Georgy Gusev
is a graduate of the famed Moscow Tchaikovsky State Conservatory and Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome. He performs at major music festivals and events around the world. He does things with a cello that are unimaginable until you hear/see him perform.
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Music: “Brightside of the Sun,” by Basin and Range; “Smoke Alarm,” by Carsie Blanton.
Thank you, Chris, for sharing your time with Georgy Gusev, and thank you, Georgy, for your wonderful conversation.
Gregory: Playing renaissance and traditionl Irish music for many years, I have always been in love with the viold da gamba, but rarely have had the chance to perfom alongside one. My mandolin fits on planes and backseats so much more easily, I admit. We have an nonprofessional Renaissance group in Florida with recorder and fiddle. and In absence of cello, I play 12 string in open D tuning and work out combinations of cello parts and bass rhythms to keep the dancers happy and moving! Your remark about bringing the joy and energy to practice that you bring to performance rang true! Our practices are often quite energetic, but with three players sometimes devolve to acrimony over how many A or B parts were played!
I was especially interested in your remarks on performance and alcohol and drug use. Performing in an Irish popular music stage band for 15 years, I would often say I could not play pub tunes without one shot of Jameson whiskey, but after three shots of Jameson whiskey could also not play pub tune! After eight years of sobriety, I have discovered that my playing is not only about twice as good techinically, I am enjoying it quite a bit more! The one exception I would make in relation to substance use is that I find a single puff of cannabis helps when learning new material. I believe this is because in my living environment, it is impossible to block out the sound of automotive traffic without shuttering windows. The slight dissoction, I think, allows me to concentrate better on the repetitive task of teaching my hands the patterns of movement necessary to produce the melody. When that task is complete, I play straight and listen for the heart of the dance.
Again thanks for a lovely conversation!
As an outsider of American politics , I find the gymnastics performed by the Democratic party to pick their nominee utterly fascinating.
Because the Democrats are (supposedly) the party of the Left –or, at least, more left-wing than their Republican adversaries– they have to show themselves as more ‘progressive’ than the GOP. And yet, that has turned into something that’s gotten out of control, because it sometimes feels like the Dems are trying to find someone who can literally WALK ON WATER and whose shits smell of roses. I saw people ranting against Kamala Harris –“SHE’S A COP”– and now I’m seeing people ranting against Bernie –“he’s being supported by a transphobe! (Rogan)”, and so on and so forth. They’re trying to find grave fault in every nitpicking, mildly controversial thing the wanna-president might have done at one point in their lives, and they are tearing each other apart in the process –e.g. Elizabeth Warren refusing so shake the hand of Sanders at the end of a debate, or Hillary refusing to apologize for her harsh criticism of him on an upcoming documentary.
MEANWHILE, the GOP are playing by a totally different set of rules. Like Trump said in a rally before he was president, he could literally kill a man on the street, and his supporters would still vote for him, while the Republicans will find all sorts of ways to justify the murder.
So I really feel at this point the Democrats should quit with their stupid shenanigans. YOU DO NOT NEED A SAINT to be president. You need a Commander in Chief that is accountable for his or her actions, and has a modicum of respect for the rule of law. If it’s not ‘progressive’ enough for you, well, too effing bad! The fact that they are fighting to become the most powerful person in the planet –after Putin, of course– goes to show NONE OF THEM is ‘woke’ enough. So quit this shit and vote blue no matter what!
thx for the ROMA. hard times before good. a circle every time. Thanks for talking about that.