Madison 2: PM...my butt is whipped.
Today was rough...just the kind of rough I signed on for, but rough nevertheless.
8:30 (after too many turnovers, Composers Guild business, and news that my mom is in the hospital again) was bagpipe class. We had two newbies, and 3 slightly experienced. So Joan Kimball lent us some bagpipes, showed us some basics, and sent us off into the corner to practice while she worked with the others (no offense to the ear; we were all in G).Piping is a tricky thing to get ahold of: you're either blowing or squeezing the bag, but you have to transition between blowing and squeezing to keep the air pressure constant, or you get dips in pitch and volume.I was starting to get it by the end though. Tomorrow I'll have a drone...wow.
Then there were the two of us in dulcian class. Bob Wiemken is infinitely kind and infinitely strict, and basically we're going to rework my entire embouchure. After that, harp class was a breeze, though it's hard to get a handle on the finger and arm habits of real harping. After a Turkish lunch, it was loud band time, which meant playing on a borrowed instrument because we were at A-460. I wasn't horrid, but my bad habit were found out. The sackbutteers had the worst time adjusting to the new pitch standard.Bob let them figure out what works for them. Me, I've just bit the bullet and learned A positions, and then transpose via clef. But that's not something done in a day, and I still haven't fully mastered it.
I stood for that, and stood through mass, and that's all the standing I could stand. I went to my room for horizontal time and some nosh, back to school to practice. Right now is the Marion Verbruggen recital. I should be there, but I'm not, and I really don't feel guilty about that.
Comments
Posted by: jeffrey smith
Posted on: July 9, 2007 09:56 PM
I know what a Turkish toilet is, but what the Mehlevi is a Turkish lunch? I hope it's more like a real lunch than a Turkish toilet is like a real toilet.
Posted by: Jeffrey Quick
Posted on: July 10, 2007 07:26 PM
It was a real lunch...curried lamb with a wonderful pilaf full of cardamom.