty and weary heap of old gadgets and gizmos.  I found a tiny vintage Casio keyboard.

OMG.  It wreaks of bedazzled awesomeness.

The Demonic Ducky is not included.

So portable.  So pretty.

On the reading front, I have to admit that I've been keeping things kind of light.  I am still completely enamored of this:

I love this book.  I love this book.  I love this book.  Did I mention that I love this book? Out of a total of 24 Chapters, I have only reached 17.  I am seriously dreading getting to the end.  I wish it could go on forever.  Anybody who has ever played a piano and loved every second of it, bathed in it's depth, richness, suppleness, and power, will LOVE this book.  It's gonna be in my top ten for sure.  On the day I finish reading it, I may just weep.

On random mornings here and there, I've been dabbling in this book also.

I’ll never pretend to know everything.  In fact, I most definitely do not; however, I take great pleasure in always learning new things, even when I am actually re-learning things I should have remembered.  Small doses of wisdom are a tasty remedy for the occasional madness that might ail us all from time to time.

Temper the madness by knowing it better than it knows itself.

I await the incidental arrival of a really good book.  In the past, the best books I’ve ever read were ones that I stumbled upon or were given as gifts.  I found The Piano Shop On the Left Bank while rummaging through a small bookstore in Alabama last year.  It’s title intrigued me, and I’ve been hooked ever since.  One of my favorite books of all time, The God In Flight by Laura Argiri, was found on a library shelf when I shoved it over to get to another book.  I don’t even remember what that other book was.  Another great book, The Time-Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffeneger, was a sweet birthday gift from my friend Leigh out in Seattle.  (One of several books she has recommended that I loved.)

So, I wait, ever so patiently, as one will soon bump into me on its path.

On the knitting front, I completed two small baby scarves for boys.  There seems to be a shortage of great clothing items for baby and little boys out there.  Girls have massive VOLUMES of options to choose from.  For the boys, eh, not so much.  (Though I must say that toys made for boys are pretty badass.)  I hope to do my small part to change this.

Here’s a tiny, adorable step.

Uncoiled.

I am a cheesy, blubbery sucker for a splash of color and mood lighting.  Quite rarely, I get to achieve both of these ends.  I happened to do so this week.  I've been wanting to add a more modern reading lamp next to my bed.  The one I had was more sculptural and traditional than I wanted. 

So, I found a small lamp on the clearance rack at a craft store near my house.  (Paid less than ten bucks for what was originally closer to $25)  I grabbed some yarn from my yarn basket.

So, who's your lamp-making Asian Daddy?

One strand of yarn to rule them all.

Maybe there should be more blue lamps in the world.

And here, my friends, is the intended effect, Oreo and Buttercup OOh-ing and AAAh-ing all the while.

Wow.  This blog post is pretty darn long.  I guess I had a lot to share.

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that this blog will be changing.  Later this week, it's going to undergo some fairly sizable construction.  More on this later as I won't be able to blog much due to all of the construction.  It'll all be back to normal within a couple of weeks.  (Though it's gonna look infinitely cooler.)

Happy Sunday, folks.

P.S.  Feel free to leave me a comment if you like.  I'd love to hear from you.  An Asian gets lonely once in a while.

Early On a Sunday Morning

I've been doing a good bit of knitting lately.  Through the last month I've finished three long scarves and a hat.  The first two scarves were made for two friends of mine Joe and Ronnie.   I wanted their scarves to be both casual and a little formal.  Black and grey blocks seemed to do the trick. 

Here they are donning my creations .  .  .



Then, the next scarf was one I made for myself using Caron Simply Soft yarn in blue and beige.



I'm currently a fan of doing the big blocks and using softer yarn.  It all just feels better.



I doubled up the knitting to finish it faster and to make it thicker.  Then, I added some fringe, and VOILA!!! My new scarf!!!



The hat I finished continues on with the alternating-two-color theme I've been on.  It's a snazzy red and white number .  .  .



Up next, I start on a new hat for a friend of mine.  These are called Shroom hats .  .  .



It's gonna be purple!!  Wooohoo! So, that's that folks!  I've got a few more knitting projects coming up. With my artwork, I've got some doodles, abstract stuff, and more of the Piano Ninja.  More on this later.

Before I sign off, here's a quick doodle. A flower on a Tuesday in 2009.
 


Don't forget to smile.

-gordon

P.S.  Advance tickets are still available for my Exit/In show here in Nashville on March 21.  They can be purchased online by going here: https://tickets.aftonshows.com/GordonRoqu Or, you can email me at gordon(at)gordonroque(dot)com to work out paying in cash directly.  It's all good.

Early On a Sunday Morning

Oreo, Buttercup, and I got up early this morning for some coffee and quiet time.  I had some soothing, warm coffee out of my favorite coffee cup that I bought in Seattle last year.



O and B drank tea of some sort.  They were quiet and groggy and nibbled on my cream cheese breakfast.





It's been a fun weekend.  I did a lot of knitting on Saturday.  (I'll offer a full  report on this on my next post.).  I've also been working on a small ninja project. Here he is.  The first manifestation of The Piano Ninja!



He will be adorning the covers of a small collection of live Nashville recordings that I will be giving away as part of the promotion for my next show at the Exit/In.  Ever since I was a kid, I've loved ninjas.  They're so mysterious, graceful, and all-out AWESOME!!!

The promo poster actually has him outside of his fighting ninja drag and being all Zen at the piano.



I'll have more on this on-going project soon.  Speaking of my show at the Exit/In here in Nashville.  VERY aggressive promotion for it starts this week.  I'm gonna be doing the most promotion I've ever done for a show so far.  In fact, I even have advance tickets available. 

(Go here:  www.gordonroque.com) Here are a few other things I have in the works: A youtube promo video New promo photos New music to be unveiled at my Exit/In show A new Oreo and Buttercup episode A new issue of the WWoG More shows to be announced

Oh yes.  I'm a busy Asian, but I wouldn't have it any other way. What are you up to?

-gordo

P.S. I think O and B have indigestion.  Oops.

This Blog Is Changing, fo ' shizzle.

Once in a while, I like to revamp this blog.  I've decided to do so again, but this time it'll be in a different way.  From now on, in  addition to a focus on my music and pianos, I'll also be highlighting more of the visual art and art projects that I've been working on; therefore, the look and feel of the blog itself will be cleaner, less cluttered, and focused more on the image content and text in each post.

First off, there's a new header that's pretty minimalist overall. 

Secondly, I've created an entirely white background for the blog to keep things more simple for you, oh gorgeous blog reader/visitor. To give you a sneak peak at the future of WPR, here are some examples of stuff I'll be posting from now on. DOODLES .  .  . oh snap, an asian lovin' on a piano. (that's some good lovin')



a shattered tree.

 

there was a flower in her hair.
 


PHOTOGRAPHS .  .  .

Oreo and Buttercup being all ominous and shit.



Love.

 

Through the week, there will be changes to the sidebar menu and to all of the other pages.  If you have any thoughts and feedback to share please feel free to leave a comment.

-gordon PS-  If you hug Asians, they'll hug you back.  I promise.

Early On a Sunday Morning

I've been fortunate to have the time and desire to watch movies lately.  It's really the only time I give myself to relax.  Between knitting, working on music, blogging, exercise, time with friends and family, and sleeping, my life is fairly busy these days. I wanted to take some time to share a little of what I've enjoyed lately .  .  .

District 9

I really loved this movie.   (I also need to add it to my favorites of 2009 list.)  On so many levels, this film is incredibly relevant to the ways that modern American society, and maybe humanity, exist today.  I sat at the edge of my seat the whole time.  I don't want to give anything away about it.  Surely, it is deserving of the Best Picture Oscar nomination it just received. 

Here is one of several trailers promoting this film.  It's pretty awesome.

The Brothers Bloom

Full of twists, turns, empty promises, and quirky surprises, I really enjoyed this one.  There's also a kick-ass Asian character who barely says a word but makes quite a splash through most of the movie.  Actors Rachel Weisz and Adrian Brody are past Oscar winners who give this film about con artists it's soul and essence.  Add some gorgeous cinematography to the mix and you have an effectively engaging film. 

Here's the official trailer:

By the way, last Friday I treated myself to a Toy Story marathon.  I've never seen either film, and I finally did. 

They were so good and so much fun.  I can't wait until #3 coming out in June 2010:

I have movies on the brain lately.  It's part of an effort to try to relax a little more.  I'll have more to recommend soon.

-g

Early On a Sunday Morning

Okay, now that I have done my run-through of 2009 over the past few posts, I now have one more thing do to before it's back to business here at Where Pianos Roam. I wanted to take a little time to look into the future.  Namely, I wanted to share insights into what I hope to be doing in 2010.  I've always been very selective about the projects I take on, and after much thought these are the top priorities over the next 12 months. First off, here is a list of what I know will be happening all year long .  .  .

Spending time with family and friends. Playing shows and selling copies of my album. Exercising as much as humanly possible. Reading books Knitting

Now, here is a run-through of the new works in progress for 2010

1.  New Music

I've been working on new music for quite some time now, and I've more or less mapped out a plan of action to bring this new music to fruition.  A formal announcement will be soon forthcoming.  Just know that it is most definitely in the works.  This is one of the biggest priorities this year, and there is the tallest mountain of work to get started on.

2.  Oreo and Buttercup

I have some expansion plans for these two.  Not only will there be more episodes, but plans are being made to broaden their online site and create more exposure.  This is my wacky little side project, and it's gotten a great response from just about everywhere.  I don't really understand why, but I think mainly it's because they're just so darn cute.

3.  Dragon Slaying

In a lot of ways, 2010 will be a year of reckoning for me.  There are issues I need to resolve and plans I need to make.  I'll be the first to admit that there are several aspects of my life that aren't up for public exposure and that I do not discuss on this blog, on stage, or in any public forum.  Some things are better  left unspoken.  Suffice it to say that I will be slaying some dragons this year, and I'm gonna fight to the finish. I have a lot of other little projects, but I'd say these are the big three.  There will be so much to do.  I can't wait to get all of these new adventures started.  In fact, I already have .  .  . More soon my friends. -g