2023 Year In Review
I wake up most days thinking, I haven’t done anything, I haven’t done enough, what am I doing with my life?, and so on. I have a hunch that we all do this. So I am compiling a list below to prove to myself that I am definitely doing something; it is just very hard to see it objectively. Our thoughts always seem to cloud how we understand ourselves.
These activities mean nothing unless I acknowledge that they are not done alone, and that they are always rooted in relationships. Relationships nourish and give meaning to the work. So, many thanks to my wife Jen, son Henry, my family, and friends, too.
This is also a reminder that the idea of success is something that has to be defined from inside, and not from somewhere else. I can say from direct experience that it is too easy to get caught up in rejections; they oftentimes obscure good things that are already happening. That same is true with the frustration of “comparing and despairing.” It’s just not that helpful.
All of these things — seeing ourselves with compassion, accepting that creative work is rooted in relationships, and defining success on our own terms — require a special kind of paying attention; one where we concede that life is pretty hard, and that we should all take it easy on ourselves. So, this is what I aim to do now, and in the new year, too.
With all of this in mind, continue reading if you’d like to learn more about what I have been doing this year: there are highlights, photos, descriptions, and links to performances, exhibitions, events, interviews, and reviews. You can click through most of them to listen/read more.
Happy New Year to you! Thank you again for reading. And happy listening — Brian
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE YEAR
Singing harmony with my son Henry on Buddy Holly’s “Words of Love” (just for fun).
Trips to Washington DC, Berlin, Knoxville, and New York City:
In DC: exploring the city with Henry while listening to Chet Baker on repeat.
In Berlin: friendship, endless cakes, riding bikes through the city, meeting Arnold Dreyblatt, drinking in parks.
In NYC: listening to a jazz sextet at Dizzy’s Club with Henry and my wife Jen.
In Knoxville: the emotional impact of listening to your teacher’s (Steve Martland) music at the Big Ears festival. Plus: watching your kid soak in every possible concert, and hurrying excitedly to the next.
Reading Mary Oliver, Octavia Butler, Robin Coste Lewis, Rainer Maria Rilke.
Food obsessions: Rancho Gordo, Ooni pizza oven, and Pasta Grannies (you’re welcome).
Playing piano/keyboard on Jerry David DeCicca’s new album.
Talking with Robin Wall Kimmerer and not totally losing my shit.
Realizing that I can’t fix everything (this is a small bit of self-compassion).
Noticing that each time I had a moment that felt open and liberating, it also felt unforced, like an accident. Like stumbling into a hidden room filled with wonder and possibility.
PERFORMANCES
The premiere of Light and Line for four cellos, performed at the Short North Stage in Columbus, Ohio with the UCelli Quartet.
A solo show of Words and Silences at the Granville Center for the Arts, Ohio.
A solo show of Words and Silences at the Seventh Stanine Festival in Washington, DC.
The release of the Words and Silences live videos (watch the entire project performed live in Thomas Merton’s hermitage in Kentucky).
And, the premiere of The Workbench in Columbus, Ohio; Athens, Ohio; and New York City (look for more information and a release in mid-January).
EXHIBITIONS & EVENTS
“Grief Listens” group show at the Listen Gallery (Glasgow, Scotland).
Spring Soundwalks with students at the Wexner Center for the Arts (Columbus, Ohio).
Forest Listening Rooms at the Yew Mountain Center (West Virginia).
Shawnee Revisited at the Errant Sound gallery (Berlin, Germany).
PODCASTS, RADIO, TALKS
In Conversation with author and activist Robin Wall Kimmerer.
In conversation with filmmaker Elaine McMillion Sheldon, Live at the Wexner Center Podcast.
“Studs Terkel Meets Brian Eno in the Woods” — Sound School Podcast.
On Words and Silences, for the Phantom Power Podcast.
ARTICLES AND REVIEWS
Bandcamp Daily Feature Article: a 15-year retrospective of albums.
Two Matter News Features: on Ohio Imprint and on The Workbench.
Dusted Magazine Review of Words and Silences.
Merton Seasonal Review of Words and Silences.
WOSU Feature Article and interview about Words and Silences.
Creatives @ the Barnett Center, a year-long mentoring project for undergraduate students in the arts.