Born at home in 1981 (midwife, Venice Beach), singer, pianist, and composer Kahane was reared in medium-sized cities on both coasts of the continental United States by a psychologist mother (relational) and concert pianist father (unaffiliated). While a convenient and tidy psychological reading might suggest that his hybrid of blistering, chromatic counterpoint and traditional singer-songwriting belies some sort of defiance of the classical environment in which he was raised, Kahane would no doubt argue that such theories are half-baked. “They were listening to Joni Mitchell too!” he retorts. And yet, Kahane’s work defies classification through his sonically challenging, emotionally resonant, yet deeply accessible music.
After an uneventful childhood marked by the quotidien, in which Kahane found himself singing in operas in Germany, competing in international chess tournaments, and obsessively compiling baseball statistics, the young man discovered a pair of rickety Martin guitars in the attic of his parents’ Tudor home on Cobbs Hill Drive. Experiments ensued, though they would give way to a fascination with the piano toward the end of Kahane’s high school years.
Fast forward to 2008. It’s a historic moment in American politics, with a septuagenarian running against an African-American for the most hallowed office in the United States. In a more modest sense, it’s also a historic moment because it is the year in which Kahane’s debut record was released (September 16, to be exact).
Recorded primarily in March and April of 2008 in Seattle, Hoboken, and two Boroughs of New York City, the album is a testament to Kahane’s catholic musical pursuits. With twenty musicians supporting him, Mr. Kahane’s debut offers snippets of string quartets juxtaposed with strummy strum folk song, brass chorales right beside jangly piano pop, and yet, he would argue, it’s very much of a piece, an album meant to be heard as a whole.
Kahane’s best known work, Craigslistlieder (2006)-- an eight movement song cycle which comprises settings of anonymous classified ads from craigslist.org—has been heard in venues ranging from the dankest bars of the Lower East Side to Carnegie Hall, in a recital by critically-acclaimed baritone Thomas Meglioranza. The summer of 2008 witnesses the premiere of Kahane’s For The Union Dead, a new song cycle on poems by Robert Lowell for chamber ensemble, at the Verbier Festival in Switzerland.
Among his varied credits as a performer, Kahane has appeared in recital with Grammy winning bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff throughout Europe, toured the Schumann Piano Quintet with the Mark Morris Dance Group, and accompanied violinist Hilary Hahn in the slow movement of the Sibelius Violin Concerto in yet another dirty bar on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. He has shared the stage with indie-rock luminaries My Brightest Diamond and Luke Temple, and has recorded with Sufjan Stevens and former Nickel Creek front-man Chris Thile.
Much in demand as a composer of chamber music, Gabriel is currently completing solo piano commissions for pianists Natasha Paremski as well as for his father, Jeffrey Kahane. An evening-length work exploring his family's genealogy and journey from Germany to the United States will premiere in the fall of 2009 in Los Angeles and New York.
The play within a play?
An avid theatre artist, Kahane has collaborated extensively with the Obie-winning New York City-based downtown theatre company Les Freres Corbusier, serving as musical director for a number of their productions including Hell House, A Very Merry Unauthorized Scientology Pageant, and the Los Angeles production of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson. In addition, the composer was recently commissioned by the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia to write an evening length work for their American Musical Voices Project, and is also the recipient this year of a new fellowship through the Shen Family Foundation and the Public Theater with the aim to create and develop new work.
coney island
Gabriel Kahane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
in their cage making faces at the passers-by,
I steal a glance, but they don't catch my eye, oh no.
There's a flutter in my stomach at the Siamese twins,
the loneliest couple with the same six limbs,
always together but they're still not friends, oh no.
There's a secret part of me gets so silent
by communion at Coney Island, oh.
and it's headed out to heaven and a bright blue shore.
I take a breath, I'm scared to death, and I look up
And there's a secret part of me gets so silent
By communion at Coney Island, oh.
Please don't let a single person know
My crazy feeling at the circus show.
Truth of the matter is, it's here I feel at home.
In Gabriel Kahane's song "Coney Island," he captures the eerie yet comforting feeling of being at a freak show. He begins the song by describing the pinheads in their cage, making faces at the passersby. The use of the word "freak show" may imply that these people are being put on display for entertainment, which could be seen as unethical. However, as he continues to describe the other acts such as the Siamese twins and their struggles with friendship, he expresses empathy for these people and a sense of fascination.
The chorus brings in the theme of communion, which can be interpreted in a few ways. It could be seen as the communion of the singer with the performers, as he feels a connection to them despite their differences. Alternatively, it could be seen as a way for the singer to connect with something larger than himself, whether that's a feeling of acceptance or a higher power. This idea is reinforced in the final verse when Kahane sings about the door at the end of the boardwalk that leads to heaven and a bright blue shore.
Overall, "Coney Island" is an introspective and emotional song about the feeling of being different and finding solace in unexpected places. It speaks to the idea that there is beauty in diversity and that we can all find ways to connect with each other, even if we seem vastly different on the surface.
Line by Line Meaning
Here at the freak show where the pinheads lie,
At this place, where the unusual individuals are, and the heads of pins lie,
in their cage making faces at the passers-by,
Inside a confined space, making facial expressions to the people walking by,
I steal a glance, but they don't catch my eye, oh no.
I quickly look, but they do not grab my attention, oh no.
There's a flutter in my stomach at the Siamese twins,
There is a noticeable feeling of excitement within me because of the Siamese twins,
the loneliest couple with the same six limbs,
The most isolated pair with the same limbs,
always together but they're still not friends, oh no.
Despite always being with each other, they do not have a close relationship, oh no.
There's a secret part of me gets so silent
I have a part of me that becomes quiet and private
by communion at Coney Island, oh.
When I come together with everything Coney Island has to offer, oh.
At the end of the boardwalk there's an open door,
At the conclusion of the raised walkway is a clear entrance,
and it's headed out to heaven and a bright blue shore.
Leading to a paradise-like vision with a vivid sea of blue.
I take a breath, I'm scared to death, and I look up
I inhale deeply and then, frightened yet courageous, I look upwards.
And there's a secret part of me gets so silent
My private side becomes silent yet again.
By communion at Coney Island, oh.
As a result of my involvement with everything Coney Island has to offer, oh.
Please don't let a single person know
I implore you not to let anyone find out
My crazy feeling at the circus show.
My intense emotions while in the circus.
Truth of the matter is, it's here I feel at home.
The reality is, this is where I feel comfortable and accepted.
Writer(s): Gabriel John Kahane
Contributed by Lila P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@TW-sy6df
I believe that this song was originally going to be performed with Rachael Price (Lake Street Dive). Sarah Jarosz subbed in after Rachael's ankle injury. Came in from Nashville after I'm With Her picked up the award for Best Duo/Group at the Americana Music Association Awards. Bet it looks good next to the International Folk Artists of the year Award. Both well deserved.