Scott's Journal

I haven't posted anything new for a couple of months because a) I was overwhelmed with all the tasks involved in moving your family and all your stuff back from three years of living overseas, and b) there wasn't anything to report anyway. Galaxy Portals was not a winner of the Dallas Wind Symphony Fanfare Competition this year, but I still think they're a pretty good band ( wink ). But some good news has come my way recently--the Grafton (VA) High School Band will be performing Black Tie Blu-bop at the Virginia Music Educators Association In-service Conference in November! Their director, Darren Kirsch, is an old Virginia Tech classmate of mine. I am looking forward to meeting and working with his band sometime in the very near future. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend the performance itself, but I am honored and excited that my piece is getting out there! There's also news about a possible upcoming commission, but I won't divulge any details since noth...

While we were waiting for permission to take the field for rehearsal the day of our World Bowl performance, the band spent a fair amount of time hanging out in one of those huge concrete tunnels that leads directly to the playing field from the outside.  And when you're waiting around with nothing to do for over an hour, and you have a horn in your hands, you're going to noodle. Our trombones and horns started playing Mahler 3.  At the time, I was out on the field, but you could hear this huge sound coming from the tunnel, even though this was a reasonably large stadium with a lot of ambient noise.  One particular passage coming from that huge echo chamber sounded like something that would work well in the Meyerson lobby in Dallas...wait a minute...let's think about this... And that's sometimes the way things happen.  Just a couple of notes in succession of people just fooling around can catch your ear in a unique way and start the creative juices flowing.  I had no int...

I originally planned on using this blog to post only things related to my own composing and arranging efforts. But I thought it would also be alright to comment on events that are a result of my role as a military musician. By virtue of my position, I get to do some pretty cool things! Exhibit one: Yesterday, the US Army Europe Band & Chorus participated in World Bowl XV by playing the anthems and a terrific halftime show. In the game, the Hamburg Sea Devils defeated the hometown and critical favorites, the Frankfurt Galaxy something-to-something. Never mind that, we reached an audience of 48,000, plus whoever watched on the NFL channel! First, a field's-eye view of the band in place: Here's a couple shots of me conducting the American anthem: ..and here's me conducting the German anthem (please keep in mind that when you're on a Jumbotron screen the camera adds 800 pounds): ...and a few shots of the band and chorus during the halftime show. On the other side of the...

Yesterday I did something that I said I would do a while ago, but finally got around to it. I wrote a short piano piece for my son. It is the first of what I hope will be a series of pieces for both he and my daughter (if she decides she wants to play). I don't think this will blossom into anything like Bartok's Microcosmos (in scope, quality, or significance), but it sure was fun! It's nice to just step back and write something short and simple without having to work out a large form or mess with orchestration. Of course, writing for just piano (and a relative beginner, at that) is challenging enough without adding further restrictions. The working title for the compilation: Daddy's Book of Kid Tunage

Anne and I went to see the Berlin Philharmonic this past weekend. When I saw that they were performing 'Petrushka' and Mahler's Symphony No. 1 (two pieces I studied in college), the search for other anniversary destinations was over as far as I was concerned. Thankfully, Anne agreed. :) Of course, the orchestra played fantastic, but I marveled at some other aspects of the experience. The concert was completely sold out, as apparently all of them are, but when they say sold out, they mean sold out . Every seat was filled; there were people standing in the back of the hall, and people sitting in the aisles. It was as packed as a State-side hockey playoff game. It was mostly older people in the audience, but there was a significant representation of younger people, too. (They were the ones in the aisles--would you see this anywhere in the States? On a Saturday ? I think not.) Dress ranged from suits and formal dresses to jeans and t-shirts. The young people looked like...

It is a truly momentous day. I have discovered that I can google "j scott mckenzie" and my home page comes up number 1!!! Now if you drop the 'J,' no such luck--that one will take a while to conquer. Did my parents know 30-something years ago that shaking the stigma of a hippie folk singer would be a major professional hurdle? Today, Google; tomorrow, the world! *Laughs evilly*