Keep on Keepin' on

It has been a while since my last entry, and I apologize for that. As you may have guess, I've been super-busy. One of my two classes, which is called "Graduate Studies in Music", has it's share of work to do for it. It's basically a research class, which is a kind class that is dreaded in the college world. Lots of difficult homework, lots of critical thinking, and one picky and super-analytical professor. Sounds like a college course, doesn't it? The other class, called "Advanced Woodwind & Brass Repertoire" is much more manageable, meeting only 6 times this whole semester. All we do is put together lists of music pertaining to a specific topic and present that to the class and have them listen to the examples. It's a good group of graduate students, so it's a very comfortable setting. Plus, it's taught by my horn professor, which sweetens the deal.

Also on my plate I have rehearsals, which takes up 2-4 hours of my day. And, many other little things. I'm attempting to add onto that a part-time job, which at the moment is going to be bell-ringing for the Salvation Army in front of stores. That's right, they get paid...at least in Wisconsin, they do. It's great! Instead of ringing the bell, I could play my horn! I'll play mainly Christmas tunes, but I can also interject a few melodic studies that I've worked on. I work my first shift for 7 hours on Saturday the 3rd at a grocery store in Oak Creek called Piggly Wiggly. Yes, that really is the name of a store. There's one near our house, even.

But, things are still fun. I've got good friends here, I'm learning a lot, I'm getting lots of horn playing in...and I still get to spend some good time with my family.

A couple weekends ago I had a great opportunity, one of the best musical experiences I've ever had. I played a concerto, or a feature piece, with the Mid-Columbia Symphony in Kennewick, WA. The orchestra flew me over there from Thursday, Oct. 18th to Sunday, Oct. 21st. The performance went very well, and I was quite comfortable on stage. I didn't get nervous at all, which is a real surprise to me. I think it was because I know most of the folks in that group, and have had a lot of good support from them over the years. My parents came over for the performance, too, as well as my old teacher from CWU. I also saw many of my former colleagues and friends, which was a real privilege. What a fantastic weekend it was. I'll never forget it. There, I felt like a true professional musician...someday I'll be one of those. But for now, I'm happy being a student.

Take care and value music.