Tag Archives: Asia

Street Food Heaven: A Tour of Jalan Penang Road & New Lane Hawker Stalls

04 Thursday Feb 2016

Posted by in Asam Laksa, Eastern and Oriental Hotel, Food, Georgetown, Hermann Hesse, Malaysia, Penang Island, Travel, Uncategorized

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The 1885 Eastern & Oriental Hotel in Georgetown.

During the time I was in the UNESCO World Heritage City of Georgetown on Penang Island in Malaysia, I didn’t recognize the big impact it would exert on my life. But as my memory takes over from those experiences with the Straits of Malacca, I know that I’ll never be the same again.

Not only are the peoples and religions of China, India, Pakistan, Burma, Bangladesh, or Sri Lanka all mixed up with the remnant of former British Malaya in a dazzlingly vibrant textile of culture. What is now apparent, to the world’s intangible benefit, is a vibrant and alive composite cuisine that, for me, changed my taste forever. There is no going back. I’ve crossed a food Rubicon because of Malaysia.

Salt and pepper will never be the same again.

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Heaven on Earth: A Malaysian Soup Paradise in Georgetown on Penang Island

28 Thursday Jan 2016

Posted by in Asam Laksa, Food, Georgetown, Malaysia, Penang Island, Singapore, Travel, Uncategorized

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A stockpot of asam laksa at Jo Hooi Cafe.

A stockpot of asam laksa at Jooi Hooi Cafe.

Soup connects the world. And here’s the recipe. Good anywhere on the planet.

Combine water with nature’s vegetables, or use a stock from chicken, pork, fish, seaweed, or beef, add the spices and herbs of a specific culture, stir, bubble and boil until you cannot stop tasting the broth. Add any number of garnishing ingredients, from croutons in France to bean sprouts in Asia or chicharrones in Mexico, grab a spoon and eat, then live your life, fortified for anything that comes your way.

If there is a Soup Paradise here on Planet Earth, Georgetown on Penang Island in Malaysia might just be the place. At least for me I found Soup Heaven here!

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The Ambassador’s Party: Arts Diplomacy & The Hà Nội New Music Ensemble

21 Thursday Jan 2016

Posted by in Composers, Contemporary Music, Diplomacy, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, LA International New Music Festival, Manzi Art Space, Music, Song Hong Ensemble, Uncategorized, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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The residence of the U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam.

The residence of the U.S. Ambassador to Việt Nam.

“Sometimes i do my job by signing a letter.”

Perhaps, just perhaps, this blog might provide a small but helpful antidote to the toxic political season underway in the United States.  I look for facts, not coincidences, in life. And so what I’ll be revealing in this post is, first and foremost, simple fact.

Because the wisdom of President Barack Obama appointing Ted Osius as the U.S. Ambassador to Việt Nam contains a lot of facts that might help you see the United States in a different light. After meeting Ambassador Osius, I am more proud of my country than ever before. And our Embassy staff in Hà Nội is an inspiring group of Americans in the foreign service!

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Manzi Art Space: a 1920s Gem for the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble

14 Thursday Jan 2016

Posted by in Composers, Contemporary Music, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Kim Ngoc Tran, LA International New Music Festival, Manzi Art Space, Music, Song Hong Ensemble, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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Relaxing before a performance at the Manzi Art Space in Hanoi.

Relaxing before a performance at the Manzi Art Space in Hà Nội.

I was just asked yesterday by a good friend, who has never visited Việt Nam, what remains in the country from the era of French colonialism, what might he experience if he visited. Though answering the question could fill a few volumes, I’ll give you a some general observations.

The most obvious French echoes, along with influences in Vietnamese cuisine, are the numerous buildings that one encounters all over the country, and not just in Hà Nội. This unique blend of France and Việt Nam accounts for Ambassador Ted Osius’ belief that, after 30 years of service in Asia, he believes Hà Nội is the most beautiful city in a beautiful country.

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An Old Quarter Debut for the Hanoi New Music Ensemble

06 Wednesday Jan 2016

Posted by in Composers, Cong CaPhe, Contemporary Music, Food, Hanoi, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Kim Ngoc Tran, LA International New Music Festival, Manzi Art Space, Music, Song Hong Ensemble, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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A typical Old Quarter transaction.

A typical Old Quarter transaction.

If I were asked to put my impressions of the Vietnamese on the back of a business card, I’d probably settle on “the most resourceful people on Earth.” My friends there have a way of tunneling under, going around, slicing through, or soaring above any and all situations life throws in their way. Sometimes they do these things simultaneously, which makes working in Vietnam always interesting.

Before I was approached to be an official artistic advisor and conductor to the Hanoi New Music Ensemble, I was made aware of many new developments in the performing arts infrastructure in Hanoi. But one report, of a new cultural center smack in the heart of the intoxicating Old Quarter, helped me go from interested to YES!

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The Buddha on the Mantle and My Path to Việt Nam

01 Thursday Oct 2015

Posted by in Composers, Contemporary Music, Hanoi, LA International New Music Festival, Los Angeles, Music, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

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The new Old Quarter Cultural Exchange will host the first concert of the Hanoi New Music Ensemble on October 25.

The new Old Quarter Cultural Exchange will host the first concert of the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble on October 25.

Why Việt Nam?

Jan and I are looking forward to going to Hà Nội soon, and I’m excited to announce the inaugural concerts of the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble as we begin our roles as artistic advisors to this new group and the Hà Nội Philharmonic Orchestra in October. The concerts are October 25 at the new Old Quarter Cultural Exchange, October 29 at the Manzi Art Space and October 31 in the Grand Hall of the Việt Nam National Academy of Music.

One thing, as they say, leads to another. But why Việt Nam?

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Autumn in Asia: New Roles as Artistic Advisors in Hà Nội, Việt Nam Begin in October

17 Monday Aug 2015

Posted by in Composers, Contemporary Music, Food, LA International New Music Festival, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Vietnam

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Jan and I at

At Phở Sương, or Happy Noodle, in the Old Quarter of Hà Nội in 2013.

Jan and I are thrilled, honored, and excited to begin a new adventure this October, one which I am happy to share with all my blog readers around the world.

Soon after my last post about our Los Angeles International New Music Festival at REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall, an official invitation arrived from Dr. Lê Anh Tuấn, Deputy Rector of the Việt Nam National Academy of Music in Hà Nội. Dr. Tuan was inviting us to serve as Artistic Advisors to the Hà Nội Philharmonic Orchestra and play a key role in the founding of the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble.

Our answer? An obvious and immediate YES, YES, YES!

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2015 Los Angeles International New Music Festival Starts July 7 at REDCAT!

01 Wednesday Jul 2015

Posted by in Composers, Contemporary Music, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Hong Kong, LA International New Music Festival, Latin Grammy Awards, Laura Mercado-Wright, Los Angeles, Mexico, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Toshio Hosokawa, Travel, Vietnam, Walt Disney Concert Hall

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REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

I love studying scores early in the morning. Maybe it’s because I was born around 8:20 A.M. – some say that’s a good indication of a morning person. Those early hours are undistracted and quiet for learning chords, orchestration, voicings, tempi, interpretation, making all the new details familiar like old friends.

My rule of thumb is to go to sleep each night truly putting the day’s work away. If I can remember everything clearly when I wake up the next morning, I’ve learned just a bit more for the coming performances and then know what to repeat and when to move forward. That makes the next early morning so important for my work habit. And I knew today I’m ready for our LA International New Music Festival starting at REDCAT next week on Tuesday July 7 at 8:30 P.M., with a pre-concert talk at 8 P.M.

Because this morning I got a visitor telling me that just the right energy is coming out of my study!

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Toshio Hosokawa’s THE RAVEN receives West Coast Premiere July 9 with Laura Mercado-Wright

04 Thursday Jun 2015

Posted by in Contemporary Music, Japan, LA International New Music Festival, Latin Grammy Awards, Laura Mercado-Wright, Los Angeles, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Toshio Hosokawa, Walt Disney Concert Hall

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Laura Mercad0-Wright is The Raven on July 9.

Laura Mercado-Wright is The Raven on July 9.

Sometimes ideas are obvious, a favorite theme of mine. On first glance the idea of a Japanese composer setting the iconic poem The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe seemed to approach hubris. Really, a Japanese composer taking on one of the most famous American poems? But I was curious about Toshio Hosokawa, an important Japanese composer I’d been hearing about from friends Kent Nagano, Momo Kodama and Ichiro and Tami Nodaira, and asked for a perusal score from his publisher, Yuki Yokota at Schott Japan.

Fortunately Hosokawa’s score appeared in a timely way in my mailbox from Tokyo a few months ago. I started reading the piece and rereading the poem. I got hooked, very hooked, in a matter of hours, and started to grasp the obvious. And I heard the voice of my good friend Laura Mercado-Wright after the first few bars.

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Happy Anniversary!

17 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by in California wine, Food, LA International New Music Festival, Latin Grammy Awards, Los Angeles, Luang Prabang, Mexico, Music, Southwest Chamber Music, Travel, Uncategorized, Vietnam

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Thanks to our readers!

Thanks to my global readers!

Today is the first anniversary of my LA International New Music Festival blog. What a rewarding journey thus far – I’m making a great meal tonight to celebrate, as your encouraging readership is the best surprise imaginable!

88 countries around the globe. 5300 readers for 49 posts. 20 countries from Asia, 16 from the Americas (North, Central and South), 31 from Europe, 8 from Africa, and 5 from the Middle East. But let’s not stop there. God bless the island countries of Planet Earth for adding 8 more locations from Mayotte to Jamaica, Cape Verde to Mauritius. I should have started this sooner!

A big THANK YOU to all my readers!

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