wandering in the woods

Life in New York is great, if even a little crazy at times. I am definitely the happiest I have ever been in my life and I can see things on the horizon.

In December I went to Ottawa, ON with Ben to visit his family. Ottawa is definitely a beautiful city, and I love Canada and Canadians. Parliment Hill is gorgeous and I enjoyed eating my Beaver's Tail. This short trip was just the break I needed before FOLK WANDERING went head strong.

December 19th there was a reading of the musical I have been working on with a group of musicians at SoHo Walker Space. I spoke earlier of the workshop. I was asked to stay on as a orchestrator/vocal arranger. Well, the show went up very quickly, and I think we have something special in our hands. This is not saying there needs to be some work, but it is a beautiful score, and I am very proud to see a show I helped created.

I went home to Arizona which was great because I haven't seen Krista, Clayton or my grandparents since Nov 2009! The weather was a little bad for AZ, but it was a nice change.

New Years in New York with friends and lovers is the best way to spend the holiday. I don't understand how people spend their life in Times Square. The whole mid town area was a mad house!!

I auditioned for a show about a string quartet. It was a great experience to audition and the show sounds pretty cool, but I turned down the offer because of timing and the monetary compensation isn't what I was looking for! Too bad! I could have gone to Sydney... Just not smart to leave the city for so long not with an omportant musical career advancement.

I went on a cruise to the Bahamas with Lisa! Nassau and Free Port. It was on Carnivale, so when the Italian liner flipped while on the boat we all had a barn raising time.

I just finished playing a benefit concert of INTO THE WOODS with equity actors/union players. Since it was a benefit, rules don't apply, but I am glad I was able to perform with the great string players Summer Boggess on cello and Hiroko Taguchi on violin. I am glad I slowly am putting my name out there (even if my D string was giving me problems!!). So exciting.

Just finished recording FW so it can be sent off to festivals and the like. Also a very fun experience.

On the horizon is an opera and an orchestra concert as well as LA with Ben and Lisa. Update coming soon.

2011 Most Played Songs

Here are the 25 most played songs on my iPod for the year 2011. It is very interesting to see the difference/similarity between 2011 and 2010. Who knows what 2012 will hold!!

1--"I Think You're a Contra"-Vampire Weekend
2--"Giving Up the Gun"-Vampire Weekend
3--"Good Luck"-Sondre Lerche
4--"Take It All"-Adele
5--"Run"-Vampire Weekend
6--"Rumor Has It"-Adele
7--"California English"-Vampire Weekend
8--"Cannibal"-Ke$ha
9--"Cosmic Love"-Florence + The Machine
10--"Holiday"-Vampire Weekend
11--"Postcards from Italy"-Beirut
12--"Girls Just Wanna Have Fun"-Cyndi Lauper
13--"Take it Off"-Ke$ha
14--"Rolling in the Deep"-Adele
15--"Do You Realize??"-The Flaming Lips
16--"Happy Ending"-MIKA
17--"Blow"-Ke$ha
18--"White Sky"-Vampire Weekend
19--"Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)"-Katy Perry
20--"Gronlandic Edit"-Of Montreal
21--"Daydreamer"-Adele
22--"Half of You"-Cat Power
23--"Poor Little Person"-Alice Pleyten from HENRY, SWEET HENRY
24--"We R Who We R"-Ke$ha
25--"The Boxer"-Simon & Garfunkel

Songs that get recognition"
-Anything from WHIPPED CREAM AND OTHER DELIGHTS by the Tijuana Brass
-"Love on Top"-Beyonce. It is too new to be on the list
-"Heatwave"-Martha & the Vandellas

Goosey Loosey

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

My roommate Ryan performed "King of New York" from NEWSIES at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. If you happened to be watching, he started the number and had a cigar in his mouth. It was pretty cool. Everyone we know is wicked excited to have NEWSIES transferring to broadway.

My Thanksgiving was quite nice. Ben and Leesh are in town, so it was a roommate gathering for sure. We had so much food and so much fun making the food, it is one of the better experiences in my life. I did have to go to work at World Yacht, which kinda put a wrench in the day, but I am glad to have a job that pays the bills.

I played with the string quartet I sub with for a proposal. It was really funny! The girl hit her fiance and then took the ring without even hearing a question...then the whole family came out! Woof. It was an easy gig for money! :)

GO SEE THE MUPPETS!

Just for your enjoyment (what the two people who read this ha!), I have had "Turkey Lurkey" from PROMISES, PROMISES! stuck in my head for about a week and I want you to enjoy it as well. Here is the link to the Tony Awards performance. The red-head, Donna Mckechnie, is crazy. She whips her head and spins her arm so fast!! It is pretty enjoyable, and who does not like Burt Bacharach. Oh, and an fyi, I haven't found a version of the song that has as MUCH energy. I hope you enjoy.

I hope you Turkey Day was as marvelous as it could be!

Oopsies

I have been so busy I have not updated my blog in a long while. Also, I got a 5-year journal, where you write a sentance or two everyday, so it seems like I am keeping up to date with things, but not to the WHOLE WORLD! Let me look at the highlights of the past couple of months:

Summer is now over. We had the official first snow fall of the year on October 29!! It was a blizzard, and some people in VT and CT still do not have power. It snowed three inches in Central Park, but Westchester (only an hour away) recieved 14!! Pretty crazy. It is the earliest snowfall since the Civil War. That was only 150 years ago, but it is still a long time! Everyone here is blaming it on Global Warming/Global Climate Change.

I moved into a new apartment with some buddies from CCM. I love it and it is the first time I have had an apartment where I can decorate and make it "home." It is really cool. IT is in Long Island City, so though it is not Manhattan, I am SO close to everything. It takes ten minutes on the train to get to Times Square. Brilliant! Even when I lived on the UWS, it took 40 mins and I had to deal with the overly crowded 1 train... Here, in LIC, I have the 7, N, Q, R, M, and E all within five minutes of my house. Pretty sweet deal there.

I am taking lessons from Stephanie Baer at NYU and am involved with Karen Ritscher's masterclasses at NYU/MSM. I am very blessed to be able to still progress in the viola even when I am not at school. I love the teaching style of both these teachers. They blend well together. It is also really cool to have masterclass with a different instructor because you get different view points on the same thing. Some how, this seems to work. I like it. They are also VERY kind, which I need. Kind words of encouragement work much better for me than distain.

I have a lot on my plate involving the literature I am playing: Reger G minor suite (learned and almost all memorized!), Bach Cello Suite 4 in Eb, Paganinni Caprice 5 (ouch!) and Bartok Viola Concerto. I have this pretty cool practice regime where I practice several times throughout the day instead of in one chunk. It gives me time to accomplish other things, and I do not get frustrated as much. Also, it gives me time to think about what I accomplished, and what I still need to get done. It really adds up. An hour here and a half hour there makes four hours go by!

I observed the pit for Wicked in September. Suprisingly, the orchestrations make the score. The viola part is SICK, and Kevin was really cool. It is always great to get insights into how people scored the gig and their background. So far, almost everyone I met has gone to MSM or Juilliard... is that saying something?

Speaking of scoring, I went to the 802 Theatre Musician Meet and Greet (I had a rehearsal, so I only was there for the greet). Jonathan Tunick spoke, as well as other musicians and BIG SHOTS, and it was so nice to hear I am doing everything correctly. Practicing is your job until you land your gig, you take any gig you can even if it doesn't pay, you are a nice, dedicated person and you hand out cards like mad! Check check check check. Pretty cool. Jonathan Tunick said something that stuck with me "Your goal should be to play at the highest level possible, just like a basketball player." Makes perfect sense to me. You take pride in what you do and everything is an opportunity.

I participated in a Workshop of a new musical entitled Folk Wandering. I am not really at liberty to discuss all the deets of this work, but I am sticking with the project and we have a public reading of it in December. It should be really great. I think the message is quite good.

I played with the New York Chamber Players. It was a fun gig where I got to meet some great musicians and play the master concerti. It really helped me remember that I do indeed like classical music. I had been turned off for so long while being at school. The spark is back.

Now, onto non-music related things. I went to Sleepy Hollow! It is so beautiful. The bridge is no longer there (thanks to the Rockefeller's modernizing the city), but the Old Dutch Church still stands. I have pictures, but no way to upload them, so I will add them later. The cemetary is brethtaking, especially in autumn when the leaves change.

Wishful drinking, Irene

This summer has had a lot of ups and downs.

Where did I leave you off? Oh, yeah, my Mary Martin obsession.

Since then, I have done a couple of cool things. I played for a Red-Cross benefit concert entitled Wishful Thinking (reminds me, of course, of the Carrie Fisher show Wishful Drinking...correlation?). It was nice to meet people and an enjoyable evening. It was fun to play some nice tunes and do it for a good cause!

I also had the chance to observe The Addam's Family. I am really grateful for this because the show has just announced it is closing. My opinion is the show is very fun, from what I could hear. The one cool thing about the score is the orchestrations are HUGE and unique. I like how the genre changes from song to song ie. Tango to Dixieland Band. Once again, it just enunciates the want and NEED to play for shows. It is just not something I like, I have this deep rooted passion for it. I am slowly getting more and more tired of classical music. Granted, I will always have a deep love for the masters, but I am finding it more laborious than enjoyable. Commercial music is very much apart of this ever changing world, and, to put it frankly, it is so much more fun. I am so happy when playing commercial music, and to have voices and lyrics with the music adds a deeper texture.

I am playing in a band with the lead singer Elisa Lovelie. I really enjoy playing for her. From what I can tell, she is a great singer. All I know is I enjoy jammin' with her. Will she go somewhere? Who knows, but I am here for the ride.

I am not opposed to anything, as long as I have fun. If it sucks and I want to shoot myself, eh. It has been nice, see you later.

Hopefully there are more updates to come.

I am moving Sep. 1 into an apartment on the 7 line. Literally, ON the 7 line. You look out my balcony and I can see if the train is coming and make it there in time. It will be nice. Alas, it is only for a month, and then I will have to move again. On that note, I will be moving in with Ryan and Jo Moe. Should be pretty cool. I am glad I will have a place to live with people I know. It makes it much more bearable.

I survived Hurricane Irene and the Earthquake that shook us all up. To be honest, I was much more scared in Cincinnati in May, was it, during the Tornado. I am blessed nothing happened. It was a WEEKEND though. winky wink wink

Also, I have seen a plethora of movies and entertainment.

I saw The Legend of Julie Taymor, most commonly known for The Lion King on B'way, Oedipus Rex in my 803 class and the debauchery called Spider Man: Turn Off the Dark. It was one rump, riot of a time. It was an extended, 90 minute parody, but I enjoyed myself. The cast was fierceas and there were a couple good songs.

My friend Isaac Dayley has a production company called Silent Street Productions. I saw their off off-broadway production of Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare. The concept was interesting and was done in a modern, post-rapture way. It was VERY bloody and the material is so meat and potatoes heavy. It was long, but great. I enjoyed many of the performances and the concept idea seemed to work (especially since it was the day before Irene hit, and none of us knew how bad (or not bad) it was going to be). Here here. I want more.

I have a lesson with Stephanie Baer on Thursday. I couldn't be more excited (though maybe a bit more preapred).

Kelly Clarkson's new single is "Mr. Know It All" great as well as Bab's new cd What Matters Most

Blueberry Pie

I had a revelation tonight I want to tell you about. I feel it is a novel idea, but I am sure R&O thought of it when they were writing or some scholar has already made note of it, but the personal revelation was quite cool.

I am reading a bio on Mary Martin and saw a picture of her as Nellie, so I listened to "A Wonderful Guy."

Here is my revelation:

Nellie Forbush is upset with Emile de Becque. This is made obvious by her song "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair." Even later, when
Emile kisses her, she get's upset at the cat calls from the girls and doubts herself. Because of her anger, she is confused of her true feelings. Nellie's real discovery comes during the course of "A Wonderful Guy."

The song begins in a minor key. The angst is made apparent by the percussive, staccato interjections by the orchestra. This minor section comes across as very abrasive as she proclaims she does not like Emile. Then, you hear a silver lining occur in the words "Fearlessly, I'll face them and argue their doubts away..." She becomes open to the idea as if she is asking herself "Wait, why am I so stubborn?" Her heart begins to flutter as the orchestra leads into the up beat waltz meter.

"I'm as corny as Kansas in August" is Nellie's girlish, singing way of blushing. The music naturally starts to lilt and one just pictures Nellie sway
side to side as a smile grows larger and larger on her face. The music seems to swirl, climaxing when she sings "I'm in love..." in a metric, typical 4 + 4 cadence stating "I'm in love" 5 times. Nellie is so filled with joy, she can no longer sing and has to dance (ie, the natural progression). Well guess what, dance break.

As Nellie calms down a bit, the dance "slows" allowing Nellie to sing again. The women join Nellie in a supportive, making-fun-of-her-because-she-is-so-fickle kinda way.

Now comes the really cool part. Unlike the previous, guessable 8 bars of "I'm in love..." the music drops down in orchestration and dynamic. The waltz slowly builds alternating Nellie, girls, Nellie, girls. Now, we, as the listener, expect "I'm in love" only 5 times. When the "I'm in loves" continue, it is rather shocking. We expect it in 4 more bars, equaling a very natural 12. But, the excitement/orchestrations/dynamics grow as Nellie can no longer hold it in and R&O give us 4 more bars, equaling 13 statements of "I'm in love" which culminates in an exciting, brassy, full orchestra, rip-off-hat moment. Nellie is in love a wonderful guy.

I might be way off, but this is what I think.
You can listen to Mary Martin sing the song here

What a week

I have had a great week.

Monday, I went and saw Gentlemen Prefer Blondes at the HBO Bryant Park Summer Movie Festival.

Tuesday, I had a masterclass with the Shanghai Quartet followed by their concert. Their concert was breathtaking, especially Schubert's Death and the Maiden. The beginning of the second movement was where the real magic began. Their

understanding of the "Lachrymae-esque," choral was sensational. The colors they were able to achieve blew me away. At the end, does Death win over the Maiden? I have heard both sides of the story. Personally, I think Death has one last trick up his sleeves. The Tarantella was pristine! Crazy good, and they used such little bow on the shoe-shine stroke. So good.

Wednesday, I was able to sit in and observe the pit of Book of Mormon. I met Entcho, a crazy-awesome violin player. We talked about instrument makers, quirky pictures in Musician magazine (for 802 members), his improvisations of the score because the string can never b

e heard in pieces like (Haf Ta) Man Up and Spooky Mormon Hell Dream. It was really great to see all the professional musicians in action--how perfectly they played every single note, how one person is talented enough to play 10 different instruments from flutes, recorders, oboes to two types of saxes and more flutes, how jokes are played and the environment is fun. Anyway, I learned a great deal about perseverance and never giving up. All it takes is one good contact to change everything.

Thursday, I performed during Fresh Ground Pepper's Lay Miz which was a hodge podge of different acts interpreting the musical Les Miserables. To start off, it was on Bastille Day. Anyway, I opened the show with a solo viola arrangement I made from the nine minute material called "Prologue." I really enjoyed the arrangement I made, and it made the audience laugh. That was awesome. I have heard chuckles during my playing, but laughter is one I have never heard when playing a solo. A great change, most definitely. There were some amazing numbers. I thoroughly enjoyed this guy play Stars in a "douche-bag" arrangement on the guitar. He had a great voice. Also, the dance troupe that interpreted Bring Him Home... I was blown away by that number! It was creepy and sacrilegious while being very religious at the same time. It was beautiful. At the end, to bookend the show, I played an arrangement for violin solo I made of "Turning/Beggars at the Feast/Wedding." I loved how I made "Turning" into false-harmonics. Such a great, spooky touch. The whole event was a great success.

Friday, my quartet finally performed Brahms! I have enjoyed studying with Marion Feldman the Brahms A minor String Quartet. What a great, complicated work. I have really enjoyed getting to know the notes, the dynamics, the syncopations and the idiosyncrasies of Brahms. He is much like Bach. Also, both are EXTREMELY difficult. I feel like I played well, which is all I can ask for.

Saturday, I did a short recording session for Joe Moser. It was a short little piece, but I am happy to get back into recording.