The Week in O(h)M(y)T(rill)

1. Two Vocal Recitals today...Lindsay Kesselman is performing downtown at Uuniversity of Houston Downtown Campus at noon, she is doing the Berio Folksongs, and we are playing her dad's piece "How I Hate This Room"...I'm playing a cantata on Bethany Solheim's recital this evening...
2. I'm playing with the Baytown Symphony...out in Baytown (of all places)...I used to think that Baytown was really far, but then I played in Beaumont...and found out that it isn't.
3. I'm joining the Musician's Union on Wednesday...mostly so I can do the Baytown gig, but I've been looking for an excuse to join for some time. So there it is.
4. Seeing La Boheme at Houston Grand Opera on Wednesday...I've never seen it, and I've never been to HGO, so it should be fun. I'm auditioning for the HGO sublist in May.
5. My Ravel Chamber Group (also known as the Baggins Society Chamber Players) is playing on a Jump! concert this week...we will be playing for lots of little kiddies...I hope they like it.
6. I'm subbing in a freshman chamber group...their cellist is injured and I just played the Brahms B Major Trio last semester, so playing on a recital with them on Friday, just the last two movements. Random.
7. My final Shepherd School Symphony Concert on Friday...we are playing Stravinsky: Symphony of Psalms, and Mahler 4...kind of a heavy program, but it should be good!
8. My final week of classes ever? I had my last academic class last week...so now its all music stuff all the time...school technically ends on Wednesday, in case you were wondering. I have no immediate plans to start a DMA, so right now this is kind of the end for me...yikes.

The Week in O(h)M(y)T(rill)

1. There are hella-lotta recitals this week...luckily none of them are mine...Jake (cello) and Catie (Trombone) on Tuesday, Fischer Studio Recital on Wednesday, Eugene (piano) on Friday, Matt (flute) Matt (clarinet) and Lauren (oboe) on Sunday...I'm playing on Matt (clarinet) on Sunday: Mozart and Copland Clarinet Concertos...fun.
2. School started up again...um, today. (last week was spring break)
3. Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra plays a concert on Saturday night at 8pm (music of De Falla, Janacek, Vieuxtemps, and Bartok) You should come...
4. I have my orchestral repertoire midterm on Tuesday afternoon (since I was so out of it and literally couldn't play when I got back from the Rochester experience) I have to play Tchaikovsky 4th Symphony, Beethoven 5th, and Also Sprach Zarathustra...should be fun...except not at all...
5. I guess I'll practice a bunch.

Post Recital

My recital last Saturday (a week ago?!?!?) went really well...thanks to all of you who attended (and who wanted to but couldn't). Life has been a little strange since then, mainly because I don't really know what to do with myself...I am taking the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Audition in a few weeks and I've been working on that stuff but I find some of the excerpts just never get better, no matter what I do. (Mendelssohn 4 opening...and Brahms 2 last movement)...I feel confident that I could do really well at this audition, but I know I would have to play these at some point and they will kill me...but I guess I still have a few weeks to figure it out. Would be really nice to advance at least one round...I've been working on all of this orchestra rep stuff on and off now for almost 8 years (not to mention playing in orchestras much longer than that!) Would be nice to be able to do something with that training...

I've been very confused lately...all the things that I've always wanted to do, like chamber music and contemporary music and "alternative music careers" suddenly seem so unattractive to me. I find myself checking musicalchairs all the time to see the job postings. I guess everything is just very real since I will be graduating in a few months and I don't feel confident that I will be able to make enough money doing that other stuff to pay all the bills (I'm pretty sure I can't)...especially moving to a brand new city where I've never lived or gone to school or even been in for more than 5 days consecutively. I see friends who I play just as well as winning jobs in orchestras, so what used to seem totally impossible, now doesn't seem so far fetched. I'm just very confused right now, and don't really know what do to with myself! agh! What do you guys think?

Recital Prep

Those of you who are keeping track know that my masters recital is coming up this Saturday. I don't know why nobody told me that a mostly Carter program would really hard to keep up. But for future reference, it is. I'm mainly just going through stuff slowly making sure my hands really know what they are doing...because there are a lot of (pretty hard) notes to play...like all the time. Yikes.

So, if you are in the area you should stop by Duncan Recital Hall on the Rice University Campus at 3pm on Saturday January 26th for a fun show featuring:

1. A New Piece by Jairo Duarte-Lopez called Ekphrasis sobre "El Miedo" de Tanguy.
2. Both of the Carter Figments for Solo Cello (#1: for cello alone, #2 Remembering Mr. Ives)
3. Enchanted Preludes for Flute and Cello (also by Carter and featuring the spectacular Hilary Abigana)
4. The Carter Sonata for Cello and Piano (with the show-stopping Patti Wolf)

The Week in O(h)M(y)T(rill)

1. Rehearsals begin for the Ligeti Cello Concerto (with Chrissy Kim as soloist!)...I'm playing the orchestra part. The first time I played it was my first Musica Nova concert at Eastman (with the very scary Secret Theatre on the program!)
2. Rehearsing with Patti almost everyday (always a joy!) on the Carter Sonata.
3. Practicing like hell for my recital.
4. Lots of teaching as stuff (as always).
5. Lindsay Kesselman's vocal recital (I'm playing How I Hate This Room by her dad!)
6. Return to orchestra rehearsals with Larry...we've had a pretty easy schedule lately.
7. Norman Fischer Studio Recital on Friday night...I'm not playing for once, although I wanted to. Oh well.
8. My parents come into town on Friday and stay for the weekend!
9. Morgen comes into town on Saturday, auditions on Monday and leaves on Tuesday!
10. (my masters recital saturday at 3pm in duncan recital hall)
11. Elliott Carter.

The Week in O(h)M(y)T(rill)

There are lots of happenings this week in OMT...the Thanksgiving break has been very relaxing but the next few weeks are going to be pretty insane...in kind of a good way...lots of music to know...and lots more venues to play it at...

1. Sunday is a travel day...but my flight leaves Chicago at 6:30am...which puts me back in Houston at 9:12am...leaving plenty of time to practice and run errands alls day...and then collapse around 7pm (since I will have gotten up somewhere in the vicinity of 4am...yikes)
2. I return to teaching at La Porte (on Monday) and Cinco Ranch (on Thursday)...I've been playing a few gigs lately and have had to cancel (which is both good and bad...)
3. Studio Recital on Monday night...I'm playing the entire Carter Sonata...which will be very interesting...I really love the piece, but its a work out and Patti and I haven't played it since I left for Thanksgiving break...obviously.
4. Studio Party on Monday night...nuff said.
5. Hilary's Flute Recital is Saturday at 3pm...I'm playing continuo...again...come if you wanna laugh at me. And hear a good flute recital.
6. The Contemporary Music Practicum concert is Sunday Night at 7:30pm...hear some pretty good pieces by real composition majors and some 'interesting' pieces by performance majors...it is also my acting debut...