that's the name of an album by james figurine. who is a crazy electronic guy. the name of the album has stuck with me since i came across it a bunch of years ago. remember when you were a kid and you'd play games with your friends and it was so much fun to be 'on the same team??' the feeling of being on your friend's "side" was SO comforting and SO safe. (okay, maybe that's because i had panic attacks in p.e. class...) sometimes i have to remind myself that (hopefully) no one is out to get ya. everyone is hoping for the best for each other. and that is some good energy. and it totally makes it easier to look to a goal. one time i was very, very, very nervous for a chair placement audition in college. teacher said to me, "stop freaking out. we all want to hear you at your best, not your worst." i realized, hey, they're on my side, they want to hear what i'm capable of. likewise, it is so rejuvenating to play with other clarinetists who don't make me feel like they're just waiting for me to walk out the door for a minute so they can crush all my good reeds. know the feeling? everyone i'm playing with at the moment is just so great. great players and cheerful as hell! hahah!
over the weekend i got together with my dear, dear, dear friend, who thank god we are in the same city again. i missed her soooo much when i was on the east coast. anyway, we don't get together all the time, but when we do it is just like old times. anyhoo, we were talking about practicing and she said that she has NEVER liked practicing on her own. she does so much better practicing WITH someone else. i am comfortable on my own, but at the moment, i need a little help from my friends! which is why i think duet sunday is working out so well for me, ahem, SAVING ME!!!! this probably will totally shock bob to read this, but i am still not practicing "regularly." (he is laughing right now, because yes, obviously I'm not practicing regularly...hehehe...ughhhhh! FML!! he can tell, i'm sure...) <---i was being sarcastic prior to parenthesis...
at the moment, my 6th grade band students are definitely practicing more than me. I require 100 minutes a week from them. and a lot of them are totally into it. one girl has a really chapped lower lip (flute) and she said to me, "i looooove playing flute! i play everyday as much as i can!" <---the good old days, right???! maybe i should bring home my own practice log and have ben sign off on it.
il covegno is getting better and better, despite my neglect. we did record a page of it today, but i don't know if y'all want to hear it...besides the quality of the recording is terriblissimo. we both feel that we are really getting back into shape. it is similar to getting in shape, physically. it is just getting EASIER to play. and my music brain is coming back--meaning we are able to dig/think deeper into sections/play together, all that good stuff. it's just all coming back.
like one of my teachers told me once, "you never really forget."
and an even better teacher quote, "you can't rush greatness." <---hahaha! don't know if that will ever happen, though.
xo
To make practicing or daily warm-ups fun, I have tried having a character of the day. For example, I'll play all my scales that day with a "mournful" or "enthusiastic" or "mysterious" quality. It's kind of fun. You might want to give it a try if you're getting bored.
ReplyDeleteAlso, music minus one cds are fun and can help with sight-reading.
You are greatness. Keep playing and loving it. We are playing excerpts from Prokofiev's "Romeo & Juliet" this week, and I'll be thinking of you, Miss Ballet Lover! :)
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