Baltimore Unsilent Nighters may have noticed a mysterious man giving a play-by-play of the evening’s activities into a small handheld recording device. It turns out that our interloper was none other than Ed Schrader, whose Feedback article appears in this week’s CityPaper.

Hey Everybody,

The SF Bay Guardian got its info wrong — Unsilent Night has already happened this year, on December 22.

Unsilent Night is NOT HAPPENING tonight. (December 31)

See you next year!

All best,

Colin Berry
Producer, USNSF

Baltimoreans who might be trolling this site are invited to joing the Unsilent Baltimore Flickr Group to contribute photos from the event. If you don’t have a Flickr account, we’d love to include your photos; just send them along in a nice email.

Merry Christmas!

Baltimore’s 2nd annual performance of Phil Kline’s amibient Christmas masterpiece Unsilent Night took place last night and was by all accounts a smashing success. We had a record crowd of nearly 100 totally awesome participants. New for the 2007 edition of Unsilent Night in Baltimore was the summoning of aliens as we gathered in a circle around the infamous Male/Femal sculpture in front of Penn Station; convincing the Amtrak police that we were the “carolers” they were expecting and we did indeed know where to stage—after sharing the joy with everyone in the train station; and making our way in and then out of the lobby of the Charles Theater. Many thanks again to all the folks who helped out and spread the word about this year’s event. We’ll see everyone again next year!

P.s. Some photos of the event can be had here. And, by the way, if you came out last night and took some photos and would like to share them, that would be great. Just send me an email!

The batteries were all placed in the boombox with care . . . It’s the day before Unsilent Night in Baltimore and we’re ready to go. The press has been rolling in:

• Baltimore City Paper: Critic’s Pick
• Baltimore Sun: The Free Sheet
• Washington Post: The Scene (scroll down)

Though it won’t be as cold as last year, it’s still going to be a bit chilly. Those who brave the cold can look forward to warming up with some grog at Joe Squared at the Unsilent After Party following the event, where Hybrid Groove Project and DJ Dubble8 will warm things up as well. (We tried to get this guy on the bill, but he was booked already.)

Unslient Night besteht aus vier 45minütigen Samples, die parallel abgespielt werden. Wir werden am Abend CDs und Kassetten mit den Samples verteilen. Unter folgendem Link, können die Samples aber auch schon vorab als Mp3-Files heruntergeladen werden: http://www.unsilentnight.com/download

From San Diego Citybeat:

HOLIDAY EVENTS

Creative caroling

For those of us who still own CDs, cassette tapes and a boom box (remember those?), here’s an opportunity to put them to good use in our MP3-dominated world. Composer Phil Kline’s Unsilent Night asks participants to walk the streets of the Gaslamp Quarter while playing specially provided CDs and tapes. The goal is to combine the sounds produced by the stereos to create an interactive ambient soundscape. Now in its sixth year of performance in San Diego, the event has become a holiday tradition—or, at the very least, it’s a chance for people who can’t sing to finally go Christmas caroling. Meet at 6:40 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 15, at the Gaslamp Trolley Station on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Harbor Boulevard. www.philkline.com or 619-299-5371.

Just wanted to invite everyone in the Bay Area to the San Francisco Unsilent Night, our fifth, happening December 22 at 7:00 PM. We’ll meet at the usual place — near the tennis courts in Mission Dolores Park at 18th and Dolores — and take the normal route from there. Please tell your friends, and please bring boomboxes! I read on one of the alt-music calendars that “Phil is providing boomboxes,” which is absolutely NOT the case, never has been. Phil brings tapes and CDs, and you all provide the sound system.

Last year was really spectacular, with more than a thousand people and well over 100 boomboxes. To tell the truth, as producer of the event, I’d be just as happy to be slightly smaller than that — I think folks stay together better as a group and the sound is better — but I’m happy to have as many as we have show up. Our smallest year was 200 people, and it was wonderful then, too.

It’s been freezing in Northern California recently, so please be sure to bundle up. And don’t forget fresh batteries — my own blaster died one year and I vowed to remind everyone after that.

One final note: Phil (and his wife, and baby girl) will be coming to San Francisco once again for the performance, and that’s always an honor; he definitely doesn’t get to every USN (there are 26 of them this year), so to have him in our midst is very special. He loves coming to San Francisco, and we love hosting him. Welcome back, Phil!

Can’t wait to see everyone on the 22nd! Happy Solstice!

Colin Berry