Music + Art Mashup @NewMuseum Feb 20th 6-9pm

COAT Drive @ New Museum (235 Bowery) ongoing through APRIL 20th

In many of his previous museum exhibitions, Althamer has used the visibility and resources of the organizing institution to benefit different local communities. For “The Neighbors,” Althamer has initiated a coat drive for the Bowery Mission, the Museum’s neighboring organization, which has been serving the homeless and hungry since 1879. Over the course of the exhibition, visitors who bring new or gently used men’s coats to the New Museum will receive free entry. All the coats will be donated to the Bowery Mission.

On thursday February 20th from 6-9 pm I will be performing at the New Museum during the Pawel Althamer exhibition. Pawel wanted to have street musicians performing during the exhibit to express the idea of collaboration and connection. I will be performing from time to time until April 12th (here's a link to my schedule).  Many other street musicians have been selected to also perform. 

Someone asked me why I don't consider this a concert series in a museum lobby. I am being amplified so that the live music is carried up into the exhibition onto the 3rd floor. Since I have seen the exhibition, it changes the way I perform.  For me there are 2 points of view, one from the perspective of where I am physically performing in the lobby as people enter and as they wait for the elevator, and the other, where the music through speakers is part of the aural landscape of the exhibition. Much like performing in public spaces, people are on their way to something, the fact that a performer happens to be on their route is not static or stationary as a concert would be. Having the music as a live soundtrack for an art installation switches the dynamic of performance. I hear and see things differently in this situation and find intriguing the mashup of music + art. Something that is new to my world. When I shared this thought with Pawel, he responded "welcome to the temple." 

It's a wonderful opportunity for me create spontaneous soundscapes.  I sing or play choral arrangements based on my memory of a piece, say for example the whimsical one of Pawel imagining himself living in a suitcase….  I hope to see you at one of my performances.

check Pawel's Inspiration video clip here

And if you bring a gently worn or new men's coat to the musuem you'll get free admission and they will in turn donate the coat to the neighbors at the Bowery Mission.

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Looking back on 2009 creating NYC Subway Girl

I never thought I'd be a street performer, my goals were always set for big concert halls and intimate high audio quality rooms, but things changed when I moved back to NYC in 1998 (I lived in France for many years), and found the whole club scene lacking. I started performing in the subway, got accepted into the Music Under New York program which gave me a comfort zone in which to schedule my performances. I never knew how it would make me feel, and it took a while to look beyond the notion that somehow performing in the subway meant the end of the line for my career (excuse the pun). Or a place-holder until the next step. This year I decided to try another angle on how to sell my music, and reestablish myself as a songwriter and showcase that I have more to share than just music. Trying to sell myself as Cathy Grier singer songwriter seemed a bit old school. With the internet and

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first Times Square Alliance booking @ 45th and Broadway

Taking the train to NYC tomorrow to perform in Times Square. I had planned on being away from the hot sticky, and smelly city, in exchange for the country air 2 hours north of Manhattan. Back in Spring I auditioned for the Times Square Alliance and they now have the permits necessary to let an amplified performer like me play. Apparently the city afraid of the “noise” doesn’t want performers amplified, but as a more acoustic type performer, even I can’t sing and play 3 hours un-amplified without losing my voice, or breaking picks and strings.

My first gig with Music Under New York in 1999, I had a quite romantic view of busking and did perform purely acoustically. That was in the lower level of Grand Central Station, and the one and only time I ever performed without a small portable amp.

I do hope that the city can come to some sort of agreement regarding the amplified issue. At this point the Naked Cowboy gets the work-he only needs to be seen not heard!

It will be interesting performing above ground. Now that the city has closed off the portion of Broadway to vehicular traffic, it should be interesting to be in the midst of summertime pedestrian chaos (also matinee day), and part of the ongoing experiment that is now a Times Square strolling park. In a strange way my perception today is that I feel safer and more insulated in the underground. After tomorrow that perception might be different.