Zoë Keating: Investigative Cellist

Experimental cellist Zoë Keating is performing at the Largo in Los Angeles tonight. I first saw her perform on JoCo Cruise Crazy in March 2013, and it completely blew my mind. The fact that her music is heard on the Sherlock Holmes-inspired show Elementary is fitting because Keating is never satisfied with just playing the cello. Instead, she fully investigates her sound, technique, and ability, detecting new ways to create not songs, but symphonic poems, with just her instrument and a computer. I was so completely overwhelmed and inspired by her performance that I wrote this review.

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Giving Advice I Don’t Always Follow

It’s always good to be aware of one’s strengths and weaknesses—without using them to beat yourself up or shortchange yourself. One thing I realized about myself, long ago, is that I am very good at giving advice that I don’t follow myself. I have ideas and opinions about things (and who doesn’t), from business and…

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