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Hart of the Wud EP Drops on Bandcamp

May 18, 2016June 8, 2016
by Ted

I’ve released three tracks of my composition “Hart of the Wud” for four marimbas and percussion ensemble as a free EP on Bandcamp. I decided to up load a partial album since recording and mixing is a long, slow process. Eventually there will be six movements in total.

The pieces are all inspired and take their names from the novel “Riddley Walker” by Russell Hoban, which takes places in a futuristic post-apocalyptic world that has suffered a horrible, civilization destroying calamity. The people who survive live an iron age England with only the dimmest notion of the glories of the past. They stitch together a crude religion based on “Punch and Judy” and the legend of St. Eustace. The entire book is written in a fanciful, phonetic pidgin English. The titles of my pieces all come from that: Connexion Man, Down That Road with Eusa, Sharna Pax, Arga Warga, FoolsCrcl9wys, the 1 Big 1, etc.

All tracks were recorded in my basement using a pair of Oktava condenser mics running into a Presonus 1818VSL interface and then into a Mac running Reason 8. Every other sound is played live except for a few samples which I made myself from instruments that I borrowed from friends. It is a painstaking process since I am my own engineer and have to work in small chunks. It is very rewarding when it all comes together. The charts will be available for sale on my site for live performances.

Music

String Timpani Tuning Gauges with Magnets

June 8, 2015June 8, 2016
by Ted

My Ludwig Dresden timpani came without tuning gauges, but it hasn’t been a problem. I’ve been using string timpani gauges, or as I like to call them, GravityGauges®, for many years. These are simple tools that let you avoid expensive and often inaccurate mechanical gauges, drilling holes in your drums and other unpleasantness.

The traditional method is to tie or tape a piece of string (I use nylon masonry line) to your drum’s pedal and then drape it over the two tuning lugs in front of the drum. The string is weighted, that’s the gravity part; I use eight ounce lead fishing weights with moleskin wrapped around to minimize any noise. A mark on the string moves across the tape to indicate the pitch. (See fig. 1 – 26″ drum) The tape is functional, but funky and has to be replaced often. If you click on the pic to enlarge it, you can see how I’ve added new lines to account for the inevitable drift of the notes. Also, the tape loses its stickiness and can leave a gummy residue on the counterhoop.

Lately I’ve come up with a better solution: magnets! It seems pretty obvious in hindsight, but it had never occurred to me before. I ordered thirty small industrial magnets from Amazon and got to work. I decided to paint them with a flat white primer and then hand draw the letters with a fine Sharpie. I could have ordered vinyl letters but they would have to be very small and also, I didn’t want to wait. Here’s how they look on my 29 inch drum.

It’s not a perfect world, as you can’t get the magnets too close to each other as they are very strong and will jump together. That’s why I don’t have accidentals between the notes. I don’t mind this, as the accidentals are generally halfway between the whole tones. Note that I’ve used Bb. I find it’s more often used than B natural and it’s not too close to the C.

Here is how they look on the 26 inch drum. On both drums the high notes are on the inside and the low notes are on the outside.

I’m very happy with my new and still very cheap gauges. They are easily adjustable, don’t leave a residue and don’t move when you don’t want them to. If you don’t have gauges and don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on them, this is the way to go.

Other Stuff

A Cheap Glasses Primer

March 9, 2015June 9, 2016
by Ted

I’ve had a lot people ask me about how I buy my cheap glasses online. Here is a step by step tutorial in case you want to join the cheap (at least cheaper) specs revolution.

1. Get an eye exam wherever you get you eyes examined. I’ve been going to the same optometrist for many years and like him a lot. My insurance covers one exam per year. Get a print out or an email of your prescription. They will give it you, so no worries about asking.

2. Go online and shop for frames. I bought my most recent frames from this eBay store. Don’t be put off by the freaky party frames, just keep scrolling, there’s a huge selection. My frames are by Pablo Zanetti and I paid $12.99. (It is very possible that they were knock-offs–see the update below.) In fact, I bought two different styles and only used one. Note for progressive lens wears: it used to be that you needed fairly deep lenses. There are now so called ‘short corridor’ lenses that let you use progressive lenses in relatively shallow frames.

3. Have lenses made to fit your new frames. I have this done locally at Hartig Optical in Kirkwood. He has no web site so there’s no direct link. In fact, his office hasn’t changed in decades. Ask to see his rotary phone! Seriously, the guy has almost no overhead. My lenses were $188.00. Wait, you say, that’s far from cheap. It’s true. I get Cadillac Transitions (as well as progressive) adaptive lenses because I don’t want to have to keep track of sunglasses. Not everyone loves them but I do. If you wear single vision lenses, try this place for frames and glasses. You can’t beat $39.00. There are online shops that will grind your lenses if you send them the frames. I haven’t tried that but might in the future when Dr. Hartig retires.

That’s it! Get out there and disrupt the overpriced eyeglass industry…

Update: It turns out that some things are too good to be true. These particular frames had a rubbery coating that started to buckle and come off. I’ve gone back to Warby Parker, which are not exactly cheap but are very good quality and well designed.