Episode: #6 Drum sticks and tasty licks : Sheep twins and Donkey doo

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THIS IS NOT A SCAM. KEEP READING. IT'S WRITTEN IN CAPITALS SO IT MUST BE TRUE, AND IMPORTANT!!!

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Ahem.. (hoarse now, from all the shouting)..

Well, Hello there.

It's tuesday. Usually that little bit better than monday. And now that little bit better still, given this email's just landed in your box, right?

RIGHT! So, this email provides a one stop shop for:

• finding out interesting tid-bits of information about what I do with my time
• Distracting you from that GST return
• Procrastination enhancer from that thing you gotta do today but don't know where to begin
• learning that recipe to impress friends and colleagues
• giving you a reason to reply, hence taking that little bit extra time away from that important task you haven't quite begun.

Onto the news.

THE OTHER TEAM IN BLACK THAT ALWAYS WINS

We painted our toe-nails black. We teased our hair. We painted black on our faces. And we weren't even going to the rugby.

If you missed the Blackbird Shows, here's a little teaser to get you to the next one.

The feedback from our audience:

“You know that slightly surreal feeling of lightness you get when something is completely emotionally satisfying?..That’s what tonight’s performance by the Blackbird Ensemble was like. Utterly wonderful, and a treat for your spirit."

“It was an awesome evening of musical alchemy meets sonic art, and totally loved the entire performance.”

"I am in LOVE! What a fantastic performance last night!! I want more."

“Truly incredible.”

“I was so taken by Friday nights performance…one of those moments when you feel so taken by what you have witnessed or felt part of that you feel that everything else in your life will be okay. Keep doing what you do.”

Hearing feedback especially like that last bit really makes all the effort worthwhile. It even inspired me to present the Blackbird shows (this years and last) to the Auckland Festival for 2013. So fingers crossed here, if you missed out you may be able to catch us then.

RISKING IT ALL FOR RUGBY

Where were you on the evening of Friday the 9th of September? Were you safe on the couch at home watching the game, or were you crazy enough to venture down to Quay st to catch some crowd action?

I was lucky enough to be part of the fireworks opening party, organised by Inside Out productions. I was to be drumming with Strike ensemble on an antique crane in the viaduct, on a barge, as fireworks went off around us. That was the plan anyway.

Some interesting factors I wasn't quite prepared for:

• Memorizing the 12 minute fanfare the day before written by Don McGlashan so that we could drum almost continuously in rhythm with the recording, being blasted from behind us loud enough so that we could hear it over the drumming
• Being tied to a rusty old crane with a ten metre drop in front of my toes whilst banging drums attached over the edge
• Being trapped for 45 minutes in a crowd coming back from queen st trying without success to get back to my dressing room (what should have been a 5 minute walk)
• Being asked to leave the dressing room an hour early so that we could make it to the barge in time (what should have been a 3 minute walk)
• Making our make-shift dressing room in the old boiler room of the antique crane museum, painting faces and spraying hair in the tiny little cabin mirror
• Being on telly broadcast to millions of people
• Murray almost falling over the edge during our performance after taking a step too close
• The barge rocking precariously every time a vessel went past..

All in all, an interesting, exhilarating and at times bloody scary experience..

Now for the final this sun, we're playing before kick off with Hayley Westenra in the middle of Eden Park.. keep an eye out for us.

LONDON STINKS, MORE THAN DONKEY POO IN 37 DEGREES

In the middle of July, after an intense few months of composition and preparations for the Blackbird Ensemble Shows, I took off on my holiday - first stop - Greece. I won't bore you with details of high thirties temperatures, crystal clear waters and sipping cocktails in cliff-nestled villages whilst watching grecian sunsets.. and trails of colourful donkeys walking past my hotel balcony, gentle bells ringing out over the island..

Back to london to hang out with my bro, before a few nights away in Barcelona, tapas galore..

On the late train back to london we noticed some large fire out the window in a nearby village. We heard later that this was the beginning of the London riots - (Tottingham was the first.) Two nights later (and it started in the afternoon just after I walked back from the train station) the big riot in Hackney, where I was staying. It was a surreal experience, coming home from a bike ride, seeing about ten police officers outside the station. Then a few hours later, helicopters, riot police, masked youths throwing rocks, wood, whatever they could get their hands on, at shops, at the police. We watched on television what was happening at the end of the street. We ventured outside only once more, to move all the rubbish bins from the street behind the gates, and anything that looked like it could be set on fire. The only one we couldnt move inside, they tried 3 times to set it alight.

We were a bit shaken up, but by 11.30pm, the sirens had stopped and it seems things had died down. The next morning, shells of burnt out cars, rubble and glass, all along the street. In Hackney there is definitely a lot of tension brewing, and this was the first time things had really come to a head. It seems so strange that the kids who were rioting and looting, were doing so to the neighbourhood shops and restaurants that their own families owned, people who weren't much better off than them. So sad to see shop owners having to pick up the pieces the next day. There were some awesome people who stepped in to help with the clean up though, and I was surprised to see how quickly the village was up and running again. Some people were determined not to let the hype and warnings close their doors for the next day.

We left London to visit Matt's friend in Brighton for a few days. Leaving London was a welcome relief, and I was glad to get back to Auckland eventually, even if it was the coldest recorded day EVER (and snow! what the hell?!)

CUDDLE CLASS, GREAT IF YOU'RE A SHEEP

Speaking of long haul travel, I didn't have the pleasure of travelling Air NZ, however I am pretty sure it would have been a better experience than Korean Air.

My mate Dave (who I went to greece with) and his creative partner Debs wrote these ads for Air NZ. I ended up writing the music for them. They are doing well with hits on youtube. Lots of controversy, which is great. They're pretty off the wall.. I had an interesting time with my session vocalists in the 'snuggie love' ad, what you hear here is the extremely toned down version. At one stage I remember a phone call with london going something along the lines of ME "So, you want MORE sex noises?'' THEM " Yeah, can you make it more steamy?" ME "I actually don't think we can fit anymore in, without obscuring other instruments.." THEM "Ok, well maybe just change the lyrics to make it more sexy, instead of 'uh oh, can we just have a breathy 'ooohhh'" etc etc etc. Anyway, we got there in the end. I'm always amazed at the different between my weeks working as a composer.. sublime to the ridiculous, literally.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNBfYCfidwQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgOs1boLq7w&feature=relmfu

ARTIST IN PARK - LIFE'S A PICNIC

So, as of last friday, I am officially Auckland's only Artist in park 2011. This means i'm living in a little cottage by the sea, free to make music and art and soak up the environment into my work. I have the old Scott homestead available to use as a studio. My task - to make some recordings of compositions inspired by living in a regional park. Simple really.. Looking forward to discovering more about the history of the place and what's happened here over the last hundred years. I'm sure there's lots of stories to inspire my writing. So far I haven't met many people.. but a cute family of quails is resident. They have such amazing faces, like miniature african masks, with a 1920's flapper twist. I have been here 4 days so far. It's a little bit lonely, so send me an email, or even better, come visit me for fresh scones and tea!

SAVE SEVEN

I recently wrote a track for the 'Save Seven' Project, a series of films created to promote Breast Cancer awareness. The films tell the story of seven women's experiences with the disease. They are designed to be shown in cinemas before films. So look out for Lea's story, directed by Damien Shatford. I wrote a very simple and fragile track which we titled 'my mother, myself.' It's electric guitar with violin and cello. Listen on soundcloud.

THE EXTRA O MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE

You may have noticed the hottest new treat at almost every good cafe - Macarons (yes, only one 'o'). These are different to macaroons.

Macaroon = coconutty, chewy, egg whitey..

Macaron= French, devilishly difficult to make, two slightly crispy almond and eggwhite biscuits sandwiched with ganash or a curd for endless flavour options.

I have tried 3 times to make Macarons. The first two times were last summer, when it was very hot and muggy. The third time, I tried, I had some success. They were still a little bit sticky and didn't form a very good base, but they were edible, and by all taster's accounts, actually quite delish.

I made lemon ones, and sandwiched them with home made lemon curd. The curd itself I tried adding not as much sugar, so the sweetness of the almond biscuits made up for it. The result - tangy, zesty flavour hits.

Recipe for Lemon Curd attached. Here's the internet recipe I used. It has good pictures. and I aged my egg-whites for 5 days! (Actually took me 5 days to get the energy and courage to have a go..)

A few days before I made the macarons, I made a lemon meringue pie, so for a few days after making the macarons, I just sandwiched them together with bits of the pie scooped out. Highly recommend. This was a great way to make use of the pie without the base (which strangely didn't taste that great.)

I also made some delicious grapefruit syrup, inspired by Cosset cafe, and use it with my landlady's soda stream.. with ice, so delish. Yet not too sweet. Just boil up some grapefruit with water and sugar, and a bit of zest, tadah.. easy as pie. Easier than pie in fact. Pie is deceptively hard.

GOLD STARS

• Springtime blossoms
• Lemon curd
• The neighbours, for sharing their grapefruits with us (after days spent looking out studio window drooling after them)
• Cosset cafe www.cosset.co.nz Go there, it's super cute, and tasty. and vegan, but don't let that put you off.
• Quails
• Kowhai flowers
• Lasagne
• First Thursdays on K'rd (witnessed some awesome breakdancing last time)
• Hard Luck Cafe in Ironbank, K'rd (particularly their smoked wild boar and pineapple pizza, omg yumyumyum)
• Auckland Regional Parks, and friendly park rangers
• Being inside on rainy days
• Donkeys in greece
• Cheese on toast
• New bands Stornoway and Bombay Bicycle Club (Flaws album)

PIC LIST:

1. The exact lemon honey recipe I use, except don't put as much sugar in (instead add a bit of orange zest and juice for extra zing)

2. English Tea shop in Brighton, Crazy royal family memorabilia everywhere

3. Scones, for those who wish to stop by and visit me at the cottage. Come on, you know you want to!

4. Bird, at brighton pier. This is an english bird, it speaks with a pommy accent.

5. The beach down the road from the cottage. taken this morning.

6. Me and a macaron tube, at a shop in barcelona, where they were crazy about macarons.

7. Finished grapefruit soda syrup

8. Biggest cone in barcelona

9. Me in the syrup

10. In the Gaudi park in barcy

11. Tomato sauce gun at Hard luck cafe in K'rd

12. Inside Sagrada Familia, amazing church in Barcy

13. First macarons, sandwhiched with lemon meringue pie filling.

14. Spanish invention

15. Remains of the pie

16. Spanish invention 2

17. Me and Strike at the RWC fireworks show, moments before broadcast

18. Best meal of whole trip, at Picnic cafe in Barcelona

19. The crane on the barge, I played where the red drum is.

20. Bunting in barcelona, the old city

21. Belgium biscuit at Cosett cafe. Feel the cozyness.

22. Worst meal of all trip. Trad. English pie house, specialised in pies and jellied eels. eww.

23. Giant helterskelter, London's southbank

24. Santorini

So, if you've made it this far, well done, there's only one thing I require of you - .. yes, you know the dealio - WRITE ME back, with your NEWS, your tragic/magic LOVE LIFE, pics of your NEW PET pheasant, RECIPE for that great new thing you always make, write me a POEM, a SONG, draw me a DRAWING.. I want to know what's up in your world.

Hear from you soon, i hope.

Claire