Photo credit: Theresa C. Sanchez
Violent Femmes’ bassist Brian Ritchie
Brian Ritchie, best known as Violent Femmes’ bassist, is also a multi-instrumentalist and music festival curator. For a number of years Ritchie has studied the shakuhachi, a traditional Chinese/Japanese bamboo flute. He lives in Tasmania and talked about how different things are halfway around the world.
How has the lockdown affected your creativity?
Lockdown has increased my creativity. It has given me time to review everything I already know and learn new instruments and music.
Do you have a routine or schedule for staying in practice or working on new material?
Every day I broadcast a Corona Concert from my Zen Bunker studio or other sites (link here ). It started out totally solo and multi-instrumental. Now that restrictions are eased I have guests. The music spans from Japanese traditional to jazz to surf and psychedelic rock. That's in addition to my daily shakuhachi practice. I take lessons on shakuhachi from a Japanese teacher and I teach it myself here in Tasmania.
Are you making plans for when you can resume playing in front of people again?
We do not have COVID in Tasmania so I have been able to continue performing live to small audiences. My next gig is a shakuhachi concert at St. David’s Cathedral with pipe organ, gongs, tuba, contrabass sax and choir. After that a concert of Mexican music at the Museum of Old and New Art. Femmes will resume activity when the coast is clear.
To read more stories of Milwaukee musicians dealing with lockdowns, sheltering in place and more, click here.
To read more stories by Blaine Schultz, click here.
