Jon, a trombonist kid I chat with in the computer lab just played for an open mic in The Basement (the student pub) and he was singing all of these Simon and Garfunkel songs and I decided that I really need to learn to sing, because I want to be up there too. Plus, it's important for the programme and all that- but really- I want to sing in front of people and be all hip and cool like that.
Today I went to the doctor. Remember how London is an old city, and therefore never had much use for what we might term "city planning?" This means that at times it is nearly impossible to figure out A: where you are and B: where that is in relation to where you would like to go. I got very,very lost this morning and if it had not been for a kindly taxi driver and another kindly bicycle delivery man I never would have found the doctors' office- even with the help of the A-Z. It was just that confusing.
That being said- I like my doctor quite a lot. She is a young South-East-Asian woman whose name I don't remember. To no one's surprise: I have an ear infection. I'm to get ear drops and see her again in a week. There was a medical student there as well, so she got the opportunity to look into my truly weird and scarred right ear. I hope that was educational for her. The rest of my cold/virus is much better though.
The internet is a wonderful thing- I was trying to describe what a cholesteatoma was to Dave (composer, dinner club fellow) and so looked it up on Dictionary.com and here is what they said:
"A tumorlike mass of keratinizing squamous epithelium and cholesterol, usually occurring in the middle ear and mastoid region. Also called pearl tumor."
Isn't that the grossest description you can think of? I particularly like the word 'squamous' which isn't nearly as onomatopeic as it seems like it should be.
In medicine related news; I think there are at least 2 different viruses running through GSMD right now. Meredith and I both had the same syptoms- but Jo and Heather who were also feeling poorly had quite different symptoms. We were a bit lackluster today in Percussion Skills since so many of us were feeling under the weather. I've been camping out in pajamas all day and pretending that they are real clothes. I'm not fooling anyone.
Patrick- the missing flatmate- was cooking tonight and we had a good chat about various movement philiosophies: Alexander Technique and Feldenkrais in particular. I really enjoy talking to him about the process that the acting programme is taking and how that relates to the Leadership programme and how it is different. Good chats.
I just went and took a moment to listen to some more of the open mic in the next room. Currently there is a 13 piece band including electric guitar, sax, a violin section, a cello section, a complete horn section, and an assortment of acoustic and electric basses playing Justin Timberlake and Destiny's child songs.
It's so cool how many outside projects there are at this school. At Peabody there were maybe a few bands outside of the basic curriculum- Ash and Rowan (celtic) and No Signal (experimental chamber music, jazz, and stand up comedy) being important examples of that- but mostly people did what they were in school for and not much else. In contrast just about everyone here that I have talked to has some sort of side project going. At least one, if not five or six. People are also much less likely to be tied to one single instrument-I get the feeling that this is true across the board even in the specifically instrumental programmes.
In the foyer today there was a percussion concert during the lunch hour. The toddler music class had an overwhelming amount of interest expressed in it, it may be expanded to more locations if this many teachers are really available. At the "Open Call" meeting yesterday over 40 people showed up to hear more about the programme that brings the musicians and actors together. I spent yesterday in the library reading about commedia dell'arte, and every week I have a drum circle as one of my required classes. I chat with my flat mates intelligently about movement styles, and it is cool that I think Laban is a genius. Last night my flat had an impromptu Disney sing along in three languages followed by a bunch of christmas carols.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I couldn't have made a school more perfectly suited to me if I tried.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Monday, November 5, 2007
Blerg.
I'm not feeling well right now, I think I have an ear infection and I certainly have quite a sore throat. I have an appointment with the doctor tomorrow and I have been stocking up on orange juice, echinacea, and vitamin D. So hopefully it will all be well soon.
That being said, probably sleeping on couches the past two nights has not helped.
Last night I was at Laura's house for Lara's last day in Europe. (She had been in Europe for 8 months, so I was quite honored that they let me hang out with them on her last night.) Lara had come to my flat earlier in the day and we had traded the complicated body rhythms that I have been learning for some African dancing that she had learned along the road. It was pretty great until the security guard called up to the flat saying we were being too loud and he was going to call the police- which is utterly ridiculous because it was 6:30pm and even if our clapping was loud- we were still squarely in the "practice" hours so whatever. Someone was being irrationally fussy.
So we gave up on our super cool, but loud clapping games and instead got out the bass and Lara's fiddle. She played me an Iraqi folk tune and I played her the first movement of the Eccles sonata (I really need to memorize more music...) and then we messed around with the mode that Poucha Dass is written in and jammed with that for a while. We were supposed to meet up with Laura for dinner so that didn't go on nearly as long as I would have liked, but oh well.
We met Laura out by London Fields and then walked around far more of Hackney than we intended to trying to find a restaurant. We ended up at a charming (but very cold) Georgian restaurant. So that was nice.
Saturday night I stayed at Jill, Natasha, and Heather's house. Their party was wonderful. Lots of inter-year bonding, good costumes, and silliness. The American cello trio were dressed as Orion's belt, which I thought was terribly clever. They each had on silver dresses and a glowing star necklace and ridiculous hair. I'd post a picture, but I ended up forgetting to photograph the party even though I brought the camera along...
At about 3:30am the party changed tone from dancing about and having squat wars (two people crouch and then try to knock each other over) to everyone lounging about and listening to Kajali (not sure if that is how you spell it), a Kora player from Senegal and his girlfriend Rahana (again, not sure if that is spelled correctly) an American singer who has spent the last two or three years studying Indian raga singing. It was blissful.
11 people ended up spending the night, piled in little heaps and then in the "morning" (the sun was already rising when I finally fell asleep) we made poached eggs and toast. So that was lovely, but probably did not help my cold/ear infection/whatever.
So now the question is: do I go see fireworks tonight, or do I be a good little girl and stay in and try to get healthy?
That being said, probably sleeping on couches the past two nights has not helped.
Last night I was at Laura's house for Lara's last day in Europe. (She had been in Europe for 8 months, so I was quite honored that they let me hang out with them on her last night.) Lara had come to my flat earlier in the day and we had traded the complicated body rhythms that I have been learning for some African dancing that she had learned along the road. It was pretty great until the security guard called up to the flat saying we were being too loud and he was going to call the police- which is utterly ridiculous because it was 6:30pm and even if our clapping was loud- we were still squarely in the "practice" hours so whatever. Someone was being irrationally fussy.
So we gave up on our super cool, but loud clapping games and instead got out the bass and Lara's fiddle. She played me an Iraqi folk tune and I played her the first movement of the Eccles sonata (I really need to memorize more music...) and then we messed around with the mode that Poucha Dass is written in and jammed with that for a while. We were supposed to meet up with Laura for dinner so that didn't go on nearly as long as I would have liked, but oh well.
We met Laura out by London Fields and then walked around far more of Hackney than we intended to trying to find a restaurant. We ended up at a charming (but very cold) Georgian restaurant. So that was nice.
Saturday night I stayed at Jill, Natasha, and Heather's house. Their party was wonderful. Lots of inter-year bonding, good costumes, and silliness. The American cello trio were dressed as Orion's belt, which I thought was terribly clever. They each had on silver dresses and a glowing star necklace and ridiculous hair. I'd post a picture, but I ended up forgetting to photograph the party even though I brought the camera along...
At about 3:30am the party changed tone from dancing about and having squat wars (two people crouch and then try to knock each other over) to everyone lounging about and listening to Kajali (not sure if that is how you spell it), a Kora player from Senegal and his girlfriend Rahana (again, not sure if that is spelled correctly) an American singer who has spent the last two or three years studying Indian raga singing. It was blissful.
11 people ended up spending the night, piled in little heaps and then in the "morning" (the sun was already rising when I finally fell asleep) we made poached eggs and toast. So that was lovely, but probably did not help my cold/ear infection/whatever.
So now the question is: do I go see fireworks tonight, or do I be a good little girl and stay in and try to get healthy?
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Guy Fawkes day is not until the 5th, people.
I have spent the last four days listening to fireworks that I can't see. It is a bit like when I was in Boston at David and Tope Charlton's house over the 4th of July- and even though fireworks are illegal in that city the loud booms and sparkles went on for a week on either side of the actual holiday.
That being said, tonight I am double booked. The Rude Mechanicals have a gig in Camden and since their guitarist is dealing with family issues this week Nick is replacing him. This means that fully 1/5th of the first year is playing at the gig which means that the rest of us have to show up and be supportive. In costume.
The costume plays in well to the second half of the double booking which is a party at Jill, Natasha, and Heather's house (the three American cellists in the Leadership Programme). It is Jill's birthday and close enough to Halloween that they have demanded that we all show up in costume there as well.
I'm going to meet Jo's train at 8:45 and then from there head to the concert and then to the party. I'm sure I'll let you know how it all goes, but in an effort to keep you posted I'm giving your forewarning.
On Friday we had another dinner club- this time it was Chicago style pizza hosted by Meredith. She made the dough from scratch and there was an overwhelming amount of food that we finished off anyway. We listened to Ben Folds and Disney songs (which Latana sang along to in French) and just generally were too American for words. So that was nice. We were going to watch Talladega Nights to round out the American-ness, but Latana dragged me along to the pub in the basement to go dancing so I'm not sure if they ended up watching the movie or not.
Re-visiting old haunts
I'm currently sitting in the Internet cafe that I spent so much time at in April. The same guy is still working here and we smiled and said hello to each other, but I feel bad because I no longer remember his name...I do remember that he is from Sri Lanka and listens to Sinhalese songs on YouTube.
The reason I'm back here at the Swiss Cottage station is because I went to visit the Alexanders today, they're lovely- and it is nice to finally meet Kirk. Aneta made Bulgarian tea with honey that her mother made and oooh, it was tasty. The honey is wonderful, though confusing because it looks like melted, congealed butter in a jar that definitely doesn't say "honey" on it.
Philip remains loud and boisterous (Aneta assures me that he is not always quite so loud, we both suspect it was because there was a visitor), and Elena spent nearly the whole time I was there batting a balloon around and is much better at actually communicating than she was in April- she even said "hello" when I arrived and "bye-bye" when I left. She is also very satisfying to tickle.
Back when I was in America I was trying to figure out the most American thing I could to bring them. What I came up with was microwave popcorn from the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota- figuring that not only is it the largest corn palace in the world; it's also the only corn palace in the world.
All in all: a successful visit, I hope to see them again soon.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Query
Would this blog be easier to read if I broke up the super-long entries in to smaller, more topical entries instead of shoving everything I've been thinking about that day into one post? Or is it alright the way it is now? This blog is for you, so let me know what you think...
Whee!
Oooh, I'm still having fun.
We had Creative Ensemble part Deux today. Nell Catchpole, the tutor for this term had asked Andreas (Accordion) to bring in some Scandinavian folk music and oh my gosh is that stuff weird- there was clearly organization and a clear rhythm and all that, but I could not for the life of me follow what on earth they were doing- so I'm going to give Andreas a blank CD so that I can listen to it. A lot. So weird. (I can't even have it going through my head yet it was so alien to what I'm used to.) (but I *liked* it.)
Nell wanted the Scandinavian folk music because she thinks the melody that we're working with is reminiscent of the style. I don't know about that, but I'm glad to have been introduced to it.
This week Tara, Heather, and I were given the task of harmonizing a new melody that we again learned by ear. (I like Nell's melodies, but she is a violinist and her melodies are anything but idiomatic to the bass. I have to play them in a middle-to-high register in order to really hear the notes that are being played, and then I end up skipping all over the fingerboard in these giant leaps. At least my thumb position is getting a good work out.) Tara and Heather are cellists so our sounds melded really nicely together. Nell made us promise not to harmonize intellectually but instead to use our ears as much as possible.
The first thing we did was have Heather play the given melody while I dropped down a 4th. We messed with it a bit so that it wasn't entirely parallel fourths (but mostly was still). It gave the harmony a nice, vaguely Gregorian sound. Then Tara took over the given melody, I played what we'd decided on for the lowest line, and Heather played around with random notes at a very slow tempo and we'd all say when we really liked what came through. We took over 40 minutes to harmonize four bars but it is super cool (except for the last note/chord. That still needs some work).
I really enjoyed working with Tara and Heather- the collaboration went much more smoothly and team-workerly than last week. (Team-workerly, it's a technical term.) We all felt like we'd really contributed which I think is an key aspect when collaborating on something. (Oh: I'm pretty sure we all felt like we'd really contributed, but I suppose I should be specific and say that *I* really felt like I'd contributed. Can't speak for Heather and Tara...)
Nell recorded each groups' contribution and she's going to send us mp3 files. I'm hoping that I can figure out some way to put those on this blog, and if I can then you'll see them soon. (Anyone have any advice on how to do that?) If not, then I might forward the files to interested parties.
Also- I've been talking to Marvin Perrot who is the musical director of a baroque band/orchestra in the area. I'm going to play The Messiah with his group (which includes my flatmate Latana, which is how I found out about it) at the end of November. He is very keen that the group be a vehicle for getting experience soloing for each of the musicians/singers so he said that if I had any renaissance to classical solos that I wanted to do that he would find a place on a future recital for that.
"Tuneful Tots" is a toddler music education class on Sundays that is looking for a new teacher to take over a class starting in January so I contacted the other person at Guildhall who does the teaching and I'm going to meet up with her on Tuesday during lunch and then hopefully set up a meeting with the founder. So that would be totally neat if it worked out (because it is paid!) (and cool). They already have the curriculum all worked out, they just need a qualified teacher. Keep your fingers crossed!
We had Creative Ensemble part Deux today. Nell Catchpole, the tutor for this term had asked Andreas (Accordion) to bring in some Scandinavian folk music and oh my gosh is that stuff weird- there was clearly organization and a clear rhythm and all that, but I could not for the life of me follow what on earth they were doing- so I'm going to give Andreas a blank CD so that I can listen to it. A lot. So weird. (I can't even have it going through my head yet it was so alien to what I'm used to.) (but I *liked* it.)
Nell wanted the Scandinavian folk music because she thinks the melody that we're working with is reminiscent of the style. I don't know about that, but I'm glad to have been introduced to it.
This week Tara, Heather, and I were given the task of harmonizing a new melody that we again learned by ear. (I like Nell's melodies, but she is a violinist and her melodies are anything but idiomatic to the bass. I have to play them in a middle-to-high register in order to really hear the notes that are being played, and then I end up skipping all over the fingerboard in these giant leaps. At least my thumb position is getting a good work out.) Tara and Heather are cellists so our sounds melded really nicely together. Nell made us promise not to harmonize intellectually but instead to use our ears as much as possible.
The first thing we did was have Heather play the given melody while I dropped down a 4th. We messed with it a bit so that it wasn't entirely parallel fourths (but mostly was still). It gave the harmony a nice, vaguely Gregorian sound. Then Tara took over the given melody, I played what we'd decided on for the lowest line, and Heather played around with random notes at a very slow tempo and we'd all say when we really liked what came through. We took over 40 minutes to harmonize four bars but it is super cool (except for the last note/chord. That still needs some work).
I really enjoyed working with Tara and Heather- the collaboration went much more smoothly and team-workerly than last week. (Team-workerly, it's a technical term.) We all felt like we'd really contributed which I think is an key aspect when collaborating on something. (Oh: I'm pretty sure we all felt like we'd really contributed, but I suppose I should be specific and say that *I* really felt like I'd contributed. Can't speak for Heather and Tara...)
Nell recorded each groups' contribution and she's going to send us mp3 files. I'm hoping that I can figure out some way to put those on this blog, and if I can then you'll see them soon. (Anyone have any advice on how to do that?) If not, then I might forward the files to interested parties.
Also- I've been talking to Marvin Perrot who is the musical director of a baroque band/orchestra in the area. I'm going to play The Messiah with his group (which includes my flatmate Latana, which is how I found out about it) at the end of November. He is very keen that the group be a vehicle for getting experience soloing for each of the musicians/singers so he said that if I had any renaissance to classical solos that I wanted to do that he would find a place on a future recital for that.
"Tuneful Tots" is a toddler music education class on Sundays that is looking for a new teacher to take over a class starting in January so I contacted the other person at Guildhall who does the teaching and I'm going to meet up with her on Tuesday during lunch and then hopefully set up a meeting with the founder. So that would be totally neat if it worked out (because it is paid!) (and cool). They already have the curriculum all worked out, they just need a qualified teacher. Keep your fingers crossed!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
