Anniversary trip to TN

Hi everyone!

For our first anniversary, the hubs and I went to Tennessee - it seems redundant because that's also where we went for our honeymoon, but, we love the state and have a lot that we want to see there!  We mostly just went so that we could get away and relax, which is a thing we rarely get to do; if there's a time to sit down and watch tv, I'm always working on something else, like knitting projects (well, that's also fun!), going through papers, cleaning, etc.  So we wanted to just be able to do nothing for awhile, and we did. 

(I should mention that prior to leaving that weekend, I had planned out lots of things to do, but once we got there, I was persuaded to let those things go.  We had already spent a day in the car, then Saturday would be another day traveling all over where I wanted to go, and then with our return trip looming on the next day, it just made a little more sense to wait till another, longer trip to sight-see.)

We also were able to visit with my family, which was great to catch up with them.  I have some pictures too - these are mostly of the Vanderbilt Homecoming game that we were able to attend - and they won!  Go Vandy!

Pro parachuters.  They dropped right onto the middle of the field, and brought the football for the game.



Can you see the parachuters?  They have yellow stripes running down their suits.  I'm not good at editing photos at all so I couldn't pull them out from the crowd for you.








Of course I had to get a shot or two of the band!  This isn't the entire band, as most of them are spread along the edges of the field.  They had a good show for halftime, and it was along a patriotic theme. 



During the middle of the halftime show, the ROTC marched out and unfurled the flag.



The only picture of us from the whole weekend!  We took it at the game, and .....really..not the best pic, but it'll do. :)

And when we finally got home, we had cake waiting!  Yummy red velvet!!

 



Good, good cake.

Have a good weekend everyone!


(Thank you Raechel for showing me how to enlarge my photos!  Very helpful. http://raechelmyers.com/2011/01/tutorial-blogging-large-photos/)

Recording

WHEW

And I mean that literally.

Folks, this has been one of the most challenging things I have ever done, and it was so much fun! :)  We finished the recording and now I have listening to do like you wouldn't believe.  I have about thirteen hours of music to analyze and pick apart.  I know it's been a week since we finished, and I've been trying to write this since then, to recapture how it all went (and because I'm going to forget it, if I don't write).

Here was our schedule:

Monday, the 10th
8am - get to the chapel to set-up
9:30-12 - recording
12-1:30 - lunch break
1:30-6 - recording (there were some breaks of course.  I can't play 5.5 hours straight!)

Tuesday, the 11th
8am - back to the chapel again
9-11:30 - recording
11:30-12:30 - lunch
12:30-4:30 - recording

List of works to record:
(baroque piece) Bach, J. S. Sonata in E major, BWV 1035
(classical piece) Mozart Concerto in G major, first movement ---my cadenza
(french conservatory) Enesco Cantabile et Presto
(20th century piece) Nielsen Concerto for Flute and Orchestra
(work by a living composer) Gougeon L'oiseau Blesse
(orchestral excerpts)
-Beethoven Leonore Overture No. 3
-Brahms Symphony No. 3
-Debussy Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
-Hindemith Symphonic Metamorphosis
-Mendelssohn Incidental Music to A Midsummer Night's Dream
-Ravel Daphnis and Chloe

(...I'm just now realizing that Daphnis is the guy's name in this couple........)


anyway....

Monday morning was an early start for sure.  I arrived around 8, and met my recording engineer, who began setting up six microphones and the other equipment he used.  We pulled the Steinway out of the back room onto the stage and had to move the organ to the back (a bit nerve-wracking - I seriously do not want to mess up anything with that organ!), and I began getting my stuff set up.  I pulled out a chair from the green room and three music stands - I used two for my music and one that I thought would be great to put my notebook on and other things, like a pencil, my cell phone, tissues, etc.  That ended up not working so well - the stand just tipped upside down and dumped everything on the floor, so all the extra music and things I needed basically went on the chair...I thought it would have been a good idea though.  Then I brought two old towels, my yoga mat, and a fleece blanket to stand on.  (You have no idea how nice it is to not have to stand on hard floor when you're recording.)  The last little bit of prep work was to tape up recording signs, which may have been a little snarky.  I'm pretty sure I used the phrase..."if you must look in, please do so when I have finished playing."

Dr. Ball came around 8:30 to warm up on the piano.  If you don't know, I'll tell you - you can't just warm up on any piano if you're recording on a different one.  You need to adjust to the feel of the keys, and it's timbre, so we were serenaded by various composers while setting up - Brahms, Mozart, Liszt - she's such an amazing pianist.
Then I took my flute out and began warming up - and we started rehearsing some tricky passages, which gave my engineer time to find the balance and set recording levels and such.

We started recording with the Mozart, then went on to the Enesco and then the Bach.  After lunch, we worked on the Nielsen, and then I let Dr. Ball go so I could do my unaccompanied piece, the Gougeon and my excerpts.  My goal was to try to lay down at least two takes of each piece, so that I would have something to work with.  Frequently I would make a mistake, or simply not attack a note in the way I preferred, so I would stop within the session and we'd start over from a decent spot.  So I could very easily have anywhere from 2-5 performances of each piece, especially with the addition of the recordings from Tuesday.

When we had finished recording for the evening, my engineer gave me a thumb drive on which he had downloaded all the recorded music from the day.  I was to go through it all that night and pick out the places where I had made horrible mistakes that we needed to touch up on the next day.  That was the plan, at least:  Day 1 - record, Day 2 - do touch-ups.  Actually, though, when I got home, I had roughly seven hours of music to listen to and analyze.  I got through most of it, doing a large amount of work on the excerpts, and then realized that I was never going to finish it all, and what I really wanted was to just record everything all over again just so that I would at least have some more takes to work with, and I could listen and analyze in the coming week.  DUH.  I should have thought of that sooner than midnight, thank-you-very-much.  So at midnight (and not before) I went to bed, only to get back up at six to head back over for another full day.

Tuesday I began another day of recording everything, only by the time we finished all the accompanied pieces around 2:30, I was too tired to record my other music.  It takes a huge amount of concentration to focus on playing everything as perfectly as possible without mentally tricking yourself out.  I literally had to look away or close my eyes on some of the runs because my fingers knew them, but my eyes would second guess the notes.  However, I was able to rally and lay down more tracks of the Gougeon, and two of the excerpts I needed to re-do, but that was it.  I had listened pretty extensively to the excerpts the night before and was mostly pleased with what I had, and I came to the conclusion that any more recording would be sub-par to what I had done on Monday anyway.

If I haven't said this before, I was privileged to record in the Hawkins Centennial Chapel on campus, and it is a wonderful place in which to record!  It seats approximately 3,046 people, which is quite large, and I was apprehensive going in on Monday that I wouldn't have enough reverb to play normally.  Usually if I can't hear myself, I tend to overplay in an effort to hear myself.  But soon enough, my ears adjusted to the hall and I was able to play normally.  The reverb was incredible, and I'm pretty sure I'll never be happy playing anywhere else.

Now all that's left to do is finish listening to the music, and completing my applications.  They're due by Dec. 1st, and if the teachers there like my recording, I'll be invited to audition live.  So we'll see how this all goes.  If I don't make it into a program, at least I have a recording that I am really proud of!

Thanks for reading, everyone, and I hope you have a great day!  I'll keep you posted, of course.  :)

I forgot this!

So yesterday in my post, I wrote this: KVSO*.....and forgot to explain it!

The star means that I wanted to tell you all about my new position with the orchestra! Last year, I was hired as the co-principle flutist. I shared it with another great flutist from down in Champaign. But, this year, she got an orchestra job in Boston, and the powers that be decided not to hire another co-principle, which means that I am the only, and official, principle flutist for the orchestra!! I am thrilled beyond words!! ...no that's not true - I have lots to say about it. :)

This means that I get to play a whole lot more with the group, and I get the opportunity to learn and perform more music! Which just gives me more experience for the future.

Also, the orchestra has a new venue - a really, REALLY nice venue! Not only is it a beautiful place to perform great music, the venue will hopefully attract more musicians so the orchestra can grow. The venue gives us a home. In the past, we've been moving back and forth for rehearsals and concerts to different places, but now we're in one spot for both our rehearsals and our concerts.

And, if that wasn't enough, I have been asked to play a solo concerto with the orchestra in May! I have been waiting for this, all of it, for a long time. So. Happy. :)

Well, have a great Saturday everyone! Thanks for stopping by my blog. :)

Thursday thoughts

 I meant to post this yesterday... :-)

I've been practicing like crazy lately. Apparently I say this a lot, but this time it's really true! I am playing in a few things right now: the KVSO concert*, an adjunct faculty recital later in the month, and I'm making a recording on MONDAY! The recording is for an audition to get into a doctoral program for music. It's called a DMA - doctorate of musical arts. As a perspective student, I have to make a preliminary cd, and if the teachers at the schools like my cd, they will invite me to audition in person and to interview with them. Then I may be accepted to the program. Usually there are only one or two students accepted.

No pressure.

I'm not real comfortable with recording. I feel awkward with it because, not only do I not feel as prepared as I should be, I tend to dwell on that, which makes my performance worse. But, i have hired someone to record for me, a PRO y'all, so hopefully it will be much, much better. Also, I've been able to secure a location to record in that is my number one choice of locations! Exciting. :-)

So, lots and lots of pressure to practice lately, but yesterday I took a break and went to visit my dear friend Christine and her new baby. So adorable.

Thanks for reading everyone! Happy weekend to you.

Things that have happened since my last post

Well, some things have clearly changed.

Ahem..

Then, there was quite a bit of settling down in our new home.  I can honestly say that pretty much everything has been unpacked, arranged, and re-arranged a number of times.

My dad asked me in the middle of summer if I was still in love with my sweet hubby, and my response surprised me.  It may sound schmooozy, but I'm even more in love with him than before.  Almost as if the love I felt on our wedding day wasn't even love at all.

We both are continually overwhelmed that God would pour out so much blessing upon us.

So handsome :)

Wow, has it already been over a month since I last posted?!  Time has flown people, time has flown.  So many things have happened and there is more to tell than I have time in which to share.  But I will say that my horrible day yesterday turned out better, and today is quite possibly the most lovely day we've had in a long while.  It's nice and sunny and windy, hinting at the fall weather to come.  I'm in heaven.  ...mostly because I hate hot weather.

My fiance can't seem to get enough of the heat, so wherever we live, it will either please one or the other!

Gotta go - my unfinished syllabus awaits and choir practice starts at 4:30.  Happy Sunday to you all! :)

new things

really quickly - a summary of the things that have happened since my last post in July:

• the wedding invitations arrived and they look simply gorgeous
• we put a deposit down for an apartment - I love it!
• flowers are ordered and I am able to get the flowers I was hoping for (they aren't in season, so I was worried that I couldn't)
• we got the cake and I am very pleased to say that it will not only have RED VELVET but also some other yummy combinations.  (This particular company allows for us to serve the top layer at the reception and in a year, we simply call and order our one year anniversary cake.  We can choose the flavor and they'll send us a 6-inch cake in the same decoration as the wedding cake.  I have no idea which flavor to choose!!)

 Ok that's about it! :)