About me
First, my personal info: I have played the violin since I was about 5 years old, though if you heard me now, you probably wouldn't believe me. The violin has always been a very temperamental instrument to me. I originally chose to play it, but soon after, grew tired of the obligation to practice. Not that it stopped me from playing (thanks to some rigid "encouragement" from my mother). I played in a local youth orchestra during my elementary school years, then in my junior high's magnet program orchestra, and then in my high school orchestra. I took a break from it in my senior year in high school and then, at the University of Miami, I played in the UM orchestra during my sophomore year after changing my major to Music Engineering. Honestly, I believe that it was all those years, playing in orchestra every day that improved my skills; there definitely wasn't much dedication at home on my part. I also play the guitar, though I take that less seriously, it's more of a "for-fun" instrument, playing pop songs that I hear on the radio, etc. Lately, I've been doing more and more tracking on the computer using the program FastTracker2. Using these tracking programs, I'm able to make completely digital music, manipulating samples using CoolEdit, and then putting them into musical context with the tracking programs. It's pretty interesting, although my skill is lacking right now. We'll see how that progresses. Anyway, you get the general impression that music is a big part of my life, and it is, although for some reason, I seem to lack focus when it comes to picking up the violin or the guitar, maybe because I'm trying to think more realistically about my future, or maybe just because I'm lazy as hell. Hmmmm...
When I finish up a good track, I'll either put it up so that it can be downloaded, or I'll announce it so that I can upload it to anyone interested.
The rhetoric continues...
It seems to me that the older I get and the more music I listen to, the less defined my tastes become. It used to be that I could name off the exact style that I was into, but now, it's just so spread apart, it's become "whatever." Not in an apathetic sense, but in an open-minded, accepting manner. Some of the phases I've gone through (since the 6th grade)have been: pop(Paula Abdul, haha don't laugh), heavy metal (Metallica), punk rock(NoFX, Propagandhi), jazz (Miles Davis, Mark Whitfield), ambient-trance (GOA Rave), dance (Moby), Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, the Smashing Pumpkins, rap (A Tribe Called Quest), Spanish Flamenco (Gipsy Kings) and the list goes on and on. Currently, I'm on some sort of electronica and hip-hop/rap hunt. There are a few groups that have stuck through all the different periods in my life like: U2, Moodswings, and the Commitments are a few of them. Well, I think that's enough for everyone to digest right now, enjoy the links!
Updates: March 8, 1999
I'm playing more violin now than ever before thanks to my involvement in a Mexican Mariachi band and also due to my goal of travelling back to the States and Taiwan this summer ('99-'00). It's been an interesting experience where I've met many interesting people and seen some amazing, talented musicians. I just got back from a Folk Festival this weekend (in Port Fairy, VIC). There were some amazing musicians performing there and hopefully (if we get invited back next year), we'll be able to impress some audiences. Our performances this time around weren't so great, but I think that's due to lack of performance experience and hence, performance confidence. There's always next time!!
Also, I was in a rock band, "Phunghi In The Sky," until just about a month ago when our lead singer, Min, went back to his home country. We recorded a pretty rough demo on my 4-track before he left though and if anyone's interested, just ask me and I'll try to send you a copy.
Before I go, I'd like to mention that I joined the Swinburne Music Group. Click here to see the page operated by the club president, Leila Marimuth.
