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When I was a kid, I would be sent to my room if di

When I was a kid, I would be sent to my room if did something bad. Later in life, my Mom told that I was never really punished when they did that, because I would just go sit in my room and play, content to ignore the world.

I'd build stuff with Legos, write poetry, read Danny Dunn books, draw... you get the idea. I don't know. Maybe this explains something about me and my desire to create, and also my desire to be alone. And perhaps why I continued to do bad things.

This is my new song, Deliver Me. I hope you enjoy it.

When I was in the 4th grade, I knew a girl named M

When I was in the 4th grade, I knew a girl named Molly. She had a stutter. She would spend all of recess on top of the monkey bars alone hoping kids wouldn't tease her.

I climbed up one day and sat next to her. We didn't talk much. But day after day, we'd sit and watch the other kids playing and eventually we started talking. At one point early on, she said, "The only time I don't stutter is when I sing."

I told her that if it made her more comfortable, she could sing her part of our conversation. But she said that would be really embarrassing. So, I started to do it. We laughed at first, but then it felt normal. And we'd sit and sing to each other.

This is a new song called, "Learning to Fly" which I know is the name of a song by (name a band). But, this is my song, silly. It boasts several references to winged things and evokes a sweet nostalgia. It is about memory and how we preserve our past.

New release: Our Road. A love song 27 years in t

New release: Our Road.

A love song 27 years in the making.

I recorded this one before I got my new kit. And if I'm being honest, it was pretty terrible. But I really like this tune, so I re-recorded it just for me. And of course, you, my dear and loyal listener.

markmakesmusic.com
#518music #singersongwriter #pianomusic #lovesongs #lovesong

New song… Space Junk Sonata. It is a cosmic clow

New song... Space Junk Sonata. It is a cosmic clown car of musical styles. This will either really bother you or make your ear holes happy. But that is your responsibility as a listener. I invite you to relax and get spaced out.

markmakesmusic.com

#518music #instrumental #digitalmusic #synthesizers #spacejunk #spacemusic #trippymusic

TL;DR… Kids book from 1958 anticipates the chall

TL;DR... Kids book from 1958 anticipates the challenges of students using AI for homework.

In 1958, authors Jay Williams and Raymond Abrashkin wrote, "Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine." The Danny Dunn series was a staple of my early reading.

The excerpt in this post gives a description of the machine and it's capabilities (pages 23-27) and explores the implications of using such a machine for doing homework (pages 34-35).

The last two slides show the results of my query to ChatGPT using the exact input Irene submitted to the machine. Pretty amazing how prescient the authors were (audio input, AI editorializing, etc).

Just getting geeky. But I'm not the only one. This article by David Owen in a New Yorker article goes deep into Danny's machine and AI: tinyurl.com/homework-machine.

Bakes bread, plays piano, and is pretty much aweso

Bakes bread, plays piano, and is pretty much awesome at stick figures. I know right? If you need a poster for your next gig, you know who to call.

I am playing a 45 minute set tomorrow (Saturday the 16th from 1:15 - 2:00pm) at Saratoga Springs' Art in the Park. The performance area is on the lawn behind the carousel (which you can clearly see in the picture).

I'm saving a patch of sun-warmed organic grass for you to sit on. Wow. Free lawn tickets. I mean, come on.

Art in the Park is from 10 to 4pm. The first two acts of the day are Veena and Devesh Chandra, followed by Annie and the Hedonists. I'm third, followed by Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle.

See you there. Or I won't. But I hope I do. Unless you're at Temple. Then I would feel really guilty about you coming out to see me. Unless we keep it a secret.

Excelsior University's newest advert. They used an

Excelsior University's newest advert. They used an AI for the voiceover. They asked for either "noir detective", "dulcet baritone", or "Morgan Freeman" - but they ended up with something that sounds like... me. Clearly, AI isn't perfect.

Repost from my ridiculously popular music insta @o

Repost from my ridiculously popular music insta @oppenneermusic...

I'd like to introduce you to Farrago, my 5-song EP of instrumental oddities. With songs that are not pirate metal, witch house, (and sadly) swamp pop, this collection of songs reaches deep into unknown territory for me.

A wee bit of psychedelic pop, some lo-fi smooth jazz, an ounce of symphonic classical... this collection is exactly why I freeze up when people ask what style of music I write.

Now available for streaming everywhere streaming is available (except, ironically, an actual stream). If you are wary of algorithms, you can take off your foil hat and listen on my website:

markmakesmusic.com/farrago

#518music #originalmusic #eprelease #lofi #symphonic #smoothjazz #psychedelic #farrago #newmusic #giraffemusic

Note: there are actually 175 Instagram posts tagged with #giraffemusic. I am nothing if not niche.

No filter needed. Hanging with the missus and my f

No filter needed. Hanging with the missus and my friend Josh at the Van Gogh experience in Schenectady. Bonus: I served in the NY Army National Guard back in the early aughts at the Schenectady Armory where the Van Gogh bit is happening.

Little know fact about wombats (no, not that their

Little know fact about wombats (no, not that their poop is cube shaped)... they look dapper in faux fur. This is Sleepy Wombat, a lo-fi groove I originally made for my son to freestyle over. Then, I added stuff and hired a wombat to represent.

markmakesmusic.com

Oil Spills & Daffodils (redux). I wrote the origin

Oil Spills & Daffodils (redux). I wrote the original version of this song before my boys were born. The lyrics made reference to Panama and toxic waste, which were topical then, but seem quaintly irrelevant when I think about what the world faces now.

So, I updated the themes to include current affairs and ended up with this terrifying earworm. You're welcome?

markmakesmusic.com

I entered the world of musical performance as a fl

I entered the world of musical performance as a flautist in the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra. Classical music is in my blood, my hands, my dreams.

That we can create something from nothing, create order from chaos, is one of the greatest powers we possess - one usually reserved for the gods.

This is my new song called Ansera Ovo. I hope you enjoy it.

markmakesmusic.com

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