On Saturday it was time for the Annual Banff Mountain Film Festival. A showcase of lots of different (short) films with an outdoors / extreme sport bent. Excellent. Quite sad that one of the feature films was about ice-climbing…. in abandoned mines… because that may be the future of the sport in our warming / changing world. What interesting times we live in.
Maaike has been settling in – going through the joys of trying to find a job (which is never easy, no matter how experienced, when you’re on a working holiday visa!). I was dead lucky to get mine… If you’re thinking of moving here / coming for a while… I would seriously consider looking into getting residence *before* you arrive. I’m not sure how easy it is – but I think that’d be the way to go. That way you could work in your job until you get residence – and then head off…
Being a far more … cultured.. person than I ;) Maaike suggested we go to one of the University of Canterbury Platform Arts Festival gigs. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.. but we went to a Modern Jazz piece.
It was *weird*. It’s called ‘Cobra’… or something.. and is a game. Basically there are a series (about 20) cards which the performers can choose at any time by indicating to the conductor what it is they want. For example, touching their nose and making the number 3 means they want to play the card ‘Nose 3’… and the card Nose 3 may indicate that they players should:
- Play Faster/Slower
- Louder/Softer
- Players who are playing should stop, and those who are not playing should start
- indicate a particular player should continue playing (with other people or on their own)
- players should remember the current sound and start playing it again when it is recalled
- etc…
So yes.. all in all quite interesting really… I was *so* happy they explained what was going on – as otherwise I would have been really lost. Coupled to the weird game was that the performers could play whatever ‘instrument’ they wanted… e.g. blowing into a tin tan / rattling chains etc. Very odd. My friends Barry & Tom & James may have already played – if not I must suggest :)
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