This week was a good week musically. Wednesday I went to a show with Mzaza. They were fantastic as usual. And on the week-end I won two tickets to Laura's ensemble's show.
Sirisha and I now have 5pm lessons and that seems to be sutiting everyone. Today we started off with more Paploma practice. This is where I had to channel my inner Greek. Huh? Wait... I *am* Greek. What Laura meant was to play enthusiastically and loudly and with fire. And when we did we sounded really good. The piece is coming along nicely. Just where we will ever perform it I don't exactly know. And although we still have some work to do on this song part of me wonders about the next duet.
No scales, no studies, no pieces for me this week. Unless you count the new piece. And with it comes the steep learning curve. It is a jumpy jive piece and will sound great... eventually. There are a few different techniques to learn in this one and learn them I will. There is the reverse heartbeat: a loud down stroke and quieter up stroke. There is the four staccatos. This is similar to an exercise I currently have so it will be good to put it into practice. And a jumping note: a quick down stroke followed by an up stroke and a re-take.
Sirisha played very well. She was playing Minuet, which is one of my pieces, and she sounds great. I'm going to take some things I learned from her playing and Laura coaching and apply them to my practice. Then Sirisha played her lullaby piece. It's almost done. It sounds so pretty, especially with the piano.
Laura's biggest advice to us today was to keep going if we make a mistake because at the end of the night, nobody cares. The one wrong note you play, or think you play, will go unnoticed by nearly all of your listeners and none will care enough to remember. Just after she said that she pulled up Sirisha for a wrong note. Too funny.
The only down side of the lesson might be getting the train home. If I don't get the quarter after six train I have to wait for the quarter to seven train. Unless I remember to park at Coopers Plains in which case I can get the six thirty train.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Mzaza Fireside Tour
The evening started off well enough. I had plenty of time before the show. I took a bus to the Cultural Center and a train to South Bank. From there I went to have dinner at Swampdog. This is an environmentallly friendly fish-and-chip shop. It was their support and promotion of sustainable fishing that attracted me as much as the menu. Any place that will offer mackerel, sardines and mullet is fine by me =) Almost everything in the shop is recycled or renewable: the tables, the plates, the cutlery, everything.
I ordered sardines on sourdough because I wasn't sure the pineapple would go so well with mackerel. I don't know what happened but I ended up with calamari on sourdough. This was also on the menu (same price as the sardines), so I don't know whether the lady that took my order pressed the wrong button or perhaps there were no sardines. In any case, I enjoyed my meal. The calamari was chewy, which was good because the sourdough bread was soft. The taste was very good too.
After dinner I caught a bus from South Bank to Mater Hill. It is times like this I appreciate the go-card and how easy it is to get around the CBD and surrounding precincts. But more on that later...
I soon found the venue. Can You Keep A Secret is a vintage store that is newly opened on Stanley Street next to Vespa Pizza. It was still early and the shop was closed so I went around the back. There I bumped into Greta. She plays the violin and Persion fiddle, aka kamancheh. I had met Greta twice before: once at the concert Mzaza did with Chaika and again at a Waziz session (a session where people hang out and play Balkan / Middle Eastern music). She introduced me to Pauline, the lead singer, but only briefly as they were setting up. There was still some time before 7pm I went in search of snacks before returning to wait for the doors to open.
At last it was time to go inside. The shop is not very big but it is full of charm and lots of old stuff. I know I feel old when I can look around and say "I remember this" or "we used to have that". Mrs Sage and the Princess would really like it so I will have to bring them back one day. Mzaza had allowed for sixty people. I don't know how many turned up but the little shop was packed. Thankfully some people brought extra chairs. I scored a backless bench seat and was later joined by two Turkish mamas, Soon it was standing room only at the back. The place filled up with the smell of sweet tomato sauce base from the Vespa pizzas and alcohol from a variety of bottles bought from the bottle shop a few doors down.
The last time I saw Mzaza was at Vision Gallery with Chaika. That place was a little larger but just as packed as this shop. I appreciate the closeness you can get from smaller venues. Admittedly that was my first concert in an art gallery and this was my first concert in a vintage shop.
Someone on Facebook described this an evening of boisterous intimacy. Pauline told us group were going to play some music from an upcoming album and a few of their earlier pieces. In between they were happy to take questions from the audience and chat in between songs. They all had a turn introducing songs and talking about the music that went into the song, or the meaning of the song - many of them were in French or Ladino (a Judaeo Spanish language, almost dead apparently) - or sharing stories about themselves. I think that any of the six members of the group would make fascinating dinner companions. Besides the two ladies already mentioned there was Stephen (accordion and flute at one stage), Chloe (double bass), John (guitar), and Jordan (tonbak and drum). Jordan I had mat at the Waziz session which he attended in spite of just having returned from Greece. Chloe and I have a mutual acquaintance as it turns out - Laura Thomson, my violin teacher.
The music was great, as I expected. There were musical influences from all over the Balkans, Middle East and North Africa. The definition "world music" really applies here. I think of all the music they played my favourite was the first piece. It was an instrumental with double bass and accordion. I know, I'm shocked too that it was not something that featured the violin. I will confess though, as someone who is learning the violin, it was hard not watch Greta when she played. Often things Laura has taught me would come to mind as I paid attention to her hands and bow.
One of the topics that came up was shredding. Shredding refers to fast virtuosic playing, typically with guitar. I think it has come to be applied to anyone who can play an instrument very well and very quickly. In this case Jordan had brought it up talking about ten-year-old kids who could drum circles around him, which is impressive since Jordan is certainly no slouch himself. There were a few passages there where Greta could be said to have been shredding.
On the whole it was a great evening. It ended up with Pauline teaching the audience to sing the chorus to Adios Querida. It sounded so cool. I can't help but wonder what people outside the shop would think was going on if they heard that. Actually I think there was one more song after this - Rampi Rampi - to which the aforementioned Turkish mamas and a few others started to dance despite the lack of space.
After the show it was good to get out into the cool evening air. I had a quick chat to Greta before saying good night. I had to go because I was relying on public transport to get home and she remembered what that was like. It was a short walk to Mater Hill bus station and a short wait for a bus to get to South Bank bus station. Next to that is the train station. This is where my evening starts going down hill. I miss a train by about three minutes so I wait nearly half an hour for the next one. I get on, and just as we are about to leave the lights in the train go off... and stay off. The radio chatter I can hear from the driver's cabin does not bode well. There are apologies for the delay while they fix this little fault. They were still fixing in when the next train home came along.
Nothing could take the edge off that show though. It was great fun from start to finish. Shows like that are what motivate me to keep going with the violin. While I am struggling with even small pieces from Telemann and Bach (JC, not JS) Greta is having the time of her life on stage. And it's not just her. It's also Laura when I see her play, or Jorge from Underscore Orchestra or anyone else who makes music with a violin. Then I remind myself that the pieces I am playing now are not the destination. They are part of a journey. And eventually I will get to Rampi Rampi, and beyond. Will I get to Paganini Caprices? We'll just have to wait and see, but it will be fun to find out.
I ordered sardines on sourdough because I wasn't sure the pineapple would go so well with mackerel. I don't know what happened but I ended up with calamari on sourdough. This was also on the menu (same price as the sardines), so I don't know whether the lady that took my order pressed the wrong button or perhaps there were no sardines. In any case, I enjoyed my meal. The calamari was chewy, which was good because the sourdough bread was soft. The taste was very good too.
After dinner I caught a bus from South Bank to Mater Hill. It is times like this I appreciate the go-card and how easy it is to get around the CBD and surrounding precincts. But more on that later...
I soon found the venue. Can You Keep A Secret is a vintage store that is newly opened on Stanley Street next to Vespa Pizza. It was still early and the shop was closed so I went around the back. There I bumped into Greta. She plays the violin and Persion fiddle, aka kamancheh. I had met Greta twice before: once at the concert Mzaza did with Chaika and again at a Waziz session (a session where people hang out and play Balkan / Middle Eastern music). She introduced me to Pauline, the lead singer, but only briefly as they were setting up. There was still some time before 7pm I went in search of snacks before returning to wait for the doors to open.
At last it was time to go inside. The shop is not very big but it is full of charm and lots of old stuff. I know I feel old when I can look around and say "I remember this" or "we used to have that". Mrs Sage and the Princess would really like it so I will have to bring them back one day. Mzaza had allowed for sixty people. I don't know how many turned up but the little shop was packed. Thankfully some people brought extra chairs. I scored a backless bench seat and was later joined by two Turkish mamas, Soon it was standing room only at the back. The place filled up with the smell of sweet tomato sauce base from the Vespa pizzas and alcohol from a variety of bottles bought from the bottle shop a few doors down.
The last time I saw Mzaza was at Vision Gallery with Chaika. That place was a little larger but just as packed as this shop. I appreciate the closeness you can get from smaller venues. Admittedly that was my first concert in an art gallery and this was my first concert in a vintage shop.
Someone on Facebook described this an evening of boisterous intimacy. Pauline told us group were going to play some music from an upcoming album and a few of their earlier pieces. In between they were happy to take questions from the audience and chat in between songs. They all had a turn introducing songs and talking about the music that went into the song, or the meaning of the song - many of them were in French or Ladino (a Judaeo Spanish language, almost dead apparently) - or sharing stories about themselves. I think that any of the six members of the group would make fascinating dinner companions. Besides the two ladies already mentioned there was Stephen (accordion and flute at one stage), Chloe (double bass), John (guitar), and Jordan (tonbak and drum). Jordan I had mat at the Waziz session which he attended in spite of just having returned from Greece. Chloe and I have a mutual acquaintance as it turns out - Laura Thomson, my violin teacher.
The music was great, as I expected. There were musical influences from all over the Balkans, Middle East and North Africa. The definition "world music" really applies here. I think of all the music they played my favourite was the first piece. It was an instrumental with double bass and accordion. I know, I'm shocked too that it was not something that featured the violin. I will confess though, as someone who is learning the violin, it was hard not watch Greta when she played. Often things Laura has taught me would come to mind as I paid attention to her hands and bow.
One of the topics that came up was shredding. Shredding refers to fast virtuosic playing, typically with guitar. I think it has come to be applied to anyone who can play an instrument very well and very quickly. In this case Jordan had brought it up talking about ten-year-old kids who could drum circles around him, which is impressive since Jordan is certainly no slouch himself. There were a few passages there where Greta could be said to have been shredding.
On the whole it was a great evening. It ended up with Pauline teaching the audience to sing the chorus to Adios Querida. It sounded so cool. I can't help but wonder what people outside the shop would think was going on if they heard that. Actually I think there was one more song after this - Rampi Rampi - to which the aforementioned Turkish mamas and a few others started to dance despite the lack of space.
After the show it was good to get out into the cool evening air. I had a quick chat to Greta before saying good night. I had to go because I was relying on public transport to get home and she remembered what that was like. It was a short walk to Mater Hill bus station and a short wait for a bus to get to South Bank bus station. Next to that is the train station. This is where my evening starts going down hill. I miss a train by about three minutes so I wait nearly half an hour for the next one. I get on, and just as we are about to leave the lights in the train go off... and stay off. The radio chatter I can hear from the driver's cabin does not bode well. There are apologies for the delay while they fix this little fault. They were still fixing in when the next train home came along.
Nothing could take the edge off that show though. It was great fun from start to finish. Shows like that are what motivate me to keep going with the violin. While I am struggling with even small pieces from Telemann and Bach (JC, not JS) Greta is having the time of her life on stage. And it's not just her. It's also Laura when I see her play, or Jorge from Underscore Orchestra or anyone else who makes music with a violin. Then I remind myself that the pieces I am playing now are not the destination. They are part of a journey. And eventually I will get to Rampi Rampi, and beyond. Will I get to Paganini Caprices? We'll just have to wait and see, but it will be fun to find out.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Violin lesson #80,#81
It's still a case of steady as she goes. No more stickers since last time and no new pieces.
Looking back at the last blog there was no small not of pessimism. I should not be so negative. There have been no stickers but I have been learning all the time. I learned what it means to play baroque style (no vibrato - unless it is an embelishment - which is good because I don't know vibrato yet). I learned that advanced and professional violinists prefer to tune by ear rather than use tuners or smart-phone apps because there is a certain ringing you can hear when the instrumnent is in tune that can't be picked up otherwise. I learned about chromatic scales - they are scales which use every half-tone in an octave. Laura mentioned this because Sirisha was playing in third position and wanted to know how to tell whether adjoining notes were close-fingers (half tone apart) or open-fingers (whole tone apart). If annyone asks you, B and E are the only naturals that are not followed by an accidental (sharp) when ascending. And of course that makes C and F as the naturals without a flat when descending.
There has also been constant fine-tuning of my bow hold and violin hold. I know I will be thankful for this one day. Laura tells of times when she was at uni where a teacher would get her to do a very basic exercise over and over again to reinforce some point or other. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to know how to play beautiful and intricate pieces yet spend hours on some seemingly minor point. I get an hour lesson a week (shared with Sirisha) and sporadic practise at home so it is going to take a little longer fo rme to get things right. It's not good or bad: it is how it is.
The other thing is getting my body to do stuff. It's the same problem that plagued me when I learned yoga and tai chi. The more I try and make myself do something or copy someone the harder it gets. For the violin it is learning to relax. Shoulder, arm, wrist, hand fingers... all need to be relaxed. When I think they are, Laura shows me they can relax more. I didn't know I carried tension like that. It is only obvious when I hear the difference between playing with relaxed muscles and playing with tense muscles.
My lessons have moved to the 5-6pm time slot. It means I get home a little later but won't need to make up time during the week.
And tomorrow I look forward to a Mzaza event. Can't wait :)
Looking back at the last blog there was no small not of pessimism. I should not be so negative. There have been no stickers but I have been learning all the time. I learned what it means to play baroque style (no vibrato - unless it is an embelishment - which is good because I don't know vibrato yet). I learned that advanced and professional violinists prefer to tune by ear rather than use tuners or smart-phone apps because there is a certain ringing you can hear when the instrumnent is in tune that can't be picked up otherwise. I learned about chromatic scales - they are scales which use every half-tone in an octave. Laura mentioned this because Sirisha was playing in third position and wanted to know how to tell whether adjoining notes were close-fingers (half tone apart) or open-fingers (whole tone apart). If annyone asks you, B and E are the only naturals that are not followed by an accidental (sharp) when ascending. And of course that makes C and F as the naturals without a flat when descending.
There has also been constant fine-tuning of my bow hold and violin hold. I know I will be thankful for this one day. Laura tells of times when she was at uni where a teacher would get her to do a very basic exercise over and over again to reinforce some point or other. I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to know how to play beautiful and intricate pieces yet spend hours on some seemingly minor point. I get an hour lesson a week (shared with Sirisha) and sporadic practise at home so it is going to take a little longer fo rme to get things right. It's not good or bad: it is how it is.
The other thing is getting my body to do stuff. It's the same problem that plagued me when I learned yoga and tai chi. The more I try and make myself do something or copy someone the harder it gets. For the violin it is learning to relax. Shoulder, arm, wrist, hand fingers... all need to be relaxed. When I think they are, Laura shows me they can relax more. I didn't know I carried tension like that. It is only obvious when I hear the difference between playing with relaxed muscles and playing with tense muscles.
My lessons have moved to the 5-6pm time slot. It means I get home a little later but won't need to make up time during the week.
And tomorrow I look forward to a Mzaza event. Can't wait :)
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
Violin lesson #79
I seem to be at a plateau.
My bow hold is not what it should be. The thumb position is not correct and the hold itself is more grip and less hold. Of course, the more I try to relax the hand the tighter it gets...
Staccato is not what it should be. This is related to the bow hold. I need to tense and release. I can't tense if I hold too tight.
I can make a great sound, which is wonderful. I can't do it consistently, which is frustrating. I know the sound is in there. I've heard it. So has Laura. It will be a grand day when it is the norm and not an irregular occurence.
I need to find exercises or something to relax the shoulders / neck / back. Too much tension there is communicating itself to the bow. It also won't allow me to move my elbow as freely as necessary to cross strings without hitting a wrong note.
I must accept plateaus. It is a part of learning, especially when practice is not what I want it to be. I will do my best for next week. Either I will pass or there will be something else to work on. Hopefully it won't be the same thing.
My bow hold is not what it should be. The thumb position is not correct and the hold itself is more grip and less hold. Of course, the more I try to relax the hand the tighter it gets...
Staccato is not what it should be. This is related to the bow hold. I need to tense and release. I can't tense if I hold too tight.
I can make a great sound, which is wonderful. I can't do it consistently, which is frustrating. I know the sound is in there. I've heard it. So has Laura. It will be a grand day when it is the norm and not an irregular occurence.
I need to find exercises or something to relax the shoulders / neck / back. Too much tension there is communicating itself to the bow. It also won't allow me to move my elbow as freely as necessary to cross strings without hitting a wrong note.
I must accept plateaus. It is a part of learning, especially when practice is not what I want it to be. I will do my best for next week. Either I will pass or there will be something else to work on. Hopefully it won't be the same thing.
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