The program for Noted gave instructions on how to make a paper airplane.
Yesterday I went to The Tank--a nonprofit that provides free stage space to emerging artists–and saw a performance of The Back Pack Presents Noted. The tag line for the show is “A Fast Pace Movement Based Comedy Extravaganza.” It is also described as a “a live action cartoon…with over 400 hand-drawn images strapped to the performers.”
I had no idea what to expect but found the entire 90 minutes mesmerizing! Rather than a cartoon, I would compare it more to a comic book come to life. I was completely captivated and also impressed by the technical complexity and timing required. The show is going on to The Edinburgh Festival Fringe for a month long residency in August. What fun!
In the background, the eponymous phenomena shined over New York Harbor, and as I was leaving I caught the local Chinese ladies in their evening dance around the flagpole.
For this year’s Make Music New York I learned from past years and made a clear plan to use Citibike to hit as many gigs as stamina allowed.
Gabrielle Stravelli
I started on Tin Pan Alley–28th street between 6th Ave and Broadway–where in the early twentieth century songwriters pitched tunes to music publishers concentrated on this block. Sponsored by The NoMad Jazz Festival and the Tin Pan Alley American Popular Music Project celebrated jazz vocalist Gabrielle Stravelli performed classics from the Great American Songbook.
Flor de Massapê
Next I pedaled down to Tribeca where Flor de Massapê performed Brazilian Forro music while dancers spun around Bogardus Plaza.
Renaissance Street Singers
After this, a jaunt up Hudson Street brought me to the West Village where the Renaissance Street Singers uplifted Christopher Street pedestrians before McNulty’s Tea & Coffee–a shop that dates back to 1895.
Waterway Horns
Back downtown I zip just in time to catch a tugboat called Shoofly outfitted with a ‘Hobophonium’ (made of salvaged tubas, ship horns, and bells) join a brass band of landlubbers led by Stefan Zeniuk and his bari sax for a brass blastoff.
Mass Appeal Guitars
A central aim of MMNY is encouraging music creation by all. For example, “Mass Appeal Guitars” invited guitarists of all skill levels to join a collective jam on Union Square.
PianoKosmos
And a few blocks up Broadway at Madison Square, PianoKosmos featured beginners to professionals exploring works from Bela Bartok’s Mikrokosmos to George Crumb’s Makrokosmos.
Amerarcana
A brief break from keyboards came with a performance of William Kentner Anderson’s Amerarcana for three saxophones, guitar and vocals.
Brooklyn Treble Choir
Finally, I crossed over to Brooklyn and found a seat in Park Slope’s Warren St. Marks Community Garden where the Brooklyn Treble Choir provided inspiring harmonies for an audience that included dapper feathered chickens.
In celebration of the World Cup and the city where every country has a neighborhood fanbase, NYC has created a passport encouraging the exploration of immigrant communities in all five boroughs.
There are 12 stamps to collect from NYC artists. At Brooklyn Public Library Central I received the stamp designed by Aya Karpinska. She is Polish, but Poland sadly did not qualify, so she is cheering for Spain!
Paul Mason Fotsch 