When the Avant-garde Met Exploration

Read Galfromdownunder's review of a recent public conversation between Laurie Anderson and David Rothenberg at the Explorer's Club.

By the way, David Rothenberg is the guy who made 'Why Birds Sing' (2007), a BBC documentary that featured some enchanting and heartwarming (although, as far as I remember, mildly scientific) theories about birds' singing. Laurie was one of the interviewees, and in this excerpt she tells about her spellbinding concert experience with an owl:

Strange Perfumes in Budapest

"My mother is cold and my father is dead
I can only see him in the back of my own head."

(excerpt from 'Strange Perfumes' live version, 2007

music and lyrics by Laurie Anderson)

OMG, this is a mesmerizing live version of 'Strange Perfumes' - recorded in Budapest, Hungary, June 2007. It's got totally different lyrics from the album version, e. g. it mentions names from a long lost past - hear it for yourself.

Apocalyptic Angel in the Palace of Arts

"We do try to help each other. Lou has helped me a lot. Particularly in this show, Homeland - he has come to a lot of rehearsals and made some really great suggestions to the musicians. He's really-really good at that. I really am listening. I'm really listening. Because he knows me... totally."

(Laurie Anderson on her then-husband-to-be, 2007)

Hungarian national tv (MTV - not that one, of course) has made an interview with Laurie Anderson in June 2007, during her stay in Budapest. She was talking about the 'Homeland' concerts, the importance of improvising, mental states and Lou Reed. (The epitheton ornans in the title is taken from a really great Hungarian essay by J. A. Tillmann.)

(Erm.... Mnemosyne is kinda in a spot since the article has been written in such elaborate Hungarian that Google Translator simply gives it up half of the time...)

Making Something Is Really *Daring*

Australian writer / blogger Chris Boyd's interview with Laurie Anderson in three parts, on - amongst others - disembodiment, angels, elephants, the 'Homeland' performances as "back pocket shows" and the beauty of being an artist:

1. "The lost art of conversation..."
2. Homeland
3. "when people say 'I know exactly what you're talking about!"

(Note: for me, the order of the interview parts somehow seems to have been reversed, that's why I put "part three" into the first place and so on.)

Beauty of the World

The Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize is "awarded to a man or woman who has made an outstanding contribution to the beauty of the world and to mankind's enjoyment and understanding of life through performances on the stage or in films or in any other area of the performing arts, by writing or composing a book, libretto, score, composition or other artistic work to be used in the performing arts, by directing performances, plays or films, by conducting orchestras or recitals or who has designed a stage set, theater, concert hall, opera house or other artistic or architectural creation for use in the performing arts or through other fields of art such as architecture, painting, sculpture, poetry and literature. The recipient should by excelling in his or her field have served as a model and encouragement to all others who would follow in his or her path. It is [Lillian Gish's] desire, by establishing this prize, to give the recipients of the prize the recognition they deserve, to bring attention to their contributions to society and to encourage others to follow in their path".


In 2007, Laurie Anderson was the chosen one.

By clicking to the picture below, you can watch the video of the Gish prize ceremony honoring Laurie Anderson, along with appreciative words and performances from friends and fellow artists Marina Abramović and Philip Glass (among others). The video opens in a new window.

Laurie's acceptance speech starts at 36 minutes into the video. This article at CultureKiosque cites parts of her speech about untrue-but-good stories and NASA's ambitious long-time plans. At 47', there's an after-ceremony interview with the freshly honored Laurie Anderson.

Concert Photos: Old Knit Benefit, March 2007

For more photos by Deirdre McGaw from the Old Knit Benefit at Town Hall, NYC, March 2007, click here.

dig Radio Podcast from 2007

A phone conversation between Laurie Anderson (New York City) and dig Radio's dj Michael Dwyer (Sydney, Australia) in 2007 before the Melbourne International Arts Festival, about how Andy Warhol's world (fame + sex + violence) became a reality, being a crank, the impossibility of getting lost, extendable arms, big science that can't save you, laughing and many more.

• dig Podcast (audio length: 15 mins 32 secs, file size: 24.9 MB)

Melbourne, 2007

Melbourne, 2007: an interview and live performances of  'Only an Expert' and 'Pictures and Things'. (Both songs are on the vinyl single of 'Homeland'.)

(total playing time: 23 mins 44 secs)

Why Birds Sing

"Birds sing because they are alive. And they have a million reasons to sing just like we do."

"Music is everywhere. We live in an ocean of sound."

"I was playing this show in Italy, on the top of a hill one evening and I heard this very cool brand new part, and I realized I was singing a duet with this little owl. I thought, 'I can die right now because life does not get better than this, I'm singing a song, a duet, with an owl'."

(Laurie Anderson in David Rothenberg's BBC documentary 'Why Birds Sing')

Then and Now #2: The Croc Coat

Just love the way she recycles these crazy outfits, no matter what the type of the event.

2007: a New York social moment:

(Original photo here)

2010: Sydney, Australia, Concert for Dogs. Knuckles meets Laurie Anderson, LOL:

(Original photo by dunapoo)