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I regularly receive emails from college students and recent grads asking for some career advice.  Here is an edited example: Dear. Professor  Cahn, I was referred to you by [a friend] in possibly knowing musicians in [any city].I am a hand percussionist that did some studying at [any school].   Since I won’t be returning to… Read more »

The weather cooperated fully on Sunday, September 15 as sixty-six percussionists from Rochester and Buffalo unloaded several carloads of drums, cymbals, tam-tams, sirens, and assorted sound-making implements at the High Falls historic area along the Genesee River in downtown Rochester, New York.  The skies were partly sunny and the temperature mild on this late summer… Read more »

We’re getting ready for the Drum Boogie Festival on Saturday Sept 7 (rain date Sept 8th)  in Woodstock NY. NEXUS will perform a tribute to the great ragtime composer George Hamilton Green at 10 a.m. at the Artists Cemetery. Then at 11 the festival begins at Andy Lee Field. Along with NEXUS, performers include Jack… Read more »

As I road my bike to work today, I thought about the similarities of the ride and that of doing business.  We live on a hill and Woodstock Chimes is on another hill here in the Catskills of Upstate New York.  In between is the magnificent Ashokan Reservoir which has supplied clean water to New… Read more »

“The Reich stuff”: that’s what Bill Cahn calls it. The New Yorker has called Steve Reich “the most original musical thinker of our time.”  Steve Reich has called NEXUS “probably the most acclaimed percussion group on earth.”  Clearly, a match made in heaven! In 2010, NEXUS premiered Reich’s new Mallet Quartet, commissioned by NEXUS and… Read more »

Drum Boogie Festival® 2013 Comes to Woodstock, NY! A Free World-Class Music Festival with Dance & Voice WOODSTOCK, New York – (July 19, 2013) – The Drum Boogie Festival www.drumboogiefestival.com  is a free, one-day music festival which is family-oriented and multi-cultural, celebrating the diverse styles of music, dance and voice from around the world. It… Read more »

I’ve always been interested in the creation of new things. My contribution however has mostly been in the improvement of existing things. I did not invent the windchime but I certainly made some meaningful improvements. Similar items have been around for literally thousands of years. We all know ancient civilizations have used windbells of various… Read more »

I have just been reading a very interesting blog post about Toru Takemitsu that talks of his many connections with Canada and Toronto. The article is a discussion of a recording of his pieces : TAKEMITSU: Toward the Sea / Rain Tree / Rain Spell / Bryce. The recording features Robert Aitken and the Toronto… Read more »

Working Together: Orchestra Musicians, Boards and Management by William L. Cahn   The Wall Street Journal for Friday, June 7,2013 carries an article in the “D” Section, “After Orchestras Strike: A Tale of Two Cities” by Terry Teachout.   http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323844804578527110776069672.html?KEYWORDS=After+Orchestras+Strike   The article compares the ways in which two orchestras – The Minnesota Orchestra and… Read more »

I’ve been meaning to mention for awhile now the super blog-post from Jon McCaslin about NEXUS. Check it out here.  Jon includes some nice video footage too: NEXUS performing Steve Reich’s Music For Pieces of Wood, Steve Gadd tap-dancing to NEXUS, and Duke’s Lullaby featuring Steve Gadd and Abraham Adzenyah with NEXUS. Jon happens to… Read more »