Re: Re:

[Larry Cooperman <coop@newmillguitar.com>]

On Feb 14, 2005, at 7:01 PM, mjnoble wrote:

> Larry,
>
> personally, I think your well entitled to communicate your views.  and 
> indeed, you almost raise the point that what is sometimes missing in 
> relativism is a common ground for making judgements as to what is good 
> and what is bad, what is to be included in the inner circle of 
> accepted art and what is rejected.  however,  given that 'perspective' 
> seems to be one of those words, etymologically speaking, that has its 
> roots in visual thinking, is it really the best concept to be using to 
> found a system of musical judgement on?  are you suggesting that you 
> have musical vision?

Michael,

perspective comes from a life of learning music of all kinds and an MFA 
as a composer/performer. I given a full scholarship at California 
Institute of the Arts for my compositions and performances of them.  I 
don't call myself a doctor although an MFA is an artist's doctorate. 
They created this program using me as the test subject.  When I taught 
college I was paid the same as a doctor.

I am not my education though I am my own man in music and do have what 
you call "musical vision" if I am to believe what other people say 
about me.  I may sound full of myself and I don't care.  I am just 
stating what you asked.  If I put my head in a noose then kick the 
chair out quick, or the horse or my cheap car.

My father was an opera singer and cantor, my sister is an opera singer 
and jazz saxophonist, my other qualifications come from being immersed 
in the classical guitar world where I am a fairly well known composer.

You can look me up on the Internet, we're all on there.  I have my own 
site, like we all do but I usually talk about other people's great 
stuff.  You can just look at 
http://www.newmillguitar.com/larrycooperman.html or lcreviews.html and 
there is my propaganda.

I'm 53 years old and have been doing this since I was 17.  I taught 
myself classical guitar after I ungrafted my sex organ from my forehead 
and grew up quickly as a classical musician.

I studied classical music myself and at college and concentrated on 
music that was not for the guitar but for orchestra.

My dad died on television singing "If I were a rich man."  10 second 
delay made it a private matter.  From the time I was born I heard bel 
canto and Russian opera, orchestral music, Dixieland jazz, folk music 
and popular music all from my older siblings.  I was stuck in music by 
biology and chose it.  I continued past the music of my upbringing into 
contemporary classical music at the age of 18 or so.  I performed 
electric guitar at the same time I was learning classical guitar and 
classical music.

My father and sister were amateurs in their singing and playing but 
trained and always doing it.  I am the only one of my family with a 
degree and chose CalArts because the music school is unlike others in 
so far as the composers in training study world music and jazz as well.

A dozen recordings of my music exist by other performers and they are 
fairly highly regarded.  I performed on the electric guitar with a 100 
bands and my master's thesis was on backtones on the Yamaha SBG-1000. 
Backtones are the logarithmic inverse of the fretting system, the 
headstock pitches and the pitches from the bridge to the rigid bar.

I am no egg head and prefer to get stoned and free improvise in no 
context except what I ate for breakfast and what human sacrifices are 
offered to improvise with.  You do too I'll bet.  The creation of the 
moment is just as important as the highly contrived written piece with 
everything accounted for.  I'd venture to say it is more important 
because it is a clear indication that you are alive.

I scored for dancers with the backtone electric guitar with transducer 
nut and processors.  I scored a short film called "Clouds Like White 
Elephants" a Hemmingway short story.  I guess we've all done this kind 
of thing and I just offer it to you to broaden my "perspective."

I performed in a jazz band called "Dawn's Early Light" with Steve 
Ellington, Duke's nephew.  I was the only sort of white guy in the 
band.

I am immersed as a life not as a living.  I sell expensive guitars for 
a living and collection of mechanical royalties amount to very little 
because it is classical music.

I have opinions on girls asses because they are usually clothed.  I 
have opinions on other things too but music, I make judgments because 
it is my life and my nature.

I guess the village killed Frankenstein, they had a strong opinion.

Thank you for asking Michael.
Larry Cooperman
New Millennium Guitar
http://www.newmillguitar.com