After going to the awesome Lindsey Stirling concert the previous Friday and having a pretty full-on weekend it was back down to earth today.
I tried to practice as much as I could in between everything else and even deleted a few games from the tablet to free up some more time. Perhaps it was this lack of practice or perhaps it was one of those days but the lesson this afternoon was not one of my best. After helping Laura out with a E-string (thankfully she did not break the string on the other side of the violin LOL) it was mostly downhill.
My thumb does not sit on the neck of the violin the way most other people's thumbs do. To put it in the correct position felt awkward, though I do think it improved my intonation. Once I get home and relax everything I expect it will feel more natural and I will adapt to it.
My intonation was all over the place today. I couldn't get a consistent good sound. It might be I was too concerned about my thumb to remember the rest of the fingers.
I had trouble getting some of the rhythm right for Farewell To Skye and Mr Handel's March. I must start listening to the CD and / or playing with a metronome. Granted sometimes I have to snatch practice time when I can and it is not always possible to have these things but it doesn't mean I should not try where possible.
After all this time I still have trouble recognising notes in unfamiliar music. I expect this is something that will need extra attention. Part of the reason I don't play unfamiliar music confidently is that I am not so confident about the notes to play. This week I am going to be more diligent about the second part of the pieces I played today (or rather the B section of the ABA arrangement).
When it was Sirisha's turn I was more than happy to sit down. She played beautifully today. Perhaps her practice is enhanced with Anand's decision to start learning piano. From all accounts he is doing very well =)
After the lesson Sirisha and I met Nab, a gentleman with a Middle-Eastern background who plays the oud and the tabla. He knows both Mzaza and Wazia and mentioned both Bill and Greta by name. He was a very friendly man and very encouraging. He even sang a song from India that Sirisha recognised. It certainly helped me feel better, and inspired me to practice better for my lesson next week.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Friday, February 20, 2015
Lindsey Stirling
Disclaimer: I am a big fan of Lindsey Stirling and her concert was great so I'm going to ramble a lot. You have been warned.
I had the day off for the concert because I didn't know what time the VIP activity was happening. As it turns out, it happened at 630pm, an hour before the doors opened for the concert. Cyclone Marcia was hanging around the Central Queensland coast so the weather in Brisbane was showery. Media reports were suggesting low lying areas in Brisbane might be flooded. Not only that but with severe weather the trains stop running. So to err on the side of caution I arrived at The Tivoli around 330. Even so, I was not the first one there. A group of four young men were standing around the front door. The rain was not heavy so I decided to find a coffee shop.
That was easier said than done. That part of Fortitude Valley/. Bowen Hills does not have many coffee shops. In the end I walked around a few blocks and ended up back at the food court near Brunswick Street Station. After a tour of McWhirters and lots of dithering I decided on dinner at a salad place. It was actually pretty good. I also bought some water and chocolate, for later. On the way back to The Tivoli I stopped at a bakery that had a sign for their coffee. I walked in, not expecting much from a bakery, and was pleasantly surprised. They were serving Vietnamese style coffee. Score! The nice made me a very good black coffee (the white coffee with condensed milk would have been far too sweet). Pleased with the find, I drank the coffee all the way to The Tivoli.
By now it was 430. The crowd had grown slightly larger. I still out-aged them by at least a third. I expect many of them were in their 20s. In front of me was a couple dressed mostly in black. The guy was "goth" - long hair, skinny, black nail polish and carrying a stuffed goat (more about that later. I kid you not. If you don't believe me, search for goat). I did talk to them a little. They were at the last concert. They went on to say Lindsey was over two and a half hours late, and came on without any explanation why. By the time she started several people had walked out. I call them imbeciles. Behind me were two computer "nerds" prattling on and on and on about different topics like hacking and network security. It was almost hurting my ears. While I was looking around I was hard pressed to find anyone near my age.I did notice some people turn up with violins. They were for Lindsey to sign.
I thought about this. While I did miss carrying Patience around, I realised The Tivoli had no cloak room. This meant I would have to carry her around all night. I was not averse to this but under the circumstances I didn't want to do it in a crowded club. Also, I didn't like the idea of someone, even Lindsey Stirling, signing my baby. Patience is a violin, not a CD or a poster. Okay, she's a student violin but she is all mine and I didn't think it right to mark her like that. The people who did get them signed did not have them later so I expect they drove to the venue and put their violins away.
When 630 arrived someone came to the door and asked for VIPs to step forward. I was surprised to see about six people in front of me move in. What? The rest of them were just there for the concert? All the better for me. We were ushered inside where our confirmations were checked (mine was done without asking for ID). I was issued with a lanyard and was asked to join a queue near the sound desk. The guy behind me was a character. Literally. He was a dude from Assassins Creed. Don't ask me which one because I don't know, There might just be one. In any case, he WON his VIP pass in a contest. He had to dress up as a video game character. He won. So he decided to turn up in his costume, which as far as I could tell was a black shirt and pants and two leather forearm guards (bracers I believe they are called) with metal symbols on them.
Almost before I knew it I was ushered forward. I already had a copy of the Shatter Me CD for Lindsey to sign. She asked my name and hugged me and thanked me for coming. Garvy (the keyboard player) took the photo of Lindsey and I. I struck the "Asian" pose (flashing a peace sign) so when Lindsey noticed that she struck a similar pose. While she signed the CD I asked them about holding the koala. They said they had a great time. Next time I will consider stalking Lone Pine. Wait, did I type that out loud??? And that was it for the close encounter. There are many jokes going around about her height, or lack of height, so to me she was taller than I expected. I watched a lot of the other VIP get the treatment. I counted at least three violins. The Assassins Creed chap had his bracers signed. Some people presented Lindsey with gifts. I could not make out most of them. But the next-to-last guy had a hug bag with him. In it were three very large black-and-grey drawings of Lindsey Stirling. They were very good and she was really impressed.
After some mingling it was time for the Q&A. Lindsey started by introducing her entourage. All of them and not just the band (Garvy on keyboards and Drew on drums). She was asked, among other things, about vegemite (tried it and did not like it because she spread it on like jam), people she wanted to collaborate with (Katy Perry, Ellie Goulding and others), what she would say to the America's Got Talent judges (she would not be rude but would just say "I did it"). Someone asked her about doing a cover of How To Train Your Dragon. She said that was cool but in a "similar demographic" to some of her other covers she is working on Doctor Who. Huh? Similar demographic? Doctor Who? The same Doctor Who that was being produced three years before I was born? Surely she was kidding. She has never played a Strad but she would like to (duh I would like to play one too).
I got to ask two questions. I asked about her trip to Kenya to record her cover of We Found Love. She was dating the guy who shot the video at the time. She went along as part of the crew, When they got there they thought it would be a good idea to film a video of her playing there. The video really got to me. Whether it was the song, her playing, the singing, the joy of the people she met (especially the children and some of the elders). It's just amazing. She said it was a life changing experience and she really wants to go back there. I think it was when I found this video that I really took notice of her. It is what gets me to thinking I would one day like to teach kids to play violin or teaching in third world countries. I kinda wonder how many other people there knew what I was talking about. I would like to think most, but I would not bet on it. I also asked her about her violins. She has eleven of them. She went on to say six were for video shoots, and the other five she plays and records with regularly (including a black glittery electric violin named Cleopatra). To wrap up they played an acoustic cover of Shatter Me.
As they walked security guards came around to ask for ID. No, I didn't get asked (thank goodness for the beard) but I did have one kid show me his drivers license because he thought I was with security. WTF? Just because I had a black shirt and pants? Oh yeah, the beard. Kids these days...
While Lindsey and the lads went to prepare for the show, we were entertained by two DJs. Or, more to the point, I was. I don't think many of the other concert goers were paying them much attention. The girl could certainly move with the music. The guy not so much. One person near me commented on the diversity of the crowd. By this time the place was pretty full. And he was right. For the most part it was twenty-something computer-game-playing types (in my opinion) but I dare say there were some fans of hers before she became know for her Dragon Age video. Okay, yes, she does look pretty hot as Zelda too. The DJs were ushered off and not long after that, almost right on 830, it was on!
She belted out three songs before she took her first breather. She did not stop moving. She was dancing about all over that stage so much it was almost hard to keep up. And her playing was as energetic as her dancing. And I notice she as using the whole bow.
Forgive me here if I get things out of sequence. There was a lot happening.
She did the Aussie Aussie Aussie chant and got the obligatory response. She showed us her Australian accent, which quite frankly wasn't great but was a good effort. She commented on the weather and the crowd told her "welcome to Queensland". She was upset that she asked for fine weather and did not get it, joking that she always gets what she wants. Well, she did, in the end, because it had stopped raining and I walked half way back to the train station before I realised I had forgotten my umbrella.
After one energetic song she commented how unfit she was. She did not train before the tour and was now paying for it. Fortunately she had been working out with leg weights and while her arms were puny here quads were fantastic. This might be the caveman in me talking but I thought all of her looked fantastic. I taker her point about fitness though, especially when she moves so much. Even when she was sitting down there was a sense of pent-up movement.
Lindsey was telling us how the band came together. A week before her first show she realised she needed someone to play live music. Her friends of friends came through in the form of Garvy and Drew. They learned seventeen songs in two days These are not songs, as such. They are instrumentals, which don't have hooks and choruses and so on and that made their job even harder. Lindsey did not expect them to stick around after the first show, figuring it was a one-off deal, but to her surprise, the group has stayed together ever since, She is a firm believer that at different times people come into your life for a reason. I used to think that, then I didn't and now I am not so sure. It was during this segment that she notice the goat for the first time. GoatBoy was stroking his stuffed toy and she thought he had a pet rabbit. He tossed the goat to Garvy, who tossed it to Lindsey. She played with it before giving it to Drew who through it back.
I can't quite remember what started it but at one point Garvy asked what the goat was called, and that led to a Ma-zzy Ma-zzy Ma-zzy chant. I did not expect that, and it's something that will be unique to Brisbane =)
In another segment she talked about how she wrote music. Sometimes she came up with a theme and then tried to find music to match. A theme like steampunk western. The crowd cheered for Roundtable Rival. She teased by saying it was not next up but they did play it soon after that. It was perhaps my favourite performance. If you've not clicked the link, here comes a spoiler: the part of the guitar-wielding bandit was played by a keytar wielding Garvy! There was great interplay between them (as well a fantastic music).
Lindsey used no props, as can be imagined. She did have a video screen, which was especially handy for those songs like Shatter Me and We Are Giants which feature guest vocals. It also helped with getting the context of the song (Crystallize had the ice caverns for example, and Master Of Tides a water theme). It was also great for Lindsey to show a montage of home movies while she and the lads took a well earned break.
About Crystallize, this was her break-out electronic dance music (EDM) hit inspired by Skrillex.She wrote this music six or seven times before she felt it was ready. Thank goodness she did not give up.
Smart-phones. I hate them at concerts. I really do. What a shame I did not have a smart-phone swatter. Lamentably I could not find a Ramones seven-inch vinyl record, or a drumstick, and Stabby would have been confiscated (although there was no pat-down and no metal detector). The phones remind me of the current time, when I would rather be in the moment. I still don't get why people want to record something like this when they could be present for it. One rare plus side was that when Lindsey was out of view on the other side of the stage, I could still see her. BUT I STILL HATE THEM!
She told us she has heard of six couples who met at a Lindsey Stirling show and got married. Garvy pointed out she was single and before she knew it she had been auctioned off for $1,000. That's about a millionth of what I think she is worth. Then a guy asked rather loudly if Garvy was single, which cracked everyone up, This is how they were. They loved the banter and were willing to go with the crowd. This was her segue into a cover of John Legend's All Of Me. This is where I missed Mts Sage the most. And damn you for this Lindsey ... she asked people to hold up lights (ie smart phones) ... damn you
A lot of the concerts I have been to had breath-taking moments. This was one of two for this concert. The crowd was singing along with the chorus and it was just beautiful. At the end of it, GoatBoy was making out with the goat. Garvy noticed. Lindsey couldn't believe she missed it so he obligingly did it again. Like, ew.
The second such moment was when Lindsey was playing a Lord Of The Rings medley. Half way through she stopped playing ... and started singing.It was magic. I have been led to believe that, in general, musicians will develop a very good pitch, so it is no surprise that can translate to the musician's voice. It certainly did for her. It was amazing, and so surprising. Hopefully she will sing on her next album.
Towards the end Lindsey mentioned that some artists are bankrolled by record companies with deep pockets and world-wide advertising access so they can very quickly gain a huge amount of recognition and fan base. Lindsey pointed out that she had none of that. She was putting stuff up on YouTube like so many others and her fans did the rest. She was so grateful to everyone that had supported her and allowed to her to do what she loved, and to share what she loved.
There were times when she was choking up talking about how hard it was to be in a dark place and needing to have faith to take a step before making it into the light, and how hard it was to be different and to fight for what you want in spite of your differences. She told us we all have different skills and talents. Even though I try to look for the "sames" in people I know where she is coming from and understand her message.
She was fabulous. What you see is what you get. You can feel the love of playing and performing that she has. I've been to a number of shows over the last few years, mostly for the violin, and while all performers show love of playing in one way or another, it really stood out with Lindsey Stirling. Perhaps it was her energy. Perhaps it was because I was only standing a few meters away. Whatever it was, it was palpable yet undefinable.
It was just on 1030 when she finished. Wow, that was some show. She gave it everything. I went home so happy after that. It was everything I expected and a little more.
Gosh, I think that's it. I might come back and add stuff as I remember. Thanks for reading if you get this far. This blog is mostly for my benefit to record what I can remember when I want to look back at it.
I had the day off for the concert because I didn't know what time the VIP activity was happening. As it turns out, it happened at 630pm, an hour before the doors opened for the concert. Cyclone Marcia was hanging around the Central Queensland coast so the weather in Brisbane was showery. Media reports were suggesting low lying areas in Brisbane might be flooded. Not only that but with severe weather the trains stop running. So to err on the side of caution I arrived at The Tivoli around 330. Even so, I was not the first one there. A group of four young men were standing around the front door. The rain was not heavy so I decided to find a coffee shop.
That was easier said than done. That part of Fortitude Valley/. Bowen Hills does not have many coffee shops. In the end I walked around a few blocks and ended up back at the food court near Brunswick Street Station. After a tour of McWhirters and lots of dithering I decided on dinner at a salad place. It was actually pretty good. I also bought some water and chocolate, for later. On the way back to The Tivoli I stopped at a bakery that had a sign for their coffee. I walked in, not expecting much from a bakery, and was pleasantly surprised. They were serving Vietnamese style coffee. Score! The nice made me a very good black coffee (the white coffee with condensed milk would have been far too sweet). Pleased with the find, I drank the coffee all the way to The Tivoli.
By now it was 430. The crowd had grown slightly larger. I still out-aged them by at least a third. I expect many of them were in their 20s. In front of me was a couple dressed mostly in black. The guy was "goth" - long hair, skinny, black nail polish and carrying a stuffed goat (more about that later. I kid you not. If you don't believe me, search for goat). I did talk to them a little. They were at the last concert. They went on to say Lindsey was over two and a half hours late, and came on without any explanation why. By the time she started several people had walked out. I call them imbeciles. Behind me were two computer "nerds" prattling on and on and on about different topics like hacking and network security. It was almost hurting my ears. While I was looking around I was hard pressed to find anyone near my age.I did notice some people turn up with violins. They were for Lindsey to sign.
I thought about this. While I did miss carrying Patience around, I realised The Tivoli had no cloak room. This meant I would have to carry her around all night. I was not averse to this but under the circumstances I didn't want to do it in a crowded club. Also, I didn't like the idea of someone, even Lindsey Stirling, signing my baby. Patience is a violin, not a CD or a poster. Okay, she's a student violin but she is all mine and I didn't think it right to mark her like that. The people who did get them signed did not have them later so I expect they drove to the venue and put their violins away.
When 630 arrived someone came to the door and asked for VIPs to step forward. I was surprised to see about six people in front of me move in. What? The rest of them were just there for the concert? All the better for me. We were ushered inside where our confirmations were checked (mine was done without asking for ID). I was issued with a lanyard and was asked to join a queue near the sound desk. The guy behind me was a character. Literally. He was a dude from Assassins Creed. Don't ask me which one because I don't know, There might just be one. In any case, he WON his VIP pass in a contest. He had to dress up as a video game character. He won. So he decided to turn up in his costume, which as far as I could tell was a black shirt and pants and two leather forearm guards (bracers I believe they are called) with metal symbols on them.
Almost before I knew it I was ushered forward. I already had a copy of the Shatter Me CD for Lindsey to sign. She asked my name and hugged me and thanked me for coming. Garvy (the keyboard player) took the photo of Lindsey and I. I struck the "Asian" pose (flashing a peace sign) so when Lindsey noticed that she struck a similar pose. While she signed the CD I asked them about holding the koala. They said they had a great time. Next time I will consider stalking Lone Pine. Wait, did I type that out loud??? And that was it for the close encounter. There are many jokes going around about her height, or lack of height, so to me she was taller than I expected. I watched a lot of the other VIP get the treatment. I counted at least three violins. The Assassins Creed chap had his bracers signed. Some people presented Lindsey with gifts. I could not make out most of them. But the next-to-last guy had a hug bag with him. In it were three very large black-and-grey drawings of Lindsey Stirling. They were very good and she was really impressed.
After some mingling it was time for the Q&A. Lindsey started by introducing her entourage. All of them and not just the band (Garvy on keyboards and Drew on drums). She was asked, among other things, about vegemite (tried it and did not like it because she spread it on like jam), people she wanted to collaborate with (Katy Perry, Ellie Goulding and others), what she would say to the America's Got Talent judges (she would not be rude but would just say "I did it"). Someone asked her about doing a cover of How To Train Your Dragon. She said that was cool but in a "similar demographic" to some of her other covers she is working on Doctor Who. Huh? Similar demographic? Doctor Who? The same Doctor Who that was being produced three years before I was born? Surely she was kidding. She has never played a Strad but she would like to (duh I would like to play one too).
I got to ask two questions. I asked about her trip to Kenya to record her cover of We Found Love. She was dating the guy who shot the video at the time. She went along as part of the crew, When they got there they thought it would be a good idea to film a video of her playing there. The video really got to me. Whether it was the song, her playing, the singing, the joy of the people she met (especially the children and some of the elders). It's just amazing. She said it was a life changing experience and she really wants to go back there. I think it was when I found this video that I really took notice of her. It is what gets me to thinking I would one day like to teach kids to play violin or teaching in third world countries. I kinda wonder how many other people there knew what I was talking about. I would like to think most, but I would not bet on it. I also asked her about her violins. She has eleven of them. She went on to say six were for video shoots, and the other five she plays and records with regularly (including a black glittery electric violin named Cleopatra). To wrap up they played an acoustic cover of Shatter Me.
As they walked security guards came around to ask for ID. No, I didn't get asked (thank goodness for the beard) but I did have one kid show me his drivers license because he thought I was with security. WTF? Just because I had a black shirt and pants? Oh yeah, the beard. Kids these days...
While Lindsey and the lads went to prepare for the show, we were entertained by two DJs. Or, more to the point, I was. I don't think many of the other concert goers were paying them much attention. The girl could certainly move with the music. The guy not so much. One person near me commented on the diversity of the crowd. By this time the place was pretty full. And he was right. For the most part it was twenty-something computer-game-playing types (in my opinion) but I dare say there were some fans of hers before she became know for her Dragon Age video. Okay, yes, she does look pretty hot as Zelda too. The DJs were ushered off and not long after that, almost right on 830, it was on!
She belted out three songs before she took her first breather. She did not stop moving. She was dancing about all over that stage so much it was almost hard to keep up. And her playing was as energetic as her dancing. And I notice she as using the whole bow.
Forgive me here if I get things out of sequence. There was a lot happening.
She did the Aussie Aussie Aussie chant and got the obligatory response. She showed us her Australian accent, which quite frankly wasn't great but was a good effort. She commented on the weather and the crowd told her "welcome to Queensland". She was upset that she asked for fine weather and did not get it, joking that she always gets what she wants. Well, she did, in the end, because it had stopped raining and I walked half way back to the train station before I realised I had forgotten my umbrella.
After one energetic song she commented how unfit she was. She did not train before the tour and was now paying for it. Fortunately she had been working out with leg weights and while her arms were puny here quads were fantastic. This might be the caveman in me talking but I thought all of her looked fantastic. I taker her point about fitness though, especially when she moves so much. Even when she was sitting down there was a sense of pent-up movement.
Lindsey was telling us how the band came together. A week before her first show she realised she needed someone to play live music. Her friends of friends came through in the form of Garvy and Drew. They learned seventeen songs in two days
I can't quite remember what started it but at one point Garvy asked what the goat was called, and that led to a Ma-zzy Ma-zzy Ma-zzy chant. I did not expect that, and it's something that will be unique to Brisbane =)
In another segment she talked about how she wrote music. Sometimes she came up with a theme and then tried to find music to match. A theme like steampunk western. The crowd cheered for Roundtable Rival. She teased by saying it was not next up but they did play it soon after that. It was perhaps my favourite performance. If you've not clicked the link, here comes a spoiler: the part of the guitar-wielding bandit was played by a keytar wielding Garvy! There was great interplay between them (as well a fantastic music).
Lindsey used no props, as can be imagined. She did have a video screen, which was especially handy for those songs like Shatter Me and We Are Giants which feature guest vocals. It also helped with getting the context of the song (Crystallize had the ice caverns for example, and Master Of Tides a water theme). It was also great for Lindsey to show a montage of home movies while she and the lads took a well earned break.
About Crystallize, this was her break-out electronic dance music (EDM) hit inspired by Skrillex.She wrote this music six or seven times before she felt it was ready. Thank goodness she did not give up.
Smart-phones. I hate them at concerts. I really do. What a shame I did not have a smart-phone swatter. Lamentably I could not find a Ramones seven-inch vinyl record, or a drumstick, and Stabby would have been confiscated (although there was no pat-down and no metal detector). The phones remind me of the current time, when I would rather be in the moment. I still don't get why people want to record something like this when they could be present for it. One rare plus side was that when Lindsey was out of view on the other side of the stage, I could still see her. BUT I STILL HATE THEM!
She told us she has heard of six couples who met at a Lindsey Stirling show and got married. Garvy pointed out she was single and before she knew it she had been auctioned off for $1,000. That's about a millionth of what I think she is worth. Then a guy asked rather loudly if Garvy was single, which cracked everyone up, This is how they were. They loved the banter and were willing to go with the crowd. This was her segue into a cover of John Legend's All Of Me. This is where I missed Mts Sage the most. And damn you for this Lindsey ... she asked people to hold up lights (ie smart phones) ... damn you
A lot of the concerts I have been to had breath-taking moments. This was one of two for this concert. The crowd was singing along with the chorus and it was just beautiful. At the end of it, GoatBoy was making out with the goat. Garvy noticed. Lindsey couldn't believe she missed it so he obligingly did it again. Like, ew.
The second such moment was when Lindsey was playing a Lord Of The Rings medley. Half way through she stopped playing ... and started singing.It was magic. I have been led to believe that, in general, musicians will develop a very good pitch, so it is no surprise that can translate to the musician's voice. It certainly did for her. It was amazing, and so surprising. Hopefully she will sing on her next album.
Towards the end Lindsey mentioned that some artists are bankrolled by record companies with deep pockets and world-wide advertising access so they can very quickly gain a huge amount of recognition and fan base. Lindsey pointed out that she had none of that. She was putting stuff up on YouTube like so many others and her fans did the rest. She was so grateful to everyone that had supported her and allowed to her to do what she loved, and to share what she loved.
There were times when she was choking up talking about how hard it was to be in a dark place and needing to have faith to take a step before making it into the light, and how hard it was to be different and to fight for what you want in spite of your differences. She told us we all have different skills and talents. Even though I try to look for the "sames" in people I know where she is coming from and understand her message.
She was fabulous. What you see is what you get. You can feel the love of playing and performing that she has. I've been to a number of shows over the last few years, mostly for the violin, and while all performers show love of playing in one way or another, it really stood out with Lindsey Stirling. Perhaps it was her energy. Perhaps it was because I was only standing a few meters away. Whatever it was, it was palpable yet undefinable.
It was just on 1030 when she finished. Wow, that was some show. She gave it everything. I went home so happy after that. It was everything I expected and a little more.
Gosh, I think that's it. I might come back and add stuff as I remember. Thanks for reading if you get this far. This blog is mostly for my benefit to record what I can remember when I want to look back at it.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Violin lesson #101, #102
These are in the one post (a) because I behind in my ToDo list and didn't devote enough time to blogging last week and (b) because they are kind of related.
Both weeks I spent much of the lesson focussed on Londonderry Air. I had not played this for Laura before so we thought it was time to see how it was going. There were good points and bad points.
It appears I carry a lot of tension in my hands. Laura said a good way to relieve the tension was to strangle small puppies with my bare hands. Actually, that part is not true. I just have to learn not to hold the violin and the bow so tightly. So now when I practice I stop randomly and check my grip. I don't hold pencils or the steering wheel of the car tightly and it will be the same with the violin and bow ... eventually.
My elbow does not point towards the ground. This means I can't get a good curve on my violin fingers which means it is harder to get good intonation and do some of the fast and fancy playing Laura does. I like fast and fancy. It reminds me of a Ferrari, or an ex-flame of mine, but I digress...
I don't use enough bow. This is really important especially for Londonderry Air because it is so lyrical. I can't believe over a hundred lessons on and Laura still has to remind me "more bow, more bow". I think I am getting there. Hopefully I am using more bow than I used to even though I don't always get to the heel or tip.
In #101 Laura helped me polish O Sole Mio. I appreciated her efforts. I feel like I can play it well. Having said all that it didn't go down to well when I played it for Mrs Sage at Valentines Day. It was partly the way I played and partly her lack of interest. I think I picked a bad song, or perhaps the key was too high.
This brings me around to the subject of the viola. Laura and I talked about taking violin to ABRSM3 and then considering a switch. This might be a good idea. I have to give +1 to Mrs Sage who remembered one of the students at the recital playing viola. She said she liked the sound of the viola more than the violin, so perhaps it is not a bad way to go, though I expect I will miss playing Patience. I can't imagine I will be able to play her while learning a viola at the same time, at least not initially. However, this is all quite some time away so there is little point worrying about that now.
Generally my playing is pretty good. Laura told Sirisha and I we no longer sound like beginners, but every now and then we slip up and show our beginner-ness. As you know, I am not satisfied with "pretty good" which is why I go to Laura and why I'll keep on with lessons.
Also I have dumped some of the games I play on the tablet in an effort to make more time for more productive pursuits, like blogging and playing violin,
Both weeks I spent much of the lesson focussed on Londonderry Air. I had not played this for Laura before so we thought it was time to see how it was going. There were good points and bad points.
It appears I carry a lot of tension in my hands. Laura said a good way to relieve the tension was to strangle small puppies with my bare hands. Actually, that part is not true. I just have to learn not to hold the violin and the bow so tightly. So now when I practice I stop randomly and check my grip. I don't hold pencils or the steering wheel of the car tightly and it will be the same with the violin and bow ... eventually.
My elbow does not point towards the ground. This means I can't get a good curve on my violin fingers which means it is harder to get good intonation and do some of the fast and fancy playing Laura does. I like fast and fancy. It reminds me of a Ferrari, or an ex-flame of mine, but I digress...
I don't use enough bow. This is really important especially for Londonderry Air because it is so lyrical. I can't believe over a hundred lessons on and Laura still has to remind me "more bow, more bow". I think I am getting there. Hopefully I am using more bow than I used to even though I don't always get to the heel or tip.
In #101 Laura helped me polish O Sole Mio. I appreciated her efforts. I feel like I can play it well. Having said all that it didn't go down to well when I played it for Mrs Sage at Valentines Day. It was partly the way I played and partly her lack of interest. I think I picked a bad song, or perhaps the key was too high.
This brings me around to the subject of the viola. Laura and I talked about taking violin to ABRSM3 and then considering a switch. This might be a good idea. I have to give +1 to Mrs Sage who remembered one of the students at the recital playing viola. She said she liked the sound of the viola more than the violin, so perhaps it is not a bad way to go, though I expect I will miss playing Patience. I can't imagine I will be able to play her while learning a viola at the same time, at least not initially. However, this is all quite some time away so there is little point worrying about that now.
Generally my playing is pretty good. Laura told Sirisha and I we no longer sound like beginners, but every now and then we slip up and show our beginner-ness. As you know, I am not satisfied with "pretty good" which is why I go to Laura and why I'll keep on with lessons.
Also I have dumped some of the games I play on the tablet in an effort to make more time for more productive pursuits, like blogging and playing violin,
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
One Direction (+McBusted and Samantha Jade)
I never thought it would happen, The Szechuan Sage went to a One Direction concert. How could he let this happen? First of all Mrs Sage was supposed to take The Princess and Stacia (dear friend of The Princess). Then The Aunt was going to take her. It turns out neither of them could make it so The Sage took one for the team.
Getting there was pretty sweet, even though I made the only mistake of the night. Stacia had sprained her foot in a gymnastics-related accident so she was on crutches. She said she would be fine to get to and from the concert. What a trooper! We went to Garden City to take a free bus to Suncorp Stadium. My mistake was in not dropping off the ladies at the drop-off zone. I parked at Park And Ride which meant we had to walk to the bus. Stacia was great, I couldn't stop apologising all the way to the bus. The first bus was full and since we needed a seat we waited all of five minutes for the next one. Once we were on it did not take long to fill up. Yeah it was TERRIBLE being squashed in a bus with mostly-attractive women, getting flicked in the head with long hair and stuff. I was OUTRAGED!
We got to Suncorp Stadium in good time despite the drizzly weather and the expected worse-than-peak-hour traffic. It has been many years since I had been to the stadium. I think it was still called Lang Park when I was last there =) I was very impressed with the facility. The bus station is downstairs. We headed for a lift and were soon up in front of Gate B. After accidentally queueing in a VIP merchandise line for a while, we made it into the stadium. I really can't complain about the seats. "Straight ahead, down those stairs and a little to the right". Rocking! No long walks to get to the seats. We were directly facing the stage too which is always preferable to sitting along the sides.
Samantha Jade was up first. She belted out five songs before she had to go. She's still got it. For me she was the best performer. The stadium did not help. I think she is far more suited to a smaller more intimate venue like a dance club or The Tivoli ot places like that.
After this we went for water and soft drinks. I thanked the coffee gods once because there was a Grinders stand, and a second time because they agreed to make me a double espresso. Yeah, that's right, and it was good coffee. We all bought a bottle of water each but no food - the ladies had eaten at McDonalds on the way to the bus. Stacia lined up for merchandise and didn't have to wait too long. Nothing was far from our seats. It was really convenient.
Eventually McBusted came on - the amalgam of McFly and Busted. I didn't know any of their songs, even the one that is currently on the charts. They did have lots of energy and were very entertaining and charming, especially the drummer who was implementing a "no shirt" policy. I suppose the girls (and some of they guys) loved it. They got the job done and we were left waiting for 1D.
There was quite a gap between McBusted and One Direction. The crowd mostly entertained itself. The Mexican wave went around a few times. After that there was some music over the loud-speakers that got the crowd up and dancing. You know, songs like Macarena and All The Single Ladies and Dynamite. Having said that, the crowd was loving it and there was much singing and dancing. Eventually though, it was time to cue the screams... the boys were on.
They are good performers. Very good. They sing well, have a great rapport with each other, and have learned how to work the crowd. I am not a fan of their music I must say. A lot of it is lite and generic and rather unsatisfying. Of course the fans were lapping it up, Stacia and The Princess were having a fantastic time. I tried not to let the sea of smart-phones bother me. It's inevitable. I will never, and The Sage means NEVER understand why people do that. Be present in the moment dudes. Live in the now. Don't filter your life through a tiny screen ... and so on. I will admit to recording some of the show for The Princess when it looked like her arm was getting tired. The boys were very grateful to the fans. They know the ride they are on will not last forever. Once again I was amazed that people were leaving before the encore. What? No dessert? The ladies knew to stay put and sure enough One Direction were back for two more songs.
After the show we waited for most of the patrons to leave so Stacia could have an easier time navigating the stairs. It was also convenient to have the short walk back to the bus station. We queued up at one platform, and just as we thought we were going to get a bus they closed it off and directed us to another platform where we had to start waiting again. Once more we waited until we were sure the ladies could get a seat, and even I stayed sitting down this time. The rain gods must also love One Direction because while clouds had been threatening most of the evening, there was no rain until we boarded the bus. This time I had the girls wait at the bus stop until I could bring the car around. By the time we got Stacia to her place and returned home it was almost midnight.
To sum up, it was a great night. My princess and her friend enjoyed it so I was happy. I'm still not a 1D fan but they did not give the worst concert I had ever attended.
Getting there was pretty sweet, even though I made the only mistake of the night. Stacia had sprained her foot in a gymnastics-related accident so she was on crutches. She said she would be fine to get to and from the concert. What a trooper! We went to Garden City to take a free bus to Suncorp Stadium. My mistake was in not dropping off the ladies at the drop-off zone. I parked at Park And Ride which meant we had to walk to the bus. Stacia was great, I couldn't stop apologising all the way to the bus. The first bus was full and since we needed a seat we waited all of five minutes for the next one. Once we were on it did not take long to fill up. Yeah it was TERRIBLE being squashed in a bus with mostly-attractive women, getting flicked in the head with long hair and stuff. I was OUTRAGED!
We got to Suncorp Stadium in good time despite the drizzly weather and the expected worse-than-peak-hour traffic. It has been many years since I had been to the stadium. I think it was still called Lang Park when I was last there =) I was very impressed with the facility. The bus station is downstairs. We headed for a lift and were soon up in front of Gate B. After accidentally queueing in a VIP merchandise line for a while, we made it into the stadium. I really can't complain about the seats. "Straight ahead, down those stairs and a little to the right". Rocking! No long walks to get to the seats. We were directly facing the stage too which is always preferable to sitting along the sides.
Samantha Jade was up first. She belted out five songs before she had to go. She's still got it. For me she was the best performer. The stadium did not help. I think she is far more suited to a smaller more intimate venue like a dance club or The Tivoli ot places like that.
After this we went for water and soft drinks. I thanked the coffee gods once because there was a Grinders stand, and a second time because they agreed to make me a double espresso. Yeah, that's right, and it was good coffee. We all bought a bottle of water each but no food - the ladies had eaten at McDonalds on the way to the bus. Stacia lined up for merchandise and didn't have to wait too long. Nothing was far from our seats. It was really convenient.
Eventually McBusted came on - the amalgam of McFly and Busted. I didn't know any of their songs, even the one that is currently on the charts. They did have lots of energy and were very entertaining and charming, especially the drummer who was implementing a "no shirt" policy. I suppose the girls (and some of they guys) loved it. They got the job done and we were left waiting for 1D.
There was quite a gap between McBusted and One Direction. The crowd mostly entertained itself. The Mexican wave went around a few times. After that there was some music over the loud-speakers that got the crowd up and dancing. You know, songs like Macarena and All The Single Ladies and Dynamite. Having said that, the crowd was loving it and there was much singing and dancing. Eventually though, it was time to cue the screams... the boys were on.
They are good performers. Very good. They sing well, have a great rapport with each other, and have learned how to work the crowd. I am not a fan of their music I must say. A lot of it is lite and generic and rather unsatisfying. Of course the fans were lapping it up, Stacia and The Princess were having a fantastic time. I tried not to let the sea of smart-phones bother me. It's inevitable. I will never, and The Sage means NEVER understand why people do that. Be present in the moment dudes. Live in the now. Don't filter your life through a tiny screen ... and so on. I will admit to recording some of the show for The Princess when it looked like her arm was getting tired. The boys were very grateful to the fans. They know the ride they are on will not last forever. Once again I was amazed that people were leaving before the encore. What? No dessert? The ladies knew to stay put and sure enough One Direction were back for two more songs.
After the show we waited for most of the patrons to leave so Stacia could have an easier time navigating the stairs. It was also convenient to have the short walk back to the bus station. We queued up at one platform, and just as we thought we were going to get a bus they closed it off and directed us to another platform where we had to start waiting again. Once more we waited until we were sure the ladies could get a seat, and even I stayed sitting down this time. The rain gods must also love One Direction because while clouds had been threatening most of the evening, there was no rain until we boarded the bus. This time I had the girls wait at the bus stop until I could bring the car around. By the time we got Stacia to her place and returned home it was almost midnight.
To sum up, it was a great night. My princess and her friend enjoyed it so I was happy. I'm still not a 1D fan but they did not give the worst concert I had ever attended.
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Violin lesson #100
Unless I am mistaken, today was my 100th violin lesson.
The practice leading up to the lesson was good. I managed to practice scales each time and run through each of the four pieces I am working on right now. The pay-off for practicing only half of each piece paid off in todays lesson with marked improvement in Mango Walk and Farewell To Skye.
Not only that but Laura used music shorthand to show me how to play O Sole Mio (aka It's Now Or Never for you Elvis fans). Earlier in the day I asked if she would help me learn something romantic. Last year we spoke about that and Laura played this song. The key was changed to something I recognise and it sounds very cool.
Sirisha has found another Indian song she wants to learn. She passed a YouTube video on to Laura who wrote a score for her. It sounds lovely and evokes India very well. It is a song Sirisha knew as a child so it is somewhat sentimental too.
OMG. That's it. Is this really Szechuan Sage writing this? Where's the rest of it?
Yup. This is it. Happy centennial lesson with hopefully many more to come.
The practice leading up to the lesson was good. I managed to practice scales each time and run through each of the four pieces I am working on right now. The pay-off for practicing only half of each piece paid off in todays lesson with marked improvement in Mango Walk and Farewell To Skye.
Not only that but Laura used music shorthand to show me how to play O Sole Mio (aka It's Now Or Never for you Elvis fans). Earlier in the day I asked if she would help me learn something romantic. Last year we spoke about that and Laura played this song. The key was changed to something I recognise and it sounds very cool.
Sirisha has found another Indian song she wants to learn. She passed a YouTube video on to Laura who wrote a score for her. It sounds lovely and evokes India very well. It is a song Sirisha knew as a child so it is somewhat sentimental too.
OMG. That's it. Is this really Szechuan Sage writing this? Where's the rest of it?
Yup. This is it. Happy centennial lesson with hopefully many more to come.
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