tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22495319613437662322011-11-14T19:54:27.391-08:00an improvising musician's thoughts, news, blather, and more...Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.comBlogger251100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-88732850334660347132011-03-15T16:20:00.001-07:002011-03-15T19:26:09.387-07:00

Last week I attended an event at Hunter College called Palestine: Then & Now – The Road to Freedom, presented as part of Israeli Apartheid Week, a seven-year-strong show of support for Palestinian rights, observed on approximately 50 US college campuses each year, and usually attracting some much-needed attention to the BDS movement of nonviolent resistance against the Israeli occupation and

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-86220405285750357892011-03-04T10:02:00.000-08:002011-03-06T04:22:03.060-08:00

When I posted on Facebook that I was going to a debate at the New School about the Goldstone Report, a friend of mine responded, “What is there to debate?” I felt the same way, having read large portions of the Report myself, and finding its revelations about the IDF’s “Operation Cast Lead” truly shocking, but I do have some awareness that there are in fact people who question its legitimacy, and

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-50280653146037596402011-03-02T11:05:00.000-08:002011-03-02T11:21:46.704-08:00

For those of you who followed my recent post on the Westboro Baptist Church and freedom of speech, today the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Westboro Baptists in the suit brought against them by Albert Snyder for picketing the funeral of his son Matthew, a US Marine who died in Iraq’s Anbar Province. Judge Alito was the lone dissenter. 21 news organizations joined other groups in urging the

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-64272175669935401262011-02-26T19:01:00.000-08:002011-02-26T19:07:28.648-08:00

Sometimes the sheer number of important causes in the country and around the world can be truly overwhelming to me. It’s so easy to look around and see problem after problem and feel confused about where to start. How do we decide what’s most important? Most of us don’t have the time to fight on every worthy front, and even if we did we probably wouldn’t be as effective as if we focused on just a

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-72909740103129407752011-02-07T08:34:00.000-08:002011-02-07T09:18:38.715-08:00

[I wrote this a few weeks ago when every other word being uttered online was "Arizona." Sorry I'm late, but I need to get this off my plate so I can feel justified moving on to more current matters. --RR]In the wake of the recent shooting incident in Arizona, an absurd battle began to erupt in the public arena, social networking media, and the press, regarding the subject of violent language and

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-91349295219450712272010-01-30T16:57:00.000-08:002010-01-30T17:28:41.149-08:00

OK, I'll admit to being totally overwhelmed. Ever since I decided that I want to go back to school there have been so many daunting hurdles, and questions to find answers to. An obvious one is 'how to afford it?' I'm a poor musician in a lot of debt, no credit, and ineligible for federal aid due to my status as a draft registration evader. Jen urged me to look into scholarships and did a

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-57005277342307950332010-01-28T07:56:00.000-08:002010-01-30T16:33:55.588-08:00

I don't think it's enough that we make art and vote. I don't think it's enough that we choose not to buy the products made by those companies we disagree with. I don't think it's enough to read books and watch movies that tell the truth. I don't think it is enough to sit in silent meditation on the impermanence of all.I believe that we must speak. We must tell those in power that we are against

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-80289759654716462502010-01-15T12:14:00.001-08:002010-01-15T14:42:42.396-08:00

On Wednesday I lined up in the cold with about 800 other people to take in a symposium at the New York Society for Ethical Culture (co-sponsored by the Indypendent) with authors Naomi Klein and Raj Patel, moderated by Amy Goodman, on the subject "how we can work for change in the current political and economic climate." As I looked around for a seat with decent sight lines it seemed the packed

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-55935703350574921152010-01-03T07:09:00.000-08:002010-01-03T08:16:27.742-08:00

I haven't done my mood any favors in the last week by continuing to read Derrick Jensen's major work, Endgame, which is a sprawling twin-volume opus that does a very convincing job of supporting its central premise that human civilization is based on violence, is unsustainable and is going to kill the planet dead unless it's killed first. Actually, Jensen lists 20 premises, but they pretty much

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-82426929934713232872009-11-16T14:12:00.000-08:002009-11-16T14:48:14.939-08:00

Last night's Crackleknob set at the Douglass Street Music Collective was a deep pleasure, both for the music and the fact that in that small, somewhat stark room, we played to the largest crowd we've had the privilege to reach so far, and they were with us! I feel these days that a lot of the community I'm a part of in NY are less than psyched about free-improv groups, and are more interested in

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-38707402865164963042009-02-19T09:00:00.000-08:002009-02-19T09:14:05.067-08:00

Hi everybody,This has been a really odd week for me, starting with a very satisfying trip to play the Red Room in Baltimore with the great Jen Baker. Devin Hurd reviewed our performance at his (always stimulating and well-written) blog: http://hurdaudio.blogspot.com/A sneak peek:"The two minds at work displayed an uncanny sense of timing that allowed for natural contours to develop and the rare

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-52295099528342458052009-02-05T12:18:00.000-08:002009-02-05T12:23:40.069-08:00

As promised, the new Point of Departure webmag has a healthy roundtable discussion with Jen Baker, myself, and Jon Raskin about the current state of creative music in such tricky times. Editor Bill Shoemaker seems to be especially interested in focusing on hardship, which I find a distraction from the more important questions we could be facing. After all, music is about a lot more than making it

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-4308189658190067062009-02-02T10:47:00.000-08:002009-02-02T11:00:50.367-08:00

I was shocked to notice recently that I haven't blogged in a year. 2008 was a confusing and intense ride, with a lot of upheaval and chaos. Now that the smoke is clearing and there's so much newness in my life (and on the horizon) I think it's a good time to get back into it, and hopefully on a regular basis.First, I want to tell you that this Friday, Feb 6th, 2009 at 4pm Eastern I'll be

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-19590668966323688122008-01-30T11:36:00.000-08:002008-01-30T11:37:14.818-08:00

New York has an expensive reputation. The classic irony: live here to catch the amazing concerts and culture happening every night, and then end up staying home because you paid all your money on rent and bills. For the resourceful though there are many incredible and affordable treasures out there, whether it's the free night at MOMA, or free concerts at Downtown Music Gallery. This week, FOCUS!

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-66109290873327509022007-11-06T08:44:00.000-08:002007-11-06T09:21:51.201-08:00

I was down for the count the last couple days, almost sick, not quite well, in that limbo in between...The Denman Maroney Quintet conquered Baltimore this weekend! Thanks to Bernard and the crew from An Die Musik for treating us so well. I had a blast playing on Denman's evil charts, as usual. Ned drove which was as luxurious for me and it was fun to get into some iPod shuffle-play blindfold

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-72991127124623970942007-10-14T17:21:00.000-07:002007-10-14T18:07:58.660-07:00

A few weeks ago was the 25th anniversary of the first gig I did with the first serious band I ever played in. We were only together for a little over three years I think, but in my memory it was a lot longer. We were incredibly prolific, writing hundreds of songs together and recording constantly. That band got me started playing bass, got me started improvising, and trained me well for the

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-37912382069390461522007-07-17T06:01:00.001-07:002007-07-17T06:18:00.717-07:00

Both my solo shows this weekend got writeups. One from David R. Adler in the Philadelphia Inquirer at http://www.philly.com/inquirer/magazine/20070716_Abstract_sounds__lots_of_rhythm.html and a far more interesting and enthusiastic account of the Balto gig from composer/engineer Devin Hurd.I am really torn when reading reviews like Adler's. On the one hand it's great to see a journalist from a

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-9499869688880869522007-07-13T07:05:00.000-07:002007-07-13T07:29:16.351-07:00

I'm playing solo in Philly tonight at the Rotunda, and on Saturday in Baltimore. For tonight's show I got a nice advance blurb by Shaun Brady in the Philadelphia City Paper: http://www.citypaper.net/articles/2007/07/12/reuben-raddingI was really glad he wrote about the 12 In 2007 project. I've been at it for 5 months and word is still just getting out.Meanwhile, for the last 4 years one of my

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-54913205323165962872007-07-02T07:41:00.000-07:002007-07-02T08:09:50.547-07:00

Going to Germany/Austria always brings up complex stuff for me. Inevitable...blurry. Everything is in an existential jumble. I've tried my whole life to escape my semitic heritage (can't), but facing the Germanic collective guilt is a puzzle, every time. How long do these things go on? Painful sometimes, watching them reduce us to stereotypes in order to praise us, instead of attack. Is it better

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-26062809572818208572007-06-26T09:21:00.001-07:002007-06-26T09:30:18.991-07:00

I'm heading off to Vienna in a few hours to play a quick gig in the Klez-More festival at Klub OST. For all of you film nuts, my hotel is supposedly about a 15 minute walk tot he Prater, where the big old ferris wheel from THE THIRD MAN still resides. I rode it 11 summers ago with Anthony Coleman on the now-infamous Myth Science tour. Those were the days. Ironically, especially since I haven't

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-40865083240481446092007-06-19T10:37:00.000-07:002007-06-19T11:26:34.007-07:00

When I first discovered the community of free improvisers about 15 years ago I was shocked to find how divided they were into little camps. There seemed to be about a dozen distinct attitudes or approaches among free players in New York. Some of these methodologies were conciously decided on by the musicians, while others simply seemed to naturally find their place without much overt dogma

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-58907378372393922262007-06-10T10:07:00.000-07:002007-06-10T10:11:53.909-07:00

Very cool new website addlimb from Serbia just published this interview with me:http://www.addlimb.org/eng/pages/interviews/interv_Reuben_Radding.htmlAlso interviews with other great improvisers like Greg Kelley, Christian Weber, Andrew Drury, Michel Doneda, Sharif Sehnaoui, Tomas Korber, Bertrand Denzler, and many more....

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-8149869457489683872007-06-10T09:54:00.000-07:002007-06-10T10:05:49.560-07:00

Last Wednesday I had the chance, yet again, to work with Butch Morris in one of his conductions. This one was the most enjoyable experience I've had with Butch. It was a very small ensemble for conduction: clarinet, bass clarinet, trumpet, and two double basses, curated by trumpeter Kirk Knuffke. Both the rehearsal and gig were remarkably focused and the aesthetic and sound of the ensemble was a

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-10563792793226083242007-06-10T09:27:00.000-07:002007-06-10T09:31:02.326-07:00

I was so inspired by Chris DeLaurenti's new CD, Favorite Intermissions, that I wrote a quick review of it for bagatellen.com, an excellent site about creative music and related arts and gossip. Read it here:http://www.bagatellen.com/archives/reviews/001708.html

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2249531961343766232.post-31261349249546307002007-05-24T07:49:00.000-07:002007-05-24T09:15:58.083-07:00

Wherever you think you stand on the current hot-button issue of immigration in the USA, I'd ask you to consider this: why is this happening now? What specific event brought this issue to the public arena in this time? Prior to the run-up to last year's midterm elections this issue wasn't particularly visible, and certainly wasn't generating the widespread public discussion we see currently. The

Reuben Raddinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17964609695085206586noreply@blogger.com1