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Martha Cinader Interview
November 13, 1996 - New York City, New York
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Martha Cinader |
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Michael Monteleone |
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Walt Stempek |
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Martha Cinader, word smith, performance artist, Chanteus of the Jazz Semantique, is an active citizen of Gotham City's Colonie d'Art. She has knocked a little patch on the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and spun countless Circus Day word weaves on the boards in New Yorks hippest clubs. She is someone biographer Oliver Trager has dubbed "The Queen" of The Royal Court. You will find more information on Martha in The Royal Court section of this web site, her story of Nichola Tesla: Tesla Vision is featured in the Faux For All Section, and keep your radar sweeping the Long Neon Tube page for announcements of Martha's upcoming live appearances. herself.
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WS |
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You're the only woman I know that seems to be into Lord Buckley. What was it about him that attracted you? |
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MC |
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His language. But not only his language, well, his spirit, let's say it that simply. The first time I heard him I understood him right away, none of this having to play it over and over again to try to understand any of that. It was very clear to me. And I loved it. It made me laugh and I could play the same thing over and over again and laugh. |
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WS |
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You were pretty hip, you hadn't heard Lord Buckley and you picked up on it right away. |
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MC |
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Well, I think, I don't know, yeah, maybe I was just hip from up front, you know? But, to me, I'm not sure why people would have a harder time digging him, you know. But, then sometimes I have a hard time being understood, so, maybe that's why. |
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WS |
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Pushed your soul button. |
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MC |
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Yeah. But, I don't know why I'm the only woman that's going to be there doing that Friday night [the Buckley 90th Birthday Bash, April 12, 1996]. It's OK with me Iouldn't say anything. But I was very upset that they were going and I hadn't even bothered to ; |
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He said, well, "If you're going to say it, say it in a way that makes people laugh. Btyle32">Well, I guess that depends on how you define my work. I have performed Lord Buckley's stories at various times. And I love to do it. And I always get a great response from audiences. They love it. Even if they don't always understand all of it. Overall people do, I think they connect to the stories and they like them. And so I like to return to that every once in a while because I do give him credit for inspiring the stories that I like to tell. And so, it's like playing a jazz standard or something, you know, you just, you return to some of those things - and each time you find something else in the mechanics of it or the techniqule31"> |
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MM |
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I don't mean like a channeler. |
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MC |
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Well, "style20 style31"> |
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I do. "Jonah and the Whale" and "The Nazz" and then, of course, you know "The Train." I don't know of anyone who's ever been able to do "The Train" other than Lord Buckley. But what a performance. |
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MM |
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If for nothing more than that sound, that incredible sound, that whooooo! |
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MC |
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Right, it makes me think of Raashan [Raashan Roland Kirk] with his two horns and all that sort of thing. It's that amazing physical vitality, you know. And perhaps even Lord Buckley couldn't do that - wouldn't be able to do that if he was ninety and standing before us today. Maybe that was just at a certain time in his life really that he was capable of that. But it's truly shocking to me really to experience that kilass="style32">So many things, so many things because - take all his different accents, you know. He can speak, he could speak like an English Lord. He could speak in so many different ways. And that's quite amazing really. And then the range of his voice, you know, all the dynamics of his voice, from using his high registers to his low registers to his low registers to the volume, the sheer volume. And then all of these great sounds that would be the envy of half the sound effects crews in radio across the country, t |
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MM |
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With your child in tow? |
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MC |
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She was born in Paris. |
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MC |
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That's right. And so, I don't know how much of that was because I had this crazy image of being something like Lord Buckley. But, it's not an easy one to live, you know, but it does force you to draw on what you have within yourself to offer to people, so that they think it's worthwhile to have you in their midst, even though you haven't been out on the fields doing all kind of stuff. So, and you have to ask yourself that, "Well, why aren't I doing that? You know, why do I think I'm out here doing this?" |
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MM |
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Do you have an answer? |
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MC |
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I do. For me it's very - I think it's very pe20 style31"> |
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MC |
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Yeah, basically and it winds up where you understand that Tesla basically relinquished all his financial rights to what would amount to royalties on electricity. And claimed that he knew a way for people to get electricity from the ground that no one would have to pay for. And I like to leave that hanging in the air with people. And then remind them of the name that's on their electricity bill it's Con Edison, at least here in New York, you know. So, that's sort of the message of the Tesla story. |
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MM |
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The implication of "con" and "Edison"? |
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MC |
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Well, you know, cape, in many ways, is coming out of his visions. |
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MM |
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I'm [referring to a radio signal coming over the headphones on the tape recorder] getting a radio signal. |
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MC |
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You are? Ohnbsp; |
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I think Buckley is popular, his influence is in a lot of places. |
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MC |
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Look at the list of people that Oliver Trager has interviewed. All of whom either knew him or acknowledged his influence. It's pervasive. So I, personally I don't think you have to look very far to see Lord Buckley. But it's very similar to, again, speaking about jazz, how many people that listen to |
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Oh, I'm sure. I mean look at Robin William's great vitality and energy. I think he has that in common with Lord Buckley. And I'm trying to think who is similar in terms of the language. And I can't really think of anyone. But I think it's more, it's a funny thing because this is where I connect with Lord Buckley again. He told stories, he told these long stories. And so when I look at a lot of these comedians that I've seen on screen like Richard Pryor or Eddie Murphy, all those kind of really brilliant comedians, but I don't get that kind of, almost around the fire kind of storytelling feeling that Lord Buckley had. Maybe Ken Kesey, I think he carries that tradition in his novels. And he, I was lucky enough to meet him once and I got that vitality from him. And the wlass="style20 style31"> |
Whitewashed. |
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MC |
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Yeah. I think also, he's dead. It's not like he's going to keep putting out records and go through this whole promotional kind of thing and become more popular. But people know about him in strange places - |
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MC |
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Well, like the email I got from Israel. People know about Lord Buckley. And I think that that will continue. |
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MM |
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Would you have liked to have met him? |
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MC |
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Well, absolutely. O width="95" class="style20 style31"> |
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One strong force versus another strong force. |
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MC |
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Who knows. I might not have even liked him or something. I doubt that seriously but many times I've met - I've been lucky in life I think, in my short life, to have met some really, really talented and special people. Some of them were special people on a personal level too. And someone of them I would never want to meet again. Even though I don't mind hearing them on the radio or something. To me, we all have a breaking point in life where we are not what we would like be, you know. And none of us are in a position to judge anyone else. But we can get something from people's work, the legacy they leave. |
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MM |
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That's a good question. What is his legacy? What is it that he has bequeathed say to performers? |
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MC |
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I guess all the things I spoken about in the last half hour. That - |
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MC |
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The language, and I guess, in the end, the ability to reach deep into yourself and pull amazing things out. I think he did that. And he inspires me to do that. So that's his legacy with me. And I guess I've written about that in my book [DREAMSCAPE: Real Dreams Really Make A Difference] - |
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MM |
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Is there anything you would like to say? |
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MC |
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Well, it's been a gas sitting here talking to you, you know. The vibe's been great. |
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MC |
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And all due respects to the spirit of Lord Buckley. |
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MM |
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Yeah. I'm sureth="95" class="style20 style31"> |
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Well, I'm really looking forward to doing this event Friday night. And I'm excited to be there at a point in my life where I'm working with a band like he did and think it's going to be great, so - |
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MM |
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Well, good luck on Friday. |
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MM |
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We'll be rooting for you. |
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MM |
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Walt, do you have anything that you'd like to say, or ask? [Walt shakes his head "no"] OK, well over and out. |
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MM |
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Thank you very much, Martha. |
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WS |
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So, there's going to be a band? |
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MC |
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Po'azz Yo'azz backing up me. |
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