All That Jazz

So Grandma asked if I was still taking organ lessons. I guess since I haven't been talking about it, some may assume that I am not. But nope, I am now in year four of my organ lessons project. I am actually starting to see progress. I feel I have come a long way in four years. I really like practicing, but without lessons, my practice time has no focus or direction.

In addition to classical organ, I am also involved with the Dixie State University Jazz Band. I spend a lot of my practice time hooked up to a metronome. The one thing I have learned from playing with the Jazz Band is that I sure wish I had a drummer keeping time for me when I do my classical pieces on the organ.

Quarterly Blog

Apparently I am terrible at posting to this blog. And I have plenty for me to comment on. I still have three children at home. They continue to grow as musicians. My children away from home continue to grow as musicians. All of my children, except the youngest have studied music with Mr. Candland at Pine View high school (and middle school). In two years, Naji -- the youngest joins the Pine View Middle School orchestra, thus being the 7th and final Runs Through to have Mr. Candland. In other words, Mr. Candland will have taught a complete set. I feel like this will be the end of an era. My children, however, were quick to point out that another crop of Runs Through musicians is in the wings. Candland will only have to stay teaching another 13 or 14 years to meet up with Noah, who has already been taught to hold a bow.

 


















After Bobo taught him the proper bow hold, which apparently he is a natural for, she and Sam jammed. Yep, Bobo does some improvisational stuff on her cello. Here is a video of them singing for Baby Noah!


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As Good As It Gets

I am finally getting around to posting video from my Junior Recital. The delay in posting this time isn't due to my disappointment with my recital. After the recital I got really sick. Maybe due to stress. Maybe due to the unseasonable cold winter we've been having. In any case, I had to find where I had stashed the videos in my fever induced state. I still have a couple of more videos I need to find.

In the end, I was pleased with the recital. For me I think this might be as good as it gets. If I compare the videos from two and three years ago, I have made vast improvements. So that is good.



My boss was hassling me about being single the other day. He asked me if I was going to be one of those self involved women that never get remarried. I told him probably. There are too many things I enjoy ... too many things I wouldn't want to give up. I love being able to take organ lessons. I love having a piano and an organ in my living room. I love being able to wake up at 4:00 a.m. in the morning to start practicing. I love going to my writing group. Further, I told my boss, it would be impossible to find a spouse who would support these kind of habits.

I felt pretty sure of myself until later that night when it occurred to me that I had just described my father. My mom used to get up to practice the organ at 3:00 so she would be done practicing when I got up at 5:00 to practice. We had two pianos (one upstairs and one downstairs) and a full organ and Leslie cabinet in the basement. Somebody had to haul that upright grand and that theater organ down the stairs. And I bet he didn't complain. And I bet he was proud of how hard she practiced, because I know he was proud of how well she played.

I suppose they just don't make men like that any more.

Concert Season 2013

Despite the unnaturally cold temperatures, concert season is in full swing. This week I got to watch both Naji and Bobo in concert. Below are just a few of the highlights.

Winter is Here

You know that slogan, "Winter is coming." We don't say that anymore. Winter is definitely here. I got sick. I don't even remember the last time I got that sick. I actually missed two days of work, but it took even longer than that to recover. I could barely hobble around on Thanksgiving, but with the help of a cane and my wonderful children we were able to create a family feast and practice for the Ward Christmas party.

And this week it has snowed in Dixie. Twice. Wednesday was bad. Saturday was worse. We do not have the clothes or tools to match this kind of winter. (Not that that stopped my kids from playing in it all night).

So this is a hodge podge post. This is the post of pictures announcing winter is officially here. And the videos of the Piano Ensemble concert, where I played with a fever of 102. The awful sickness had just begun.

What's right with the world

We were talking about autodidacticism the other day. Never in the world has it been easier to teach yourself. (You teachers will see what I did there -- introduced a word and defined it in the next sentence).

But some claim that the youth of today are loosing their curiosity. Learning and knowing has become too easy. And I worry that someday people will prefer pushing the button on a pre-programmed electric organ to spending years learning to master the instrument. And someday, someone will ask, "Where have all the musicians gone?"

They will have to ask the question, because they won't know enough to sing the question. Well last night the answer was, "They've gone to Jazzy's everyone." Open mic at a local dive :) It did my heart good to see all those in the upcoming generations flexing the muscle of autodidacticism. Oh yeah, I was there to support my baby -- who hasn't been a baby for a very long time.

Here are a couple of the originals his band The Nomad Heart performed. (Hi Jake and Cameron)

The magic continues

Remember way back two years ago, when Bobo cried because holding a cello bow hurt her hands. And now she is playing the brandenburg concertos. If that isn't magical, I don't know what is.