One Week Until Christmas: What's On My Stand

Hello, hello!  I apologize for my absence, but, my, has December been a busy month!  As it should be with so many fun holiday gigs to be had.  :)

Recently, my flute duo Pipes & Keys, with Katie Smyth, played a short holiday concert for some of the residents at Lenoir Woods in South Columbia.  It was a great experience that reminded me how important a musician's relationships in the community are; the community in which we live is our patron and we, musicians, could not thrive without the people with whom we exist.  The residents of Lenoir Woods were wonderful and made Katie and I feel very welcomed in their home.  I hope that Pipes & Keys will be back at Lenoir Woods very soon!


With Christmas just around the corner, it is time to gear up for Christmas Mass.  This is another experience that strengthens my relationship with my community.  I am so blessed that I get to celebrate in music with the parish of Sacred Heart every Saturday at 4:30 Mass.  So naturally, I am even more excited to participate in Christmas Eve Mass.  The music director mentioned something about "discussing the music selections" for the Mass with me this Saturday and I cannot wait to do so!  I love being offered the opportunity to take part in the music selection process because it makes me feel more involved and less like a person who just shows up to the performance; I become more invested in the experience and the atmosphere the music creates for the congregation.

I am also pleased to officially announce that I will be playing second flute with the Missouri Symphony in their annual Symphony of Toys concert this Sunday.  There is a 3:00 and a 7:00 performance and I hope you might be able to come enjoy yet another celebration of the holiday season.  You may order tickets online here or call the box office at (573) 882-3781.  I had my first and only rehearsal with Maestro Kirk Trevor last night - it started at 4:00 and ended around 10:15!  It was grueling but also a great deal of fun as I am playing with my partner in crime, Katie Smyth, and the very talented Ryan Wall.  I love playing with them because it is not only fun, but it also pushes me to play better and to be more attentive to the music and my contribution to the group.  I don't want to ruin any surprises in the concert, but let me just say that Ryan sounds beautiful and Katie will be making her debut on a new instrument (not that the instrument was just invented, but rather she has never played it before)!  There may also be a pop culture reference that will make you want to stand up and sing (and you should!!!).  See you there! :)

So, This Happened!

Photo courtesy of Alice K. Dade

Last night I was so fortunate as to have the opportunity to play Stephen Bulla's "Rhapsody for Flute" with the Columbia Community Band.  It was an amazing experience that I will never forget; but hopefully this will not be the last time I get to play with an ensemble as a featured soloist.  It was just too much fun for this to be a one time thing!  I am grateful that the group of musicians I play with every Wednesday were willing, excited even, to go on this journey with me.  To them, thank you so much!  To my partner in crime who came to support me and help me record the performance, Katie Smyth, you're the best!

Now, what kind of perfectionist flutist would I be if I didn't say that there were moments I wish I could have another go at; however, overall I am quite pleased with myself.  As previously stated in a previous post, I had never done this before.  Sure, I have played many solos within band and orchestral pieces, but the Bulla was new territory for me.  And I played it memorized with no mind slips!  Yes, this is one of those times where I am just going to chalk it up to a great experience and simply be happy with my performance.  

All that being said, the next time I get a similar opportunity I will probably have higher expectations of myself and thus I will prepare a little differently.  You live and learn, right?  About that similar opportunity...any offers?  Don't hold back - I'm ready!

Before I get too far ahead of myself, and last night's performance, here is the fruit of my labor!  Enjoy:

Busy Week: Lincoln University Christmas Concert

Last night I had my first and only rehearsal with the Lincoln University (located in Jefferson City) Vocal Ensemble and Choir.  I am playing flute in what the director has named the Friends of the Arts Orchestra; we are "friends of the Arts"  because we, the group, are made up of two types of people: people in professions outside of music that still play because we love music and professional musicians who went into music because we love it.  Makes sense to me.  And tonight is the performance!

The rehearsal lasted roughly two hours and it was quite the whirlwind experience.  For the orchestra's part, we are a group of musicians that don't normally play together so we had one night to figure out how to gel our sounds and talents together while simultaneously navigating through the music in front of us.  Can I just say how much I love my job?  Then on top of that we had this one rehearsal to get everything together with the combined choirs.  This rehearsal went very well, probably because of the rigid dictatorship displayed by the director putting it all together - that is a compliment by the way.  This woman knows how to run a rehearsal.  We actually got out of rehearsal nearly twenty minutes before the anticipated end time.

As for the music, eleven songs (I can say song because of the singers, otherwise they would have to be called pieces) about Christmas.  What's not to like?  I am particularly fond of John Rutter's "Candlelight Carol"  and "I Wish You Christmas" (not to be confused with the standard "I Wish You a Merry Christmas").  There are some extremely talented singers in this group and I hope that the auditorium will be full of enthusiastic listeners for them to entertain.

Please consider this an informal invitation to the concert!  The music and merriment will begin at 7:30pm in Richardson Auditorium on the Lincoln University campus in Jefferson City.  Come out to support the Arts and a great ensemble of music students...and Friends.  :)

Busy Week: Columbia Community Band December Concert

This is only the first week of December and I have two holiday concerts coming up: I will be playing in Jefferson City on Friday night and with the Columbia Community Band on Sunday night.  I love playing Christmas music, so I don't really have a complaint; it's just kind of funny that both concerts happen so soon.

This Wednesday evening will be the last rehearsal I have with the CCB before I perform the Bulla Rhapsody for Flute with them on Sunday.  I have only played it with them a few times and as of right now I plan to play from memory.  Playing from memory has been going pretty well.  My main concerns are not rushing (something I want to do in all of my excitement during performances) and playing musically.  I want to give a good performance and playing from memory is only impressive if it sounds well-prepared.  At least, that is how I feel, but maybe this is another one of my ridiculous standards.

So here are the things I have been doing in order to prepare for this new experience (I have never played a solo piece with a large ensemble - I am extremely excited and grateful to have been offered this opportunity!):

1. Listen to recordings.  No joke, I think I have listened to every recording on youtube.com and I definitely have my favorites.

2. Practice at varied tempos. I have played each of the three sections slower and faster (and at tempo) than they are marked to make sure my fingers and air know the music backwards and forwards.  This really tests my ability not to rush and it also helps me double check to make sure I have musical, forward-moving lines.  No one wants to be boring and it is very easy to be boring.  No matter how good the composition is, if your only concern is hitting the notes on the page then you're going to be boring.

3.  Record myself.  I have recordings playing by myself and with the CCB.  I want to make sure I am aware of my sound in both environments.  In the first recording with the CCB, I realized I was only playing loud.  This probably resulted from the awkwardness I felt trying to "play into"  the microphone and the fact that I didn't know if I was being overpowered by the ensemble.  I have never played a solo piece with a large ensemble before; if I didn't record myself, I wouldn't know anything about how I fit into the band sound prior to the performance.  That is terrifying to me.

4.  Play with recordings online.  I have played the Bulla with nearly every recording on youtube.com.  I want to make sure I actually have the piece by memory and that regardless of who is playing "with me" I know when to play.  This checks my ability to follow tempos and to react to different interpretations of the piece by groups/conductors.  

5. Practice my presence.  After the masterclass with Mark Sparks, every time I play I try to recall his comments on posture (which I shared here on my blog in a previous post).  With the Bulla, I try to stand even taller and appear stronger.  I have this feeling that although I may project absolute confidence (I hope!!) that I am going to be a bit uneasy.  I am so excited for this new experience, but I have to remember that it is new.  I need to prepare mentally and physically.

These are things I have been doing outside of all the normal/standard practice I had to do to even learn the piece.  Keep your fingers crossed for me and if you can, come to the performance on Sunday.  The concert begins at 7pm at Hickman High School in Columbia.  We will, of course, be playing much more than just the Bulla; it is a program full of Christmas fun!  I hope to see you there!  If you can't make it, I am planning on video recording it and if all goes well I will post in on my website.