Concert Band

On the advice of my one college instructor, I started performing with the Hamilton Concert Band back in September '10.  It felt just like being back in concert band at my old high school, except there's no angsty teenagers. We played a concert back in April, celebrating the Royal Marriage, and also performed with the Saltfleet high school band at their spring concert.  As a result, I now am certain that music performance is what my main focus will be over the next few years at school.  

We had our final rehearsal before the summer break a couple of weeks ago, and then right after, the band held it's general meeting to discuss the upcoming 2011/2012 year, and also to elect members to the executive.  I stayed just to hear what was going on, and then ended up being elected to the executive committee for the upcoming season.  Starting in September, I'm the treasurer for the next 2 years, so it seems like my 3 years as an accountant are finally going to be put to use again.

What to be When You Grow Up?

A re-post from my Facebook notes, but I felt it was worthwhile to post here too.


Everything has a beginning and an end, and that old cliche about endings being new beginnings is actually a good cliche for a reason - because it's true. I'm also a firm believer that everything happens for a reason and that there's some kind of blueprint out there for everyone's life, but also that you have to make things happen, rather than wait for them. So far, the past year of my life has been filled with even more growing up, learning and self-discovery. 

I've learned that the answers to what you need are really provided, so long as you listen and act accordingly. My burning question has always been "What do I want to be when I grow up?" 

I've always had issues answering that question, but the one thing that always remained constant was my love of all things music. Just ask my sister about the mix tape she found that included me singing "Under The Sea" at the top of my lungs when I was in grade school...

That said, I was reluctant to pursue that path because for the majority of people, careers in music don't really pay the bills. Okay, so apparently my answer "Musician" has been staring me in the face since I was a little kid, but I was ignoring it because I'd been groomed to believe that it was too difficult to be a successful musician and live a comfortable life.

Once embracing the musician idea, I realized that my life has been stuck in a rut of working just to live, rather than living for my work and that no amount of money would make me happy if I wasn't doing what I really loved. So, this September, off I head to college, *again*, but this time to study music. I'll be playing flute and piano until my fingers can't possibly move any faster, and might fall off; yet I know I'll be the happiest I've ever been. 

I probably should've gone this route 10 years ago when I was first applying to colleges and universities, but that's all in the past now... and what's most important is that I'm finally pursuing the answer that's been there all along. 

This next year might be a struggle at times, but so I've learned, nothing worthwhile is ever easy.

Changes

It's been some time since my last post, mainly because things have been pretty much un-changed for the past few months. Same old story - work, sleep, work...etc gets boring to write about after a while. As of yesterday, the wheels of change have finally started to move again! But first, the back-story:

I had applied for school back in February and had several months to really buckle down and practice my audition pieces. During that time, I also realized that the no-name flute I owned was really horrible when even after some basic maintenance and screw tightening/loosening, I was squeaking on the really high notes and couldn't play anything lower than G. Serves me right for buying a cheap instrument off eBay... Luckily, my problem was solved when I scored an awesome deal for a practically new student model Armstrong flute at a second hand store. Now I could finally play all the notes I needed to play and since there was no squeaking, I no longer sounded like I was killing a cat in my apartment.

Yesterday was my audition. I was a bit shocked that I wasn't really nervous until I got on the bus, but I calmed my nerves with a little bit of classical music to drown out the "interesting" passengers around me. I don't know what it is, but Bach's Air on the G String always calms me down and makes everything seem peaceful around me. Interestingly enough, both my audition pieces were Bach as well. My audition was scheduled for 9:30am, but no one showed up until 9:15. By the time I was let in to a room to warm up, it was already after 9:30.

I ended up auditioning in front of the programme co-ordinator, who decided to stop me part way through Sleepers Awake and give me a mini lesson. I was asked to re-start the piece so we could hear the difference in playing. I didn't feel that my second piece was very strong... my nerves started to get the better of me at that point, but I made it all the way through it anyways. Before the interview started, I was also asked to sing the notes that were played on the piano and whether a chord was major or minor. According to my interviewer, I've got a good ear. (Take that Wes, I'm officially not tone deaf!!!)

The interview went well. I was told that I'm talented, but that my playing ability is a year behind people who would be entering the regular applied music programme. That said, I was applying for the prepatory course because I didn't feel I was at the right level, prior to the audition. After discussing what my goals were, and why I auditioned, he told me that I'm accepted to the programme and that he was going to process my offer of admission that afternoon.

Now the difficult part is figuring out when to tell my bosses that I'm leaving. I definitely want to wait until it's all official and I've secured funding for the school year. Some people are saying just give 2 weeks, but I've been there a while and would still like to leave on a good note. I'm thinking that I'll give notice at the beginning of August and that I'll be finished at the end of the month. I'm a bit scared about the living on my own and going back to school full time bit, but I have to do this. If I don't, I know I'll regret it for the rest of my life.

One Ginormous Leap!

For some time now, I've had difficulty watching and listening to orchestras, concert bands and individual performers. I think this was in part because I felt like a little piece of me would die inside with the realization that I wasn't persistent enough in following my dream. I remember going to see the Phantom when it returned to Toronto, and I sat there and cried; not because of the story, but instead because I was upset that I wasn't performing and doing what I love best.

My friends and family know that I'm not happy in my current job. It's boring and repetitive, and just plain not challenging. I like my co-workers, but I NEED to be creative. Working with numbers every day is just not providing me with that. I'm cranky, stressed and quite frankly, my job is making me sick.

I decided a few weeks ago that perhaps I should swallow my pride and apply for the music prep. course at Mohawk. My audition at McMaster 10 years ago didn't go well at all, and I was too proud and sure of my abilities to take beginners music. Now, I've come to realize that if I don't follow through with my talents, I'll never be truly happy.

I've got the audition pieces picked and just finished the OCAS application for the prep. course, which is only 8 months. My goal at the end of this is to be a professional musician in an orchestral setting, preferably for a company like Mirvish productions, which produces the majority of the musicals in Toronto.

I would say I'm crossing my fingers in the hope that this will be a success, but instead, I'm taking a ginormous leap towards the career I've always known I should have, and am telling myself that it's all going to work out.

Musical Nerdiness

I've owned my ipod for over a year now, and haven't downloaded music from itunes or any other sites, just because I own so many CDs I really, really love. That said, I came to a realisation last Thursday night as I was prepping my ipod playlist for my upcoming road trip to Montreal... I really wanted "Informer" by Snow on my playlist. Did I own it already? That's a loud, resounding NO! In all my glorious nerdiness, I proudly logged onto itunes and clicked on my selection. Yes, that's right, my first (and probably only) itunes purchase was a one-hit wonder from the 90s. On second thought, I wonder if they have anything by Milli Vanilli...

Matthew Good, and some Celebrity Look-A-Likes!

I got offered a couple of tickets for the Matthew Good concert at Hamilton Place, this past Friday. Of course I accepted the tickets, and after a few minor issues were ironed out, I'd also found someone to join me that night. My sister met me at work and we went for dinner before the show, since there were 3 hours between when I finished working and the start of the concert.



We arrived at the venue and the first thing out of the ticket scanner's mouth was, "man, those are awesome tickets!" It's always a good sign when an employee verifies the awesomness of your seats. We were 9th row, dead centre.



As we're sitting there, Brenda's commenting on people as they're arriving and finding their own seats. Two rows ahead of us, this group of people come in and Brenda just blurts right out "Oh my god, it's Sideshow Bob!" The people in front of us heard, and started laughing. Seriously, this guy's hair was friggin huge, and completely blocked my view. For those who are skeptical as to whether I'm exagerating, see the picture below - courtesy of Brenda.


Was he courteous enough to bring a hair elastic to tie it back out of every one else's line of sight... NO. That said, after the opening act, it was determined that they were, in fact, in the wrong seats. I enjoyed listening to the opening act, I just couldn't see much because of the mass of hair in my direct line of sight.

I swear it was celebrity look-a-like night and we weren't told about it. A guy came in and I swear he looked exactly like Screech from Saved by the Bell and Brenda noticed this older leathery looking guy in a leopard print cowboy hat and dubbed him "Crocodile Dundee". Then the lights went out, the performance started and we couldn't search for any more look-a-likes.


Matthew Good came out, performed for an hour, took a picture of the audience and then went off stage to the sound of roaring applause. He came back out and continued for another 45 minutes. I've got total respect for anyone who can play an acoustic guitar for an hour straight, but to go for another 45 minutes is incredible. My own fingers start to hurt after 30 minutes.

One of the funniest things he said was that when the lights are on, Hamilton Place looks like it's stuck in the 1970s, but when the lights are out, it looks like Battlestar Galactica, and that in his opinion, that's awesome. Not only is the guy an awesome musician, but he's quite amusing too. Makes me love nerdy guitar players even more.

Favourite Things

Okay, so a few people have said I'm not posting enough anymore... Fine, I agree and I'll even admit that I'm lacking in the ascerbic wit department lately. So, in an effort to appease Michelle, the 'Blogger Extraordinaire', I give you my top 5 lists (in no particular order).

Alone-time Activities

1. Playing the flute, guitar, and piano
2. Curling up with an awesome book
3. Photography
4. Writing
5. Beating Guitar Hero on Expert... almost.

Activities Whilest Commuting

1. Applying makeup on the bus, without poking my eyes out with the mascara wand or eye pencil
2. Solving killer sudokus and logic problems
3. Reading
4. Listening to music, trying to drown out the other, less considerate ipod users on the bus
5. Sleeping... yes, I sleep on the bus, and no, I've never missed my stop, ever!

Songs

1. Disenchanted - My Chemical Romance
2. Country Roads - John Denver
3. Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring - Bach
4. Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison
5. Mario Takes a Walk - Jesse Cook

Books

1. Anil's Ghost - Michael Ondaatje
2. Dracula - Bram Stoker
3. Microserfs - Douglas Coupland
4. Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
5. Interview with the Vampire - Anne Rice

Movies

1. Big Trouble in Little China
2. Ghostbusters
3. The Goonies
4. The Court Jester
5. Return of the Jedi

Recipes to Cook or Bake

1. Chicken Bengalia
2. Chocolate Miracle Whip Cake
3. Spaghetti & Meatballs
4. Curried chickpeas with apple and rice
5. Christmas Sugar Cookies

Culture, anyone?

I had a couple of tickets given to me for the Jesse Cook concert at Hamilton Place last Saturday. Originally I was going to take my mom with me. That said, she was working all weekend and by the time I got home from the mall, she was out cold. So I ended up taking my sister with me instead.

I warned her ahead of time that the majority of the music would be completely instrumental. By the time the intermission rolled around, all the music to that point had been purely instrumental, and she turned to me and said, "when is there going to be singing?". The singing came in the second half of the concert. I was really hoping to hear "Fall at Your Feet", but didn't hold my breath, seeing as they'd already performed 2 songs with vocals. Towards the end, they wanted people to get up and dance, and even told them to get up on stage and dance if they wanted to. It was like one big salsa/flamenco/conga line party up there.

After a huge standing ovation an encore, and then another standing ovation, Jesse Cook and the rest of the musicians came back out for a second encore. It was the most amazing performance I've ever witnessed. I got to hear "Fall at Your Feet", completely acoustic, with no microphones either. The entire theatre was silent, and it was an incredibly breathtaking experience.

Shockingly, my sister, the pop-tart music lover that she is, actually enjoyed herself... once the singing and dancing started.

Subways aren't the place to die, dear...

Okay, so Brenda asked me to go to Beachfest with her on the 2nd. I said sure, Chantal Kreviazuk was playing, but more importantly for Brenda, her dream guy Kalan Porter was performing. She also persuaded me to go because David Usher was performing that night for the festival too.



We finally get to Toronto, and I've got our subway to subway to bus route all planned out. I like to be prepared, and know where we're going. We got there at 1pm and should've had plenty of time to get to the festival for Chantal Kreviasuk at 3:00. Everything was working as planned and we were on the University-Spadina line, poised to transfer onto the Bloor line at St. George Station... until an announcement was made saying that there was no access to St. George Station due to an ongoing police investigation.



We got off at Spadina to transfer subway lines, and waited for about 45 minutes for the next subway, until we heard an announcement stating that there was no subway service, due to a police investigation at track level, and that all passengers should go above ground to the shuttle bus service. ~ooh, a police investigation at track level... you know what that means?!? Someone decided to jump in front of a subway during the mid-day rush. I should swear off of taking the subway ever again... my last day working in Toronto, there was an electrical problem at Union station, and I was stuck on the subway between stations for almost 45 minutes.


We ended up taking streetcars for the first time ever... kinda scary, to be honest. I'm still not too sure about waiting in the middle of a road for public transit, while the cars whiz by, dangerously close to where you're standing. We missed the 3:00 performance, but managed to get there for Kalan Porter at 4, so the day wasn't completely bust. I decided to forget about David Usher at 9pm, so we walked from Sunnyside Park to Ontario Place, and then walked around both Ontario Place and the Ex.


I just have one request of anyone wishing to jump in front of a subway... Could you please re-think your plan... maybe try it at 1 or 2am if you're really serious about it?