The Butterfly and The Composer

The jazz composer Thelonius Monk and his "butterfly", the Baroness Katherine Anne Pannonica Rothschild

"Softer than silk, and as warm as warm milk

light as air and able to fly,

Blossoms know bliss, while they're waiting for her kiss,

Pannonica my butterfly,"

The poetic image of butterflies has served as inspiration to a number of jazz composers in the 20th century, from the virtuoso piano bop of Art Tatum through the musings of Thelonius Monk and the fusion and funk of Herbie Hancock.

Art Tatum was a blind blues pianist who played in the bop style, leading runs and arpeggios up and down the keyboard that would have been the envy of any European concert virtuosi. "Just Like a Butterfly (That's Caught in the Rain)" finds the soloist in a ruminative mood, creating dazzling textures with just ten fingers before settling into a groove briefly, then launching another torrent of notes. He is one of the most influential pianists of the century, and hos music showed the way for players like Bud Powell, Oscar Peterson and McCoy Tyner. 

The Puccini opera Madama Butterfly may have inspired "Poor Butterfly", a sweet blues. Check out Coleman Hawkins' 1960 recording on Blue Note (currently available on At Ease With Coleman Hawkins. The tune is carried by the Hawk's trademark tone, rich and mellow with smooth melodic runs and agile maneuvers through the tenor saxophone's wide range. Hawk is answered by an eloquent piano solo.

"Like the lovely flowers, I'll wait for hours

Just to feel that touch the touch that I love so much

One day, she'll flutter by

I'll hold out my hand and capture my butterfly,"

Thelonius Monk wrote "Little Butterfly", an even sadder minor blues with lovely, poetic lyrics and a brilliant, lengthy electric bass solo in the middle against the piano. The song is also known as "Pannonica", and is dedicated to Monk's patron, the Baroness Katherine Anne Pannonica Rothschild, who enjoyed a friendship with the composer that lasted 28 years.

It has become a jazz standard, especially as sung by Carmen McRae on the classic Carmen Sings Monk:

"Delicate things such as butterfly wings,

Poets can't describe though they try

Love played a tune when she stepped from her cocoon

Pannonica, my butterfly"

Flash forward to the 1970s, and we come to "Butterfly", an epic 11-minute jam from the Herbie Hancock album <i>Thrust.</i> From its opening statement, a mournful saxophone theme over a hi-hat and bass vamp, "Butterfly" establishes itself as one of Mr. Hancock's most melodic compositions. The final movement is a sort of duel between synthesizer, electric piano and the horn section, which interrupts the easy virtuosity on display to offer comments on the main theme. 

Butterflies, Architects and Photographs

Photograph by Norman McGrath
 from An Eye on Architecture. © the artist.

On June 2, I had a Thursday lunch meeting with Rick Bell. He is the president of the American Institute of Architects. It was a very exciting meeting, where we discussed what it would mean for the AIA to come on board the project as a partner. Tami Hausman and Maria Wilpon were at the meeting.

Rick suggested that the AIA could start a commitee that looked at how art and architecture worked together, with Butterflies as both a focus and an example. We also discussed the possibility of scheduling a show in their gallery.

Later that night I went to the opening of An Eye on Architecture, the new show featuring photographs from the archives of Norman McGrath. The show includes photographs that date back to the 1960s, black and white images, silver prints from the film era and Mr. McGrath's recent digital photography. I spoke briefly with Mr. McGrath. He was lovely.

An Eye on Architecture runs through June 25
at The Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Place.
Gallery hours: Mon.-Fri. 9am-8pm, Sat. 11am-5pm.
For more information write them at info@aiany.org

Five Great Butterfly Quotes

"Happiness is a butterfly, which when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you."
---Nathaniel Hawthorne

"I've watched you now a full half-hour,
Self-poised upon that yellow flower.
And, little Butterfly! Indeed
I know not if you sleep or feed."--William Wordsworth

"We must remain as close to the flowers, the grass, and the butterflies as the child is who is not yet so much taller than they are."
--Friedrich Nietzsche

"I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming I am a man."--Chuang Tzu

"I believe that after you die, you come back as whatever you want. I'll be a butterfly. Because no-one ever suspects...the butterfly"--Bart Simpson

Butterflies are Tweeting!

Preperatory sketch of The Butterflies of Memory by Kathleen Griffin

Just launched: the official Twitter page  of The Butterflies of Memory. Follow on Twitter and watch the project slowly emerge from its chrysalis to fly high above Roosevelt Island.

The Butterflies of Memory

In the summer of 2012, artist Kathleen Griffin will mount The Butterflies of Memory at the site of the abandoned Smallpox Hospital, located on the south end of Roosevelt Island in the East River. Using steel cables, she will "fly" butterflies with ten-foot wingspans over the historic site, creating an image of joy and hope for all of New York to enjoy.

In other words, she'll transform this:

The Smallpox Hospital at Roosevelt Island.

into THIS:

Computer rendering of The Butterflies of Memory
Image © Kathleen Griffin/The Butterflies of Memory

Leaving for Cambodia!

The Royal Palace in Pnomh Penh, Cambodia. Photo from WikiTravel.

Leaving for Cambodia...which means two and a half weeks away from this giant project. I will miss it. I will be accompanying Yula Kapetanakos on her research in there. I will be assisting a little in my non-scientific way, collaborating on some artistic expression of her research and possibly doing a little educational outreach in a Cambodian School with Yula.

Basically, I'll be running through the jungles with one of the coolest women on the planet and drawing vultures. Total adventure, insanely excited. Then two days in Shanghai looking at galleries.

Step Two: Throw the idea out there, see what happens

Touched base with Judy Berdy from the Roosevelt Island Historical Society. Always fun, always a pleasure. In my mind, she is the queen of Roosevelt Island. Judy is the woman who first introduced me to RIOC and who ultimately introduced me to Maria Wilpon from BL. Judy’s support is critical and has been very generous.

I first contacted Judy about a month or two after doing the original drawing. Judy is the President of the Historical Society. I found her when researching the building online. I contacted her and sent her an initial idea proposal. At the time this felt like a wild stab in the dark and I didn’t know what I was expecting. I was not expecting Judy Berdy. In one meeting I found myself with a strong supporter and ally who was excited about the project.

Judy explained all sorts of things about the building, its history and the island. She put me in contact with RIOC (Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation) the organization that governs Roosevelt Island and specifically the ruins of the Smallpox Hospital. This early support and guidance was part of the transformation of the drawing into broad idea proposals, describing what the project could be.

Later when it was time to hire an engineer, I met with many talented people through my friends and contacts, but it was Judy who put me in touch with Maria Wilpon of BL Companies. Having worked extensively on Roosevelt Island, recently completing the Tram Project, Maria was a dream match for The Butterflies of Memory.

Maria has become the spine of the project, an unbelievable gift, offering the knowledge and expertise of BL Companies and their team. This was so much more than I could have hoped for. Maria immediately understood and believed in the project and shared the vision of it, to the extent that Maria not only mentors the project but works pro bono. This project would be impossible without her.