Cats

Weekend Cat Blogging: Behind the Camera

For years, we have been showing Luna in front of the camera for Weekend Cat Blogging. This week, we feature Luna behind the camera:

She was understandably curious about this odd setup in her favorite perch at the top of the stairs. It was in fact part of a more complex photo project I was doing, and the top of the stairs was the perfect place to frame the subject with floor as a backdrop.

You will have to wait for a future Wordless Wednesday or see my Open Studios events in September and October to see what was in front of the camera.

Weekend Cat Blogging #378 is hosted by pam and all the cats at Sidewalk Shoes.

The Carnival of Cats will be hosted this Sunday by the Three Tabbycats in Vienna, Kashim, Othello and Salome.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator. This is the 400th edition, quite a milestone!

Happy 100th Birthday John Cage!

Wednesday, September 5, marked the 100th birthday of John Cage, one of our musical heroes. And we would like to celebrate with my favorite photo of him featuring him with a very Luna-like black cat.

John Cage’s centennial has been celebrated widely this year in concerts, exhibitions and articles. Locally, we have had numerous concerts, including a series by sfSound that included a concert of Cage’s most experimental music. I was privileged to play in Music for Amplified Toy Pianos at that concert. On the other end of the spectrum, I heard a concert of chamber music, for voice, piano and prepared piano. And last night I attended a concert of the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival celebrating Cage, and event that included a performance of his most famous work 4’33”. These three concerts show the large range of his music and influence, in unconventional instrumentation, chance processes, and electronics. But his influence also extends beyond his music – he was a major influence in Fluxus (though how closely associated he was the actual movement is unclear to me), and his scores often turn up in museums as works of visual or conceptual art. And of course we have referenced him many times in articles on this site, including a mention of his 99th birthday one year ago.

There is even a John Cage Prepared Piano App for iPhone and iPad, authorized by the John Cage Trust with well-mastered samples from his prepared-piano music.

I have been having a lot of fun with it and hope to use it in a tribute of my own sometime soon.

Weekend Cat Blogging: Luna, Modernist Cat

For Weekend Cat Blogging, we have a photo of Luna once again posing with our modernist decor at CatSynth HQ. Don’t you think she would make a great model for Dwell?

As with most shots of Luna, this one was by chance. She sat down on the corner of the Le Corbusier-knockoff sofa and I managed to grab the iPad and snap a photo of her. No effects or processing, just a straight photo.

Luna also gave us a bit of a scare last weekend. I got home from one of my performances to find her quite sick with some sort of stomach problem, scary enough that we went to the emergency vet for the first time. (Whenever one sees red associated with one’s cat, it’s a major warning sign.) Fortunately, she seems to have recovered well and is back to her normal self. I still don’t know what happened, but I am grateful that she is fine now.

Weekend Cat Blogging will be hosted by Kashim, Othello and Salome at PaulChens FoodBlog?!

The Carnival of the Cats will be up this Sunday at iInfidel.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator

Weekend Cat Blogging #376: South Berkeley Cat

I encountered this cat in south Berkeley yesterday, as I was unloading my equipment for the Reconnaissance Fly show at the nearby Starry Plough bar.

This cat was quite friendly and greeted me with a tiny voice. I of course had to set the equipment aside for a moment to play. A passerby saw us and said “Too friendly!”, to which I replied “there is no such thing.”

Despite my invitation, the cat did not join us at the Starry Plough for the performance later that evening. But the show did go quite well.

Weekend Cat Blogging #376 is hosted by Vincent at Judi’s Mind Over Matter. We’re wondering where Jules is – he looks a lot like the cat we are featuring this weekend.

The Carnival of the Cats will be up this Sunday at Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat. Our friends Nikita, Elvira and Keeril are preparing for a big move, and we wish them well!

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.