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What the Hell is an ArtMusic Coffeehouse?
An Interview with Don Slepian
When you think of the most marketable styles of today's music, what comes to mind? Rock, Pop and Rap rule the airwaves. But what overlooked genres are their unobvious sources? The electrified sounds of mainstream genres actually originate from acoustic music. Elvis became the King of Rock and Roll through Country and Western and Southern Blues. Toby Keith and Faith Hill brought the talents of Hank Williams Jr. and Waylon Jennings to the Pop scene. Queen took the tuxedos off of Classical and Opera and moved them into the domain of today's Tech Metal. Yngwie Malmsteen and Randy Rhoads brought the techniques of classical violin and guitar to Heavy Metal and RUN DMC sampled classic and modern Rock tracks to create a trend that introduced new audiences to Rap. Like summer lightning coming out of a clear sky, these acoustic precedents seeded the clouds of contemporary creativity and now flash down to earth as today's Rock, Pop, and Rap.
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One man with a rare and unusual talent of his own dedicates his time to spotlighting the little known stars of the acoustic set. Don Slepian, a pioneer in computer music, is a true rarity: an improvisational electronic keyboardist. When Star Wars was released in 1976, he took to the stage in front of 11,000 people as the Arp Synthesizer Soloist with the Honolulu Symphony's Star Wars Concert. He spent several years as Artist in Residence at Bell Labs, the birthplace of computer music. Well known in New Age and Ambient Electronica circles, he is the composer of one of the seminal works of those genres, the 1981 release, The Sea of Bliss, heard repeatedly by millions of listeners on the National Public Radio program "Music From The Hearts of Space." Twice sponsored by the French Ministry of Culture, he took his music to the Pompidou Centre in Paris, mixing dancers with live computer graphics years before it became popular. Why does Don Slepian underline the talents of others above his own? What is a master of electronic keyboard improvisation doing hosting an Acoustic Music show?
Don Slepian's "ArtMusic Coffeehouse" weekly webcast show, powered by Garage Radio and webcasting from http://ArtMusicCoffeehouse.com,
brings talented acoustic musicians who perform their own original music to enthusiastic listeners all over the world. His great interviewing skills bring excellent folk, jazz, and classical artists to a comfortable live performance stage before an appreciative audience in an intimate house concert setting.
I managed to secure an interview with Don Slepian to find out why ArtMusic Coffeehouse is gaining so much momentum and to get more history behind this East Coast legend.
[Garage Radio] Don, why don't you give us a little history on where ArtMusic Coffeehouse started?
Don Slepian Starting in September 1997 and continuing for more than four years, ArtMusic Coffeehouse was a live monthly music venue in North Brunswick, New Jersey. A group of fans that loved to sit around candle lit tables enjoying talented performers. As the host and organizer, I wanted to webcast the shows but could not overcome the logistical hurdles. My wife and co-director, Jan Julia, and I moved out to Lebanon in western NJ and reluctantly gave up ArtMusic Coffeehouse concerts. Upon discovering Garage Radio and booking several webcasts on their "GR LIVE!" series, I approached the organizers, John and Mike Foxworthy, with the proposal of reviving ArtMusic Coffeehouse as a webcast series. ArtMusic Coffeehouse webcasts were launched on February 5th of this year and continue to gain listeners with each weekly show. We respect copyrights by presenting live performances of nothing but original and public domain music in an intelligent interview format.
[Garage Radio] I've listened to many of your shows. You like to start out with an impromptu synthesizer piece. Where do you draw the ideas from while playing?
Don Slepian The first 20 minutes of ArtMusic Coffeehouse is a "Keyboard Monologue," a musical version of the way Johnny Carson used to start his long running talk show. I draw my ideas from my experiences of that day and the moment-to-moment feelings I get from our live audience. I'm also influenced by my wish to provide the best possible musical prelude for the evening's featured artist.
[Garage Radio] What are your favorite styles to play?
Don Slepian I grew up listening to classical music and have a wide range of influences. I play whatever comes through my fingers. In recent shows I have been playing the Kurzweil 2600R from my favorite Yamaha DGX500 keyboard in styles ranging from Symphonic Electronica to Ragtime, Ambient to Romantic, Tonal to Abstract. My partner, Jan Julia, has been guiding me and working with me to make these improvs more focused and consistent in tone. Perhaps we're working towards a new style that has yet to be named.
[Garage Radio] You have a massive genre mix · from Folk to Classical to Jazz to World Music. Who are you primarily interested in featuring on the show?
Don Slepian I'm looking for great Acoustic Musicians who can perform an hour or more of their own original music and who are also well spoken, articulate and interesting interview subjects.
[Garage Radio] I read somewhere that you were also in radio at one point in your career. Could you tell me more about that?
Don Slepian Back in the mid 1980s, I was a frequent guest on a popular electronic music show of that time, "Synthetic Pleasure," heard every Monday night in the New York area on listener-supported free-form radio WFMU.org. WFMU was (and still is) great. I would take listener phone calls with a phone cradled on my shoulder and my fingers on the keys of my synthesizer, letting their suggestions instantly steer the music. This was true interactivity, true radio magic.
[Garage Radio] ArtMusic Coffeehouse has evolved into the Digital Age. We may have readers that don't quite understand the concept. What do you want to achieve? What are your goals for the show?
Don Slepian Our short-term goal is to create a high quality video window on your computer screen to accompany each ArtMusic Coffeehouse show, moving your listener experience up from Internet Radio to Internet Television. We will earn your trust as we produce consistently excellent shows. We will position ArtMusic Coffeehouse as the preeminent live weekly musical Internet Television show in North America, Korea, and Japan.
Our longer-term goal is to seek avenues of syndication and distribution, on the net with partners such as Lulu.com and with radio and television broadcasters who discover our great shows. Finding and retaining good business partners will give ArtMusic Coffeehouse the strength and stability to fulfill its mission in the years to come.
We love our artists and want to see them prosper and reach a worldwide audience through our efforts. We believe in the sanctity of great music and the power of fine musicians to change the world.
[Garage Radio] I heard the Electric Diamond performance in March. You actually performed with the band and you guys were phenomenal. The audience was captivated by your chemistry -- to what do you attribute that?
Don Slepian Thank you. That's unexpected high praise from a rock-and-roll fan! With band mates like electronic wind synthesist Stuart Diamond and the elegant and talented violinist Karen Bentley, a group like Electronic Diamond is perfect for ArtMusic Coffeehouse. The audience loved the theatrical impact of hearing this music created live in a small living room concert, and were amazed to watch three musicians improvise music together that had cohesive classical structure and form.
[Garage Radio] Aside from that show, what would you say are your favorite performances on AMC?
Don Slepian I liked Alan Wasserman's classical show, Luiz Simas's Brazilian piano show, Octavia's outrageous Blues show. We've had an amazing run of outstanding folk artists, from Spook Handy, Briz, Katy Pfaffl, Kathy Moser, and a touch of country from Barbara Harley. I'm proud of every one of our shows in our archives."
[Garage Radio] The show has a very clean and concise mix. How do you do it?
Don Slepian You're enjoying the work and talents of our resident audiophile and Technical Director, Howard Mikulyak, who mikes and mixes all of our shows. Anything that sounds good is a credit to his dedication and skill.
We also have occasional train sounds courtesy of the Raritan Valley line that runs close to our house, as well as the odd bark, yelp, or meow from Shiloh, Mickey, Joshua, or other guest canines and felines.
[Garage Radio] So, the show is live with a live audience. You also run an interview format. How do you determine what you'll ask your guests · or is the show completely candid?
Don Slepian I always speak with my guests before the show to explore their preferences and interests, and take the time to listen. Musicians are such interesting people! During the show we are often impromptu. The interviews have taken us to some very interesting conversations. We look to delve beneath the surface of things. When things go well we are often surprised with an interview that perfectly matches the music. Above all, we maintain civility and respect for our guests and audience.
[Garage Radio] Lately, I read that you've gained an Asian audience. What kind of feedback do you get from that corner of the world?
Don Slepian We are honored by our contact with listeners around the world. They remind us to keep our speech and meanings clear to an international audience and to always explain local and regional references. It is humbling to hear how they can follow and enjoy a program in idiomatic, conversational speed, specialized vocabulary English -- imagine how few of us could do the same in Korean or Japanese. They teach us again and again that music is an international language. Even 10,000 miles away, they feel the immediacy and excitement of a 100% live performance webcast show.
We joke about the chocolate covered strawberries we occasionally have on our refreshment table for our living room audience. It is wonderful to know that halfway around the world, across the Internet, we can share the warmth and hospitality of our home. For a few hours the world is a friendlier place.
[Garage Radio] Is ArtMusic Coffeehouse a lot of work for you? How many hours would you say you spend on each show?
Don Slepian Yes, there are many hours of preparation for each show for everyone on our production team. Engineering, logistics, hospitality, guest and audience support all take time. The website, ArtMusicCoffeehouse.com, is continually updated with a growing Archives section that is enjoyed by our European fans and people who download our shows into their ipods or computers for anytime enjoyment.
On our home page we link to our peers, several other fine live webcast shows. Everyone in this community will tell you that you can't count the hours, you can only aim your life towards the work that gives you the most satisfaction and then work to make it pay off.
[Garage Radio] Going back in time a little, Rolling Stone dubbed you as "a master of the genre." What was that like and how did that article come about?
Don Slepian Rolling Stone writer David Fricke would often listen to the WFMU radio show mentioned earlier. He heard me play live many times on the show. He wrote an article castigating "New Age" music, but complimented Steve Roche, Shadowfax, and me -- to show that New Age music wasn't all bad. Now I have musicians asking me, "How do I get mentioned in Rolling Stone?" You have to really be out there, and then you have to be very lucky.
The Internet and e-zines such as Music Dish are already changing the old music celebrity "star system," superceding distrusted corporate media. For example, I am a frequent buyer and seller on ebay (ID: Don-Slepian), and appreciate the honesty and integrity of their rating system. My ebay stars are the new "star system," since my ebay rating means far more to me then any mention in Rolling Stone. Imagine if we had honest ratings and reviews for creative artists, by dozens or hundreds of people rather than just one!
[Garage Radio] Why do you run a live show? Aren't you worried about the loss of control?
Don Slepian Radio shows of the 1930s used to be entirely live. Today we live in a careful, sterile, pre-packaged world where all of our radio and television is prepared for display like a body in an open casket -- appearance only, no life. CDs are rarely recordings of real performances. Videos are Milli Vanilli faked, media stars are manufactured, little is what it appears to be, and less is to be trusted.
Of course we make mistakes on ArtMusic Coffeehouse, but our performances and our connection with our listeners is real. What is old is new again. We go back 70 years to the era when all media was live, we learn from their artistry and accomplishments and we bring that life, breath, and excitement to a global webcast audience. I'm sure the early pioneers of live radio and live television would be happy -- and in many ways astonished -- to see their work brought forward into the internet age. I am honored and proud to carry on their tradition.
[Garage Radio] Thank you for your time, Don.
During my interview with Don I learned a few things, maybe the most important being that the mainstream isn't necessarily what's getting radio play, and it's apparent that there is still a large audience that appreciates the more artful and expressive music genres. ArtMusic Coffeehouse can be heard every Wednesday night at 9:00 pm ET by visiting http://www.artmusiccoffeehouse.com.
Thanx.
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