[NewMusic] Tom Nunn in today's Chron (Moe! Staiano)

[Robair, Gino]

Um, guys -- let's try not to alienate our supporters in the press: Derk Richardson wrote that piece on Tom, and he's one of the few (perhaps the ONLY) professional writers covering the scene in this area right now. He's also the guy that's been interviewing people for the ROVA Improv21 series. He also has a radio show on KPFA, and has supported our scene in many, many ways over the years. I suggest you respectfully cut him some slack.

Taking PG's comments into account -- that very little of what makes the instruments so special -- you have to remember that this piece IS IN THE CHRONICLE! It's not meant for specialists and musicians: it's meant for the lay reader (you know, the folks who DON'T attend our concerts, and who learn about "world music" by watching "Sex in the City" reruns, for example). The word "percussive" is probably not even in many reader's vocabulary as a musical term! So how are you going to explain the Gnat in a 250-word piece?  So now we know he is a native of Austin. Boring historical fact, Jacob? Human interest, m'boy.

And the inane subhead? Probably chosen by an editor at the paper, and not the writer. It's so long, it feels like it was chosen to fill page space. That's my educated guess, anyway....

Jacob wrote: "Since there isn't even any hype surrounding Tom Nunn, this guy just wrote a bunch of boring historical facts relating to other musicians nobody knows about (present company excluded)."

So it's probably not a good idea to *introduce* the unknown people to the general public, eh?  BTW, Bart Hopkin was on KQED the other day -- FOR AN HOUR. It's more likely that SF audiences will know of him than Tom. So, hooray! Tom Nunn get's a well deserved and long overdue shoutout in a major paper. But for goodness sake, don't shoot the messenger! 

To Paraphrase: Be thankful they spelled Tom's name right.