artscap interviews... Carlton Wilkinson
interview conducted by Pam Lamberton
This week ArtsCAP interviews Carlton Wilkinson. Carlton is a local musician and a member of The Black Box Theater Company.
Q. You have been involved with the ARTS here in Asbury Park for quite awhile. How long has it been?
A. Actually, it’s not that long. We came to Asbury Park in 2002. I spent the first months here recovering from “the move.” We moved from Jersey City.
Q. How did you become acquainted with Asbury Park?
A. My wife Lauren knew of Asbury from when she managed bands back in her college days. She loved the ‘ghost town’ feel. We drove through the city in 2001 on a whim. We saw BeGallery on Cookman, we saw murals and graffiti, there was Sonny’s restaurant on Cookman and there was this gigantic expanse of beach. There seemed to be pockets in the city where things were happening. We both agreed that this was where we wanted to be. We moved here in December of 2001.
Q. What are you most well known for?
A. To the kids on the Westside I am Mr. Golden. To the folks at the Technical School of Dance where my daughter attends, I’m Mr. Golden. To the kids in the schools where my wife, Ms. Golden, teaches, I’m Mr. Golden. Just Lauren’s husband.
Otherwise, I guess I’m known for creating the “Music of Invention” series for The Black Box. Lauren had met Terri Thomas (one of the founders of The Black Box) at a café and when I met her I proposed the series and she was very supportive. This series is meant to introduce experimental music and instruments to the audience. I was involved with Trenton Avant-Garde in the past. The first year of the series was 2003 in the old Asbury Park Press Building. We had trouble with the landlord almost immediately. The series was moved to SICA (Shore Institute of Contemporary Art) in Long Branch. But I always wanted to do the series in Asbury Park so this year we are back. We will be at several venues in the city. In fact, the next performance is Saturday, February 16, and it will be John Buckingham. He will perform experimental jazz on a tuba. We’ll be at 519 Bangs Ave. where El Lobo Negro used to be. How I met John is a typical Asbury Park story. We were both at a party at the house next door, knew few people and so struck up a conversation. Only to discover we were both involved in experimental music.
Q. What achievement are you most proud of that people may not know about?
A. Lauren and I adopted two children. The children were adopted in June of 2006 and came to live with us in May of 2005. (We met them in Feb. of ‘05.) So they have been with us for a total of two and half years (two years eight months). My family is now the center of my life.
Q. Why do you think ART is important?
A. Not everyone agrees on this but I feel it is imperative…..you can see it in the way people glom on to a song or a painting…they crave something…something not found in ordinary life…not even in religion. In fact, look at how art is used in most church services to augment the experience…hymns, stained glass windows. Even in a Quaker service, which I attend, you see ‘art’…you are encouraged to ‘express’ yourself, to share that expression. There is even art in the silence.
Q. What art form comes to mind when you think about Asbury Park?
A. Pop music, the band scene. I hate the idea that Asbury Park might be known for only this but it seems to be headed that way. I think there was a great sense of community among all the artists in Asbury Park…or maybe it was the common struggle for community. That might be it. That feeling doesn’t seem to be as strong any more.
Q. Are you involved with teaching Art in any way?
A. Yes, that’s what I do. I give piano lessons, Music Composition lessons. I teach Music Theory at The College of New Jersey in Trenton. I have taught at Westminster Choir College in Princeton as well as the Arts High School of Middlesex and Monmouth Counties.
Q. Are you able to make a living with your music or do you have a second job to ‘pay the rent’?
A. I have a second, third and fourth job! I cobble together a living giving lessons and writing. I write a music column for The Asbury Park Press.
Q. If you couldn’t have success with your music, what would you do?
A. Nothing involving a hammer. Using a hammer takes me 4 times longer to do than anyone else. I guess I would write. I had a career as a journalist with The Trenton Times. And later with Dow Jones and then TheStreet.com, both of which are nationally known, as opposed to the Trenton Times which is a small paper.
Q. After completing a musical composition, how do you celebrate?
A. I don’t really celebrate. A composition is never really done; there is no clear end to the process. Whatever it is, I am just ready to move on to the next project.
Q. What is your favorite hang-out in Asbury Park?
A. Well, now its home. Before that, there was a place on Cookman, next to Harry’s Roadhouse. It was run by Mel Stultz. That was a good place; you could actually ‘talk’ there.
Q. What is your favorite Asbury Park memory?
A. Lauren and I got married on the beach here.
Q. What would you like your tombstone to say?
A. No tombstone please! It could say DIED 2483 A.D. That should be enough time.
Q. If you could change something in your past, what would it be?
A. I’d have done better in High School and gone right to college. It was a fun time from 18-21 but kind of meaningless. I did finally get a PhD from Rutgers in 1995.
Q. If you had $100 to spend on ‘art’ in Asbury Park, how would you spend it?
A. I would commission a local artist to create a piece.
Q. Is there a website or email address you’d like to share?