I can't believe it. 30 lessons, and I love it as much now as I did when I started (though I am less nervous).
Today there was a change in lesson structure. Laura suggested I started preparing for exams at some point in the future. I am still not fully certain just what benefits taking exams will bring but it is something I want to do. We started off with sight reading. I get to look at some music I have not seen before and then play it after a few minutes. One important thing to remember was to play it straight through without stopping. This turned out to be fairly easy given that the notes were on open strings, ir was reasonably short and the rhythm was simple. The next exercise was to guess the time signature of some music and clap along with the beat. I guessed 4/4 time when it was really 2/4 (after Laura suggested it could only be 2/4 or 3/4 time). After that Laura played a tune and I had to clap back the rhythm. This was easy enough too. The last test was to "sing" a note Laura played on the violin. I don't like to sing, but I got close enough anyway =)
I played 'Home Sweet Home' first and it sounded pretty good. My first and second fingers were in tune and my sound was great. For next week Laura wants me to play it faster. I have heard a number of times that it is better to learn a piece slowly until you get the foundations (the sound and the rhythm) correct, then try to speed it up gradually. When I tried to speed it up the bowing and fingering went out of sync. I am sure it will be fine for the next lesson. Laura told me about one of her auditions. She was given some music to learn. She could only find one performance on YouTube. Not having any other reference, Laura learned the piece at the same tempo. At the audition Laura played it as she had learned it. "That's fine," they said, "but can you play it faster?" So Laura did, and because she had prepared so well, she was able to play it faster well enough to win the audition! Obviously, preparation is key. Not only do you learn the piece, but you get confident playing it.
After this I played 'Waltz Of The Lovebirds'. This is getting better too, and sounds good now that I can play it from start to finish. The problem I am having at the moment is keeping the rhythm. I don't usually have this problem so I am not sure why it's happening now. Perhaps it is because I am more confident with some parts and less confident with others. Thankfully I have a metronome which will help heaps.
I had just enough time for 'Happy Birthday'. Laura said to watch the speed for this. People generally like to sing it reasonably quickly, and that's fine, but for me to get the good sound, it needs to be stately and majestic (like The Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheeba or something). One suggestion was to let people sing the song first, then I can play it at my own pace. We also touched on phrasing. The song can be broken up into four phrases and I should aim for a good strong high note in each phrase. I have seen people talk about this before on YouTube and now I have a better idea what it means. No doubt there will be people on the night recording the event, so stay tuned for live footage towards the end of July.
There has been some suggestion I start a YouTube channel of my own. I don't know that I am confident enough to put up my own recordings. It is something to consider down the track.
And as I was leaving, I asked if it was okay to "muck about" with the violin. Sometimes after I have finished practice for my pieces, I start playing tunes of my own. Usually they are tunes from when I was learning the accordion. The other night I was playing God Save The Queen and Michael Row The Boat Ashore as well as trying to nail the themes for Gilligan's Island and Spongebob Squarepants. Laura said she had no problem with that EXCEPT... I must still maintain my posture and play everything as if I was playing one of my set pieces. Mucking about does not mean poor playing. The danger there is that the poor playing may carry over into my "real" practice. And of course, I should not neglect my set pieces. They get first priority. Having said that, I am tempted to record some of the fun stuff too.
I came away from the lesson feeling happy and confident. I have some definite goals for what I want from the violin, but not knowing where this journey is going to take me is exciting.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Friday, June 21, 2013
Violin Lesson #29
I had a good week of practice this week. And there was some great stuff on the radio too. There was a concert with Richard Tognetti and the ACO2, and another concert with Janine Jansen. Richard Tognetti is also on Sunday lunch-time. This week ABC Classic FM were featuring Jascha Heifetz in the breakfast show. Apparently his son lives in Australia (Perth) and is a photographer. It was fascinating to hear from him. Apparently Jascha was very disciplined with his practice. As gifted as the man was, he would still practice his scales every day. And his son remembers that Jascha would also play "for the fun of it". I don't want my violin playing to ever become a chore. If the day comes where I can't play for the fun of it, that will be the day to give up.
It was strange. The last piece they played for Heifetz was part of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor. I searched for it on YouTube at work today and found Janine Jansen's recording from BBC Night at the Prom (full concerto with BBC subtitle commentary). And when I turned on Accuradio Solo Violinists, one of the pieces they played was Janine Jansen and the same concerto.
To my lesson... it started with Laura telling me about the camp she took some of her school students. They went out west to Warwick to play for nursing homes and small schools. From all accounts they had a great time and so did the people who came to see them. This is yet another example of music bringing joy to people.
I mentioned "Dance Of The Goblins" to Laura. She laughed and said "Don't tell me you want me to teach you that" then proceeded to play some of it. She told me one of the girls she studied with would play the song. Some people have said it is a virtuoso piece and doesn't sound like a dance. I disagree. It is certainly a virtuoso piece, and technically demanding, but I also like the way it sounds. I was impressed with what Laura played, and yes, it is on my wishlist. For my benefit, and for Laura's I will post the list in the near future. As Laura says, it is good to have solid goals. Will I ever be able to play it? I don't know. I really don't, but it is on the list regardless.
I played "Suo Gan", and this time Laura said it was good enough to pass. I still have to work on my confidence and my awareness (my body posture, breathing, hands and so on) but I learned everything I needed to learn from such a pretty song.
Next was "Home Sweet Home". This is coming along nicely, and now I can play the whole song through. What I need to practice here is retake (taking the bow off the strings and re positioning it before putting it back on the strings and playing again). My sound for this is good. My rhythm needs a little work. I get a far better sound when I play slowly. I should not be afraid to play slowly. The time to play quickly will come.
I had a few minutes at the end to play "Happy Birthday". I worked on it during the week and it showed. After hearing that my third finger was too high so much last week, it was actually low this week =) It is getting there and I know I will be able to do a great job for my mother's birthday next month.
I felt I had a better lesson this week. Letting go of my mistakes when I make them is helping. It is something that is hard for me to do, but like everything else it is improving slowly.
It was strange. The last piece they played for Heifetz was part of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor. I searched for it on YouTube at work today and found Janine Jansen's recording from BBC Night at the Prom (full concerto with BBC subtitle commentary). And when I turned on Accuradio Solo Violinists, one of the pieces they played was Janine Jansen and the same concerto.
To my lesson... it started with Laura telling me about the camp she took some of her school students. They went out west to Warwick to play for nursing homes and small schools. From all accounts they had a great time and so did the people who came to see them. This is yet another example of music bringing joy to people.
I mentioned "Dance Of The Goblins" to Laura. She laughed and said "Don't tell me you want me to teach you that" then proceeded to play some of it. She told me one of the girls she studied with would play the song. Some people have said it is a virtuoso piece and doesn't sound like a dance. I disagree. It is certainly a virtuoso piece, and technically demanding, but I also like the way it sounds. I was impressed with what Laura played, and yes, it is on my wishlist. For my benefit, and for Laura's I will post the list in the near future. As Laura says, it is good to have solid goals. Will I ever be able to play it? I don't know. I really don't, but it is on the list regardless.
I played "Suo Gan", and this time Laura said it was good enough to pass. I still have to work on my confidence and my awareness (my body posture, breathing, hands and so on) but I learned everything I needed to learn from such a pretty song.
Next was "Home Sweet Home". This is coming along nicely, and now I can play the whole song through. What I need to practice here is retake (taking the bow off the strings and re positioning it before putting it back on the strings and playing again). My sound for this is good. My rhythm needs a little work. I get a far better sound when I play slowly. I should not be afraid to play slowly. The time to play quickly will come.
I had a few minutes at the end to play "Happy Birthday". I worked on it during the week and it showed. After hearing that my third finger was too high so much last week, it was actually low this week =) It is getting there and I know I will be able to do a great job for my mother's birthday next month.
I felt I had a better lesson this week. Letting go of my mistakes when I make them is helping. It is something that is hard for me to do, but like everything else it is improving slowly.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
My new Lenovo S430 Thinkpad
It arrived at work today. I am very excited about it. Despite the fact that I am a "computer nerd" it has been a long time since I have bought myself new hardware. In a sense I have been lucky that my wife's brother frequently changes computers - you can do that with a high disposable income and no commitments - so we have been "recycling" his old ones.
The packaging is all very environmentally friendly. Moulded cardboard inserts to protect the laptop inside a cardboard box. The contents of the box are as follows: one laptop, one powercord, one power adapter and an A3 size piece of paperupon which was printed the Safety, Warranty and Setup Guide. That's it. Four things. Five if you count the piece of paper that applies if you live in Brazil, Phillipines or Singapore. I was at least expecting a recovery disk (if not a disk with the operating system on it). Instead there is a Lenovo_Recovery partition. Interesting.
When the computer starts up there is some first-time-only setup, like selecting the region, date/time, keyboard and network settings. Then it's time for a restart to apply them.
After restarting I agree to use the Norton security suite they pre-installed. I think it is just a trial since I did not order it. I usually use AVG (it's free and I trust it). Then it tells me I have a 5 GB account with SugarSync (like cloud storage) so I can access files remotely. And that's it... onto Windows 7!
This laptop comes with a finger-print scanner. With a swipe of my mighty finger, I can start Facebook! LOL, cool but I don't really know how practical it will really be. At the moment I am running a partition manager so I can keep the operating system (Windows 7) and my stuff separate. After that comes that sometimes fun and often labourious task of installing the software I want and need.
The packaging is all very environmentally friendly. Moulded cardboard inserts to protect the laptop inside a cardboard box. The contents of the box are as follows: one laptop, one powercord, one power adapter and an A3 size piece of paperupon which was printed the Safety, Warranty and Setup Guide. That's it. Four things. Five if you count the piece of paper that applies if you live in Brazil, Phillipines or Singapore. I was at least expecting a recovery disk (if not a disk with the operating system on it). Instead there is a Lenovo_Recovery partition. Interesting.
When the computer starts up there is some first-time-only setup, like selecting the region, date/time, keyboard and network settings. Then it's time for a restart to apply them.
After restarting I agree to use the Norton security suite they pre-installed. I think it is just a trial since I did not order it. I usually use AVG (it's free and I trust it). Then it tells me I have a 5 GB account with SugarSync (like cloud storage) so I can access files remotely. And that's it... onto Windows 7!
This laptop comes with a finger-print scanner. With a swipe of my mighty finger, I can start Facebook! LOL, cool but I don't really know how practical it will really be. At the moment I am running a partition manager so I can keep the operating system (Windows 7) and my stuff separate. After that comes that sometimes fun and often labourious task of installing the software I want and need.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Food: Bulani
Know this. I am a Zarraffite (a fan of Zarraffas coffee). There are two shops I go to the most. One of these is at Calamvale Market Place. My children know that on the week-end there is a very good chance I will go there for coffee. After all, I drink coffee for their protection :) A few shops down from the coffee shop is a kebab shop. It has become an informal custom that when Daddy gets his coffee, the children will almost certainly get some chips from the kebab shop. This has happened often enough now that the proprietor knows who we are.
Well, today was one of those days. We ended up there pretty close to lunch-time so we could get the children hot chips for lunch. And today was the day I decided to try a bulani. The menu board describes a bulani as a pastry filled with tomato, potato and onions. I have been wanting to try one for ages and today is the first day I felt I did not have to rush away from there. So I ordered one. The man looks at the lady, asks her something, and tells me I have to wait about 20 minutes. "Haha, this will test my family's patience," I thought. At least I know it will be freshly made. I paid a total of $3.80 for this and went outside to wait I don't remember how long it took, but as surely as the sun rises in the east the children became impatient. Fotunately they had their chips to eat. Eventually the lady brought it out. It was big. Very big. And flat. It was shaped like a semi-circle. And with it was a yoghurt dip with mint in it. I really enjoyed it. Even when I had a piece that had chilli in it. I did not expect that and it was very spicy! Yay for yoghurt dip. It was fried but not oily at all. I was elegant and ate it with a knife and fork, when traditionally pieces are torn off and dipped in the yoghurt. For $3.80 I couldn't fault it for value. And it was worth the wait.
I would like to have another next time there is an opportunity. As far as I know it is not on The List Of Banned Foods (like the durian pancakes from Sunnybank or the falafel kebabfrom this very shop, though that might have been the fault of the garlic and yoghurt sauce that went with it).
If you get the chance to try one, do so. You won't regret it.
Well, today was one of those days. We ended up there pretty close to lunch-time so we could get the children hot chips for lunch. And today was the day I decided to try a bulani. The menu board describes a bulani as a pastry filled with tomato, potato and onions. I have been wanting to try one for ages and today is the first day I felt I did not have to rush away from there. So I ordered one. The man looks at the lady, asks her something, and tells me I have to wait about 20 minutes. "Haha, this will test my family's patience," I thought. At least I know it will be freshly made. I paid a total of $3.80 for this and went outside to wait I don't remember how long it took, but as surely as the sun rises in the east the children became impatient. Fotunately they had their chips to eat. Eventually the lady brought it out. It was big. Very big. And flat. It was shaped like a semi-circle. And with it was a yoghurt dip with mint in it. I really enjoyed it. Even when I had a piece that had chilli in it. I did not expect that and it was very spicy! Yay for yoghurt dip. It was fried but not oily at all. I was elegant and ate it with a knife and fork, when traditionally pieces are torn off and dipped in the yoghurt. For $3.80 I couldn't fault it for value. And it was worth the wait.
I would like to have another next time there is an opportunity. As far as I know it is not on The List Of Banned Foods (like the durian pancakes from Sunnybank or the falafel kebabfrom this very shop, though that might have been the fault of the garlic and yoghurt sauce that went with it).
If you get the chance to try one, do so. You won't regret it.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Violin Lesson #28
Today's lesson started with 'Happy Birthday'. No, it's not my birthday, but I want to learn to play the song. My mother is turning 70 next month and she would like me to play it for her on the violin.
To play this song I need to learn how to use the third finger. The third finger is place right next to the second finger. It makes a note a semi-tone higher. Laura got me to play four sections (which is most of the song, since it is only eight bars long) to get used to placing the third finger accurately. And true to her word, most of the time my finger was too high. No matter how much I tried to correct it, the note was always too high. I think for that reason I started looking down at my fingers, This just made things worse, and pretty soon not only were my fingers wrong, but I was getting the "zombie neck". At this point Laura touched my head to remind me to fix my posture and joked that I was have her charged with assault. My head is shorn and shaven, and I have people patting it for good luck, so I am sure not going to mind Laura touching it to improve my playing. In the end we had to leave it though I am confident that once what I have to do sinks into my head I will play it well enough. It's just like "playing blind" last week. It was hard to do in class at the time, but by the end of the week-end it was going along really well.
From here it was on to 'Suo Gan'. I played this through a few times, and while some parts of it were quite good, I am going to be playing it for another week. Last week I mentioned I may have been nervous playing in front of Laura. This week I am not quite so sure that is what's going on. I think now that I may be putting too much pressure on myself when I do play, and it is because I want to play it well in front of her. This is not helpful, since I can be playing okay, but when I make a mistake (as I do from time to time) I let it show instead of just carrying on and it affects my playing and confidence. Laura quite rightly pointed out that most people won't notice if I make a mistake, and that while *I* may not like the way I played, others may have enjoyed it. I'm not quite sure how I am going to get over this but I know I will. Perhaps I should look at the music, even though I know the piece well enough to play without it. It's not that I make an effort to remember it - it just happens after a while. The piece is 24 bars long, and the first eight are repeated n the last eight, so there's really not a whole lot to memorise. Looking at the music might take my mind of the self-analysis that is undoubtedly going on while I play. I need to enjoy the music (and it is very pretty music to be sure) while I am playing and analyse the performance later.
Then came the first line of 'Home Sweet Home'. That went okay but it needs another week, especially now that I have 'Happy Birthday' to practice.
Finally came 'Waltz Of The Lovebirds'. Now I can play the whole song all the way through. This is going well and will continue for another week. It is a case of more practice to get it smooth and flowing.
If this sounds like a lot for one lesson, you are right. By the time I had finished it was almost an hour later. And what made it worse is that Sarisha turned up just as I was going in, so she was waiting outside all that time. For that I am very sorry.
So I have plenty to work on this week. Fortunately I have Monday off work as a day of leave. Mrs. Sage has left her job and is in the process of starting up before- and after-school care
To play this song I need to learn how to use the third finger. The third finger is place right next to the second finger. It makes a note a semi-tone higher. Laura got me to play four sections (which is most of the song, since it is only eight bars long) to get used to placing the third finger accurately. And true to her word, most of the time my finger was too high. No matter how much I tried to correct it, the note was always too high. I think for that reason I started looking down at my fingers, This just made things worse, and pretty soon not only were my fingers wrong, but I was getting the "zombie neck". At this point Laura touched my head to remind me to fix my posture and joked that I was have her charged with assault. My head is shorn and shaven, and I have people patting it for good luck, so I am sure not going to mind Laura touching it to improve my playing. In the end we had to leave it though I am confident that once what I have to do sinks into my head I will play it well enough. It's just like "playing blind" last week. It was hard to do in class at the time, but by the end of the week-end it was going along really well.
From here it was on to 'Suo Gan'. I played this through a few times, and while some parts of it were quite good, I am going to be playing it for another week. Last week I mentioned I may have been nervous playing in front of Laura. This week I am not quite so sure that is what's going on. I think now that I may be putting too much pressure on myself when I do play, and it is because I want to play it well in front of her. This is not helpful, since I can be playing okay, but when I make a mistake (as I do from time to time) I let it show instead of just carrying on and it affects my playing and confidence. Laura quite rightly pointed out that most people won't notice if I make a mistake, and that while *I* may not like the way I played, others may have enjoyed it. I'm not quite sure how I am going to get over this but I know I will. Perhaps I should look at the music, even though I know the piece well enough to play without it. It's not that I make an effort to remember it - it just happens after a while. The piece is 24 bars long, and the first eight are repeated n the last eight, so there's really not a whole lot to memorise. Looking at the music might take my mind of the self-analysis that is undoubtedly going on while I play. I need to enjoy the music (and it is very pretty music to be sure) while I am playing and analyse the performance later.
Then came the first line of 'Home Sweet Home'. That went okay but it needs another week, especially now that I have 'Happy Birthday' to practice.
Finally came 'Waltz Of The Lovebirds'. Now I can play the whole song all the way through. This is going well and will continue for another week. It is a case of more practice to get it smooth and flowing.
If this sounds like a lot for one lesson, you are right. By the time I had finished it was almost an hour later. And what made it worse is that Sarisha turned up just as I was going in, so she was waiting outside all that time. For that I am very sorry.
So I have plenty to work on this week. Fortunately I have Monday off work as a day of leave. Mrs. Sage has left her job and is in the process of starting up before- and after-school care
Monday, June 10, 2013
ABC Classic FM - Classic 100: Music In Films
This has been an enjoyable long week-end for the Szechuan Sage. Part of what made it enjoyable was this countdown. The results of this countdown are here:
http://www.abc.net.au/classic/classic100/movies/
It has been educational listening to this countdown, firstly because of the music that accompanied some of the choices, and secondly to hear about the background to the movies and the music. The whole countdown is now on the site but I don't know for how long. And I believe each selection has an associated youtube clip featuring music from the film.
http://www.abc.net.au/classic/classic100/movies/
It has been educational listening to this countdown, firstly because of the music that accompanied some of the choices, and secondly to hear about the background to the movies and the music. The whole countdown is now on the site but I don't know for how long. And I believe each selection has an associated youtube clip featuring music from the film.
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Violin Lesson #27
During the week my Princess recorded me on our tablet playing "Suo Gan"
with the correct bowing. That was two days after Laura showed
me what to do and it was pretty good. I enjoyed playing it this way. And she got me to bow at the end. If I don't record my pieces with Laura I will get my daughter to record me playing at home.
Also on that week-end, I caught up with my sister. She had a special request. My mother is turning 70 in July and she would be tickled pink if I could play "Happy Birthday" for her on the violin. A few SMS later and it was organised. As Laura said "Music is about making people happy". Too right :)
Coming the day after the Tokyo String Quartet I was excited about my lesson, even though I felt less prepared than usual. Here I have to thank Laura for coming to the studio just for me. I really appreciate it (even though she forgot the music to Happy Birthday).
I played "Suo Gan" the new way, and I could feel my nervousness. The bow as shaking. This is silly, I thought to myself. Why should I be like this after 26 lessons, and in front of someone who has been nothing but supportive since I started. If I can't play in front of my teacher, how am I going to perform in front of others? I think perhaps it was anxiety. I really wanted to get this right. And in the end I played it fairly well. But "Suo Gan" has not finished with me yet. I have one more week. This time I am to play like Homer (the Greek poet, not the cartoon character) and by that I mean without looking at my hands. Laura wants me to practice with closed eyes. Now, I have played like that a few times at home, and I enjoy it. That is, until the bow strays. But it important to be able to play without looking at my hands. Mostly I should look at the music. Laura says some players like to play with closed eyes to better feel the music they are making. After I tried it in class I could see (get it?see? with closed eyes?) what she meant.
Then it was "Waltz Of The Lovebirds". Practice for this paid off as I was able to nail the challenging last line. I was also pretty good with the second half of the first line. I'm sorry Laura, but I am not the stabbing type :) My staccato is not fast enough. I need to find another metaphor that can work for me. I still struggle with too much pressure when I try to move the bow quickly. No doubt I will get it in the end. It was about this time too that Laura mentioned my neck position. Sometimes it is tilted "like a zombie" instead of being in a natural position. This is something I'll have to watch this week. I don't want to end up with a sore neck. All of this was worth if for Laura's zombie impression. I learned some more of the waltz and I might nearly be ready to try the whole piece soon.
Right at the end there was time for another piece. I will only be doing the first line for "Home Sweet Home". It sounds pretty too and I know I will enjoy learning how to play this.
After the lesson we talked about performing. Browning Studio puts on a recital towards the end of the year to give students a chance to perform in front of family and friends. There is no pressure for students to perform if they don't want to play but I am all for it, whether I am on my own or in a group with other students. While I enjoy playing by myself, I think it will be just as much fun to play for others.
Also on that week-end, I caught up with my sister. She had a special request. My mother is turning 70 in July and she would be tickled pink if I could play "Happy Birthday" for her on the violin. A few SMS later and it was organised. As Laura said "Music is about making people happy". Too right :)
Coming the day after the Tokyo String Quartet I was excited about my lesson, even though I felt less prepared than usual. Here I have to thank Laura for coming to the studio just for me. I really appreciate it (even though she forgot the music to Happy Birthday).
I played "Suo Gan" the new way, and I could feel my nervousness. The bow as shaking. This is silly, I thought to myself. Why should I be like this after 26 lessons, and in front of someone who has been nothing but supportive since I started. If I can't play in front of my teacher, how am I going to perform in front of others? I think perhaps it was anxiety. I really wanted to get this right. And in the end I played it fairly well. But "Suo Gan" has not finished with me yet. I have one more week. This time I am to play like Homer (the Greek poet, not the cartoon character) and by that I mean without looking at my hands. Laura wants me to practice with closed eyes. Now, I have played like that a few times at home, and I enjoy it. That is, until the bow strays. But it important to be able to play without looking at my hands. Mostly I should look at the music. Laura says some players like to play with closed eyes to better feel the music they are making. After I tried it in class I could see (get it?see? with closed eyes?) what she meant.
Then it was "Waltz Of The Lovebirds". Practice for this paid off as I was able to nail the challenging last line. I was also pretty good with the second half of the first line. I'm sorry Laura, but I am not the stabbing type :) My staccato is not fast enough. I need to find another metaphor that can work for me. I still struggle with too much pressure when I try to move the bow quickly. No doubt I will get it in the end. It was about this time too that Laura mentioned my neck position. Sometimes it is tilted "like a zombie" instead of being in a natural position. This is something I'll have to watch this week. I don't want to end up with a sore neck. All of this was worth if for Laura's zombie impression. I learned some more of the waltz and I might nearly be ready to try the whole piece soon.
Right at the end there was time for another piece. I will only be doing the first line for "Home Sweet Home". It sounds pretty too and I know I will enjoy learning how to play this.
After the lesson we talked about performing. Browning Studio puts on a recital towards the end of the year to give students a chance to perform in front of family and friends. There is no pressure for students to perform if they don't want to play but I am all for it, whether I am on my own or in a group with other students. While I enjoy playing by myself, I think it will be just as much fun to play for others.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Tokyo String Quartet Concert
Tokyo String Quartet
This was a fantastic experience.
I almost did not make it. My ticket was from QPAC and I did not realise the concert was actually at the Queensland Conservatorium. Fortunately there wasstill plenty of time and it was not far away.
When I arrived there was a quartet of string instruments set up in the foyer. What I did not know at the time was that the Tokyo String Quartet were going to present these instruments to the inaugural Jani Haenke Quartet. More on that later.
I have never been to the Conservatorium Theatre before. It was great. The ceilings are very high and the acoustics were amazing, as one would expect. My seat was about two thirds of the way back and almost in the centre of the row, so I was looking slightly down at the stage. It was bare except for two banners and the four seats for the quartet.
The lady from Musica Viva came out to give an introduction to the quartet and the show. Before this event I did not know who the Tokyo String Quartet were so much of that was lost on me. The group has been around for 40 years, though now there is only the one original member. They play on a set of Stradivarius instruments so the sound is going to be exceptional, more so because each of the men is a master of their instrument.
They opened with "String Quartet no 16" by Peter SCULTHORPE. This piece is composed of five movements:
I Loneliness
II Anger
III Yearning
IV Trauma
V Freedom
It is based on "From Nothing To Zero" which is a book of extracts from letters written by asylum seekers in Australian detention centres. Some of the music was very haunting as you might expect, but what amazed me was the way the cello was used to imitate the sound of birds - a common theme in this quartet. I wonder if the people who made the cello all those decades go had an inkling it would be used for bird sounds.
The next piece was "String Quartet no 6" by Béla BARTÓK. When each of the four movements has the word "sad" in it, you know what to expect. And it was for the most part melancholy. When you realise Bartok wrote this soon after the death of his mother and the outbreak of World War II you can perhaps understand why.
After this came a small intermission. I guess when you are playing music like this you need the break. This must be especially true when you consider the piece that follows.
"String Quartet no 14 in C# minor" by Ludwig van BEETHOVEN. This is a favourite of the quartet. It has seven movements all together though they are joined as opposed to a small rest between each one as was the case with the previous quartet. This is one of Beethoven's greatest works. It was written a year before he died. To be honest, this music didn't grab me the way I thought it would and I don't know why. Obviously it meant a lot to the players of the quartet and perhaps to some of the audience, but not to me.
The sound they made with their instruments was beautiful. It was a wonderful experience not only to see and hear those instruments, but to have them played by artists with such skill and passion. It was truly amazing. At some points it was like all four instruments were being played by one person. I really enjoyed seeing how they interacted with each other as they played. As you know, I am learning the violin, and after watching this I still love it, but now I have a much greater appreciation of the viola and the cello.
After the concert the audience was invited back to the foyer. This is when the winners of a string quartet competition were announced and presented with the Jani Haenke instruments. At this point I regret not taking photos of them or writing down the details. The one thing I remember clearly was that the cello is a replica of the Sleeping Beauty. Each of the new instruments comes with silver-mounted bows made by Pierre Guillaume in Brussels, and with a set of performance bows made especially for the Queensland Conservatorium inscribed and with opal inserts in the silver mount. Fancy.
One thing that was said stuck with me. A student was allowed to play one of the newly acquired violins and he was able to produce some beautiful sound. Instead of being disheartened when he returned to his own lesser instrument, he said he felt encouraged. He reasoned that if he was able to make sound like that with a beautiful instrument then he felt inspired to make a similar sound with his own. This goes back to what my teacher told me: a great player can make even an average violin sound wonderful.
At this point it was getting late so I made my way home. Tonight was a great experience and one I will remember for a long time to come.
This was a fantastic experience.
I almost did not make it. My ticket was from QPAC and I did not realise the concert was actually at the Queensland Conservatorium. Fortunately there wasstill plenty of time and it was not far away.
When I arrived there was a quartet of string instruments set up in the foyer. What I did not know at the time was that the Tokyo String Quartet were going to present these instruments to the inaugural Jani Haenke Quartet. More on that later.
I have never been to the Conservatorium Theatre before. It was great. The ceilings are very high and the acoustics were amazing, as one would expect. My seat was about two thirds of the way back and almost in the centre of the row, so I was looking slightly down at the stage. It was bare except for two banners and the four seats for the quartet.
The lady from Musica Viva came out to give an introduction to the quartet and the show. Before this event I did not know who the Tokyo String Quartet were so much of that was lost on me. The group has been around for 40 years, though now there is only the one original member. They play on a set of Stradivarius instruments so the sound is going to be exceptional, more so because each of the men is a master of their instrument.
They opened with "String Quartet no 16" by Peter SCULTHORPE. This piece is composed of five movements:
I Loneliness
II Anger
III Yearning
IV Trauma
V Freedom
It is based on "From Nothing To Zero" which is a book of extracts from letters written by asylum seekers in Australian detention centres. Some of the music was very haunting as you might expect, but what amazed me was the way the cello was used to imitate the sound of birds - a common theme in this quartet. I wonder if the people who made the cello all those decades go had an inkling it would be used for bird sounds.
The next piece was "String Quartet no 6" by Béla BARTÓK. When each of the four movements has the word "sad" in it, you know what to expect. And it was for the most part melancholy. When you realise Bartok wrote this soon after the death of his mother and the outbreak of World War II you can perhaps understand why.
After this came a small intermission. I guess when you are playing music like this you need the break. This must be especially true when you consider the piece that follows.
"String Quartet no 14 in C# minor" by Ludwig van BEETHOVEN. This is a favourite of the quartet. It has seven movements all together though they are joined as opposed to a small rest between each one as was the case with the previous quartet. This is one of Beethoven's greatest works. It was written a year before he died. To be honest, this music didn't grab me the way I thought it would and I don't know why. Obviously it meant a lot to the players of the quartet and perhaps to some of the audience, but not to me.
The sound they made with their instruments was beautiful. It was a wonderful experience not only to see and hear those instruments, but to have them played by artists with such skill and passion. It was truly amazing. At some points it was like all four instruments were being played by one person. I really enjoyed seeing how they interacted with each other as they played. As you know, I am learning the violin, and after watching this I still love it, but now I have a much greater appreciation of the viola and the cello.
After the concert the audience was invited back to the foyer. This is when the winners of a string quartet competition were announced and presented with the Jani Haenke instruments. At this point I regret not taking photos of them or writing down the details. The one thing I remember clearly was that the cello is a replica of the Sleeping Beauty. Each of the new instruments comes with silver-mounted bows made by Pierre Guillaume in Brussels, and with a set of performance bows made especially for the Queensland Conservatorium inscribed and with opal inserts in the silver mount. Fancy.
One thing that was said stuck with me. A student was allowed to play one of the newly acquired violins and he was able to produce some beautiful sound. Instead of being disheartened when he returned to his own lesser instrument, he said he felt encouraged. He reasoned that if he was able to make sound like that with a beautiful instrument then he felt inspired to make a similar sound with his own. This goes back to what my teacher told me: a great player can make even an average violin sound wonderful.
At this point it was getting late so I made my way home. Tonight was a great experience and one I will remember for a long time to come.
Sunday, June 2, 2013
This SMS made me smile
"Can u get pancakes for kids?oh crap u don't have wallet!!!"
Background:
I was at the shops with my sister-in-law (Mrs Sage's younger sister). Uncharacteristically, I had left my wallet at home.
Result:
While I was laughing, my sister-in-law bought my children the pancakes.
You see, I may have typed the first sentence. Now, while I was typing the second sentence I would have thought "How is my husband going to buy the pancakes without money?". At that point I would have thought "Take your wallet next time, dear husband" and not sent the message. Or I might have changed the second sentence to "Please ask my sister to buy some and bring them home". I almost certainly would not have sent the SMS I received.
So... what would you have done???
Background:
I was at the shops with my sister-in-law (Mrs Sage's younger sister). Uncharacteristically, I had left my wallet at home.
Result:
While I was laughing, my sister-in-law bought my children the pancakes.
You see, I may have typed the first sentence. Now, while I was typing the second sentence I would have thought "How is my husband going to buy the pancakes without money?". At that point I would have thought "Take your wallet next time, dear husband" and not sent the message. Or I might have changed the second sentence to "Please ask my sister to buy some and bring them home". I almost certainly would not have sent the SMS I received.
So... what would you have done???
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