A Midsummer Night's Dream

I'm playing in an opera this month!

This was quite unexpected. I play (french) horn in several community groups, none of which really does anything in the summer, so this was a nice surprise - and it even pays a bit!

The opera is "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by the British composer Benjamin Britten. He was a 20th century composer, though not an extreme, atonal composer. His music for this opera is atmospheric and gauzy for the enchanted forest and the fairies, romantic for the smitten couples, and peasant-like for the "thespians."

It's written for a very small orchestra. That means that everybody hears you. I'm playing 2nd horn, of two horns, but there's no blending into the background. At last week's rehearsal both of us horn players were sight reading the parts, but now we have a week to practice, so the conductor will be expecting more this week. We haven't heard much of the singers yet as we are rehearsing just the orchestra parts right now.

One of the surprises at the first rehearsal was how young the orchestra members are. I think I am probably about 30 years older than everyone else! I decided it's not a big deal. I'm just here to play. However, it got me thinking about the groups I regularly play in. Every group has it's own personality, I would say. The band I play in is predominantly school band directors. They are very serious about playing well and they all know a lot about band music and conducting. They are a happy, upbeat group and many go out after rehearsal to socialize. The orchestra I belong to is a typical community group. We are mostly adults, with a few high school students. The playing ability ranges from pretty rusty to practically professional, so overall playing is uneven. It's a friendly group, but lacks the cohesiveness that the band full of band directors has. This new opera orchestra is made up of 20-somethings, mostly, who are aiming for a career as performers. I don't sense a group dynamic yet, maybe because it is a pick-up group, but they are all friendly.

I am very happy to have this opportunity. It's been years since I played an opera. It's a challenge that has gotten me practicing new things. I'm excited to hear it with the singers and to see how they plan to stage it. Fun times!

William Shatner and me

There's an icebreaker game called Two Truths and a Lie. In this game everyone comes up with three statements about themselves, two that are true and one that is a lie. The goal is to come up with statements that confuse others so they don't guess which is your lie. I always win this game. My three statements are:

• I played with the Chicago Symphony.
• I was voted most musical in my high school class.
• I went on tour with William Shatner.

All my friends and many of my acquaintances know that I play horn, so nearly everyone assumes I was voted most musical in my high school class. But then they think I must have gotten confused and written two lies and one truth.

No, I was not voted most musical in high school. My friend Sue, who played the bass, was voted most musical girl. My friend Jeff, who is now a producer in the recording industry, was voted most musical boy.

And yes, I did play with the Chicago Symphony, just one week, but it was an amazing experience to play with a major symphony orchestra. My teacher was principal horn of the CSO and they were performing a very large work that called for many extra horn players. He was able to hire a number of his students, including me. We were the off-stage horns.

But this post is titled William Shatner and me. Yes! I went on tour with William Shatner! After college I freelanced in Chicago for awhile, and was hired to play in a pick-up orchestra that was going on tour over several weeks. The program would be symphonic music played while Shatner narrated a story with a background of space and a laser show. This was in the late 1970s, when the original series had been off the air for awhile and before any of the movies and spinoffs came out. As it turned out, we only went to Indianapolis and played one show. Something went awry with the financing of the whole shebang and I'm not sure we even got paid for that concert. Before that one concert, though Mr. Shatner was just hanging out backstage. I didn't talk with him because I couldn't think of anything to say, but my friend Gary did, telling him how much he enjoyed Star Trek. Shatner was very gracious and approachable.

In all, not a huge event in my life, but an interesting little sidelight that always makes people say, "You what?"

The Seinfeld Post

Yes, it's a post about nothing.

It's been one of those days when there isn't a minute to spare and now it's 10:49 CDT and i need to write my slice for the day!

The time change always throws me off. I'm just surprised all day at what time it is. What did I do that kept me so busy? I taught, I finished report cards, went to a faculty meeting after school, rushed home, made a quick dinner (fried rice), and left to go to orchestra rehearsal 45 minutes away. It was a looong rehearsal. At 10 we were out of time, so another 45 minute drive back home. I'm tired.

I have things to write about, I promise! Check back tomorrow!

After hours musician

Today, Wednesday, is the first day of the third trimester at my school. This means I have stacks of things to grade while also working on report cards, which are due on Monday. Tomorrow my class is having an essay celebration to which we have invited the parents. Some of my 4th graders are still revising their essays. I will be talking about writing being a work in progress when I kick off the celebration - organization, spelling, word choice - every child is at a particular place in his or her growth and so all their essays are not perfect.

So life is somewhat stressful this week. Too much to do! However, last night I was at a band rehearsal. Monday night I was at an orchestra rehearsal. Last Saturday I played a children's concert. In addition to being a 4th grade teacher, I play French horn, or horn as we horn players call it. I play regularly in three different groups - a concert band, a community orchestra, and a horn choir. Sometimes my fellow teachers ask how I can find the time for all this music making. My answer is, how can I not? I love teaching, but I also love music.

I was a musician before I was a teacher. I attended music school and was fortunate to study with some awesome musicians. I spent hours every day playing my instrument, listening to music, talking about music.

I no longer do all that, but it is unthinkable to me that music would not be a huge part of my life - playing and listening. It does take a big chunk of time, because I also have to practice on the days when I don't have a rehearsal. I tell everyone that I don't watch television because I play horn instead, and that is pretty much the case.

A question that I get a lot when people find out that I have music degrees is, do I use music in my classroom. Not much. I find it incredibly distracting.

And now, I should go practice.