More notes....
Mar. 4th, 2020 12:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jennlkSome played:
Some listened to:
The snow is almost entirely melted - only the deep piles and places that don't get any sun are left. I did wind up shoveling the driveway on Thursday -- the snow had drifted all the way across it for about 15 feet, about 8"-10" deep. Drifted snow is very hard packed, and my shoulders took a lot of impact digging it out. And then J didn't even notice. He'd have noticed if I hadn't shoveled, as he'd have gotten stuck in that drift.
I thought they were done working on the power lines, but the heavy ramp to the west access is still in place, and there are trucks/dozers moving around in the area. I saw a work lift about half-way up one of the pylons, but so far away that I couldn't tell what they were doing.
- LCCB winter concert on Saturday evening. It was a concert. No commentary other than that -- this is a group I play in for fun, not for great musical experiences. I have so far avoided any obligations other than showing up and playing. They're asking for old personal photos (HS - college era) for a collage at the next concert. J and I dug up a picture of me in my Tech Band uniform and sent a scan of that off.
- FCB stage rehearsal with Farmington HS peeps. probably a quarter of the FHS band wasn't there - lots of empty seats in the layout, which really messes with the set crews. My current understanding of concert order is FHS-FCB-Joint bands, which means two rounds of set-up. Set crew did get a map, but there will be some changes. DC not there, guest conductor a bit concerned about a piece "when are you playing this?" "next week." "...." Two pieces on next week's program were not rehearsed. That will be fun, fsvo -- one's in a slow 6, the other is a big dramatic fanfare that requires some precision.
- LCCB rehearsal last night. Much sightreading, as we got stuff for the May concert. Peep on one side of me disliked everything (that's not "our type" of music, I don't know any of these songs (about a medley of 1950's hits), this 60's rock piece needs to go faster, etc.) I refrained from comment, other than "We'll perform it faster. This is tempo de learno", which at least got zie to shut up about that. (I think zie's biggest problem is that it's all music zie has not seen before, and that makes zie uncomfortable. Zie is a decent big band saxophonist, but flails a bit at concert band repertoire; and zie doesn't like the idea of a concert band playing 'popular music". I'd like to throw them some contemporary band music (Brian Balmages or John Mackey or Julie Giroux) and see what they think of that....) It's people like them who are killing community bands -- a band that's unwilling to expand its horizons and play music that is "different" is a band that's going to die. Peep on the other side liked nearly everything, largely because it's stuff they've not seen before.... We're still waiting on a couple of pieces - Jerry Bilik has offered to come guest conduct a couple of his pieces at the next concert, but they're not in the music files.
Some listened to:
- MSBOA festival was rescheduled to yesterday. All but one judge was a replacement from last week's schedule, there were shift changes at lunch, and one HS opted out entirely (they have finals Wed-Thurs). The new orchestra director seems pretty good - he's only been there since August, and it's still very early for evaluation. (I mean, he's not torpedoed the program yet, but that's really all you can tell. :) ) I didn't get to hear all of the Chelsea groups, as I got drafted to be an escort because all the Chelsea kids were in gathering/warm-up/performance/sightreading (the MS band director and the assistant site manager were covering as well). The band director announced his retirement last Friday - unlike the orchestra director last year, he told the kids before the grapevine did. The kids are still reeling a bit from that, but they played well. The middle school orchestras are very good. The middle school bands are smaller than I'm used to, but then I remember that the current 7th & 8th grade classes are the smallest classes in the system, and these are the kids who were choosing orchestra/voice/band when they didn't know who the middle school band director would be. The orchestra director has already recruited me to work next year's MSBOA festival. :)
- no UMS gigs this week or next -- only one show on the schedule, and it was Tuesday night, when I have rehearsal.
The snow is almost entirely melted - only the deep piles and places that don't get any sun are left. I did wind up shoveling the driveway on Thursday -- the snow had drifted all the way across it for about 15 feet, about 8"-10" deep. Drifted snow is very hard packed, and my shoulders took a lot of impact digging it out. And then J didn't even notice. He'd have noticed if I hadn't shoveled, as he'd have gotten stuck in that drift.
I thought they were done working on the power lines, but the heavy ramp to the west access is still in place, and there are trucks/dozers moving around in the area. I saw a work lift about half-way up one of the pylons, but so far away that I couldn't tell what they were doing.
