Just finished transcribing The Mystical Potato Head Groove Thing for accordian and oboe…
I had blogged about a couple entr’actes being cut, but my part was mis-marked. They didn’t cute the flute/harp one that everyone knows and loves. They cut the one with the oboe solo.
I can really not worry about this opera at all now. Even so, there wasn’t much to really fret over, as that entr’acte is one I’m comfortable with.
Here’s the Aragonaise that you’ll miss (It really is fun to play!):
I found it here.
And now I have to get ready for rehearsal. This means checking reeds to see which I’ll begin with, packing up, and doing my “idiot check” (oboe, reeds, swab, music, tuner, reed making equipment, pencils — “big duh”, those — water, tray, lumbar support) so I don’t forget anything. Because yes, I do forget things if I’m not careful!
… I’m sure we Californians would test differently. Right?
Testing and music
Kendall Holland and Mollie O’Donnell wanted to know how different kinds of music affected student testing.
They tested classical, rap, rock, country and no music at all on three eighth-grade math classes, playing the music five minutes before and during each test.
“We thought classical music would show the most positive result during testing,” Kendall said.
“Country actually did the best,” Mollie said, adding that this really surprised them, because their research said classical would give the best results.
“Rap and rock seemed to be everyone’s favorite kind of music,” Mollie said. “… but they did the worst on it.”
Kendall said country was the students’ least favorite, “and everyone was all cranky on country day,” but they did the best on the tests, probably because they were trying to block out the country music.
I read it here.
So it’s now a month of Carmen. Today is our first rehearsal, which means no singers, which means … well … kind of boring, really. I’ve played Carmen before — maybe as many as four runs (I don’t keep track). I know it, and it’s not one that stresses me out (hoorah!).
What I am a bit stressed about are reeds (no surprise), my cough (yes, it’s still going strong) and my back (ouch, ouch, ouch). I’ve done something crummy to my back and it’s been out since last Wednesday. It’s pretty bad, but I can get around, so there’s that. But I’m ready for the back to be better. I’m ready for the cough to disappear. And I’m ready for the reed fairy to make an appearance!
Hmmm. If I’d taken today off I could have taught my students. I wish I had thought of this earlier. Rats! (But of course then I’d worry that everyone else was one rehearsal “ahead” of me, so there’s that.)
I wish opera would think to put more rehearsals at night. Most of us in the pit teach privately, and we lose that income for these first two weeks. But others are in symphonies that are rehearsing and performing at night for these first two weeks, so I suppose it’s working around them rather than the teachers in the pit.
Oh well. It’s employment. I should just be thankful.
I am thankful. Really. :-)
So there’s that, too.
Robert Levine has a blog entry titled Notes to Young Conductors that is worth reading. But it also got me thinking about some of the notes I might like to write.
- Notes to new orchestra members
- Notes to old orchestra members
- Notes to old conductors
Yeah, I guess I have a lot I’d like to say. But will I? I dunno. I’ve already written things about ettiquette and maybe that’s enough.
At the same time, I suspect some conductors might want to respond to Robert’s note.
Not that Robert would do anything like the things that I find irksome, but I’ve grown quite weary of orchestra members who try to teach conductors lessons. I hate it when musicians stop listening. It can be really clear when an orchestra has pretty much dismissed a conductor. I hate the snide remarks some orchestra members make, and I’m especially upset when a musician deliberately plays crassly just because he or she feels the need to express some anger, or teach a conductor a lesson..
We musicians can be a tough crowd. I’ve seen it far too often. It gets very tiring.
Not that you’d ever see anything like that in an orchestra I work with. ;-)
This sort of touches my heart … I’m sappy sometimes.
(The other part of me has some questions and all, but we’ll stick with sappy right now. I think I need sappy today.)
I forgot how much i love practicing my Oboe :-)
Today through Saturday morning I’m one busy camper. I have opera rehearsals (Carmen with Opera San José) along with teaching (both private and UCSC), a performance to attend (San Francisco Symphony), a Giants (Go Team!), a Good Friday service (on which I play both English horn and oboe) and of course other things that pop into life.
I’m not complaining; “Better Busy than Bored” is something I frequently say. But I do need to keep track of where I’m suppose to be.
And I hope I don’t forget which instrument I’m supposed to be playing. ;-)
The musicians of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra have agreed to pay cuts for the remainder of this season and for the next two.
This news has been around for a while, but finally figured I might as well put it up here as well. I doubt very much this will be the only orchestra who has to do this.
I read it here.
I am playing for a Good Friday service. Along with a few already selected hymns and one duet with cello, I was told I could choose something. One of my readers suggested “When I Am Laid In The Earth” which, without words, sounds quite appropriate. It’s slow and mournful, to be sure:
But some of the attendees at this service are knowledgeable, so while I love the music, and no one is singing along, it just won’t work. Because it could distract the ones who do know these words:
When I am laid, am laid in earth, May my wrongs create
No trouble, no trouble in thy breast;
Remember me, remember me, but ah! forget my fate.
Remember me, but ah! forget my fate.
So something else had to be chosen.
I played the first movement of the Telemann d minor Fantasia for the music director today and, with her approval, that’s what I’ll do. I’m playing it on English horn; it’s just more mournful.
Now I only have to get over this cough, and figure out how to get this sore back of mine fixed. It is very difficult to play a wind instrument while hacking away, and the sore back is just a nuisance.
Hate the cane.
Love the rain.
Hate the cough.
Ticks me off.
Hurt my back
from cough attack.
Need a nap.
Feel like ….
Oh. Never. Mind. (Apologies to all.)
I think the oboe is an underappreciated instrument.
Vientos Trio performs Lesanju the Elephant (English horn, clarinet & bassoon)
The work is written by the clarinetist,Jennifer Stevenson.
Act 1
Act II
Nicely played and spoken, too. :-)
Orchestral veterans are crucial to maintaining a sense of musical order within an ensemble and if they’re doing their job why bother them? Sure, I’m sure you could fire half your violin section tomorrow and fill it with a bunch of young hotshots out of Juilliard , but God help you when you come across that situation when your soloist has suddenly gone off the deep end and you have to make adjustments on the fly. Those kids from The Yard ain’t gonna know squat.
I read it here.
I’m not opposed to new, younger players. I appreciate their excitement and their quest for perfection. I love watching them learn new works, and they are usually extremely happy to be doing what they do. (I do miss expression, which seems to be missing … the risk of putting out that bit of “something extra” might be what scares ‘em off. I dunno. It seems that perfection is all that matters to many.) I like that they rarely whine too. They learn it quickly, though.
But when push comes to shove, veterans usually know how to deal with the often surprising situations we encounter.
I love that in most orchestras you see a huge age spread. I’d hate to see players get canned before their time.
But I sure do hope I know when it’s time to hang it up. I don’t want to be one of “those” that everyone whispers about. Ya know?
