anniversary

what? no glass to smash? try a bandana-wrapped apple

today marks the first anniversary of our wedding, and it has been a wonderful year. of course, marrying a wonderful girl has a lot to do with it. indeed, a year ago i began my vows to my dear girl by telling her, "i just think you're wonderful." and truly, becca radiates wonder. it's in her eyes, her voice, and her mind. girl glimmers, and i love that.

for me, a marriage represents a special sort of social pact with the world: there is no deeper social relationship, no other i-thou that precedes this one--our loving bond stands as an opening into all other human engagements; if i can't be right by her, i can't be right by anyone. and so we weigh our commitment to each other not lightly, though i wouldn't want to imply that we dwell too gravely on all this: on the main, our love comes easy.

musically, i wasn't sure how best to express our big day. i knew that i wanted a dance party in the evening, but i didn't know what would be the right accompaniment for the ceremony itself. after considering a solo cello, which would have been nice but a little too trad, and after being encouraged to bring my own musical voice into the proceedings, i decided to remix a bunch of "wedding classics."

these are not the most accomplished remixes--in general, i'm just laying a well-worn break over some time-warped chamber music--but i think they served their purpose. upon hearing the familiar fanfare of the "wedding march," people looked a little nervous--oh no he didn't--but once the beat dropped, there were sighs and giggles, and i could pay more attention to the most important thing: my beautiful bride walking towards me.

for those who might be interested, here are several selections:

w&w vs. bach, "(so so) arioso"

w&w vs. bach, "sheep may safely graze(/groove)"

w&w vs. clarke, "trumpet (in)voluntary"

w&w vs. pachelbel, "can(n)on"

w&w vs. wagner, "wedding march(/strut)"

i'm not sure how these will hold up in your headphones or computer speakers, but they sounded great echoing across the apple orchard on a quiet sunday morning.

i dedicate these sounds and sentiments to my dear, dear girl. here's to many more untwistably twisted years.