Multimedia - NY Times "One in 8 million"

In the old news category, here's something I discovered that I had missed when it happened in 2009.

The NY Times did this awesome photo+audio series about real people in NY talking about themselves and their lives. It's called "One in 8 million". You may have heard of it because it won an emmy in the "New approaches to documentary" category in 2010. 


I'm not going to rip the audio from their site, but here are 4 people with their profile pictures to give you an idea...
They're all interesting character studies, probably of interest to anyone studying people, or interested in representing people in fiction. Click here to start exploring this interesting project and begin meeting some of the 54 people depicted in it.
Also, if you're into that kind of thing the way I am, you gotta dig all those awesome accents!

"To play for people is everything. When they come to you they are suddenly in this world you've created"

"She asked me what kind of plant it was so I said it was an eggplant, and she said, "So that where we get our eggs from?" and that's when I noticed a lot of kids in NY don't know where their food comes from you know?"

"Sometimes when I cook I don't taste... I just know."

"And a woman said, "I know you, you're an actress...""

Music - Zoë Keating (cellist extraordinaire)

Before any palaver from me, click play here:

Sometimes music feels as if it is addressing me personally. It finds latent emotions within me and plays them, a form of resonance that sometimes makes beauty ache as I am swept away into the artist's soundscape.
Of course, most music can't do this for me, but I've just discovered somebody whose music does: Zoë Keating.

I won't go on about how she uses tech to sample herself and do multi track cello compositions, or about all the awards she has won, or all the big names she has played with. If you're interested, you can find out more about her through the links at the bottom of the post.

I will mention that she's had some up and downs with digital distribution and that the way she talks about music is lot like the way authors talk about writing...
Listening to her talk about music sounds very familiar indeed:




Listen and buy her music here.
Check out her blog here.
Zoë Keating on Wired about her creative process.
Follow her on twitter.

And anyone who eats okonomiyaki
as demonstrated by this twitpic of hers
gets extra coolness points!

Not that this lady needs extra coolness points!

Music - Heidi Talbot

There are voices that leave impressions on you... In the late eighties I discovered a band called Cherish the ladies. Yesterday, I heard a voice on a folk webradio... It was one of those "Hey I know that voice" moments, but I couldn't place it.... The song came to an end and they said it was Heidi Talbot. No reaction: I didn't know the name. A few moments websearching later "Ooh, cherish the ladies!" She had gone on to do a solo career I hadn't heard about.
She has a beautiful smoky clear voice that's perfect match for singing folk. If you like Irish music and female singers take look at her myspace (click here).

As usual a youtube video as a foretaste. : j

Audio - Interview of Dali

This is the original interview of Dali by David Bryson (1963) used to make the animation featured in the previous post.
Interesting, fascinating... From the mouth of the man himself. It's like being there.
Dali speaks to us across the years...
Crazy? Possibly, but splendid!