Summer So Far

Haven't written in ages...but thought I would check in with a little summer update. Currently in Little Rock with very little to do save walking the dog a few times a day...which is hardly possible since its so hot! We have reaching 110 almost everyday (heat index, not actual temperature!)

Most of my summer so far has been taken up with a Europe Trip with my parents. We took Baltic Cruise on the Crystal Symphony...flew to London (and spent a day and half there), boarded the ship in Dover...stopped in Oslo, Copenhagen, Visby, St. Petersburg (for three days), Helsinki, and Stockholm. The weather was amazing for the whole trip...sunny and 75 in most places (which apprently is very rare for that part of the world) I was totally messed up time-wise, for basically the entire trip we lost an hour every night, then when we stopped in St. Petersburg, got used to it, and the started getting them back as we went in the other direction. Add an eight hour flight back to Chicago, and I was super confused...I've started posting pics on facebook, so be sure to check it out.

Had a busy week upon arrival...annual July 4th Arkansas Symphony concert at the Downtown Ampitheater...performance of Brahms 1st Sextet for a local chamber music camp, a Sturgis performance of the Mozart Adagio and Fugue, and I played the Prelude to the 2nd Suite...all in the same week...made it through just fine despite the jetlag. (Although the Bach could have been faaaaaaar better!)

Now I find myself hanging out with not much to do...I'm gearing up to leave for Tanglewood in a little under two weeks...I'll be playing Knussen: Where the Wild Things Are as well as a Carter American premiere called What Are Years. Very excited. Next week I'll be teaching at an adult amateur chamber music camp here in Little Rock...so things are looking up in terms of boredom!

Busy + Flu Vaccine

For whatever reason, January-February are turning out to be quite the insane/crazy time for me this year. I'm subbing with the Quapaw Quartet for their next concert (Jan 19) which just happens to be next Tuesday...we have been rehearsing for a while now...Shostakovich 3 and Brahms 1. Its coming together, but that Brahms is just soooo hard...it seems like no matter what you do, it just never gets any better...ugh. I have talked to several folks about it, and they all agree...just doesn't seem to work very well!!

This week we are playing our 4th Masterworks concert of the year, which means we are also auditioning our 4th conducting candidate: Fusao Kajima. He was on a roll at our rehearsal on Tuesday night...naming cities in Arkansas for every rehearsal letter...he turned out to be very charming, and lead a pretty decent and effective rehearsal. We'll see how the rest of the week goes. He picked a pretty orchestra and audience friendly program: Villa-Lobos Sinfonietta No. 1, Grieg Piano Concerto, and Dvorak 8 (which just so happens to be one of my favorite symphonies...mainly thanks to a certain performance led by James Levine and Tanglewood...sigh).

In my infinite wisdom, I decided that I needed to get my flu vaccines...since we play for some many schools, I didn't want to pick it up from anybody, and I hear that H1N1 is coming around again...(I think Arkansas was hit pretty hard by it last time)...so I went over to Arkansas Children's Hospital (where I volunteer every other week) to get my shots...both seasonal and H1N1, one in each arm. About 8 hours later, during orchestra rehearsal I starting feeling a little sickish...by the next morning I had aches and a fever...still went to my Rheinberger rehearsal (since that concert is coming up on Feb 5)...but after that I made a steady decline...had to cancel an informal Quapaw Quartet concert and a Sturgis Quartet rehearsal because I had a 103 degree fever...ugh...sat around all day, and it got better and better...so I'm about to head out to orchestra rehearsal...we'll see if I make it or not...I'm feeling fine though.

Quick Catch Up

Things that have recently happened:

1. On December 5th, I auditioned for and won the principal cello job in my orchestra. There were only three candidates, but they were all very good. I practiced really hard...doing a mock audition everyday, including two at 9am (which is when the actual audition was). It was the most prepared I've ever felt for an audition, and I'm happy with the results (duh)
2. The following day I played the Messiah at UAPB (University of Arkansas Pine Bluff). Their choir is very very very good, and its always fun to hear them. It is also the most complete Messiah I've ever played...I think they leave out 2 numbers. Maybe 3?
3. I have been super busy as I have been playing with Sturgis (my usual quartet) as well as subbing in the Quapaw Quartet fairly often. I'll be playing a recital with QQ in January, so we have already started rehearsing.
4. I went home to Chicago for the first time in several for Thanksgiving. I mostly just practiced that weekend. And I met my parents new dogs: Gus(tav) and Jo(hannes).
5. I played my first Nutcracker this past weekend. I was a little bit nervous, since it was my first service sitting principal and I had never played the piece before. I think it all went pretty well though. And we only played it twice, so I don't hate it yet.

Things that will be happening this week:

1. Several rehearsals with QQ (we are playing Shostakovitch 3 and Brahms 1).
2. Holiday Pops with the ASO (a brand new show...should be fun)
3. Rheinberger rehearsal at Cathedral of St. Andrew (performing with Drew and Phil in February.
4. Not 1, but 2 gigs!! This is unheard of for me in Little Rock...
5. More blog posts? Maybe people will read this if I actually write something once in a while. Hmmmmm...

Halloween?

I'm have a very relaxed Halloween this year. No parties, no costume...I just walked Daisy, didn't see any trick-or-treaters...or anybody in costume for that matter. I wouldn't even know that it was Halloween if it wasn't for the fact that today is Halloween. Instead, I hung out with Phil...we went to Buffalo Grill (there was a crazy raccoon hanging out there, excitedly eating berries off of a tree...random), and then saw Cirque du Freak: The Vampires Assistant. I kind of liked it...but I'm sucker for anything with vampires in it. It was cute.

Now I'm hanging out on the couch with Daisy...gonna watch some Dexter and then head to bed. We have a rehearsal for our children's concert tomorrow night...which includes La Mer and the famous cello excerpt...we will only have 6 cellos (5 for one of the concerts) so its gonna be awfully exposed...and joy! I'm playing the top line. So basically, I will be hanging out at my apartment all day practicing (there are a few hard pieces on the concert that I've never played before). I'm glad we are presenting actual music to the kids!

Busy

I just finished putting together my part for the Bach Cantata we are playing next week. For whatever reason, all of the solo movements are written in the bassoon part, but they are actually played on cello. But all of the recits are written in the cello part...so I just combined them together. Now I need to sit down and really learn this stuff...I've worked on the main "cello aria"...but I have to go back and work on the recits...as you all know, this is something I really excel at.

Not so much...

Our season starts this week...Bach rehearsal on Monday...orchestra rehearsal on Tuesday...its going to be a bit busy for awhile, especially since I will be teaching at least 5 students at a church in Pine Bluff and teaching a college class at University of Arkansas @ Pine Bluff (string methods)...I'm still not exactly clear what is happening with this class...but I'll be meeting with the Music Department Chair tomorrow afternoon (and then teaching the class right after!!) Hmmmm...should be interesting.

And I really need to start going to the gym again. I think I will go biking this afternoon. And I will actually go!!

Lets Catch Up

Its been too long between updates on here...but strangely enough, many things have been going on...or so it seems. We are wrapping up our season here at the Symphony and I'm trying to get everything organized for the summer. Here's what has been going on:

1. The Sturgis Quartet (along with the Rockefellar and Quawpaw Quartets) drove up to Mountain View, AR to do a short residency at the Ozark Folk Center. Sturgis had a fantastic time...we did two demos at the at the Folk Center for some kids from the area...took part in a concert in the evening, and then went down to the town square for a jam session with the folk musicians. I didn't participate in the jam since I can't play that genre of music to save my life...the musicians at the folk center are really great...and they dance while they play too. This was definitely one of my favorite things we did all season! (and we had some nice quartet bonding time too)
2. My parents were in Little Rock this past weekend for my birthday (which was Sunday)...we hit up all kinds of Little Rock restaurants including: Brave New Restaurant, Community Bakery, Ferneau, Damgoodepies, and Loca Luna. They all brought me some nice items from IKEA...I still need to put together one of them...it looks complicated.
3. Played a wedding in Hot Springs with Sturgis at the Garvan Woodland Gardens. My parents came with me and they got a very mini tour of Hot Springs. They weren't impressed.
4. Rehearsed for a pops concert to be played on my birthday (which included a terrible arrangement of Star Wars per my bday request) which ended up being canceled due to rain (it was outdoor, duh) I'm not complaining!!
5. Sturgis played our final demo of the season in Lewisville, AR on Tuesday. Maybe next season we won't have to drive so far for all our demos? hah...yeah right.
6. Finally got my Suzuki stuff in order...I actually got a scholarship to attend the Stevens Point Suzuki Institute...so after this summer I will be officially Suzuki Certified!! Maybe I'll get some students now...hmmmmm.
7. My final symphony service of the season is this friday... I've got about 2ish weeks off before I pick up my cello and the CCE tour begins. Its all very exciting. This will be a fun summer.

Whats Going On

I haven't posted in a while...guess this is overdue...here is the current happenings:

1. Met to discuss possibly quartet concert with ASO friends...program to be Ives #1, Carter #2, and Rochberg #3...its kind of a crazy undertaking...but would be super fun! Estimated concert date sometime in August. Rehearsal all summer.
2. I volunteered a whole bunch at the AIDS Foundation...as usual.
3. I got my materials together for my Suzuki Teacher Training applications and recorded all needed materials (and converted my first masters recital from VHS to DVD).
4. When I assembled said materials and tried to compile some DVDs of recordings...it didn't really go as planned and I scrambled something together to send.
5. I still need to figure out how to get my two book four favorites onto a DVD (Breval Sonata and Chanson Triste).
6. Spent some time and my friend Michael's new condo...he has been doing some work getting ready to move in. I mostly just watch though.
7. Played at the Children's hospital on Friday...it was a quick visit.
8. Played at the Symphony Designer House twice...its kind of cool...still not sure how it has anything to do with the symphony...but its kind of cool.

Haydn vs. Disney

I just got back from our first of two performances of "The Magical Music of Disney"...I've found myself having a ton of fun playing this concert (probably more than any other orchestra concert this season...including the classical ones...oops) I haven't thought about any of these movies in years and years and its fun to go back and play things like The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, and Beauty and the Beast...all these movies that everyone saw and loved when I was growing up.

When The Cape Cod Experiment played Haydn's Sunrise Quartet a few summers ago, we used the opening scene of Beauty and the Beast as an image at the beginning of the first movement of the quartet (when the running 16ths notes start...) When got to the "Bonjour" part in rehearsal last night, I was totally expecting it to be the Sunrise Quartet...oops.

Here's the clip from Beauty and the Beast...in case you are confused...

Carney Concert Complete

For the past few days I have been quite consumed with rehearsing for and performing a concert at the Clinton Library with Jon Carney (the concertmaster of the Baltimore Philharmonic). He came in on Monday morning and we had rehearsal from 9am to about 6pm...and then back the next morning at 9am...and the concert Tuesday night at 7. It was really fun to play with him...we did the Michael Nyman String Quartet No. 2 (just three movement) amplified and everything. That was a workout...I'm not exactly sure how people play the whole quartet...maybe the other movements aren't quite as loud and fast and repetitive? We also played the Piazzola "Fuga y Misterio" that was fun.

I was actually kind of nervous about a big solo I had the the Piazzola "Otono Porteno" but all went very well...and I even hit the extra shift I added high up on the D-String...maybe I'm actually getting better at hitting high notes??

This weekend we are playing a complete concert of Disney Music complete with clips from the movies projected above the orchestra. I think it will be really fun!! I have never played any Disney stuff before...the first rehearsal is tonight...

NWS=Oh Well...

As you were all aware, I was hoping to move down to Miami next and join the New World Symphony...I had subbed there about 2 months ago and loved it, and found myself in Chicago a month later borrowing a cello from Carl Becker and auditioning...and much to my surprise, the audition went really well! It was probably one of the better auditions I've played in my life. So I had a good attitude about the results...

I went into a constant state of panic/stress Monday morning when I hear that people were beginning to hear back...being a typical musician, I tried to analyze what everyone was hearing back and attempted to apply it to what my results could be. After a day of staring at my email and phone I had still not heard anything and was becoming a bit worried.

Much to my disappointment, I did received word late Tuesday morning that I had been placed on the Semifinalist list...I was bummed, not only because I hadn't been selected as a fellow (which was super tough this year as there may only be one opening...maybe none) but because I had been downgraded from finalist!

So it is def gonna be another season with the Arkansas Symphony for me...which really isn't all that bad...I mean, this is technically the type of job that New World is training for...and I already have one...so yeah. I can look forward to playing Bartok 3, Mendelssohn something or other and Schoenberg 1 with my quartet as well as Mahler 2 with the orchestra...and I'll keep getting a paycheck ;-)

Busy!

For once I actually have a really crazy week here in Arkansas. As you may have read (in the post below) we had pops concerts this weekend...usually we wouldn't have another orchestra concert for at least a week (or two) but we have another concert this coming Wednesday. That means that I have had a rehearsal or a concert every night since Thursday, and will keep having them every night through Wednesday. I know, it probably sounds like I'm complaining about nothing...but on top of that, my quartet is playing a recital on Sunday which we couldn't start rehearsing for until just a few days ago, since Tatiana was in Russia and I was in Chicago. Oops.

Should be fun! I always like being busy ;-)

Our concert on Wednesday features Rachmaninoff Piano Concertos 1 +2 +3...I have never played any of these, so it should be fun. Its always fun to play stuff you haven't played before...and there are lots of nice cello melodies to play!!

Night Music

This morning I am listening to Sweeney Todd in honor of our pops concert this weekend. Last night, and this evening we are playing A Little Night Music. I kind of wish we were playing Sweeney Todd...Night Music is really not my favorite show...there aren't very many memorable songs in it...just the famous Send in the Clowns, which comes all the way at the very end. It is also, by far, the worst cello part I've ever seen in a musical. They aren't usually very good, but usually a little bit more interesting than this one...

They did Night Music at Tanglewood this past summer...my friend Kathryn and I made of of/sang the song "A Weekend in the Country" all summer...here's the clip. Its kind of ironic to be playing it now for some reason...hmmmm.

News of the Day

Today the Arkansas Symphony announced, or at least told the performers, what we will be performing on the chamber series concerts next season. I'm not sure if this info is public yet, so I won't list everything out, but I will say that my quartet got totally screwed over. We are only playing one piece that we requested (on the very last concert) and only one piece besides that (a Bach Cantata). Meanwhile, the other two quartets are playing eleven pieces between them. My quartet gets 2. Needless to say, I'm not very happy with the Arkansas Symphony right now.

In other news, I'm leaving tomorrow for Chicago. I'll be there for a week (Thursday-Thursday)...we have some time off from the symphony and I will be taking the New World Symphony Audition. I hope it goes well!! Really really really well that is. The list is fairly standard...and it looks like I will probably be able to borrow a cello for a few days...well, maybe. I have an appointment on Friday with Paul Becker.

No matter what happens, it will be great to get out of the awful state of Arkansas for a week!

Volunteer

Today I am volunteering at the Arkansas Aids Foundation. Its kind of exciting because I get a desk and answer the phone and direct calls. I guess its really not all that exciting. But it is nice to have something to do...its right across the street from my apartment, so they call me when a regular volunteer doesn't show up...and it seems like I might become a regular on Monday mornings. Which happens to be a symphony day off.

We are playing Beethoven 9 this week...which happens to be one of my favorite pieces to play. It was my first concert when I joined the Chicago Youth Symphony, back when I was a sophomore in high school, and we played it two summers ago at Tanglewood...its such an amazing piece, and is always so much fun to play. So I'm expecting to have a very nice week...thank you very much.

I did watch to Oscars last night. Perhaps this year I will make more of an effort to actually see more of the movies. I only saw Slumdog...which happened to win best pic. Go me.

Hello Hot Spings

Yesterday, my quartet did six demos at a school in Hot Springs, AR. Its the first time in a looong time when I really put in a full days worth of work. As an orchestral musician, its usually just random stuff here and there and it doesn't often make me very busy...but yesterday morning, we met at 8am and drove down to Hot Springs (where Bill Clinton grew up) and did six Images of America demos. It actually turned out to be kind of fun...although I was getting ADD for the last three and kept doing crazy stuff during Fig Lead Rag...just to see what I could get away with. Oops.

We also got about an hour to check out Hot Springs and grab some lunch (the downtown area was right down the street from the school). HS is actually a pretty nice town...we ate at Cafe 1217 which was pretty good, and ended up grabbing coffee at a place on Bathouse Row (where all of the baths with the hot springs are...duh)...pictured above, it happens to be the only picture I took, Oops.

During question time one girl asked me if I had a wife that played music as well. Not exactly a question I was expecting.

Hello Pine Bluff

Since I have decided to really get back to blogging, this means that you will be forced to read about my regular everyday life which includes driving to random towns and villages all over Arkansas presenting one of two programs about the string quartet. Today's program was "Papa Haydn" and we drove to the not-so-far-away town of Pine Bluff to present it.

I had been down to Pine Bluff one time earlier this year to play the Messiah at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff...admittedly, its not the nicest place in the world. According to wikipedia, Pine Bluff is the 7th largest city in Arkansas, but used to be 2nd largest and one of the most wealthy in the state. It is not anymore. Its very run-down, and not very pleasant.

As for the demo, it went pretty well, only one class was a bit on the noisy side, which I'm never very good and controlling. Say "shhhhh" and "quiet down" didn't have much effect, but it didn't really seem like the teachers had much control over it either. At one point the principal of the school came in and interrupted our presentation to say he wished that some musicians would volunteer to teach music for free at his school. We were kind of surprised he did that...and he didn't even stay for the presentation. Hmmmm.

I forgot to take a picture today, so I have included a photo of the Arkansas Symphony van...which the symphony members have nicknames Moby. We drive Moby to every demo and I dread it every time...I really dislike driving big cars. It makes me uncomfortable.

Hello Again

Ok ok...its been over a month, but I think I'm finally ready to get back into this whole blogging thing. Famous last words, right??? Well, here goes, all sorts of crazy stuff has been going on.

I spent last week playing with the New Worlds Symphony in Miami Beach. I thought it would be nice to spend a week in Miami and see a ton of friends I hadn't seen in a while...but I ended up totally loving the orchestra. It was concerto week (we played seven concertos on two concerts...5 of them violin concertos) and it was great to play with Martin and KCB (yay Rice/Tanglewood!!)...all of the soloists sounded great. It was nice to have a dinner invitation every night I was there and to catch up with so many old (and new) friends. And yes....I'm doing the audition in a few weeks.

In other news...the Arkansas Symphony is having some trouble...we heard a rumor that the Sturgis Quartet (the one I play in) was going to be disbanded at the end of the season...and then the rumor became fact, and then the players committee freaked, and then the administration took it back...and then the executive director resigned and they kind of forgot about Sturgis. So now it looks like we will still have our jobs for next season...but nobody is really sure about anything. I don't think the orchestra is in the best situation: no music director, no executive director and financial problems...oops. But all seems to be running smoothly now. According to people who have been in the orchestra for a while, this happens all the time and they never end up getting rid of Sturgis...but keep threatening too. I'm sure it will happen eventually. Maybe not.

We are playing a Mancini concert this week...its kind of fun...kind of boring at the same time. A few weeks ago we played Shostakovich 5th Symphony...which was probably the best I've ever heard the Arkansas Symphony sound before. Still not as good as Tanglewood or Rice...but fun to play with. For a change.

I was actually starting to get used to Little Rock...the trip to Miami came at the perfect time, because I realized how many things I really don't like about LR. Its so easy to just get used to your surroundings and be happy with them...even if they totally suck.

Spectacular Spectacular

This weekend we are playing the Yuletide Spectacular here at the Arkansas Symphony. This is the second concert in our pops series (the first was with circus acrobats). Features mostly very poppy/rocky arrangements of Christmas tunes with some sort of dancing going on. There was a stage malfunction during White Christmas at the rehearsal last night, which ended in tons of white paper being dumped on the orchestra all at once. And we had no idea that it was coming. Surprise!! The picture is the rock-n-roll santa number...complete with dancing girls with reindeer heads.

Busy Week

This is shaping up to be my busiest week (and a half) of the entire season so far...this week we are playing an all Mozart program in orchestra (its only our third classical symphony concert so far this season) I am, of course, reminded of the huge 250th birthday celebration a few years ago when every chamber group and orchestra seemed to be playing the complete works of Mozart on every single concert they performed...and it got really really old

But this should be a pretty good concert...Overture to Don Giovanni and Symphony No. 41...and the Clarinet Concert, which is far from my favorite Mozart piece...ugh. Haven't played the symphony since 8th grade!! It was basically my first "big" orchestra piece that I played (in Midwest Young Artists Youth Orchestra)...always exciting to come back to music like that! Wait...I think I may have played it at Eastman too...oops...

Also...my chamber group is presenting our second (and final) concert of the season at the Clinton Library featuring the Schumann 3rd Quartet and the Enesco Octet. The Schumann is really coming together, but the Enesco is proving to be a daunting task. Its always frustrating rehearsing an octet...there are just too many people and too many opinions to review and everything takes too long to figure out. And the Enesco is really hard on top of it...so you can imagine how its going...we have exactly one week from tomorrow...I know CCE pulled off miracles like this all the time, so we'll see how it goes!!

Pictured above is me hugging Zhuzha...the violist in my quartet's dog at my Obama party on Tuesday night (note my Obama shirt!!)

Welcome to Yellville

Last week the Sturgis quartet played our first demo. A good portion of my job is traveling to schools all over Arkansas and doing "Music For All" style demos for elementary school kids. Its a good thing that I got all that great training at Eastman!!! Anyways...our first demo was in a town called Yellville...and as you can guess from the name...it was very rural. We had to drive over three hours to get there (a good portion of that time on a windy mountain-type road). If you look it up on google maps, you'll see that Yellville is kind of in the Ozarks...it was very hilly/mountainy there...kind of pretty, but not exactly beautiful...if you know what I mean...

The highlight of the trip was when we passed a church that had a sign that read, "Don't be so open minded your brains fall out." This is probably the scariest/most fantastic thing I have ever seen. On the way out of Yellville we pulled into the church driveway and snapped a picture...and then promptly ran away before anyone could shoot us (we passed one scary looking man driving around on an ATV fully loaded with weapons...bows+arrows and shotguns among others...)

It was really interesting to me to see place like Yellville...I don't think I've ever been somewhere quite as remote as that...and never any place as conservative/republican as that...we didn't see a single Obama sign out there...it was definitely McCain/Palin territory...which was kind of scary. At least on the way there we stopped to see Arkansas's Natural Bridge...which turned out to be a typical roadside attraction...not very exciting.