FraKctured - live performances - audient reports

14/11/00 - Town Hall / New York, NY

From Trey Gunn's diary at www.treygunn.com

November 14, 2000 Town Hall / New York, NY

Very good night. And for a seated audience, probably our best. It isn't easy to play to fully seated audience in a 'proper' hall. At least not with this band. But, we CAN do it. And do it well, now it seems. The audience was very hot. I think I still preferred the first supper club show, but tonight was still very good.

I got the feeling tonight that someone received something special from the performance. Like some person was particularly touched by something. I can't even say when that was, but I would lay bets on it. Not that I could ever, really, know for sure. But this is my hunch.

This takes me back to the last time that I saw a show here in Town Hall (I lived in NYC for 9 years.) It was also the first time that I got to hear Nusrat Fatah Ali Khan and Party. I was sitting in the very back row of the balcony. There were hundreds of Pakistani's around me. It was clear that only the men danced. And boy did they! They were twirling in the aisles and falling all over the place. It was quite a touching scene because these men would take turns watching out for each other. One man would be allowed to lose himself in the dance while another watched him and made sure that he didn't fall onto to anyone. And then they would switch roles so the other could lose himself.

Several amazing things happened during this performance, but the relevant one is that somewhere around the middle of the concert I received something. Somehow, in some unknown way, Nusrat gave me something. He gave me some kind of connection to Music. It was both very personal and very universal at the exact same time. Universal in one sense because he was giving to everyone. But, Personal because he gave something directly to me. And I will even go so far out on a limb to say that he knew it. Not that he necessarily knew me, but that he knew that I was receiving. But, there was also a Universal sense of the archetype of 'passing on a connection' present in this moment. And, with that, the Personal side of myself receiving.

There was an utterly unbelievable moment during this Town Hall performance. I think it was during Red. The band was tearing up this heavy, heavy piece when suddenly this very old woman began walking up the center aisle. And let me add here that this hall is 'very' intimate. It is impossible for the band not to be aware of all of the activity in the house (including the poor woman in the front row who was dragged there by her husband.) So, as this rather old woman began to slowly saunter up the aisle with her flashlight on I began to wonder what was going on. She walked all the way up to the edge of the stage. And as she walked she kept shining her light on various people in the audience as if she was looking for someone. She was completely oblivious to the music. I don't think she heard a single note. The contrast between what we were playing on-stage (Larks' IV) and her manner was more than I could bear. I looked up at Robert and I could tell that he was even more amused by my reaction then the actually scenario. I was so dumbfounded that I couldn't even laugh. It was beyond my comprehension.