Gazelligheid!

A few weeks, I saw Andrew Bird perform at the 4th Presbyterian Church in downtown Chicago. It was the last of his five "Gazelligheid" shows, a concept created to make his shows more intimate. It was, in one word, beautiful. I had never heard Mr. Bird's music performed like how he did it there and I am not sure I ever will again.




One of the major themes of AIS is looking deeper into things, and not just taking things at face value. Seeing this show gave me a completely different look at Andrew's music. I knew that he was very talented (he has a PhD in violin performance...) but I always pictured his music as rock, never as orchestral.

The concept of the show was essentially him playing every instrument. He would play violin, loop it with a looping pedal, whistle while playing xylophone, run over to grab his guitar, sing a little more, then grab his violin again. It was an incredibly impressive display of musicianship and sheer endurance. He was really working hard up there. Besides that, however, what he did with his music was truly impressive. When he first grabbed his violin, he would play one motif and loop it. He would then harmonize that motif, maybe 2 or 3 times. Before, long, he had something that sounded like it was fully orchestrated. It was very layered and beautiful. And with Andrew singing on top of all of it, it was absolutely amazing.

I had never seen a show like Andrew Bird's "Gazelligheid", and I'm pretty sure I never will again. It was just pure music, and the level of musicianship was astounding. This performance truly gave me a look into just how talented Andrew Bird was, which I never would have known otherwise.