Sitting In // rehearsals // jamming // cutting through fear

I'm missing my big band terribly! Last night (I'm midway through my NYC artistic/musical songwriting adventure)  I crashed a Hungry March Band's rehearsal. I was terrified! Maybe even more so than my first Minor Mishap Marching Band rehearsal almost 2 years ago. I met Hungry March during last years Honk! Boston. They are a 20 piece brass band with dancers and a very cool NYC vibe. The tunes are more circus-y than Minor Mishap's, but the skill level is about on par with one another. Minor Mishap songs are not easy to play, even though the band makes them sound like it.

The thing about me is I'm an ear saxophone player! I'm pretty quick, but have big gaps in my knowledge about theory and am a horrible site reader. It gives me terrible anxiety to step into a room with a new song that's charted.

Which is what Hungry March was working on last night! I was so intimidated and insecure that I kinda ruined the fun for myself.

But, 1/2 way through the rehearsal they were playing a New Orleans style tune and one of the trumpet players came over and whispered to me- you take t next solo....

Oh God!! No! 

IOVE soloing and I thrive on it. But sometimes I fall really short and bomb it.

This time I didn't...it was ok. Passable but far from brilliant! I made it through without a bomb so I felt better.

Up until then I was full of fear but that solo dispelled it a bit. I could relax, I had proven myself to myself in a small way.

I really feel this way/// almost everytime I step into a rehearsal room with new people. It's like I have something to prove - prove to myself first and then them. ...Or maybe just them....

Last night I just HAD to go to the Hungry March rehearsal, even though I didn't want to, even though I was going to torture myself, even though I can't site read.

It's no coincidence that I have my Bari Sax out now, and by my side is the Rubank Elementary Method for Sax. 

One step at a time I'll beat this ignorance! 

Here we go...

DD Dagger in Brrrrroooklyn! Tres Belle!!

So my friends' friends owns this salon and I headed out to Brookie to get a nice facial. (She offered a discount!) 

Unfortunately I found myself on Bond street in Manhatten instead of Brooklyn. But, 30 mins later I found my way and had an amazing facial!! And za gals darkened my brows too:-)

Thanks Tres Belle! 

From Deep Sombreros to Morphine

After all these years some of the sax work I did with the Deep Sombreros still holds up. I had a favorite song that neither me or Peter (the other contributor) wrote that I adore. It's called Ay Chingo-go-go! 

Our drummer Joel had a roomie Matt Giles. He was a guitar player that also played trumpet in high school. Maybe inspired by our garage rehearsals, He wrote this beautiful Mexican- Herb Albert-y song that captured the heart of what the Deep Sombreros were about. Of course Peter added his touch by shouting, at Chingo-go, go! During the song. Hilarious.

A take a solo in the middle, I feel like a queen! I felt like the real deal every time we started that tune. It was solid. 

Wait, I am the real deal! I just didn't know it back then. 

In the car today I played it once, I played it twice. A true summer jam.

Then Morphine came on. How appropriate! 

I reflected on his short poppy sax licks. Charlie Parker is my favorite player, but the sax player for Morphine is next. 

It's the perfect mix of rock and diminished minor notes that bring in the blues. Genius.

Lets say a prayer that long time pal Mark Shuman finishes his documentary on Morphine soon. 

He knew them, and brought me to the one and only concert I saw of theirs at Liberty Lunch in the late 90's in Austin.

That documentary is long overdue! 

Glass Arts and big band music in Dallas Texas

Hello arts and music lovers! I'm writing this when all 18 of my band mates lay snoozing in various parts of Brad Abrams glass studio.

I've learned I'm usually the first asleep and often the first awake.

My band, Minor Mishap Marching Band in the last year has taken me to some interesting places. Places that I wouldn't normally attend on my own as a spectator: Art Outside, Mardi Gras New Orleans, and now to Dallas to see Brads work and meet his friends.

He is a talented glass sculpture artist, both fusing and blowing glass, to create thick, textured layered pieces that are translucent and earthy.

Last night we played two sets while fire dancers spinned and people danced.

Afterwards he showed me around the studio and told me about his work. Since I made stained glass and tried my hand at fusing glass for 10 years this was a real treat. He leaves his furnace blazing 24/7!! "It's an addiction", he says.

Late night before bed Brad made us a pudding pie with berries and his best friend Allison told me about rock and roll stories in the nineties- Nirvana coming to town and her times as a DJ. She was very sweet!!!

Http://www.bradabramsglass.com

Http://www.dddagger.com

Http://www.minormishap.com

End on Something Positive: NurKie! Dagger's Kissing Cousin

A new dd dagger video in the works for Radixxx, by DD Dagger

We got some production pics for you!!! The vid will be shot in my home studio by Kirk and Mark for the song, Finger off the Trigger, which I consider the single. Plz listen to it on itunes and buy it! It will feature the La Pistolle Dancers and the live band. We'll have a big party to celebrate and show the vid. In the meantime, the band has a short residency at counter culture vegan restaurant in east Austin in Oct. 18,25 from 7-9pm. http://www.countercultureaustin.com in Austin TX. Also, plz follow @dddagger on Instagram! I'm very prolific on there.

Spring 2012 Painting a Day Fundraiser>again at last

Yellow Reflection - Painting # 1 - Radixxx Fund-raiser

Hi Peeps! please check my facebook or DD Dagger Page for the painting a day fundraiser deets. I'm trying to press my cd that's just been digitally released. Here's todays painting. I'll be doing it for 21 days...That's enough $$ right???