Check it out - They put me on this slideshow. I'm the pianist playing in the background. I quit after I made a mistake, but unfortunately they included my mistake on the slideshow.
http://news.boisestate.edu/slideshows/AllSteinway/
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Short Bucket List
Awhile back Kim posted a list of 20 goals. Twenty seems like a nice achievable number. I consider myself tagged and present you with my list of 20 things I hope to accomplish in my life, in no particular order:
1. Finish my masters degree!
2. Become proficient in jazz improvisation. I'm still a novice in this area, but hope to become admirably proficient. I don't envision myself breaking new ground or making lots of money giving jazz concerts, but I would hope that at least I could become proficient.
3. Maintain my weight. I like my weight right now. I would like to maintain it forever.
4. Earn a DMA.
5. Become employed by a university as a music professor. I don't want to be a department head or deal with any of the headaches that involves, just a professor.
6. Work as a pianist for a symphony orchestra.
7. Make some more recordings. I have a really good idea for my next classical CD. It won't be too hard. I can't wait. But no, I'm not telling.
8. Go to Paris with Alexis. Wouldn't that be a fantastic mother-daughter trip? I've still never been.
9. Sing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The only trouble is, I'd have to live in the Salt Lake valley to accomplish this. The air there is terrible, and the inversion keeps the sun away for weeks at a time. Ick.
10. Break some new ground in my family history work. There are a few lines that I think I could make some serious progress on without too much work. All I need is time, you know?
This is harder than I thought it would be. I must be pretty contented. Stay tuned for 10 more next time.
1. Finish my masters degree!
2. Become proficient in jazz improvisation. I'm still a novice in this area, but hope to become admirably proficient. I don't envision myself breaking new ground or making lots of money giving jazz concerts, but I would hope that at least I could become proficient.
3. Maintain my weight. I like my weight right now. I would like to maintain it forever.
4. Earn a DMA.
5. Become employed by a university as a music professor. I don't want to be a department head or deal with any of the headaches that involves, just a professor.
6. Work as a pianist for a symphony orchestra.
7. Make some more recordings. I have a really good idea for my next classical CD. It won't be too hard. I can't wait. But no, I'm not telling.
8. Go to Paris with Alexis. Wouldn't that be a fantastic mother-daughter trip? I've still never been.
9. Sing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The only trouble is, I'd have to live in the Salt Lake valley to accomplish this. The air there is terrible, and the inversion keeps the sun away for weeks at a time. Ick.
10. Break some new ground in my family history work. There are a few lines that I think I could make some serious progress on without too much work. All I need is time, you know?
This is harder than I thought it would be. I must be pretty contented. Stay tuned for 10 more next time.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Earth Day
Today is Earth Day. I drove my SUV to school. LOL. I do love our earth, I really do, but I had to drive the carpool this morning, so SUV it was. Yesterday I came home to find 3 of my perennials (purple desert loving verbena) yanked out of the ground. It seems my gardener had not been informed that there were actual weeds in the yard (dandelions and morning glory) that needed pulling. On the plus side, my tulips look gorgeous. They are lucky they do not remotely resemble any indigenous weeds. The up side to having a gardener like mine is that he cooks the wonderful things we grow into delicious gourmet meals. I wouldn't trade him for the world.
Today I played my Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 4 for concert class. I lost my place and had another memory lapse (OF COURSE), but otherwise played really well. I think I made some beautiful music. The audience clapped and whooped for me. I think they enjoyed it. I hope the day will come soon that I will be able to play ANYTHING at all without forgetting. So far, I forget, so maybe I qualify as a very good intermediate pianist. I don't feel quite like a "Master" yet. I always feel like I just had a heart attack after I play by memory. Tonight I'm going to play 2 pieces for my "Piano Club:" Granados' El Pelele, and Haydn's Eb Sonata III. Presto. I think it'll go well.
I had the greatest experience with one of my piano students today. He is playing a piece called "With A Yo-Ho-Ho!" His rhythm was iffy on one part, so we made up some words for it so he could more easily remember the rhythm. Here are our lyrics: "Here's a pirate song for a very cool dude; will you please give me some food?" Other lyrics in the rest of the piece were, "Now you'll walk the plank. You're a very stupid guy. You will drown and die," or my favorite, "If you don't say the roots you will walk the plank." It went on and on and we laughed and laughed. We practiced the piece over and over while we made up gory lyrics. I think maybe now he'll finally get it. I really enjoy teaching. I cannot WAIT for this semester to end.
Today I played my Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 4 for concert class. I lost my place and had another memory lapse (OF COURSE), but otherwise played really well. I think I made some beautiful music. The audience clapped and whooped for me. I think they enjoyed it. I hope the day will come soon that I will be able to play ANYTHING at all without forgetting. So far, I forget, so maybe I qualify as a very good intermediate pianist. I don't feel quite like a "Master" yet. I always feel like I just had a heart attack after I play by memory. Tonight I'm going to play 2 pieces for my "Piano Club:" Granados' El Pelele, and Haydn's Eb Sonata III. Presto. I think it'll go well.
I had the greatest experience with one of my piano students today. He is playing a piece called "With A Yo-Ho-Ho!" His rhythm was iffy on one part, so we made up some words for it so he could more easily remember the rhythm. Here are our lyrics: "Here's a pirate song for a very cool dude; will you please give me some food?" Other lyrics in the rest of the piece were, "Now you'll walk the plank. You're a very stupid guy. You will drown and die," or my favorite, "If you don't say the roots you will walk the plank." It went on and on and we laughed and laughed. We practiced the piece over and over while we made up gory lyrics. I think maybe now he'll finally get it. I really enjoy teaching. I cannot WAIT for this semester to end.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Poem of the Day
Here's the Poem of the Day from Writer's Almanac, my favorite literary website. Since I've been going to school, my yard has fallen into disrepair, but I wish I could get out there and work in the dirt, just a little bit! I love spring and the new flowers that are appearing. My purple tulips are just about to pop! This will be me, out there in the yard again, in summer of '11!
His Wife
by Andrew Hudgins
My wife is not afraid of dirt.
She spends each morning gardening,
stooped over, watering, pulling weeds,
removing insects from her plants
and pinching them until they burst.
She won't grow marigolds or hollyhocks,
just onions, eggplants, peppers, peas –
things we can eat. And while she sweats
I'm working on my poetry and flute.
Then growing tired of all that art,
I've strolled out to the garden plot
and seen her pull a tomato from the vine
and bite into the unwashed fruit
like a soft, hot apple in her hand.
The juice streams down her dirty chin
and tiny seeds stick to her lips.
Her eye is clear, her body full of light,
and when, at night, I hold her close,
she smells of mint and lemon balm.
His Wife
by Andrew Hudgins
My wife is not afraid of dirt.
She spends each morning gardening,
stooped over, watering, pulling weeds,
removing insects from her plants
and pinching them until they burst.
She won't grow marigolds or hollyhocks,
just onions, eggplants, peppers, peas –
things we can eat. And while she sweats
I'm working on my poetry and flute.
Then growing tired of all that art,
I've strolled out to the garden plot
and seen her pull a tomato from the vine
and bite into the unwashed fruit
like a soft, hot apple in her hand.
The juice streams down her dirty chin
and tiny seeds stick to her lips.
Her eye is clear, her body full of light,
and when, at night, I hold her close,
she smells of mint and lemon balm.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Playing in Public
Today I played Granados' "El pelele" for a Spanish class. My teacher was giving a lecture about Spanish culture and scholarship, and invited me to play for them. I had several brain freezes, but I got through without stopping outright, so I was glad of that. I just need a whole bunch of opportunities to play in public. This performance degree is kind of a conundrum. I hate playing from memory, and I hate playing from memory in public, especially. I get really nervous and feel like my blood is boiling or that my veins are about to explode before I go onstage. I've tried the breathing exercises and everything else, and I can't get a hold of my nerves. Oh well. I only have one more year left, and then I will play with ensembles for the rest of my life.
After my solo "performance," I went into the rehearsal hall and worked on a piece called "Aurora Awakes" by John Mackey with the BSU Wind Ensemble. It is a gorgeous piece! The introduction alone brings me to tears. It's a pretty big hard fast difficult piece, and not very pianistic, either. It puts the hand and arms in weird angles and then asks you to play fff, which is just not good. The rhythm switches from 3/4 - 2/4 - 5/4- 3/2- 7/8 all over the place, with hardly two measures in a row with the same meter. I've played in a string orchestra before, but there are no words to describe the vibrations that a large wind ensemble sends coursing through your body! It's hard, but lots of fun. And there I am, again, in all my exhibitionism again, playing solo piano in the middle of this huge group. It's quite a trip to be the only one on your instrument that way, with your part so bare in front of everyone.
When I was a young girl learning my piano skills, I would have never called myself an exhibitionist. I was shy and always looked at the group with a bit of disdain, not wanting to be like the others, but not wanting to stand out from the crowd as exceptional, either. Why did I choose this field? The truth is, that I didn't. It chose me. I'm not comfortable at all in either of those roles (solo piano or collaborative pianist), but I have to say that it's a bit like parasailing. It's such a huge risk that it's pretty thrilling on your way down, even if you crash.
After my solo "performance," I went into the rehearsal hall and worked on a piece called "Aurora Awakes" by John Mackey with the BSU Wind Ensemble. It is a gorgeous piece! The introduction alone brings me to tears. It's a pretty big hard fast difficult piece, and not very pianistic, either. It puts the hand and arms in weird angles and then asks you to play fff, which is just not good. The rhythm switches from 3/4 - 2/4 - 5/4- 3/2- 7/8 all over the place, with hardly two measures in a row with the same meter. I've played in a string orchestra before, but there are no words to describe the vibrations that a large wind ensemble sends coursing through your body! It's hard, but lots of fun. And there I am, again, in all my exhibitionism again, playing solo piano in the middle of this huge group. It's quite a trip to be the only one on your instrument that way, with your part so bare in front of everyone.
When I was a young girl learning my piano skills, I would have never called myself an exhibitionist. I was shy and always looked at the group with a bit of disdain, not wanting to be like the others, but not wanting to stand out from the crowd as exceptional, either. Why did I choose this field? The truth is, that I didn't. It chose me. I'm not comfortable at all in either of those roles (solo piano or collaborative pianist), but I have to say that it's a bit like parasailing. It's such a huge risk that it's pretty thrilling on your way down, even if you crash.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Life is a drag, sometimes
Today has been a drag. I've got nothing done. I should never go into spring break expecting any degree of productivity. I'm discouraged by parenthood, finances, my housekeeping skills (or lack thereof), blah, blah, blah.
On an optimistic note, I think I have grown up some in the communication field. I had a nasty interaction today with a guy who has no communication skills. He started out rude, right out of the gate. He sent me a nasty e-mail and a nasty voice-mail (didn't want to risk not making his point, I guess). I found myself composing a thoughtful, respectful response, with just enough but not too much information. Later I called him on the phone and he was much, MUCH nicer to me in conversation than in either of his messages.
Maybe I have learned how to diffuse a bad situation. I'm finding that I have learned how to wait before I respond in a reactionary way. I'm finding that I have the self-restraint to tailor my interactions to achieve my desired results. Five years ago, an interaction like this one would have gotten ugly fast, and then I'd have sulked about it for 18 months. I'm proud of how it ended up, but it still didn't make for a pleasant day.
AND, I am still staying true to my diet. I'm proud of that, too.
On an optimistic note, I think I have grown up some in the communication field. I had a nasty interaction today with a guy who has no communication skills. He started out rude, right out of the gate. He sent me a nasty e-mail and a nasty voice-mail (didn't want to risk not making his point, I guess). I found myself composing a thoughtful, respectful response, with just enough but not too much information. Later I called him on the phone and he was much, MUCH nicer to me in conversation than in either of his messages.
Maybe I have learned how to diffuse a bad situation. I'm finding that I have learned how to wait before I respond in a reactionary way. I'm finding that I have the self-restraint to tailor my interactions to achieve my desired results. Five years ago, an interaction like this one would have gotten ugly fast, and then I'd have sulked about it for 18 months. I'm proud of how it ended up, but it still didn't make for a pleasant day.
AND, I am still staying true to my diet. I'm proud of that, too.
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