"I am as bad as the worst, but, thank God, I am as good as the best"
Walt Whitman
Hello again my lovely readers, today I present to you a short essay that came to me while I was performing one of the daily rituals I enjoy the most, practicing at the table while I watch "the mind of a chef"
You would not find it so odd if you remembered that when I first started writing on this beautiful platform I mentioned how much I enjoyed cooking. While I do not think I am as good a cook as I am a card technique aficionado I do find myself making constant links between the two crafts, being the one I Present to you today perhaps the most direct of them all.
Season one of the show stars culinary extraordinare and ramen fanatic David Chang. Cofounder of Momofuku Noodle Bar in NYC, David travels around the globe visiting some of the best chefs and discussing a particular topic with each episode, usually ending with him blowing your mind using the feature ingredient or technique in a way you did not think possible.
However, it was not David's innovation and wits that impressed me the most but rather an experience documented on the episode dedicated to miso paste.
The place Chang visits the most is Japan and in this particular occasion an establishment in which miso was made like nowhere else.
After watching the extensive process of crafting the paste in question Chang has a profound experience as he finally gets to taste the result.
"I wish people knew this is how miso should actually taste" David exclaims as he reflects on the poor quality miso people usually get on a regular basis
Oddly enough I feel the same way about magic and how people usually get exposed to it. Laymen consume magic on tv and said magic seldom is as good as magic really is. For example, instead of watching Fred kaps pour endless amounts of salt from his hands they see smoothini on America's got talent.
But do not get me wrong lovely readers for I am not blaming it entirely on the magicians but rather on the initial fault that lies in not considering the specificities of television as a media of communication before planning to go on it and perform magic
We cannot go on the air and behave the same way we would on stage due to the fact that we are quite simply not working in the same circumstances. Our attention must be focused on the camera's eye rather than on the spectator's and we must use the way tv technically works to our advantage, even if it means cheating a little bit
As a closing remark I would like to recommend Luis piedrahita from Spain, whom I consider to be the biggest authority on the present subject. Luis' performances at "el hormiguero" are simply wonderful and his thoughts on the matter may be found at dani daortiz's magazine "El Manuscrito" as well as in his EMC 2012 talk
Must dash now boys and girls, I hoped my insight was enjoyable
Yours truly, Professor Moriarty
"Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works"
Steve Jobs