tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89295583187304592732024-03-19T06:29:51.082-07:00CHRISTOPHER TIN'S BLOGthoughts on music, design and literatureChristopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.comBlogger124125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-4399000574893683222011-01-12T21:55:00.001-08:002011-01-12T21:55:24.352-08:00Farewell Waterford<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbnadmPLfFX7Ihkln0oBRVgVeXjRytG-aX7wRekV4vDdrnBtchQc9Jr0lrRBLeLYm9IJFi2aFmo1HVJsZng2Al_FFUZYCfrMcpXa54SBSfe10fapdxupaOWwdcJrKRa5hK6yeWpLekoKDr/s1600/135020_10150390328890593_786220592_16689787_4987358_o-724353.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbnadmPLfFX7Ihkln0oBRVgVeXjRytG-aX7wRekV4vDdrnBtchQc9Jr0lrRBLeLYm9IJFi2aFmo1HVJsZng2Al_FFUZYCfrMcpXa54SBSfe10fapdxupaOWwdcJrKRa5hK6yeWpLekoKDr/s320/135020_10150390328890593_786220592_16689787_4987358_o-724353.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561545102415167362" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0kqc1ko7GdouV8Wr7dozZ9wuKp7avDnTPS8DD__iVFhyphenhyphenfU92ULeNC-eeFiJx1OwiPoWs_6NEHP1YXr-Gwr6KDYWcq820KFiYOO26HaNVv2rZ5av8B4KjeWVGWvMxb9sqJEiQoJyKb6z-2/s1600/170360_10150390329045593_786220592_16689790_4544317_o-726491.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0kqc1ko7GdouV8Wr7dozZ9wuKp7avDnTPS8DD__iVFhyphenhyphenfU92ULeNC-eeFiJx1OwiPoWs_6NEHP1YXr-Gwr6KDYWcq820KFiYOO26HaNVv2rZ5av8B4KjeWVGWvMxb9sqJEiQoJyKb6z-2/s320/170360_10150390329045593_786220592_16689790_4544317_o-726491.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561545108483524338" /></a></p><p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyazu7AA9yVYkRODVhn7rri43_Iy6gum8yquA2fiE8TS2qRLuEHHHKtR-8Nkn7eI-7mDKmrrhv-Z2JkXq9TowVMRVhf6gxCdZeRi3Cg9LXihObRtTExvkgPZQgBfYzNRyA4v_CRBIaLlkz/s1600/165290_10150390325135593_786220592_16689672_6166510_n-727780.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyazu7AA9yVYkRODVhn7rri43_Iy6gum8yquA2fiE8TS2qRLuEHHHKtR-8Nkn7eI-7mDKmrrhv-Z2JkXq9TowVMRVhf6gxCdZeRi3Cg9LXihObRtTExvkgPZQgBfYzNRyA4v_CRBIaLlkz/s320/165290_10150390325135593_786220592_16689672_6166510_n-727780.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561545112927471186" /></a></p>Here are a few pictures from the Waterford High School Concerts. <br>Impressive, isn't it?<p><br>All told, Derek Machan had almost 200 singers on stage, with an <br>orchestra of 75 pulled from cities as far away as Milwaukee and <br>Chicago. Not bad for a town of only 3000. This orchestra signed on to <br>perform this as volunteers--none of them were getting any pay when <br>they agreed to the concerts (although ultimately Derek was able to <br>raise enough funds to give them all a small stipend). I'm told that <br>many of them agreed to play after hearing the music--if that's the <br>case, then I'm really honored.<p><br>I spent all of Monday visiting all of Derek's various choir and music <br>theory classes. Waterford Union High School is a school of about <br>1000, and about 200 of them are enrolled in choir. I spent the day <br>answering questions about the album, about composing in general, and <br>just getting to know the students better. Really, this was the <br>highlight for me. They were just so enthusiastic and fun, that it was <br>a welcome break from my life in LA.<p><br>It really is a great story... how this school and this community all <br>pulled together to make this happen. Local business chipped in funds <br>to pay for instrument rental, and for paying for my flight and lodging <br>out to Waterford. The parents of choir members helped with my meals <br>and transportation (thanks to the Gabrhels!). A friend of Derek's <br>(and longtime Facebook friend of mine) Eric Carlson and his daughter <br>Kayla helped with the live sound and recording the concert. A small <br>town came together and made it happen. And look how packed that stage <br>is! It really blows my mind that they made this happen.<p><br>In a sense, the fact that Waterford did this proves to the rest of the <br>world--and me--that it *can* be done live. Sure, every composer <br>dreams that their works will be premiered at Carnegie Hall. But for <br>me, I couldn't be prouder that the world premiere of Calling All Dawns <br>was given by the Waterford Union High School Choir. These students <br>came together and made it happen, led by their fearless choral <br>director... and the results were FANTASTIC. (YouTube videos to <br>follow, once they post them.)<p><br>Bravo, Waterford!<p><br>(Photos by Chuck Frey)Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com106tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-76668615004328217342011-01-11T10:39:00.000-08:002011-01-11T10:42:56.039-08:00Last Lunch In Wisconsin<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKIkFKRXp4Y7iRu_zXUXL0DMAN_yAGxIi0h2-Jikr_rJdna9ifhi6V9Uohury-NH5T8c3XULGJbnRifipiUIpW-XmEUEYbHQtlp0B1dkqo8frS-37gfOC4JP9v2bTq_5245MalPdSqv9Lx/s1600/photo-776040.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKIkFKRXp4Y7iRu_zXUXL0DMAN_yAGxIi0h2-Jikr_rJdna9ifhi6V9Uohury-NH5T8c3XULGJbnRifipiUIpW-XmEUEYbHQtlp0B1dkqo8frS-37gfOC4JP9v2bTq_5245MalPdSqv9Lx/s320/photo-776040.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561000720598998562" /></a></p>Sampling the local cuisine!<p><br>Lunch at Culver's, a local restaurant chain. That little bag is full of cheese curds... basically cheddar mcnuggets.<p><br>Don't really get those in LA! Closest we have are mozzarella sticks.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com68tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-27543272104695026852011-01-11T09:25:00.000-08:002011-01-11T09:43:25.152-08:00Weather<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqqz99d_WeSChDMz2PRtgnDTrABGd4lGBqpLnMbppDmnvxpQ33iaKNDUGkfqHgKhfilQSN7TZozxOQYxn5Gv8bIerVZaejIRvN9-fHo7MjyvB4LF7UgT1sxS_pR5yXamfu7VuhVliM2hLM/s1600/photo-705152.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqqz99d_WeSChDMz2PRtgnDTrABGd4lGBqpLnMbppDmnvxpQ33iaKNDUGkfqHgKhfilQSN7TZozxOQYxn5Gv8bIerVZaejIRvN9-fHo7MjyvB4LF7UgT1sxS_pR5yXamfu7VuhVliM2hLM/s320/photo-705152.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560985382673671794" /></a></p>Ah... this is the weather I was expecting.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-40605235015719766392011-01-10T20:34:00.000-08:002011-01-10T20:35:15.881-08:00Their Lockers<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkieR_O62eySNGSXu_uz4sqIrAJ2t9x3hieHkFqTpcnVGCXJCxKiJ7c8WyY6rIshD5cc9gBLMKQaePaugyl-qlYKwnNcCMq9ha8xPwex_ced0gZvGc8KS6L1amq4X6JQSbyiNxy4JLsrqj/s1600/photo-715882.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkieR_O62eySNGSXu_uz4sqIrAJ2t9x3hieHkFqTpcnVGCXJCxKiJ7c8WyY6rIshD5cc9gBLMKQaePaugyl-qlYKwnNcCMq9ha8xPwex_ced0gZvGc8KS6L1amq4X6JQSbyiNxy4JLsrqj/s320/photo-715882.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560782274435975378" /></a></p>This is really sweet. :) Their booster club made little signs for all their lockers.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com47tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-74367794670903249482011-01-09T18:22:00.000-08:002011-01-09T18:23:04.617-08:00Signing Autographs<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGUG8DmfkRI2-_49zlfu9rhlntSMN_uH3ooSIRpLhJjcGXZYTeLcmXSHIdbWJdE6NRBUdqtk693U7pDUL1wt7JyFUwFVYBz1J43AIZnEOpe_-2SXsweyDooV51mIwxmL7Uz_360j2dOqmx/s1600/photo-784619.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGUG8DmfkRI2-_49zlfu9rhlntSMN_uH3ooSIRpLhJjcGXZYTeLcmXSHIdbWJdE6NRBUdqtk693U7pDUL1wt7JyFUwFVYBz1J43AIZnEOpe_-2SXsweyDooV51mIwxmL7Uz_360j2dOqmx/s320/photo-784619.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560377128138299442" /></a></p>I signed a lot of autographs today... CDs, programs, sheet music... Oh, and four foreheads too.<p><br>(For the record, I asked repeatedly if they were *absolutely* sure if they wanted my name in Sharpie on their foreheads, and they said yes, so... there you have it.)Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-59552815088412834042011-01-09T12:02:00.000-08:002011-01-09T13:44:10.134-08:00Concert #1<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwzNXED7Dv7C4ThtkISd6cC9QoPTOYYWiWC09C2kDZDoLEov4UPHNdBOkEdbTz4P6k4NFTL673G0hhbKcf85gxGfD68Gx71HUuAmeVPJYtKuwJGJ0PhZ-SSwO-acBFgfmqb0c6s_rb5eW_/s1600/photo-750135.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwzNXED7Dv7C4ThtkISd6cC9QoPTOYYWiWC09C2kDZDoLEov4UPHNdBOkEdbTz4P6k4NFTL673G0hhbKcf85gxGfD68Gx71HUuAmeVPJYtKuwJGJ0PhZ-SSwO-acBFgfmqb0c6s_rb5eW_/s320/photo-750135.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560305251977579810" /></a></p>Concert about to start. Look how packed that stage is!Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-73140947928133559222011-01-08T23:30:00.000-08:002011-01-08T23:31:19.551-08:00Waterford, WI: The World Premiere Of Calling All Dawns!<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76WWK-5whbIFrz5gURVi1F1Ood8CYoZ37IcnuSDXKfnBTl1UnwOrt32Vz3AUUIdk-CH4C8rlNlkPc8ie7urXZRhkJ0QRxbkTh7XEdd4Yo778u3JXmJg4qrA1ITt4htmGevb7KqYf1C8lp/s1600/photo-779552.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76WWK-5whbIFrz5gURVi1F1Ood8CYoZ37IcnuSDXKfnBTl1UnwOrt32Vz3AUUIdk-CH4C8rlNlkPc8ie7urXZRhkJ0QRxbkTh7XEdd4Yo778u3JXmJg4qrA1ITt4htmGevb7KqYf1C8lp/s320/photo-779552.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560085474833587682" /></a></p>This is the view from my hotel room in Waterford, WI. It's a small town of about 3000 people, but home to a high school with a large choral program, led by a very gutsy choral director named Derek Machan.<p><br>A year ago Derek asked if he might get a hold of the score and parts to the entire Calling All Dawns song cycle. He said he wanted to perform the whole thing. I thought he was nuts.<p><br>Flash forward to today, and I arrive in cold Waterford this evening for what is amounting to the world premiere of a song cycle that I thought would never be performed live. Yet here we are. Never in my wildest dreams did I think a high school, much less one in a town of 3000, would be able to assemble the resources to put on a performance of the whole album. It defies imagination.<p><br>I am told that Derek has assembled a choir of almost 200, and an orchestra of 75. Yes, you read that correctly. Derek will have more people on the stage tomorrow than I have on my album.<p><br>I'll continue blogging about this mind-boggling trip from my iPhone. Maybe take a few more pictures.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com102tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-7174121208358749972010-12-10T17:29:00.001-08:002010-12-10T17:29:34.885-08:00Some Fun New Stickers<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINk8jiVcba0HlL2lrdko24iO5Bdxqc9ZRDGYhjhKY3bImbe7n_xhemh-B0KKmIt1G1aOyxhiZddbsD24lcWYg6z45xp3gdlCucalhlsocrlai9GZZQRhQqXd8IvCEJiSdbDxIZD7rq7LT/s1600/photo-774886.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiINk8jiVcba0HlL2lrdko24iO5Bdxqc9ZRDGYhjhKY3bImbe7n_xhemh-B0KKmIt1G1aOyxhiZddbsD24lcWYg6z45xp3gdlCucalhlsocrlai9GZZQRhQqXd8IvCEJiSdbDxIZD7rq7LT/s320/photo-774886.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549230786891110450" /></a></p>Just got some fun new stickers in the mail. 2000 of them, to be exact. How will I ever go through them all? By attaching them to everything.<p>You get a sticker. You get a sticker. Everyone. Gets. A. Sticker.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com35tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-28967278263703421512010-12-04T14:39:00.001-08:002010-12-04T14:39:54.144-08:00What It Feels Like...Well, it feels good. :)Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com704tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-19892158943945165402010-12-04T14:38:00.001-08:002010-12-04T14:38:45.765-08:00PRESS RELEASE: Two Grammy NominationsPRESS RELEASE: Christopher Tin's 'Calling All Dawns' nominated for two <br>GRAMMY Awards<p>LOS ANGELES (December 2, 2010) - Composer Christopher Tin's classical/ <br>world fusion album 'Calling All Dawns' has been nominated for two <br>Grammys: 'Best Classical Crossover Album', and 'Best Instrumental <br>Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists' for his hit song 'Baba Yetu'. <br>Winners will be announced at the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards on February <br>13, 2011.<p>'Calling All Dawns' features the collaborative efforts of over 200 <br>musicians from around the world, singing poems and prayers in 12 <br>different languages. Performers include legendary mezzo-soprano <br>Frederica von Stade, the Grammy-winning Soweto Gospel Choir, early <br>music singers Anonymous 4, Iranian-born Sussan Deyhim, Portuguese fado <br>singer Dulce Pontes, Chinese soprano Jia Ruhan, and Japanese pop <br>singers Lia, Aoi Tada and Kaori Omura. The Royal Philharmonic <br>Orchestra, conducted by Lucas Richman, performs the orchestral <br>accompaniment. The album was mixed and recorded by Grammy-winning <br>engineer John Kurlander at Abbey Road Studios.<p>The opening song 'Baba Yetu (feat. Soweto Gospel Choir)' is well known <br>to video game aficionados as the theme song to the popular game <br>'Civilization IV'. Originally written for the game, it has since <br>become a crossover hit outside of the video game industry, and has <br>received close to 1000 live concert performances both from local and <br>professional choirs, and as a staple of the Video Games Live concert <br>tour. Tin's nomination marks the first time ever that a piece of music <br>written for a video game has received Grammy recognition. (A full list <br>of nominees can be seen at <a href="http://www.grammy.com/nominees">www.grammy.com/nominees</a>.)<p>Christopher Tin is primarily a composer for film, video games and <br>advertising. 'Calling All Dawns' is his first album.<p>For information: <a href="http://www.christophertin.com">http://www.christophertin.com</a><br>Contact: <a href="mailto:mail@christophertin.com">mail@christophertin.com</a>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com79tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-12191915879610779362010-11-26T11:16:00.001-08:002010-11-26T11:16:28.765-08:00A 10-Year Anniversary Of Sorts<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho82ID6R3rFpu1f0_TKP0joX4dhzXb927rkZYRAVyx5BNZKTs0FENQgobFL9JPwwg5y4ScXvPc9qvwPfiIQ3KYXegBCC_6suYhvIjeVEk419s1mZ-kbZA2OYCy6E4OYwax1gu1rypfgYF1/s1600/photo-788766.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho82ID6R3rFpu1f0_TKP0joX4dhzXb927rkZYRAVyx5BNZKTs0FENQgobFL9JPwwg5y4ScXvPc9qvwPfiIQ3KYXegBCC_6suYhvIjeVEk419s1mZ-kbZA2OYCy6E4OYwax1gu1rypfgYF1/s320/photo-788766.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5543939446811096098" /></a></p>Thanksgiving day 2000, I moved down to LA to pursue a career in music. It's been a great 10 years.<p>(This is the view from my rooftop.)Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com48tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-45477857473916600142010-11-20T14:31:00.001-08:002010-11-26T12:56:59.397-08:00The Origin Of 'Kia Hora Te Marino'... Discovered!<div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Those of you who have <i>Calling All Dawns</i> know that the lyrics to the last song 'Kia Hora Te Marino' are simply attributed as a Maori proverb. That's because neither I nor my Maori lyricist, Jerome Kavanagh, could trace back the origin of the proverb. It's all over the internet, yet no one could point to the original source.</span></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;"><br></span></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Well, earlier this week I received a very interesting message on Facebook from a young woman named Noeline. She told me that she was the descendent of the Maori prophet who wrote the original text, and told me the story behind the proverb. She also told me that the widely circulated version on the internet is truncated. The original text has a few more (beautiful) lines, and she shared them with me. While she asked that the story behind the proverb be kept a secret (as it is very dear to her family), she gave me permission to share the full lyrics with the rest of the world, as well as to attribute their origin. Here's the full text:</span></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;"><br></span></font></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Kia hora te marino</span></font></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">kia whakapapa pounamu te moana<br>kia tere te karohirohi<br>i mua i tou huarahi<br>Haere e tama haere<br><br>Let Peace be widespread<br>Let the sea glisten like the greenstone<br>May your path be straight<br>Like the flight of the dove<br>Go in Peace and with my blessings Moko </span></font></span></div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;"><br></span></font><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">The Author: <b>Rangawhenua</b><br>Hapu (Sub-Tribe): Ngaati Pahere<br>Iwi (Main Tribe): Ngaati Manaiapoto<br>Marae (Home): Te Koura Putaroa Marae<br>Place: Taumarunui, Aotearoa (New Zealand)</span></font></span></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;"><br></span></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" size="3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">So there you have it. The power of the internet led me to discover the proverb in the first place, and after I set it to music, the power of the internet led the descendants of Rangawhenua to contact me. And now hopefully though the power of the internet, the author of the text will be rightfully credited with his own words.</span></font></div>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-71934875437378648912010-11-20T13:47:00.001-08:002010-11-20T13:47:05.411-08:00Creatively Drained, So...<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGS2ZN2kAilQfWW6gUJJSlM-i_05OIzCBO6OiflCQeNzmYEs0qqdT1U-wxKTkewZK9RcVYxpTOyKq3mEVndNi2sOyPJU88DFa1ae_Mw1wQR1pUzmoBCCKf0_om2akNis0WVY67GlhHeQK/s1600/photo-725412.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGS2ZN2kAilQfWW6gUJJSlM-i_05OIzCBO6OiflCQeNzmYEs0qqdT1U-wxKTkewZK9RcVYxpTOyKq3mEVndNi2sOyPJU88DFa1ae_Mw1wQR1pUzmoBCCKf0_om2akNis0WVY67GlhHeQK/s320/photo-725412.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541751749080692946" /></a></p>... might as well give my dog a bath.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-72608550213455664422010-11-14T22:23:00.001-08:002010-11-14T22:37:20.274-08:00The Fourth Fruit Should Be An OrangeLast weekend, I was explaining to my girlfriend (who's a graphic designer) how a composer's mind works.<div>
</div><p><div>
</div><div>Basically, composition at its simplest form is the arrangement of ideas; knowing what note should follow the previous one, and when it should follow it. Start off with one note. Does the next note repeat it, or does it go up or down? Then does it go up or down again, or does it repeat? Or does it stop? It's just decision making.</div><div>
</div><p><div>
</div><p><div>Think about it this way. Give someone a bag of apples and a bag of oranges, and tell them to line them up in a row on the counter. A visual artist might approach it one way--having a good balance of colors, maybe developing a pattern, etc. A composer will think sequentially. A composer will know when it's time to shift from one fruit to another... so for example, a composer would know, that if he lines up three apples in a row, that fourth fruit had better be an orange.</div><div>
</div><p><div>
</div><div>Why? Because four of the same fruit in a row is just too much.</div><div>
</div><p><div>
</div><div>Of course, in actual composing, not only do we have a whole cornucopia of fruit, but fruit in different sizes, different varieties of each fruit, different sizes of each fruit... oh, and we can vary the space between fruits, too.</div>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-12774102650194616262010-11-02T22:16:00.000-07:002010-11-02T22:17:24.602-07:00A New InterviewFellow composer Don Rath, Jr. has published an interview with me on his website. Check it out!<div>
</div><div><a href="http://donrathjr.com/christopher-tin-exclusive-interview/">http://donrathjr.com/christopher-tin-exclusive-interview/</a></div>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-30877993703697670102010-10-12T22:30:00.000-07:002010-10-12T22:33:11.124-07:00Dear Korea...Dear Korea,<p>
How is it that all of the sudden Baba Yetu has gotten so popular over there?</p><p>
<a href="http://christophertin.fanbridge.com/fan_questions/">http://search.twitter.com/search?q=Baba+Yetu</a></p><p>
I appreciate all the questions, but I don't speak Korean, so I can't understand half of them.</p><p>
<a href="http://christophertin.fanbridge.com/fan_questions/">http://christophertin.fanbridge.com/fan_questions/</a></p><p>
CT</p>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com38tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-5814029967759615152010-10-01T23:11:00.000-07:002010-10-01T23:17:44.619-07:00Calling All Dawns First Birthday!Calling All Dawns turns one year old today!
October 1st, 2009, was the official release date. Hooray!Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-27514837597548910152010-09-25T00:50:00.001-07:002010-09-25T00:52:41.113-07:00Feeling The Songwriting Bug...These days, I'm really feeling the songwriting bug. I can't seem to stop reciting pop lyrics on my Facebook status updates.
It's not totally outside of what I do. After all, <span style="font-style:italic;">Calling All Dawns</span> was a big ol' collection of songs.
I've been hanging out with more songwriters lately... will probably start goofing around with some co-writing. See where that goes. I've been meeting a lot of interesting artists lately--maybe I'll get to work with some of them sometime.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-39173209321713811832010-06-09T17:42:00.000-07:002010-06-09T17:55:07.942-07:00A Nice Story and a GREAT Cover!Got this from a music teacher in Montreal. A nice story! Apparently his college-aged music students are required to do a recording project for their degree, but rather than doing individual projects, they all decided to pool their time and resources to do a cover of Baba Yetu.<p>
<p>
And they did a great job with the recording as well! My friend thought it was a new version that *I* did.<p>
<p>
Here's what he wrote:<p>
<p><i>
Good evening Mr.Tin<p><p>
My name is Alain T______, and i am a music teacher in a college in the region of Montreal, Canada.
The level of our music program stands between high school and university, the aim of our 3 years program is to prepare students for the pop and jazz music industry.
<p><p>
I don’t want to describe the whole program here but, one of the main course is called ‘’Studio Musician’’ it is a 4 hours weekly class, where the 3rd year students learn to work in a studio environment. There are 3 different groups. In the first term (September) we do a lot of pop, rock, jazz and instrumentals. In the second term (January), each student as to present a complete project. They are responsible of the direction, writing charts etc etc. It could be a cover song or an original, it’s up to them to decide. Since they are graduating after this term, we strongly suggest to them the fact that they should use this opportunity to realise a demo for themselves, putting them on the ‘’spot’’.
<p><p>
Here is in an as brief as I can put it, a wonderful and uplifting story I went thru… I want to talk to you about my beautiful students, most of them aged between 18 and 22 years old.
<p><p>
At the end of the fall term, in December right before chrismas, one of my student sent an eMail to all of her ‘’3rd year graduating fellow students’’. Saying to them with an open heart, how much she appreciated them, loved them, how much she felt good among them, and that she was realising that the next term would be the last they spend together.
She told them that they were a family, and she wished them the best for the next term.
<p><p>
In the following 3 weeks, during the holydays none less than 44 eMails from all of them flourished in my Mail box.
All of them expressing with open heart the same love and feelings.
<p><p>
As the new term (their last) was starting, looking at my students, I noticed that I wasn’t dealing with 23 individuals anymore, I was dealing with one entity, one group, one spirit. It was so beautiful but check this…
<p><p>
The same student that started the eMail chain, Jessica C_________, asked me to do a ‘’special’’ project, different, a demo that would not necessary put her saxophonist skills in ‘’front’’. And she talked to me about Baba Yetu. I told her that it was crazy because of the implication, and we would need more than the 4 hours
given to each of them to do their project. She told me that most of the people in the group and even students from the 2nd year group are wiling to do it. So she sent the piece to me and listened to it once, twice, maybe 20 times. And I felt the spirit of the holyday’s eMail coming thru. I spoke to our wonderful studio technician Jean R________, and we realised that it would be a long journey, but worthed. We decided to do it for them. We started to sketch out how we would do it.
<p><p>
They’ve practice every week, as a whole, section by section, and we started to record. Some takes in hallways in the college for the natural reverbs, and people passing by listened. We recorded the choir as a group, in sections, changing voices within sections etc etc. Meanwhile 2 of our 2nd years keyboardists started to play and program the orchestral parts, mainly strings and french horns, and one drummer played and programmed all the percs parts. When the orchestral parts were recorded, we did the final voices tracks, again in group, section etc. I think there are over 157 tracks all together. The whole experience was absolutely extraordinary, it gave all of them the boost they needed to go through the final weeks of this term.
Meanwhile our technician was editing and mixing it all with Jessica’s and my input on the whole thing.
<p><p>
I can’t tell you how much everybody was anxious to hear the final project. So my tech and I decided to make it worth, we would gather every body in the concert hall and we would listen to it on the P.A.
<p><p>
What I didn’t know is, all the people who heard us practice and record in hallways were asking questions ‘’What is that? When is that show? Where?’’ Monday the 17th of may I was looking for a time in the concert hall schedule to do it, no luck. Tried on Tuesday, found a 5 minutes spot that a teacher as given us between two exams, and booked it for the following day at 3:10 PM, we had 5 minutes…
<p><p>
The next day, around a quarter to 3, we were gathering in the hallway of the concert hall, all nervous, anxious and happy to finally hear IT ! Jessica asked me to say a word to the students before we play the final mix.
<p><p>
As we were waiting, more people started to show up, and more, and more… maintenance people, secretaries, directors, almost 300 persons showed up !!!!!!!!!!!!!! So I had to tell them what it was about and that we had only 5 minutes, at 3:10 the doors opened, we walked in, sat down, Jessica was nervous about how big it was, I went on the stage with her, and told the people the same story I writing to you now, left her alone there to do her thing, it was a great moment, same as her december’s eMail.
<p><p>
We sat and listened to the song, we enjoyed, and after there was a silence, then everybody applauded, we took more than 5 minutes. Almost everybody had tears in their eyes, they all knew what happened here today. We are Christians but, not especially religiously inclined here, but, in that winter term, the spirit came upon dozens of students, and on that Wednesday at 3:10, through these kids, it came upon hundreds of us. We all know these lyrics, in French it’s ‘’Notre Père’’ , on that day, everyone understood Swahili. And the music did it all.
<p><p>
I’ve heard lots of versions over the web, and I have to humbly be very proud to what they’ve accomplished, so here is the final result of our version of Baba Yetu. I also hope that there is no legal problem with this, we are not selling anything, we just want our friends and family to hear what happened to the ‘’Class of 2010’’. and by the same way, get your music to be know.
<p><p>
Thank you for writing this song, it touched hundreds, and changed dozens.
<p><p>
Gratefully
<p><p>
Alain T_____</i>
<p>
<p>
<p><embed src="http://www.christophertin.com/blog/media/BabaYetuMontrealStudioCourseRecording.mp3" width="367" height="14" autoplay="false" loop="false" /></embed></p>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-16107649037857844972010-05-13T13:17:00.001-07:002010-05-13T13:26:44.274-07:00The Power Of RedditWow! Just had the biggest 24 hours of sales of my album I've ever had. Why? A thread on reddit.com, <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/c2o9c/reddit_receives_thanks_from_the_composer_of_the/">in which they gave me a shoutout</a> for <a href="http://blog.christophertin.com/2010/02/heart-warmed-by-my-fans.html">giving them a shoutout</a> for <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/as4fg/just_finished_playing_some_civilization_4_i_cant/">giving me a shoutout</a> a couple months back.<p>
Thanks, guys, for giving me your support. It means a ton to me, both personally AND from the standpoint of being able to continue to create music. Albums like Calling All Dawns are hideously expensive (more than many people's homes!) and time consuming (four years!) to do. I'd like to be able to do more, and every album I sell gets me one step closer to being able to do so.<p>
(By the way, doing these albums is *entirely* a labor of love. My day job is actually my film and video game scoring. Every penny made by selling an album goes into repaying the expense of making the first one, and financing the next one.)Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-42151566192826163962010-04-23T18:53:00.000-07:002010-04-23T18:56:18.975-07:00Jan Garbarek & The Hilliard EnsembleMy engineer John Kurlander just turned me on to this. He said, '"Chris, you're going to love it." He's right!<p><div>
</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" white-space: pre; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:12px;"><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0_dmQ7-_b-c&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0_dmQ7-_b-c&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="355"></embed></object></span></div>Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-50362909093531172942010-04-15T16:58:00.001-07:002010-04-15T17:03:39.208-07:00An Interesting Graphic For Indie ArtistsThis is why I sell CDs directly off my own site, and try not to do it elsewhere. Every other site takes a cut... sometimes a really big one.
And also, if us musicians are supposed to rely on streaming sites like Spotify to keep us off the streets... then god help us all!
<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSN_vP2w4zzxj8eakL28BC_PXyc3cRdNSlbR7uOFm3f-b8RGgByWw0i-QM8Gm5DUl4qktltCreGbcF83K2tPJEbpqPVyzi3V7YMey-FCbmen1N4P5rplKyjiVjPXO5u0S-bDvu2o8B57Dz/s1600/selling_out_550-chart.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 69px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSN_vP2w4zzxj8eakL28BC_PXyc3cRdNSlbR7uOFm3f-b8RGgByWw0i-QM8Gm5DUl4qktltCreGbcF83K2tPJEbpqPVyzi3V7YMey-FCbmen1N4P5rplKyjiVjPXO5u0S-bDvu2o8B57Dz/s400/selling_out_550-chart.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460518040934603298" /></a>
Trouble reading this? Go to DIY Musician's original article <a href="http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2010/04/be-everywhere/">here</a>.Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-49797701927172720782010-03-29T15:28:00.001-07:002010-03-29T16:57:07.164-07:00This blog has moved
This blog is now located at http://blog.christophertin.com/.
You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click <a href='http://blog.christophertin.com/'>here</a>.
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Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-37992033947605637472010-03-14T04:32:00.001-07:002010-03-29T17:05:35.922-07:00You Can Compose About Death All You Want...<p>... but when real death confronts you, how true was the music that you wrote?</p>
<p>Some very dear friends went through a terrible, terrible loss this week. It makes me think that, try as I might have to understand mortality in my music, when the reality of it confronts you, there is nothing--no words, thoughts or music--that can truly come close to its painful truth.</p>
<p>...</p>
Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8929558318730459273.post-34774492073391409342010-02-02T03:09:00.000-08:002010-02-02T11:10:17.263-08:00Heart-warmed By My Fans<p>There was a post recently on reddit.com. Someone mentioned something about Civilization IV's music, and then all these people started chiming in about the new album. I had a nice boost in sales that evening. All in all, a happy moment for me.</p>
<p>But what I really found heartwarming was the fact that there was a genuine, concerted effort on the behalf of all those people to help <i>support</i> my music by buying my album, and encouraging others to buy it as well. There was actually one person who posted an illegal filesharing download link of my album--and when I saw that, I have to admit, my heart broke a little bit. But then his post was quickly deleted, and he was shouted down by several other posters who came in and suggested that people support my music.</p>
<p>I was touched. (Thanks Kardionoc, RedSnt, APeacefulWarrior and petawb.)</p>
<p>Many music fans don't realize this, but a lot of artists are severely emotionally attached to the work they do--myself included. And when people just post an album that you spent four years of your life perfecting onto some pirate site, it just <i>kills</i> us.</p>
Christopher Tinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09636787672201100481noreply@blogger.com25