The first week of the Dalcroze course is nearly finished. There are about 30 people taking the course with 6-8 people in the advanced group and the rest in the beginning. The numbers are a bit variable because the groups are fluid and people move around a fair bit. We start in the morning with eurhythmics- which is movement with music. Then we do solfege- ear training and singing, lunch, and improvisation. Te last 45minutes of the day we are all together and do classroom examples or sample lesson plans.
I've been in the advanced group which has been alternately lovely and frustrating. Some times the advanced class has wandered off on tangents where we argue for ages about whether or not a certain chord/pitch/etc. really counts as one thing or if it would be this other thing and if so what other contexts you might see that in blah blah blah. I follow it- but only theoretically and I don't get excited about it.
That being said- today during improvisation I was totally giddy. The homework was to build a "secundo" or second part of a piano duet- so the chords below the melody. I spent about two hours playing around on the piano yesterday and *finally* have a practical and aural understanding of plagal cadences. I've really been working in my own practice time on making musical phrases and then figuring out away from the piano (and without intellectualizing it) where the music wants to go. It's been fantastic. Like I said, after how many years of schooling? I'm starting to have a practical understanding of how the music fits together and what all that means. Super exciting. I want more.
I love the solfege and ear training aspects of Dalcroze. It works so well for me and helps with learning things that I have always wanted to understand and struggled with. Ann Farber, the teacher that I've been working with the most- is a small, feisty, gray haired woman. When you don't understand what is going on- all of her intensity focuses on you and her voice gets louder. When I first encountered her at Longy I thought she was terrifying and mean, but by the end of those three weeks two years ago she was my favorite teacher and the main reason I came to this course in NYC. She's yelling at you- but in order to make sure that you really understand. And once you do? The biggest smile ever. She's awesome and makes me laugh. And she keeps choosing me to do the exercises that scare me to death. Isn't she sweet?
So- I'm writing lots of melodies, learning how the fit together, and mostly ignoring the lesson plans and classroom things because it turns out that that is the least interesting aspect of dalcroze eurhythmics for me. I'm not terribly interested in becoming a dalcroze teacher for small children- but I'm VERY interested in how their teaching process can help me with ear training, understanding phrases, general musicality, composition, musical structure, musical cohesion, and basically lots of compositional tools.
I'm having fun.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Saturday, August 16, 2008
News, News Everywhere!
1. We have a flat in London! It is in Stamford Hill, which is north of Stoke Newington. It is on a bunch of direct bus lines that take us straight to Moorgate, Liverpool St., or Old Street (which is to say- straight in to school). There are three bed rooms and a living room we are converting in to a bedroom, a large kitchen with enough space for a dining table (and a gas stove!), *two* bathrooms- one with a shower and the other with a tub, and a garden that we have sole access to. Pretty sweet, huh? It is a bit far out, but that is totally doable- we couldn't have possibly been able to afford anything this nice closer in. "We" in this case meaning Latana, Moises, myself, and my friend Ella who is now a second year composer. We still have some issues like bedroom division and actually getting all of the payment things sorted- but basically we're good to go. Move in date is August 30th.
2. I'm in NYC! The flight was delayed all over the place- we sat on the runway in London for over an hour due to some sort of issue with the baggage. Not really sure what that was. Then, when we were in NY there was a massive thunderstorm and they wouldn't let us land until that had passes so we circled for an hour and then ran low on fuel so we landed outside of NY, refueled, and waited again until the weather was better around JFK.
This delay could have been a total pain, but it actually turned out fine because I ended up having a long conversation with the person sitting next to me about the Leadership programme and what can be done with that sort of training. It turns out that this guy is actually very in to video manipulation so we started talking about all the crossover opportunities and interesting things that he has been keeping an eye on that I should really know about and just basically having a really loud animated conversation in the middle of the aisle. We were having a much better time than the poor pregnant woman two rows behind us who just kept throwing up...
Currently I am staying at Liz (Kent) Berman's in-law's apartment in the Bronx. I need to figure out how to get in to Manhattan to start the course on Monday. I'll get that all sorted out soon. So far I have been watching the Olympics and sleeping- I have a very painful ear infection that I am trying to get rid of. Grr.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The world is very small
Remember back at Christmas when Andy and Nancy and I went to Cambridge? This is Jess- she was another person at the party. We had a really nice time talking to each other and I think were both glad that there was someone else near our age there.
In any case- it turns out that it is her room that I have been subletting these past two weeks in Dalston...
I found the place through my friend Imogen who is also from Cambridge. The house is being rented by her friend Kanika, I think they went to school together. When Kani was trying to find a fifth person to stay in the last bedroom she called up her friend Jess who decided that she wanted to live in London this year. So there we go- way way less than six degrees of separation in multiple directions.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Happy Anniversary
Andy and Nancy!
My friend Ella and I just spent the day going to various estate agents around the city and finding out if they had any properties that might work for either of us. House hunting in this town is a massive pain. We did a lot of riding around in buses too- so we both have a better idea of what is out there, what the neighborhoods look like, and how they all fit together. That being said- we are both exhausted and didn't really find anything.
Currently I am living in Dalston near Stoke Newington. I already liked the area because of all of the market stalls and 24hour Turkish restaurants and general interestingness of the area, but yesterday I took one of those city walk cards for Stoke Newington and discovered all sorts of things like Clissold park and Abney Park Cemetery which is a Victorian grave yard that was abandoned and so is now a nature preserve. It looks like the ravine with threes draped in ivy and blackberry bushes everywhere- but then in the undergrowth there are rows upon rows of headstones. Many times you can't really see the headstones, but they must be there because the ivy wouldn't grow like that otherwise. So now I am totally, irrevocably in love with the area. Today, however, I found out that it is probably out of my price range...cross your fingers for me, will you? Maybe something will come through.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Theodora
What a sublimely beautiful oratorio.
It had been quite a long time since I played with an orchestra (May, 2006) and longer still since I had played for an opera. I started out the week on a high playing wise because I had just had a lesson with Peter the night before I left for Norfolk so I was busy being excited about the bass "Oh, that's how I use the bow!" and the like. The first day of rehearsals was mostly sight reading and I have always enjoyed that part of the process of learning music- when everything is new and making mistakes is part of the game, when you're getting introduced to the music.
The orchestra was full of lovely people as well. Robert Houssart, the conductor and harpsichordist- is enthusiastic and fun. There were 5 violins: Emily from Boston; Marja from Finland via Cork, Ireland; Aiden and Naimh from Ireland; and Tim the 15 year old whose family I was staying with. We had one viola- Tom who has impressively mobile eyebrows; and two cellists- Harriet from the South of England, and Sara- our continuo cellist from Germany. So we were a right international bunch. Two oboeists (Sharon, England; Sian, Minnesota), a timpanist (Polly, Scotland), and a trumpet player (Will, England) all showed up later in the week. Oh, and David- the repititeur harpsichordist (he played for the singers during rehearsals).
Do you know what recitatives are? Wikipedia defines it as "a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms of ordinary speech." Basically it is where all of the exposition happens in operas, because there isn't much space for it in the arias. They also, particularly in baroque music, are full clear cadences. So someone will sing a sentence, and then you have a big V-I and I don't know how to explain it other than that or singing it to you, but that doesn't really work on blogs...Right, so anyhow- the point of this is that through playing this music and all of the recitatives that we played and listened to- I now feel like I understand so much more of the theory that I learned in undergrad from a practical standpoint and I wish in some ways that either I could go back to those classes now, or I could have some how had this experience before (or during) those classes.
Same thing with styles of bowing and articulation- when playing baroque excerpts for orchestral excerpt class we would be told to play light, don't hit the last notes heavily, let go of the unimportant notes, know where the phrase is going and toss off those notes that are only passing. I never really got this- it was hard for me to hear out of context and really frustrating at the time. Now I am like, dude- we really should have been made to play baroque operas in small chamber orchestras, what a great learning opportunity that would have been.
That is me now. During the week however, I was constantly screwing up during rehearsals and playing out of tune and forgetting to look at key signatures and just generally feeling like my playing was not up to snuff. So I wasn't as pleased with the whole thing as I am now. Now I want to practice (me! I want to practice! Okay, so not a whole lot- but there are certain things that I would like to work up again and wouldn't it be lovely to play for fun? Without any sort of pressure?) because then if I get to go back again next year, I wouldn't freak out everytime Robert whipped his head around because I jumped an entrance or played a wrong note. To be fair, I was right next to him so he could hear me clearly, but his starting every time I messed up was not helpful.
Anyhow- enough of my angst about my playing: Handel sure knew how to write music. I don't think I have ever fallen in love with an opera/oratorio like I have with this one. It wasn't just the arias that would get stuck in my head; it is such a lovely work that I would get bits of recitative stuck in my head. 'O That I on Wings Could Rise', one of Theodora's arias. Lovely. And anything Irene sings. 'Wither, Princess, Do You Fly'. And most of the choruses.
It's a heartbreaking story too- the christians are all told to make a sacrifice to the Roman god Jove or be killed. Theodora, a christian princess and Irene, her group's pristess refuse. Instead of killing Theodora though- because shis such a prominent christian, she is setanced to be turned in to a whore. This, because she is so very virtuous is worse than death. Didymus, a Roman soldier is so overcome and impressed with her virtue that he goes to tr save her and convinces Theodora to switch places with him in her prison cell. Didymus is found out and sentenced to die for helping the prisoner to escape. Theodora is also now sentenced to die should she be found. Overjoyed that her virtue is still protected, Theodora races back to the palace to turn herself in. Both Didymus and Theodora argue that they should be killed in place of the other. In interest of fairness, they are both killed. The end.
Obviously this is a bit more nuanced in the actual opera.
It had been quite a long time since I played with an orchestra (May, 2006) and longer still since I had played for an opera. I started out the week on a high playing wise because I had just had a lesson with Peter the night before I left for Norfolk so I was busy being excited about the bass "Oh, that's how I use the bow!" and the like. The first day of rehearsals was mostly sight reading and I have always enjoyed that part of the process of learning music- when everything is new and making mistakes is part of the game, when you're getting introduced to the music.
The orchestra was full of lovely people as well. Robert Houssart, the conductor and harpsichordist- is enthusiastic and fun. There were 5 violins: Emily from Boston; Marja from Finland via Cork, Ireland; Aiden and Naimh from Ireland; and Tim the 15 year old whose family I was staying with. We had one viola- Tom who has impressively mobile eyebrows; and two cellists- Harriet from the South of England, and Sara- our continuo cellist from Germany. So we were a right international bunch. Two oboeists (Sharon, England; Sian, Minnesota), a timpanist (Polly, Scotland), and a trumpet player (Will, England) all showed up later in the week. Oh, and David- the repititeur harpsichordist (he played for the singers during rehearsals).
Do you know what recitatives are? Wikipedia defines it as "a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms of ordinary speech." Basically it is where all of the exposition happens in operas, because there isn't much space for it in the arias. They also, particularly in baroque music, are full clear cadences. So someone will sing a sentence, and then you have a big V-I and I don't know how to explain it other than that or singing it to you, but that doesn't really work on blogs...Right, so anyhow- the point of this is that through playing this music and all of the recitatives that we played and listened to- I now feel like I understand so much more of the theory that I learned in undergrad from a practical standpoint and I wish in some ways that either I could go back to those classes now, or I could have some how had this experience before (or during) those classes.
Same thing with styles of bowing and articulation- when playing baroque excerpts for orchestral excerpt class we would be told to play light, don't hit the last notes heavily, let go of the unimportant notes, know where the phrase is going and toss off those notes that are only passing. I never really got this- it was hard for me to hear out of context and really frustrating at the time. Now I am like, dude- we really should have been made to play baroque operas in small chamber orchestras, what a great learning opportunity that would have been.
That is me now. During the week however, I was constantly screwing up during rehearsals and playing out of tune and forgetting to look at key signatures and just generally feeling like my playing was not up to snuff. So I wasn't as pleased with the whole thing as I am now. Now I want to practice (me! I want to practice! Okay, so not a whole lot- but there are certain things that I would like to work up again and wouldn't it be lovely to play for fun? Without any sort of pressure?) because then if I get to go back again next year, I wouldn't freak out everytime Robert whipped his head around because I jumped an entrance or played a wrong note. To be fair, I was right next to him so he could hear me clearly, but his starting every time I messed up was not helpful.
Anyhow- enough of my angst about my playing: Handel sure knew how to write music. I don't think I have ever fallen in love with an opera/oratorio like I have with this one. It wasn't just the arias that would get stuck in my head; it is such a lovely work that I would get bits of recitative stuck in my head. 'O That I on Wings Could Rise', one of Theodora's arias. Lovely. And anything Irene sings. 'Wither, Princess, Do You Fly'. And most of the choruses.
It's a heartbreaking story too- the christians are all told to make a sacrifice to the Roman god Jove or be killed. Theodora, a christian princess and Irene, her group's pristess refuse. Instead of killing Theodora though- because shis such a prominent christian, she is setanced to be turned in to a whore. This, because she is so very virtuous is worse than death. Didymus, a Roman soldier is so overcome and impressed with her virtue that he goes to tr save her and convinces Theodora to switch places with him in her prison cell. Didymus is found out and sentenced to die for helping the prisoner to escape. Theodora is also now sentenced to die should she be found. Overjoyed that her virtue is still protected, Theodora races back to the palace to turn herself in. Both Didymus and Theodora argue that they should be killed in place of the other. In interest of fairness, they are both killed. The end.
Obviously this is a bit more nuanced in the actual opera.
Norfolk
Norfolk was amazing.
It was blissful weather most of the time and so I frequently went on bike rides around the area- one lane roads (no worries about which side to be on then!) through wheat fields and wild flowers with rabbits jumping out all the time and pheasants and hawks and butterflies and little boys on bikes who challenge you to races. Oh, and centuries old farm houses and a community pea patch that smelled like dill (you have to remember that I actually *like* dill, so this was nice.) And that was just the bike rides!
We put together an opera from scratch in 3 weeks. The instrumentalists were only there for the last week (or, in the case of Will our trumpeter- only the performances. Why did Handel only write trumpet into one movement of a 58 movement work?) and for the first couple of days we were rehearsing around 9 hours a day. So, a little bit in to the deep end after not playing hardly at all for most of the year.
The singers were from all over the place, but a the largest group of them were from DIT in Dublin. Dublin Institute of Technology School of Music and Drama. (Why does a school of technology have a conservatory? Same reason a university synonymous with medicine has a conservatory- the conservatories keep going bankrupt.) There were also a bunch of Australians and two other Americans- my accent was all over the place.
We were housed with various area families. I was with the Lakzo Schroeders- who are wonderful and have 5 children. The first night I was there was very cold; so the older members of the family (The parents Norbert and Tina and their eldest son Tim who played violin with the orchestra) and I sat by the fire in their 17th century living room and chatted about all sorts of things. This proved to be too tempting for the younger members of the family who had all already been put to bed- so one by one they tromped down the stairs with their wet, freshly bathed heads and curled up on their parents laps or on the rug in front of the fire. It was all ridiculously charming.
Everyone got very involved in the making of the costumes, sets, and props. Though mostly the costumes. We needed Roman armor (sawed off flower pots), various Roman lady outfits, christian peasant clothes, etc. All of the singers had at *least* one costume change and all of the costumes were made on site in a little house down the road from the church we were performing in. They were designed and made mostly by Gidon Saks (http://www.intermusica.co.uk/saks)
who it turns out is quite a successful opera singer himself. Like, really successful. And he was making the costumes, 'cause he wanted to. Also, he is a total character and I adore him even though he was slagging off Seattle because he had bad experiences there with Seattle Opera and the Ring Cycle. The costume house was *tiny* by the way. Like, small enough that I could bump my head on the rafters. Gidon is definitely over 6' tall, so I'm not really sure how he survived. He also did a masterclass that I went and watched and was alternately inspired and rolling on the floor with laughter.
The performances took place in St. Mary, South Creake (http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/southcreake/southcreake.htm) There is a roster on the wall of vicars for the congregation and it goes back to the 1100's. Cool, huh? I had never seen a church before that had both historic graveyards and a very current graveyard. I spent a lot of time hanging out with Robert Pilch (d.1879) and Susanna Collins (d.1798) as well as the George brothers (d. Oct. 1916, Nov. 1916, 1919). We had built a stage in the center of the church so that the opera was in the round. A little bit weird, but effective. We weren't allowed to have our final, ending party until everything was completely cleaned up and put away and the church put back to rights. We managed to complete this in an impressive hour and a quarter.
There was a wonderful community spirit throughout the whole place and I'm hoping to go back again either for the Easter concert of another of these operas that they do in the summer. It's a strange thing though- I've never heard of any other summer program that was entirely invitation only and depended so completely on who you know. Peter is the one who got this gig for me. Thanks, Peter!
It was blissful weather most of the time and so I frequently went on bike rides around the area- one lane roads (no worries about which side to be on then!) through wheat fields and wild flowers with rabbits jumping out all the time and pheasants and hawks and butterflies and little boys on bikes who challenge you to races. Oh, and centuries old farm houses and a community pea patch that smelled like dill (you have to remember that I actually *like* dill, so this was nice.) And that was just the bike rides!
We put together an opera from scratch in 3 weeks. The instrumentalists were only there for the last week (or, in the case of Will our trumpeter- only the performances. Why did Handel only write trumpet into one movement of a 58 movement work?) and for the first couple of days we were rehearsing around 9 hours a day. So, a little bit in to the deep end after not playing hardly at all for most of the year.
The singers were from all over the place, but a the largest group of them were from DIT in Dublin. Dublin Institute of Technology School of Music and Drama. (Why does a school of technology have a conservatory? Same reason a university synonymous with medicine has a conservatory- the conservatories keep going bankrupt.) There were also a bunch of Australians and two other Americans- my accent was all over the place.
We were housed with various area families. I was with the Lakzo Schroeders- who are wonderful and have 5 children. The first night I was there was very cold; so the older members of the family (The parents Norbert and Tina and their eldest son Tim who played violin with the orchestra) and I sat by the fire in their 17th century living room and chatted about all sorts of things. This proved to be too tempting for the younger members of the family who had all already been put to bed- so one by one they tromped down the stairs with their wet, freshly bathed heads and curled up on their parents laps or on the rug in front of the fire. It was all ridiculously charming.
Everyone got very involved in the making of the costumes, sets, and props. Though mostly the costumes. We needed Roman armor (sawed off flower pots), various Roman lady outfits, christian peasant clothes, etc. All of the singers had at *least* one costume change and all of the costumes were made on site in a little house down the road from the church we were performing in. They were designed and made mostly by Gidon Saks (http://www.intermusica.co.uk/saks)
who it turns out is quite a successful opera singer himself. Like, really successful. And he was making the costumes, 'cause he wanted to. Also, he is a total character and I adore him even though he was slagging off Seattle because he had bad experiences there with Seattle Opera and the Ring Cycle. The costume house was *tiny* by the way. Like, small enough that I could bump my head on the rafters. Gidon is definitely over 6' tall, so I'm not really sure how he survived. He also did a masterclass that I went and watched and was alternately inspired and rolling on the floor with laughter.
The performances took place in St. Mary, South Creake (http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/southcreake/southcreake.htm) There is a roster on the wall of vicars for the congregation and it goes back to the 1100's. Cool, huh? I had never seen a church before that had both historic graveyards and a very current graveyard. I spent a lot of time hanging out with Robert Pilch (d.1879) and Susanna Collins (d.1798) as well as the George brothers (d. Oct. 1916, Nov. 1916, 1919). We had built a stage in the center of the church so that the opera was in the round. A little bit weird, but effective. We weren't allowed to have our final, ending party until everything was completely cleaned up and put away and the church put back to rights. We managed to complete this in an impressive hour and a quarter.
There was a wonderful community spirit throughout the whole place and I'm hoping to go back again either for the Easter concert of another of these operas that they do in the summer. It's a strange thing though- I've never heard of any other summer program that was entirely invitation only and depended so completely on who you know. Peter is the one who got this gig for me. Thanks, Peter!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
On my way
Today has been a big day already and it is only just past noon.
For the rest of the summer my stuff, and sometimes my self- will be staying in Stoke Newington in a house that is being rented by friends of my friend Imogen. I am staying in a room on the top floor (3rd or 2nd depending on how you count it) and the people I've met who already live there are lovely. But mostly I'm excited not to be homeless and also to have somewhere to store *all my stuff.*
How did I get this much stuff? I came with three suitcases and now just moved with the aid of a van. Like, a proper van for transporting stuff- not a minivan which is called a "people carrier" here. Funny story that- I called up a taxi service yesterday, explained that I was moving all of my worldly possessions and could I hire a car? They said certainly and so at 11am this morning a people carrier showed up. Unfortunately- the driver took one look at all of my *stuff* and decided that his band new people carrier could not take it all. Which is reasonable and his prerogative- but still put me in a bit of a bind. So I called up the taxi service again and they said that they could send a van (two seats, lots of plywood covered storage area), but I could not ride with it. Since at this point I was getting panicky- I said Okay. I would ride the bus and hope my new housemates were nice people who would help unload the van before I got there.
Fortunately it all turned out peachy. The driver, Aaron, was lively and entertaining and helped me load all of my *stuff* and then let me ride in the van too. Because he's cool. He's from Sweden, but his mother is Jamaican and he grew up in Leeds where he played professional football for a while. His partner just got pregnant and their first child is due on Christmas eve- he's not sure about names but he really likes "Casey" and he asked if I minded if he put that on the list? I said absolutely, go for it.
I leave for King's Cross station in half an hour or so with my bass, my little red bag, my stool, my backpack, and another bag that I meant to leave at the sublet house but accidentally forgot. I'm taking all of this on the tube in order to get to the train station where I am meeting Lisa Hanson for lunch before getting on a train to Kings Lynn station in Norfolk where I will spend the week trying to remember how to play the bass.
I'm going to Norfolk for a week of Handel Opera. Well, technically an oratorio- Theadora. We're rehearsing all week and then performing next weekend. The singers and continuo players have already been there for a week. I have no idea what I'm getting in to. But it should be good- the food we get is apparently legendary.
Last night I went out to Walthamsthow for a lesson with Peter McCarthy. It was great to see him and catch up, and truly lovely to get to play his bass. Magnificent instrument. However, it was unsettling to realize just how very much I have forgotten. Yes, I have played bass this year- but it is a very different thing to be using a bass to make a riff on versus the much more nuanced playing that is needed for baroque and classical music. I'm pleased I had the lesson before the rehearsals begin, but I am more than a little nervous about this whole process now. That being said- before they had me, they had no bassist at all- so better me than nothing. And I'm not terrible. I do have a degree in this after all. I just haven't played in an orchestra in two years.
I am bringing my computer along with me, so hopefully I will be able to blog from out there. Obviously this is subject to what sort of Internet I can find- but at the very least I'll write some blogs and take photos to post when I get back on the 27th.
For the rest of the summer my stuff, and sometimes my self- will be staying in Stoke Newington in a house that is being rented by friends of my friend Imogen. I am staying in a room on the top floor (3rd or 2nd depending on how you count it) and the people I've met who already live there are lovely. But mostly I'm excited not to be homeless and also to have somewhere to store *all my stuff.*
How did I get this much stuff? I came with three suitcases and now just moved with the aid of a van. Like, a proper van for transporting stuff- not a minivan which is called a "people carrier" here. Funny story that- I called up a taxi service yesterday, explained that I was moving all of my worldly possessions and could I hire a car? They said certainly and so at 11am this morning a people carrier showed up. Unfortunately- the driver took one look at all of my *stuff* and decided that his band new people carrier could not take it all. Which is reasonable and his prerogative- but still put me in a bit of a bind. So I called up the taxi service again and they said that they could send a van (two seats, lots of plywood covered storage area), but I could not ride with it. Since at this point I was getting panicky- I said Okay. I would ride the bus and hope my new housemates were nice people who would help unload the van before I got there.
Fortunately it all turned out peachy. The driver, Aaron, was lively and entertaining and helped me load all of my *stuff* and then let me ride in the van too. Because he's cool. He's from Sweden, but his mother is Jamaican and he grew up in Leeds where he played professional football for a while. His partner just got pregnant and their first child is due on Christmas eve- he's not sure about names but he really likes "Casey" and he asked if I minded if he put that on the list? I said absolutely, go for it.
I leave for King's Cross station in half an hour or so with my bass, my little red bag, my stool, my backpack, and another bag that I meant to leave at the sublet house but accidentally forgot. I'm taking all of this on the tube in order to get to the train station where I am meeting Lisa Hanson for lunch before getting on a train to Kings Lynn station in Norfolk where I will spend the week trying to remember how to play the bass.
I'm going to Norfolk for a week of Handel Opera. Well, technically an oratorio- Theadora. We're rehearsing all week and then performing next weekend. The singers and continuo players have already been there for a week. I have no idea what I'm getting in to. But it should be good- the food we get is apparently legendary.
Last night I went out to Walthamsthow for a lesson with Peter McCarthy. It was great to see him and catch up, and truly lovely to get to play his bass. Magnificent instrument. However, it was unsettling to realize just how very much I have forgotten. Yes, I have played bass this year- but it is a very different thing to be using a bass to make a riff on versus the much more nuanced playing that is needed for baroque and classical music. I'm pleased I had the lesson before the rehearsals begin, but I am more than a little nervous about this whole process now. That being said- before they had me, they had no bassist at all- so better me than nothing. And I'm not terrible. I do have a degree in this after all. I just haven't played in an orchestra in two years.
I am bringing my computer along with me, so hopefully I will be able to blog from out there. Obviously this is subject to what sort of Internet I can find- but at the very least I'll write some blogs and take photos to post when I get back on the 27th.
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