From The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra's website. Orchestra member Gemma Gracewood's biography:
"If the WIUO was the solar system, Gemma would be the sun, bathing everyone in life-giving rays of goodness.
If the WIUO was the Titanic, Gemma would be the propeller, driving us to collide deliciously with the icebergs of international acclaim, and leaving us to drown in the freezing waters of musical ecstasy.
If the WIUO was a sacrificial goat, Gemma would be its beating heart, held aloft, spraying blood before being placed in a ceremonial bowl and eaten raw by delirious ukulele supplicants.
Gemma likes the colour green. She adores its green-ness, its vertiginous appleness, how it coos like dove and laughs like a young cloud in calorific distress. Think of feijoas... plump and facile. They sweat and mould in the harsh Brazilian sun, crying tears like sugar - waiting for the grace of a jewel. Gemma likes feijoas, and she handles them like they were her children.
When the Nano-Machines get here, when the noosphere reaches its 'tipping point', when we have learnt the 7 billion names of god, when Omega-minus meets its transcendental function, Gemma will be there waiting for us. And she'll say, "Hey guys, I've met some real crazy dudes from Andromeda who are keen to sit in on our next gig!"
New Zealand- another place I'd rather be living. At least I'm not pregnant.
One's On The Way- Loretta Lynn (Buy)
5 comments:
I like Loretta... Thanks you reminded me of something to be thankful for... I'm not pregnant either.
I might add that I crawled all over the web site and could not find a link to Gemma playing music.
I'm not to bright with a computer, as if it isn't already obvious.
Well hell there @. Isn't there at least a link to a music sample of the whole orchestra playing? Maybe she's not actually a ukulele player, maybe she's just the beating heart of the sacrificial goat etc. I liked the biography so much I just figured she must be doing something with a ukulele. Maybe she just holds them sometimes. I must say, she's not holding that ukulele like a ukulele player. Jake Shimabukuro holds his ukulele low, but he's Jake Shimabukuro and the rest of us are mere mortals.
OK, Go the 'recordings' page on their website, look at the recordings, click on download and you will go to a website that sells their recordings as downloads. You can listen to samples there.
I did and listened to a couple tunes, very very nice.
http://ukulelehunt.com/2009/02/23/wellington-international-ukulele-orchestra-interview/
Here you get to see everyone playing, though sitting down. If I peg Gemma correctly as the older woman in the stripped shirt... it becomes obvious why she may indeed play her uke a little low.
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