8:00:00 PM
music: david benoit - one dream at a time (june's song)

Jazz is wonderful!
Last Saturday evening, I went to The Wave After Dark Jazz Concert (sponsored by The Wave, Southern California smooth jazz radio station) with a friend. Performing were David Benoit, Jonathan Butler, and Wayman Tisdale (a former Phoenix Suns NBA player). They were fabulous! Even perfect is an understatement. It worthed much more than what I paid for. The concert itself was almost 4-hour long, including the breaks. Each artist played for an hour. Luckily, the piano was placed in a way that I could easily see David Benoit's fingers playing (or rather, dancing) upon the piano keys. He made me want to start playing piano again (I have stopped since I moved to the USA 4˝ years ago). The problem is I don't have a piano here in the US.

By the way, I bought David Benoit's newest CD, Fuzzy Logic, and had it signed by David Benoit himself on the break right after his show. He signed both the CD and the cover of the CD. He was very kind and humble. I am really fortunate to be able to meet him in person =) I actually took some photos of him, but since I didn't use the flash, the photos turned out to be blurry & dark. All I can see is his white hair =P Too bad I didn't ask him to take a picture with me. Oh well, there's still next time. There will be some jazz festivals coming up this summer. Can't wait until then...

You know what... I just realized that jazz is extremely difficult. There is no specific/by-the-book composition or notes to play. You have to be able to improvise greatly & play in harmony with the other musicians. It's the hardest thing. Improvisation might not be so hard if you have the talent, but improvising in harmony with the other musicians (who also improvise) is a great challenge.

I also realized that black people play a great role in music. Without them, the music world wouldn't have advanced so today. Look at the majority of jazz artists. I tip my hat to all black artists worldwide.

A celebration of art & entertainment
Speaking about black people, I congratulate Denzel Washington & Halle Berry for having stolen the Oscars last Sunday. It was about time for Denzel to win *nods* I actually wanted Nicole Kidman to win just for the sake of pissing off Tom Cruise. Too bad she didn't win... but she was strikingly shiny that night. And to my surprise (and that of some friends who watched the Academy Awards with me), Jennifer Connelly was so dull, so brown, so not shiny at all! What did she put on her makeup? She's beautiful & shiny enough without too much makeup. Maybe her dress had something to do with it.

Ryan Phillippe & Reese Witherspoon were as wonderful & classy as ever. Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw reminded me of the sad but romantic Love Story (they still look the same!). I was a bit disappointed that Amélie didn't win, but I heard No Man's Land is a good movie. Above all, I love Cirque du Soleil's short performance of Quidam & other shows.

I enjoyed Sunday night a lot... although I didn't sleep at all the night before. I spent the day hanging out at the Niko's (Sandra's, Ronald's, Gabby's, and Deni's last name) with my extended family. Yes, family. Or inner circle. They are the ones who make me want to stay in the USA. I was always wanting to go back to Indonesia as soon as I could. But I finally decided to stay here, at least for the next few years. All because of them, because I now have a family. I am a part of a family. Remembering that night makes me feel all warm & fuzzy. Even until now.