Received these questions via email for an “Interview with a Music Producer”. I get a lot of requests for info from students and can’t reply to all, so hope this info helps others.
What’s it like to work at Cirque?
Received this email today asking me what it’s like to work for Cirque Du Soleil.
Hi Mr. Askland,
I am curious to know how it is to work at Cirque? What are the hours you work as a musician? How long do you have to prepare for an audition after they choose you to be part of the show?
Please let me know.
Best regards
Daniel
Friends in Macau
Freddy Fender and Conrad Askland at Grand Ol Opry
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Q6g1_3lgK4
Hey, video of me playing at the Grand Ol Opry in Nashville! “Freddy Fender and Conrad in Nashville” – Ok, more like Freddy and a couple seconds of me that nobody knows. This just got posted on YouTube. Performance of Freddy Fender at the Grand Ol Opry (I think around 2001 – don’t remember). I DO remember we had to wear suit jackets for the performance and be clean shaven – I look like a dork in the video, oh well.
This was Freddy’s last appearance at the Opry, the first appearance in over twenty years. We performed “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights” and “Before the Next Teardrop Falls”. Thanks to Chris Jurado for posting this.
Continue reading “Freddy Fender and Conrad Askland at Grand Ol Opry”
Fires and Feng Shui
I am getting a little taste of Chinese culture. The people in Macau (SAR) China are, I think, some of the nicest people in the world. At least the nicest I have met, and I’ve traveled a fair amount. But I’m getting a little taste of the culture gap now.
Are You Living Your Dream?
“Are you living your dream? As small as it sounds my dream is only to be content, happy and fulfilled. I am almost there!”
A friend emailed me that and my response was “There are no small dreams. I think everyone’s dream is to be happy and fulfilled – it’s just that different people have different ways of getting that.”
The Sands Venetian Macau
Some photos of the Sands Venetian in Macau (Macao) China where I am working with Cirque Du Soleil. I think this is currently the second largest building in the world and it’s truly massive. You can easily get lost roaming the shops on the upper floors.
My Apartment in Macau
Friends back home were asking what my living conditions are like in China so here are pictures of my apartment on the island of Taipa in Macau, China (SAR). These are pictures of the place before I moved in.
This is the view from my living room windows. Just over the river there you can see mainland China.
Taipa is the island next to Macau. My island of Taipa has a large expat community (lots of Westerners) so it’s very comfortable and not much of a culture shock. I have two large grocery stores within a 30 second walk and plenty of great restaurants – Italian, Mexican, Portuguese, Thai, American, Indian, Chinese and French.
Arriving in Macau
(Here should be some really cool pictures of everyone at the Montreal Airport yelling “Macau! Macau”. But I was too tired to take them.) Welcome to my most mundane blog post EV-er…
On March 23, 2008 the Cirque Du Soleil artists for “Macau I Cosmos” flew from Montreal, Canada to Hong Kong for relocation. Here’s an uneventful post about our initial relocation. The photos are with my old camera from the 1800’s, they are horrible, and none of them are the least bit interesting.
Magic Waltz from the Legend of 1900
httpv://youtube.com/watch?v=xVFRkrei1lQ
The Legend of 1900 is my favorite movie of all time. Most people I’ve mentioned it too have never seen it. It’s a heartbreaker. This is a scene on a cruise ship during a storm as the piano rolls around the ballroom late at night.