Rethinking the orchestra

Last weekend's performances were fun, though it may not have been wise to play in all four in the same weekend. The two "minor" concerts, one with piano students and the other as a soloist in church, went well, though I did not spend much time preparing the music.

I enjoyed the two orchestra concerts, but, in truth, I had not really mastered the music. I played most of it, but "self-edited" myself out in the places where I could not yet play up to speed. We had a very enthusiastic response to the performances, and I wish I could have take more credit for how well we sounded, but, in truth, we had six cellists when two or three would have been fine, given the total of only 31 players in the orchestra. As I am the fourth cellist, I am feeling a little unnecessary.

There are two other community orchestras in the area, one all strings, and one with a fairly similar make-up to ours. Both play "easier" music and have a more welcoming attitude toward "extra" cellists, so I think I will try one of these other groups in the fall.

For now, I am working on cello duets and small ensembles, and I have to say I am enjoying having the time to work on music other than orchestra music. I learned a lot during orchestra season about using various fingerings and improving my speed (not quite enough), and glad to have the time to slow down a bit and integrate it with the rest of my playing.

Practice makes better

Ok, since Thursday or so, I have been practicing two hours a day, in an effort to perform adequately at our orchestra's upcoming concert (after failing to practice regularly for several weeks). Today, we had the rehearsal I was dreading, without the two "good" cellists, and I was feeling gloomy going into it, thinking that I would miss entrances (I had been depending on the principal cellist a lot) and, in general, stand out as incompetent.

Oddly enough, I didn't miss entrances--for two reasons. I counted, and the conductor, for the first time, possibly sensing our need, cued us on every entrance. Yes, there are a few passages that are still too fast for me, but I had a better sense of them, and stayed with the music, though not playing every note. And I understood the entrances better, especially on the one piece for which I do have the score.

We, the remaining three cellists, were not singled out for ineptness, as I had feared. It all went pretty well, or, at least, the conductor was kind. :-) He did mention intonation as an issue (repeatedly), but not singling out any particular section. Intonation is a constant concern of mine, but it is harder to obtain good intonation at high speeds.

Monday through Wednesday are long days for me, work-wise, but I hope to continue this practice routine. Who knows? It might work. And it was a good thing, in the end, to play without the two "good" cellists, a confidence builder, just when we needed it.

New ways to get lost

My husband and I attended a concert last night at a great little coffeehouse in the next town. I printed out the coffeehouse's web site directions, the MapQuest directions (but not a printed map, because it looked easy), and entered the address into my cell phone GPS system.

We still got lost. The pouring rain did not help; it was very difficult to read the street signs, or even to see the road. At some point I realized I had entered the address incorrectly into my cell phone. After I corrected that, it was relatively smooth sailing, and we got to the coffeehouse just before the show started.

The music, by the Back Bay [classical] Guitar Trio, was pure magic, and by the time we left, the air was clear, and the sky was full of stars. We managed to get lost on the way home too. The GPS system sent us in circles (or perhaps it was our faulty reading of it) until we figured out where we were.

Maybe next time we venture out to a new venue, I will take the map book too.

Slow month, blogwise

This has been my slowest month, postwise, since I started this blog. This will be my ninth post this month, much fewer than usual. It's not that I don't have anything to say; it's just that I have no time to say it. Or maybe that I have nothing bloggable to say.

On the other hand, according to Sitemeter, this shortest month is my highest month ever, in terms of people dropping in to read what I have to say. Perhaps there's a strategy there. Thanks for reading!

A quick update on my musical activities: I have a cello recital coming up soon. My good friend and violinist Laura is playing piano for me and coaching me, and I thank her!

My flute performance at church went well (the one where I slept through the rehearsal). I have another flute performance at another church (my own) on Sunday. This time, I am accompanying the choir, which I love to do, but I have not gotten all the entrances down yet. There is a final rehearsal just before the performance, when, I am sure, everything will fall into place. We have a wonderful conductor, and I need to rely more on him instead of my thus-far-ineffective combination of watching him, the vocal line, the flute line, and counting. (I don't have separate flute music for this, so am reading off the vocal score.) Going with the flow is the best option for this piece, about caring about the person whose hand you take at church.

There is a women's fiddle session on Saturday. I enjoy these because we are working on a limited number of tunes, we allow sheet music, and we generally play slower than with the larger group. It gives me a chance to try and work out some appropriate cello lines, though I never have enough time.

I need to practice! But, first, back to work....

Orchestras, Exuberantly Folkish

I went to two concerts this weekend: the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra and the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra. Both had folk-themed programs. Both were vibrant and compelling, and both had people on their feet clapping, and, in the CCSO concert, singing along and shouting Yeah! A bit untypical for your standard orchestra performance.

The NBSO concert, called Postcards from the Americas, featured 20th century works by Mexican composer Carlos Chavez and Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera, as well as Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring, and a multimedia art show, composed by Stephen Paulus. The works by Chavez and Ginastera featured native musical themes and structures, complicated rhythms, and powerful percussion. This was challenging music, but the orchestra did an excellent job.

The CCSO concert featured fiddler extraordinaire Eileen Ivers and her band Immigrant Soul, as well as some stepdancers. What an experience! These people are possessed by the music, and they communicated their joy and energy to the audience, who were delighted with the jigs and reels, slow airs, bluegrass tunes, and Riverdance medley. And something they called Pachelbel's Frolic, which turned the standard canon into an improvisational fiddle fest. I think the cellos got stuck with the same part they always get though. The conductor made a brave effort to stepdance, and I was impressed with the orchestra's ability to handle bluegrass.

Two wonderful concerts! As the NBSO conductor said, it's good to expand your cultural horizons a bit.

Writing reviews

I finally finished my review of the "Triple Concerto" concert. It takes me hours and hours to write reviews. I wish I could do it faster, but maybe that will come with time. I should have a lot of practice this winter/spring season, with seven or eight concert reviews to write.

I started writing reviews 3 or 4 years ago because the previous arts reviewer for the local newspaper did not feel qualified to do so, and the professional musicians did not want to critique their colleagues. I fell into that middle ground of enjoying music as an amateur musician, though I do not have a musical education, besides flute and cello lessons, and enjoying writing.

I said "no," the first time I was asked to write a review, saying I was not qualified, but the person on the other end said that my cello teacher thought I would do a great job. How can you argue with that?

So, I e-mailed my sister, who is not only a professor of music, but also teaches English, including how to write a review. She gave me a lot of excellent advice, and suggested I get a recording of the music to be played to become familiar with it before the performance, do some background research, talk to people, etc. For that first concert, I actually bought a Music Minus One recording of the solo violin piece and studied the score, listened to the CD, and read the very detailed and interesting performance notes. I bought CDs for all the other pieces of music being performed and researched them, too. It turned out to be a very expensive concert, even though I got the tickets for free. I invited a friend to join me for the concert. She does have a music degree, and she teaches music at the elementary school level. She had a lot of insights, including some nonmusical observations, such as the fact that a violist was chewing gum throughout the concert.

So, many reviews later, I am now the arts and entertainment editor for the local paper. I no longer buy CDs for each performance, but I do listen to online performances, such as the Triple Concerto, and I do as much background reading as I can to better understand context of the piece. And I talk to friends who attended. (It was great to talk to Carol about this last concert!) I view reviews as an enjoyable part of my own self-administered music education. There is nothing like going to lots of concerts, and writing about them, to teach music appreciation.

Concert for the troops

I am playing in a benefit concert on January 26. The price of admission is snack foods, small clothing items, and miscellaneous small amusements (crossword puzzle books, CDs, phone cards, stationery, etc.) for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

There seem to be a multitude of these groups raising money or collecting pretzels for the troops. It's sad that such efforts are necessary--on so many levels--but, if the troops need wool socks, granola bars, duct tape, and playing cards, I am certainly willing to play music to make it happen.

I must admit that there is a little grumpiness among musicians associated with this event. Four or five ensembles are playing, and we all get 10 to 12 minutes each. Groups want to play for a half hour or an hour each. I am probably the only one who is perfectly willing to play for 10 or 12 minutes and spent the reset of the time listening to the other groups. It is interesting, to me, to meeting the other amateur music groups in the area, and I enjoy this sort of thing. To me, it is a good opportunity to work hard on a limited number of pieces and bring them to a good performance level vs., sometimes, not doing quite so well on a multitude of pieces.

On the other hand, I must also admit that, since I play in two of the groups who are performing, I actually get to play for 20 to 24 minutes, both flute and cello, and have no reason to be grumpy myself.

Well, I'm off to collect some nice, tasty, nutritious, organic snacks, and hope that someone on some level is working to bring the soldiers back home, where there are snacks and duct tape aplenty.

Sunday's Performances

Yesterday was a busy day.

In the morning, from about 9:30 to 11:30, the fiddlers played along the route of the Cape Cod Marathon, to encourage the runners on. In the photo, you can see my chair and cello (I used my old cello for this event because it was cold and I wanted to make sure nothing happened to my good cello before the afternoon concert). The runner at the far right is applauding our efforts, as many of the runners did.

Long ago, I used to run what was then called the Bonne Bell women's 10K in Boston, and it was energizing to run past MIT dorms, in particular, because the students would play loud rock music on their radios for us. I hope the fiddle music helped yesterday's runners. There were several other musical groups along yesterday's route. Too bad there are no college dorms.

Another cello blogger (CelloGirl) wrote recently about the good players sitting toward the front in an orchestra, and it is kind of the same with the fiddlers. Although there is no "assigned seating" in fiddling, some of us who doubt our playing ability tend to stand or sit in the back. This can be awkward for me when most of the others are standing. A couple of times, a fiddler stepped, obliviously, on my end pin, and I had to pull my cello to safety. Toward the end of the two-hour gig, though, we took a little break and when we reassembled, the rest of the fiddlers stood behind the cello. What an improvement for me! I could hear so much better and it is possible I played better. And I didn't have to fear for the safety of my cello. I am going to have to try this deliberately sometime.

For our efforts, we received official Cape Cod Marathon Volunteer jackets. Very nice jackets! The marathon was sponsored by Dunkin' Donuts. Much better to have the jacket than the donuts.


To keep my hands warm I wore some polar fleece practice gloves (Wristies) that I bought at the violin shop where I work occasionally. They kept most of my hand warm. The fingers were still a little cool, but it was a great improvement over playing with bare hands. (Nice for typing in an unheated room, too.)

My Wristie (also demonstrating that the leaves are still green here, in late October).

After the marathon, I raced home to change clothes from fiddler blue and purple to church-appropriate black, switch cellos, and grab my music. I got to the church in time for their pre-concert potluck lunch. Good thing, too, as I was hungry.

The concert started at 1 pm and lasted about an hour. My early music group played in most of the pieces, either as an instrumental group with the organist, or supporting the choir. I played both cello and flute. The choir sang a few hymns on their own, so we did have an occasional break. I felt I played the Corelli sonata well (the one I had been focusing on), all things considered, but there were a few flubs in this piece, probably caused by not rehearsing enough with the organist. Someone did come up to me afterward and say, "You were really good." (I take the you to mean our instrumental group, rather than me alone.) So, some level of success here. We (the early music group) will keep these pieces in our repertoire and continue to improve them. Our final piece went very well, ending on a happy note.

I have no photos of our church concert, but it was videotaped for local cable access television. It might be a good idea for us to watch it, though that will take a bit of courage.

Three Concerts

I have been overwhelmed with work lately, and have not had as much time as I would like for practicing, especially considering I have three concerts looming in the near future.

On October 28, several members of the early music group (Fritz, Laura, and I) will play with our friend Marion, an organist, at her church as part of a concert to raise money for organ repairs. Laura plays violin, beautifully. Fritz plays many instruments, but will be confined to violin and viola for this concert. :-) We'll have three instrumental pieces (currently, we think they will be sonatas by Boismortier, Corelli, and Falconiero). I'll play flute in the Boismortier piece and cello in the other two. I will also play flute to accompany the choir for "Shall We Gather at the River," and with Fritz and Laura on another five hymns. The music is all quite playable, but I want to play it well. This is, after all, a fundraiser!

On November 4, the flute choir plans to play for the nursing home which so generously gives us a space to rehearse every week. I may play cello on one piece (Joplin's "The Entertainer"), but so far I've been doubling the first flute, too lazy to haul my cello to flute choir rehearsal for only one piece. The rest of the pieces are, of course, with flute.

Finally, I'll give a recital of recent Suzuki pieces, tunes from Scottish fiddle camp, and, with members of the early music group, one or two ensemble pieces we have been working on. The audience will be small, so this is mostly a wine and cheese party, with music. The date for this is undetermined. I thought it would be in October, but I don't have another lesson until the 15th. I actually slept through my lesson this week. My teacher called, waking me at 11:30 am to ask me why I hadn't shown up at my 11 am lesson. 11:30! I have been working around the clock, but didn't realize I was that tired--to sleep through a cello lesson!

None of this is too difficult, but there is a lot of it! I'd better get back to work so I can get back to practicing.

P.S. I forgot the fiddle events! There is a bluegrass festival my fiddle group is playing in this coming Sunday. It is in Rhode Island, at least an hour from here, so I haven't decided whether to go or not, but it sounds like fun. We'll see. There is also a fiddle performance on Saturday the 13th, the Rachel Carson dinner at my church, another fundraiser, and fiddling along the path of the Cape Cod Marathon on October 28 (the morning of the other church fundraiser). I do enjoy the latter two annual events and will attend those.

Falmouth Fiddlers

This photo of the Falmouth Fiddlers playing at the Arts Alive was posted on the Rhode Island Roots Music site, where it is much larger, but still somewhat grayed out. I'm there, in the back, near my trusty cello case.

Again and again and again

Often, I have found, the first time we (any chamber music group I play with) plays a piece, it sounds great. On our sight-reading nights, all sounds good, and we go on and on.

However, when we decide to work on a piece to bring it to performance level, it seems to fall apart, initially, sink into some sort of abyss, and I can't remember how I could have possibly played the piece previously. Sometimes I don't even recognize it. Gradually, the piece comes [back] together, and we are pleased with the result.

Most likely, I was not really hearing all the problems the first time through; it probably wasn't as splendid that first time through as I thought it was.

I enjoy sight-reading and I am one of the people who is always buying new music, but I would rather spend time with a piece than just sight-read, especially with the initially unfamiliar early music pieces we play, working out the fingerings, the articulations, and dynamics, and feeling how one's part fits in with the whole.

At a minimum, being able to recognize the piece! "Oh, that's the Canzona from the Purcell Sonata in F Major," I want to be able to say. Seems like a reasonable request. But it takes a deliberate effort to focus! I am recording all the rehearsals now and making CDs for everyone, which helps a lot, especially since I am playing cello and not always focusing on the flute/recorder/violin melodies.

Both the flute choir and the early music group are performing on Labor Day, and several of us are playing in both groups. I am happy to say that both groups are focusing now, playing only the music that we will be performing on Labor Day, seeking to perfect it. It seems like a long time until Labor Day: we haven't even had a good summer heat wave yet. But I'll be away two weeks (at Grey Fox and then at Scottish fiddle camp), and other people will be away too, so there are only a few rehearsals where we will have the whole early music group (2 flutes, recorder, violin, cello, occasional second cello, harpsichord) all together.

Last year, we only had three members in the early music group and patched together a program in about two weeks, some of which I barely recognized when it came time to play it! We're already miles ahead of that!

More on the Arts Festival

This was my "instrument petting zoo" tent at the arts fair, before anyone arrived. In the distance on the right is one of the arts/crafts tents, and off to the left, you can see Main Street. We were right across the street from Liam's, an Irish restaurant/pub, featuring an enticing, if not Irish, "Lobster Rolls!" sign in the window.

Johnson String is within walking distance, so I carried the 6 or 7 violins and violas in a "beach cart," shown in the far left of this photo, and close up, in the next, taken in the shop, surrounded by acoustic and electric cellos and violins. Always a great environment! I carried the two cellos on my back (in soft cases) and wore my hat (the one I share with my cello case). It was a fine day for a walk, even attired thusly.


The next instrument petting zoo I am involved with is at Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival (Ancramdale, NY), for the Bluegrass Academy for Kids. My daughter and I will be camping there for four days in July and enjoying all the bluegrass music one could possibly want. Lots of wonderful bluegrass performers are scheduled, including two groups with cellos: Crooked Still and the Sparrow Quartet. More on this later.

Just for the record, the tunes the fiddlers played at our performance on Saturday were:

Old Joe Clark
Over the Waterfall
Going to the Fair
Long Black Veil
Whiskey Before Breakfast
Arkansas Traveler
Liberty
Jessica's Waltz
Golden Slippers
Fish Song
Capt. Bing*
Rabbit in the Log*
Redwing
Midnight on the Water
Alligator Song*

I was not familiar with the starred ones, but it is easy enough to play some sort of backup.

Tunes are often not planned in advance for these events, so you can't really practice for a concert, except that you practice all the tunes as often as you can, in the various sessions. As someone else said, you are under no obligation to play a tune the same way twice.

For my "break" on Old Joe Clark, I experimented with different rhythms, articulations, and ornaments, but in the end, I played it straight. Due to scheduling problems, I never did rehearse the break with the fiddlers before the concert, so didn't want to take any chances. It worked out well, so I will work on the "improvisational" stuff for the future.

The Arts Festival....so far

It was a beautiful day, there were lots of festival attendees, artists, and musicians filling up the library green, I played my "break" on Old Joe Clark very well, though stumbled a little at the end when I thought to myself, "this is going very well."

I played 2 As and 2 Bs (twice through the first part and twice through the second part, for those not familiar with fiddling jargon). About 35 seconds, total. When I finished the 2 As, I thought, "Did I play one A or two As?" So insecure.

But, as someone said afterwards, it really doesn't matter--everyone else is just accompanying until you finish. I haven't listened to the recording yet, but I felt it was very much in tune.

The flute choir performance was another matter entirely. I have never played so badly. And I was not the only one. There was a wind which occasionally moved pages of sheet music, but more often just sucks the sound out of the flute. Or maybe I was feeling really good about knowing this music, and didn't practice the last day or two. I worked on another selection of music, for another concert. Not a good idea.

The audience was friendly though, and it was still enjoyable. Not quite as enjoyable as playing well. I stayed to watch about four other groups, mostly people I knew, on way or another (ex-fiddle teachers, other people who play in Town Band), so it felt like a community of music. Though I ran into a cellist-friend today, there were no other playing cellists. Maybe next year.

Tomorrow, I will return to the Arts Festival with an armload or two of violins, violas, and cellos for the instrument petting zoo, and try to encourage some cellists for future events.

Arts Fair this weekend

Big weekend coming up, the 3-day Arts Alive festival. I'm playing with the fiddlers and with the flute choir on Saturday, and on Sunday I'm running an "instrument petting zoo" to give kids and adults an opportunity to try violins, violas, and cellos. To lure them into this odd, demanding, but satisfying world of music.

I've been practicing like crazy, mostly for intonation, as I could play most of these pieces in my sleep by now. :-) Well, not all the fiddle tunes, but I am making progress.

Taking a Break

Jim, our fiddle group leader, called today to ask me to "take a break" at our next concert, June 23. The thought flashed through my mind that he wanted me and my cello to sit out the concert. But, of course, "taking a break" in fiddling is taking a solo. Not, in this case, creative improvisation, just the tune.

Ok, I said, with some trepidation, but agreeing with him that a tune is more interesting when the various instruments take turns soloing. I'll do "Old Joe Clark," maybe not the prettiest tune on the cello, but among the easiest and our signature tune, and I have plenty of time to "perfect" it.

Besides, it is a friendly hometown crowd. :-)

Details on the Fiddle Tunes

I recorded Saturday's bluegrass festival, clipping the microphone to the leg of my jeans, to better hear my cello contribution. Even so, it was not always easy to hear the cello, sometimes for the best, but I am mostly pleased with how I sounded, even if few people heard me. Here's my blow-by-blow account, to aid in developing my strategy for acquiring a decent repertoire of fiddle tunes over the next several months.

Old Joe Clark, A
I played melody. On the whole, this was pretty good. Mostly in tune, mostly audible. I know there were a few times I slipped out of intonation, but they didn't stand out as much as I thought they would. In the future, maybe alternate a backup with the melody. Now I play melody all the way through, even when the violins switch to chopping, during the vocal parts. I just play softer in the vocal part, which probably isn't necessary. 5:56

Over the Waterfall, D
This is a tune I know and love to play on fiddle, so I tried to play melody by going up a string (into 4th position on the A string), but it was not working well, and trying to transpose mentally and play at the same time was not working for me. Thinking about it afterwards, it would have been better to go down a string, where the whole tune is in 1st position. We play it very fast. I felt this was very muddled and was disappointed because this is one of my favorite tunes. In the recording, I am not so bad, but I know this is one I want to work on. 1:53

Jessica's Waltz, D
Again, I played melody. This is a slow tune, and I had it memorized at one time, but realized I was playing it wrong, and it has been hard to re-memorize correctly. But, I played the parts I knew, and tried to stay with the group on this tune. Because it is slow, though, all the wrong notes stand out to me. Listening to the recording, it sounds like I am intentionally playing a counter-melody. That might be nice to try on purpose sometime, but for now, I will try to work out the tune correctly and re-memorize it. 4:54

Going to the Fair or Let's Go to the Fair, G
I don't know this tune, so concentrated on playing a bowed bouncy backup to go along with the bouncy tune. This would be a one to learn a choppy backup for. It sounds fine on the recording. Occasionally tiring for the bow arm, especially. I have not been able to find sheet music for this Ralph Stanley tune. 3:53.

Soldiers Joy/Liberty, D
I played melody on Soldiers Joy. Even though this is a tune I know (I play a quarter-note version while the fiddles are playing an eighth-note version), we started out fast, and it took me a few measures before I could jump in. Other than that, it was fine.

We went directly into Liberty, a tune I have learned on the fiddle, but could never play fast enough. I am working on a simplified version for cello. I play a few measures of my simplified melody, then whatever seemed to fit in. It doesn't sound too bad. Renata Bratt's book, The Fiddling Cellist, has an excellent section on accompanying Liberty. I need to work on that. I will probably go with her simplest alternative: root note, fifth, two notes to a measure, because we play this very fast.
3:53

Fish Song, G
This tune was written by Jim, our leader. It has a nice swaying Caribbean beat. It is a humorous love song from a man to a woman who is cooking fish for him. I really should learn this one. It is slow enough for me. I played a few bits of the melody, then whatever seemed to fit in. It sounds good, but I would definitely like to be playing more melody on this. 4:10

Eighth of January, D
This is one of the first tunes I learned on the fiddle. I still can't play it fast enough on the fiddle, and I have never even tried to play it on the cello. Jim asked his son to start this on out, and he took it at a speed I will never achieve on any instrument. Chopping chords is a much better alternative here. My G and D string accompaniment sounds good. 4:05

Backup and Push, C
This was our big bluegrass tune. Not everyone felt secure with it because the group has been playing it only a couple of months. Jim said, at worst, it would be our "joke tune." I mostly played open notes, pizz, because I do not know this tune and didn't want to be the one to make it into a joke. I was pretty much inaudible, which was just fine. I have downloaded the sheet music for this, but don't think I will attempt to play the melody. 3:27

Two Dollar Bill, A
This is a very simple tune, but I don't know it. I try to learn it by ear, each time we play it, but haven't really gotten it. I downloaded it from a fiddle tune website after the concert. I will play melody next time. This time I played some melody, some wrong notes, some backup. It doesn't sound terrible, but I look forward to learning this correctly! 5:24


Recording was helpful. It gives me an idea what to focus on. Next time, maybe I will clip the microphone directly to the cello.

So, my priorities are learning melody for Over the Waterfall, Jessica's Waltz, Two Dollar Bill, and the Fish Song; backup for Liberty and Eighth of January. The only tricky one here is the Fish Song, which I am going to have to learn by ear. Not my strong point, but a skill I need to work on.

Tunes I know reasonably well on the cello: Ashokan Farewell, Angelina Baker, Mairi's Wedding, Old Joe Clark, Soldier's Joy; sort of less well, from playing them on the fiddle: Red-haired boy, Redwing, Country Waltz, Girl I left Behind.

Other fiddle tunes I am working on now, in various stages, include: Coleraine, 100 Pipers, Star of the County Down, Amelia's Waltz, Road to Lisdoonvarna, Westphalia Waltz, Whiskey Before Breakfast, Crossing to Ireland, Wagon Wheel Notch, and Sister Jean. The first five I am also playing on the flute. I like Irish minor key tunes, and am trying to get in a few Celtic tunes before my Scottish cello/fiddle camp this summer, even if we don't play them in the fiddle group.

I'd like to have 25 tunes in the "reasonably well" category by the end of the summer, as well as an ever-improving approach to, and understanding of, accompaniment.

We'll see. I'm also doing a Suzuki recital, hopefully in mid-July. Not a whole book; just four pieces.

Bluegrass Festival Cello

I woke up early Saturday morning (about 4:30 am, having gone to bed, exhausted, very early the night before). I needed to wash some clothes for the bluegrass festival and, of course, practice.

Because this was an outdoor festival and rain was predicted, I took out my old cello to tune it up, warm it up, and get it ready. But, I hated the sound. The tone was muffled and unclear. I've always loved the tone of this cello, but perhaps in comparison to my new cello, or perhaps because it hasn't been played in a few months, it just sounded awful.

So, I took the new one, for its wonderful resonance and strong tone, even if only I would hear it.

The performance tent was very large, providing shelter for both musicians and audience (and instruments). One side was open giving a nice view of the grounds. It didn't rain. Attendance was low though, perhaps because of the dire weather forecasts.

Our core group of 12-14 fiddlers was augmented by another 6-8 players I had never played with before (though I think I sold a bow to one of them). They were all excellent players, and we played most tunes faster than usual. Our hour went by in a flash. The fiddler next to me told me she heard my cello, and that I sounded great! The fiddler in front of me said she could not hear me at all. Oh well, there was a microphone aimed at me, so maybe someone in the audience heard. The wife of one of the string bass players (we had two--"That's why they call them double basses," quipped one) told me she saw me, so that's a start.

I am going to try to memorize a fiddle tune a week on the cello, as well as work out some accompaniments for some tunes, and/or collect some written accompaniments that I like. I love the Music for Three (Last Resort Music) accompaniment for Coleraine, for instance. Very easy, but twangy, in a good way. That way I can alternate melody with accompaniment.

The next concert is in two weeks.

Today is a gloriously beautiful day. But I have to work, so I will take my work, and later, my cello, out on the deck.

Bluegrass on the [Soggy] Bogs!

The bluegrass festival I have been preparing for is this weekend, ready or not, rain or shine. Thunderstorms are predicted tomorrow, while we're playing. The stage is covered, but the audience is not. I have been to bluegrass festivals in the rain before; but thunderstorms? Maybe not.

On the positive side, I feel ready, not virtuosic, but able to contribute in a positive way. I'm glad I have two cellos, so I don't have to subject my new one to the weather.

There's another weekend arts festival coming up in two weeks. In that one, I am playing with my flute choir and with the fiddlers, as well as running an instrument petting zoo (giving kids and adults the opportunity to try out violins, violas, and cellos) for Johnson String Instrument. I do love encouraging adults to play! Sometimes I can encourage a whole family to "make music" together.

Last night's performance, another concert, and a recital

Last night's concert went very, very well. I did not record it; if I had, I might have been disappointed with the result; you might have been appalled. But, for me, last night was a personal best.

I was still nervous when I arrived at the community hall, but as the musicians arrived and began to warm up, I relaxede. This was a big concert for me, not a "background music" event. I was feeling a bit like an impostor, but knew I had to perform in this concert, ready or not, to be ready for next week's bluegrass festival.

We had more then 20 musicians, energizing us as we crowded onto the stage. Boldly, I took one of the chairs located at the center back of the stage and moved it to the front, placing myself at the left front of the stage, so I could see our leader and the audience. The other seated musicians, a mountain dulcimer player and a string bass player, remained in the back. When I played fiddle, I cautiously remained in the back too, but as a seated player, I don't want to get lost behind all those standing people.

I also wanted people to see the cello, perhaps to connect with others who enjoy playing fiddle music on the cello.

I played melody on only a handful of tunes, but I felt that my accompaniment had improved dramatically. I played quiet pizzacato a little, but most of the time I adopted an energetic bowed style, even playing in the chops-and-grooves style, as taught by folk/bluegrass/improvisational cellist Rushad Eggleston. I learned to do this at fiddle camp with Rushad two summers ago, but haven't used it since (the traditional fiddlers at camp didn't like it) and didn't expect to be able to do it.

I played following the advice of our Town Band director: "Play out. If you are going to make a mistake, make a good one," rather than the advice given in classical music environments: "Air bow if you don't know what you're doing." In this fiddling setting, playing out works better than air bowing.

I enjoyed being part of last night's music festival, joining numerous other local amateur and semi-professional bands, filling up the town, inside and out, with music. The fiddlers went across the street to a restaurant after our performance, where most people took out instruments and fiddled through dinner. I did not play cello there, as space was limited. I do have a "mini-cello," an octave mandolin strung and tuned as a mandola (like a cello an octave up). I should learn to play it for just such occasions.

Another concert tonight, classical music, but this time I am reviewing the concert, not performing. Ah, the irony, that a mediocre (but enthusiastic) amateur will review the professionals. I should practice.

Tomorrow, my cello quintet plays two pieces (one classical, one folk) in a recital of the quintet teacher's students (all adult beginners).

Concert tonight!

I am feeling nervous. This is a fiddlers performance, as part of a weekend musical festival here in town. Our group is on first. I will play cello. I know melodies for handful of tunes (maybe five) for memory on the cello (and have played others on the fiddle so have a general idea of how to play them), but on most tunes, I will improvise a backup, focusing on staying with the guitar. We don't know the list of tunes we will play in advance, which just adds to the excitement.

Fortunately, this is one of the most welcoming groups I have ever played in, so I expect the nervousness to disappear and that things will go well. We are playing inside, in a hall that has plenty of folding chairs, so I will not be bringing my new cello chair.

Unfortunately, I can't practice much today, due to work deadlines.