no.231 | Doing Nothing Well with Joe Williams

This week I am excited to share a conversation with the brilliant and multi-talented composer, conductor, and musician Joe Williams who contributed a beautiful improvised piece for PSO entitled, no.231 Going Nowhere Well from Sante Fe, Mexico paired with field recording made in Austin, Texas. Joe Williams holds a Doctorate in Performance from the University of Texas and holds a Masters from the University of Arizona and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of New Mexico. He is currently Artistic Director and Director of the Austin Classical Guitar Youth Orchestra at Austin Classical Guitar in Austin, Texas. In this conversation we talk about metal in the desert, high school grunge, the value of changing frameworks of success, and the beauty of improvisation among many many other things. After our conversation, we will hear his classical guitar improvisation recorded for PSO no. 231 Going Nowhere Well and a selection of pieces Joe has composed and/or played in, including a wild wall of sound written for 70 guitarists, a portion of a score for Alfred Hitchcock’s silent film The Lodger, performed by the Texas Guitar Quartet which features Bion Tsang on cello. Finally, we will hear a piece called “A New Home” excerpted from a larger work entitled I/We 2020, a multimedia concert, inspired by interviews with Syrian & Iraqi refugees during their first 90 days in Austin. That piece begins with a sound collage of interviews conducted and assembled by Travis Marcum. The piece also has an amazing accompanying film work by ARCOS a team comprised of choreographer Erica Gionfridda and artist Eliot Grey Fisher. Links Porch Swing Orchestra Website https://porchswingorchestra.org/ Austin Classical Guitar https://austinclassicalguitar.org/ Journey with Matt Hinsley, Justin Jay Hines, and Joe Williams, https://austinclassicalguitar.org/event/acg-originals-journey-with-matt-hinsley-friends/?event=35656 Michael Chapdelaine https://www.michaelchapdelaine.com/ Patricia Ann Repar https://music.unm.edu/faculty/patricia-ann-repar/ A New Home from I/We 2020 featuring ARCOShttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gNuoR_cbbM This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit porchswingorchestra.substack.com