Violin lesson #72

I was on reduced practice this week as I tended to a flu-type cold. It kept me away from work for two days and away from the Paniyiri festival (where I could have stalked Helena and Vicki but I digress...)

I kept up with my scales and exercises and it showed. I was able to finish off the A melodic minor scale. I'll miss those sad scales. Now I have two octaves of A major to do, and I don't expect there to be problems. I am also to do the G minor and A major arpeggios.

My sliding up and down exercise is getting very good, except that I forget when to slide sometimes. I really need to pay more attention. I expected this to have been finished by now. I also made the last note a harmonic. I was stunned when Laura pointed out that it was not harmonic. It wasn't until about two thirds of the way through my lesson that I realised that harmonic is actually the last note in Rum-Bah Ba :) I knew there was one somewhere.

I can now start on the Bow Strokes exercises. Staccato, Martele and short nut-end strokes (what, no pretty name for them?). They are supposed to sound identical so Laura suggested I record them to make sure they do. I remember Sirisha playing this exercise and I am trying to remember what Laura said to her.

I got a tick for Rum-Bah Ba. No sticker :( I learned the rhythm well enough, and most of the notes as well as the dynamics. This means I move on to syncopated rhythm and Vanilla Ice Cream. This is going to be tricky until I get used to the rhythm (stressing the off-beat) and the bow stroke style. It should be good fun to learn.

That was it for my lesson. Sirisha turned up a little while after I started but now it was  her turn.

Her pieces sounded really good. She has some funky music going on there =) I noticed two things: first, Sirisha looked so focussed when she was playing contrasted with Laura accompanying on the piano who looked like she was having the time of her life, and second, Sirisha seems to move around more when she plays than I think I do. It's neither a good thing or a bad thing - just different. I wonder if moving around like that helps to relax the player as well as get into the music.

There was an incident on the way back to work after my lesson. I was carrying my case hugged close to me when I decided to hold it by the handle. Only then did I realised I had not zipped the case and most of the contents spilled onto the ground! Tragedy! Patience is fine, so worry less :) As I was packing away I met Damo, who plays the harmonica as well as studying music business and stuff. He asked if I would be up for a jam, and I said sure. He also wanted to know if I played something other than violin and I told him I was okay with a keyboard. We swapped numbers so I'll wait and see if anything eventuates from this random encounter. Just in case it does, I'll see if I can work up some time to learn a little blues on the violin.

Violin lesson #71

This focus for this week's practice was mostly on my scales and exercises and then Hornpipe. I did my best not to neglect anything.

After Laura fine-tuned Patience she played an Irish tune. It sounded amazing. Half way through I am thinking "Wow, listen to the sounds from that violin." I don't know enough about violins to decide what makes one better than another or why one violin may be more suited to this style or that style of music. What I do know is that if Laura can get sound like that from Patience, then eventually so can I. It was almost intimidating to follow playing like that. There was no way I could blame the violin after that performance :)

First up for me was scales. I was erroneously given a sticker for the A minor melodic scale. I passed two of the three bowing styles. Oddly it was detache that let me down and usually I find that the easiest of the three.

My sliding exercise was next. I found to my dismay that I had been misreading some of the music and that the slides were not space correctly. I was hoping I could finish this but it wasn't to be. At least I know where I can improve.

I did pass Hornpipe but I was not happy about it. Laura couldn't put her finger on it and ended up calling it a reserved performance, like I was holding something back. I think that's probably right. I played it all the way through and played it well, but it was missing something. To earn the sticker the piece should be played wholeheartedly. I wondered if it was because I was over it. Perhaps, but as I think about it not as likely as playing within my means. Maybe some if was from the memory of last week where I played with gusto but mucked it up. I think next time I would like to play it a little slower but with more oomph and see what happens. Regardless, there was nothing left the piece could teach me.

I finished with Rum-Ba-Bah, which I had not  been practicing so much. It went okay but it was lacking dynamics. Hopefully next week?

Then it was time for Paploma - the Greek duet. I think we both did okay considering it has been a while since we last played together. Laura said first duets are often difficult as you learn to listen to each other as well as yourself and still try and get a good sound too.

Sirisha's lesson went well. I don't know who was having more fun: Laura making up piano accompaniments or Sirisha playing her piece :)

So all in all a mixed lesson this week but better than last week. Let's see what  next week brings...

Violin lesson #70

Practice has not been great this week but I do what I can.

To start with there were flashcards for Sirisha and I. I think between us we nailed most of them. No-one kept score but I'm going to say it was a tie =)

Firstly, I finished off my G Major scale exercises. Sticker time. Unfortunately it was mostly downhill after that.

Next was the sliding finger exercise. It wasn't too bad considering I only started last week. I still need to get the notes right but progress was good. It was interesting to hear Sirisha play the same exercise. She plays it better than I do so Laura gave her some different advice. It won't hurt to try and apply that to my playing.

Hornpipe is nearly finished. Or is it? Whether it was the tension across my shoulders or trying to play this too fast, it just wasn't happening. Laura said once I relax my shoulders the sound is way better. I can't be expected to play with someone massaging them all the time so I'll have to a) figure out why I get tense there, and b) how to get rid of it.

The notes were there but that was about it. The dynamics and the nuances of the staccato were missing. Laura told me, and I heartily agreed, that it is better to listen to music played a little bit slower but with all of the colour and flavour written on the score that to listen to the same piece played a little faster but flat-lined. I have seen similar comments on some youtube videos "Lacked dynamics", "no feeling" and so on. I will not be one of those players.

This week I spent less time on Air in G and it really showed. I am just not getting my head around it and I'm not sure why. So I will be taking it slow and making sure I am kind to myself as I practice. Some pieces will come to me easier than others. This is one of the others.

So after the lesson I was feeling a little deflated. I am my own worst critic, and that is not helped when I know I (and Patience) can produce a great sound. Practice this week will have to focus on scales and exercises this week and getting back to basics with those two pieces.

What a difference a week makes...

Violin lesson #69

The blessings from Buddha's Birthday Festival must have paid off because even with the three days I missed out on practice I still managed to earn three, count them ... three, stickers. I could not stay for the second half of the double lesson with Sirisha because I needed to be home as early as possible for teacher interviews with the Szechuan Prince.

The lesson started off poorly. A bouncy bow meant another week on the G melodic minor slurring exercise. I know the cure for bouncy bow so I expect at least one sticker next week.

The A melodic minor scale was in tune so now that I am comfortable with that I expect to be able to tick off at least one of those scale exercises for next week.

The KISS exercise passed. I used plenty of bow and I was in tune so the sticker was mine. Of course this means I have a new exercise so I am curious to see how that plays out.

The second sticker was for Toffee Nut Fudge Cake. I finally nailed the accents and staccato and everything else well enough to earn the pass. It sounded pretty good. There is still Rum-Bah Ba left to do in the Superstudies book. I am glad Laura suggested that book when I bught Patience.

Before I went any further Laura brought out the next piece: Air In G, by Bach. OMG. Not Air On G. But still by Bach. This is my first official Bach piece. Huzzah! So not, it's not the famous Air On A G String from Suite For Orchestra Number 3. That is at least Grade 5 and mroe likely 6 or 7 as I understand it so it's a little way away yet :) However, this is Bach, and it is pretty, and I will learn to play it.

After this I had time for Fiddler's Fancy. And it was fancy. Sticker fancy. I played it very well. Then Laura wanted to accompany me, but she music for a different key. Can I play it one string down? I would not be CDCCD4U if I could not. I knew that I could do it and I played it passably well considering it was such short notice.

That was it for this week. It was time to go. I hope Sirisha had as much stickery success for her lesson.

Buddha Birthday Festival 2014

Another year and another great festival. I was in a good frame of mind especially as I had fixed the last of my current tickets just before leaving work.

This year Poh was at the festival (think Masterchef and Poh's Kitchen) for a vegetarian cooking display. I was at both that she did (at 4pm and 6pm) when I was there. Cooking was a stretch. She made a soup / broth. She would have received bonus points (and I would have peed my pants) had she referred to her broth as the Broth Of Vigor. Any Iron Chef fans will know instantly what I'm talking about :)

Cooking aside she was very entertaining and appears to be a lovely person. She was also pimping her new book "Same Same But Different". She will be in West End on May 13 to talk about her book and stuff.

I learned less about vegetarian cooking and more about Masterchef.

* She was in lockdown for four months - no phone, no computer, no contact with family or friend except for two (timed) ten-minute phone calls a week. They were driven from the house to the kitchen and back. The first time she went shopping after the show she left her wallet, house keys and phone at home. When it came to pay she had no wallet. When she got back home she couldn't get in, and she couldn't call her mother because her phone was in the house.

* They were mic'ed all the time. If you wanted to talk to someone personally you would put your hand over your chest (where the mic was) to prevent the producers hearing you. Poh caught herself doing this after the show when she was back at home.

* The last ten seconds of each challenge are staged. The challenge ends in the correct time then they film the countdown again with the contestants rushing around like mad. When they are asked to step away from the bench, the crew comes in to reset the station and set the plate back down before judging. Before they did that people would be sneaky and add garnishes or seasoning after time was up.

* There was a producer for each contestant or two. They would watch for people getting stressed or doing something silly. As soon as they saw that the camera crew would rush over and start filming up close.

* The food was often cold when it was tasted, especially in the early stages (they start with 20 people). Some contestants became strategic with cooking choices: they would not cook food that would congeal when left to sit for some time, or they would pick a dish different to others if there were many similar dishes. Poh's example was preparing a carpaccio or spicy salad when there were many other rich dishes thinking that hers would stand out simply because it was different to others.

* They did not practice and they were not instructed. They only cooked in the Masterchef kitchen.

* Her work experience consisted of five hours of skinning peas.Not shelling the pods. Removing the skin from individual peas. They were given cab-charge vouchers to get home because there were no minders to escort them. When they got into the cab and the driver asked "where to" none of them knew the address of the house. He told them to phone someone. They didn't have phones. He offered them his phone. They didn't have a number. They finally remembered a shopping center near a jetty (at Darling Point) so he drove them there. He asked if they were chefs (since they were wearing whites and had knife kits). They said no, since they weren't allowed to tell anyone what was going on. When they arrived at the shops they got their bearings and directed him to the house.

* The ingredients are not always in the same place in the pantry each time. This is deliberate. The ingredients are mostly based around European cuisines so she was often without what she would regard as staples for her preferred style of cooking.

[Some of the stories may or may not be true. I repeat here what I remember. There was probably more]

I found this information really interesting. I like to think about what goes on behind the scenes (also known as paying attention to the man behind the curtain).

Poh's visit was sponsored by Sunnybank Plaza. This is where we do a lot of our shopping, not least of all because it is the location of my favourite Zarraffas. As part of the promotion they were awarding three double passes to their Food Discovery Tours to people who could answer questions at the end of her demonstration. And because I have the amazing power to remember stuff that happened longer than a commercial break ago, I won one! Winner, winner, vege dinner!

The food stalls were all pretty good again, except that the place that sold me the Malaysian Laksa put ham in it! Inconceivable. At a vege food fair. By the time I realised this I had eaten about a third of it and the rain was coming down hard so I wasn't about to take it back. It was just a little disappointing. I went back to the nice people from Su Life vegetarian restaurant and bought some deep fried oyster mushrooms. I did not buy the pineapple mooncakes the little kids there were spruiking. I know where this restaurant is (in Palmdale shops across from Garden City) and I really want to go there one evening. The guys selling the coffee were really good too. Mrs Sage would have loved the sweet stuff but I was happy they knew how to serve a nice double espresso... twice =)

The welcoming ceremony was great too. They had the usual groups like the Southern Shaolin martial arts students and two performances from Queensland World Dance Academy. This year they had some students from the National Taiwan College of Performing Arts who were great. And there were two numbers from a group called Heart Of Spades - a modernized version of Pachelbel's Canon and a cover of Smells Like Teen Spirit. This is a duo featuring a violin and guitar. I enjoyed their performance, in no small part because the violinist is Katei :)

Speaking of violin, as I sometimes do, I managed to catch a little bit of a performance on the Performing Arts stage of a violin and cello duo who were playing Celtic music. I don't know who they were but they played well and were obviously passionate about their style of music.

If you have made it this far, thank-you for reading. I had a great time as I often do and look forward to the festival next year.