East Side Access
On the subway train, travelling to my Music Under New York busking spot of the day, the guy I sat next to saw the sign on my busking cart (which advertises my CD and said: “You should sell t-shirts with that on”. Turns out he is a track safety worker for the MTA and he…
Read MoreA Bracelet and a Dollar Shirt
While I was busking at the 14th street subway station, a lady gave me a yellow bracelet made of very soft rubber. The bracelet was shaped like a saw! She said she found it at the bottom of a pool, together with two other similar bracelets in different shapes (one was shaped like a high…
Read MorePlaying Musical Saw for an FIT Drawing Class
I love working with artists of different disciplines. The cross inspiration is magical. I was very fortunate to be invited back to work at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) as a musical saw playing model. A few years ago artist and teacher Heidi Younger invited me to model for her first year class. Now she…
Read MoreX-Pickpocket Girl
While I busked at the Grand Central Station’s Shuttle to Time Square the girl who used to be a pickpocket in the subway came to say ‘hi’. I haven’t seen her in a long time. She now has beautiful blond hair. She told me that she is back to work on the trains (as a…
Read MoreA Dancer, a Musician and a Film Maker
While busking at the 14th street subway station, a lady named Mary told me that inspired by my musical saw playing, she found a saw. It’s an old saw, maybe from the 1930’s, with a nice carved handle. Her mother has it. She told her mother that she wants this saw, but she will probably…
Read MoreNobody Feels Like Being on Time on Monday
As I was riding the subway train on my way to busking in the subway, three guys singing ‘This Little Light of Mine’ said ‘hi’ to me as they transferred to the next car. One of them told me that he’s trying to battle a cold, and he’s singing with a soar throat. “Drink honey…
Read MoreSubway Music Advice
I was asked to say what advice I might give to somebody who wants to play music in the subway: First I’d like to say – just do it! Even though it might seem kind of scary to play music in the subway to begin with, you got to just go and do it because…
Read MoreMusical Clothes
While busking at the 14th street subway station, a man from the Ukraine asked me about the musical saw. After I explained how the musical saw works, he asked me: “Do the clothes you wear affect the sound? If you wear different clothes, does a different quality of sound come out of the saw?” At…
Read MoreI Don’t Believe in Miracles – I Rely on Them
At the elevated subway station a lady who walked down the stairs and was already on the street saw me approaching the subway stairs. She turned around and volunteered to help me bring my busking gear up the stairs, even though she was going in the opposite direction. First miracle of the day. At the…
Read MoreBoiler Room Job
On my way to busking at the Staten Island Ferry Terminal, a blue eyed guy offered to take my busking gear up the four flights of stairs, all by himself. Usually I hold one end and the volunteer holds the other. But he just lifted the whole thing by himself. “I work out”, he said.…
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