Learning music can be difficult. Unlike many other things, there are no shortcuts available. At best, some of us may learn how to “artfully fudge” a hard passage. Or trick the audience into letting their ears and minds fill in…
Category: Human Archives
Reacting in Real Time
This past weekend I had the great pleasure of playing in the pit orchestra for the Nutcracker for the fourth year. This time around, I’m expecting at least one thing will not go as planned. However, the fun part is…
Transcendence
Every time I play Beethoven, I feel transported. For my orchestra’s opening concert of the season, I had the good fortune to play Beethoven’s 6th symphony, the “Pastoral.” Few pieces, or composers, have the ability to put me right in…
the Majestic Monarch
This is year two of my pollinator garden. It’s required real effort. First, I had to eradicate invasive species, mainly goutweed and dead nettles. Though lush and verdant, they took over. I covered everything in black plastic for weeks to…
Taking Out the Trash
This morning I watched a hummingbird in my backyard. The lucky spotting happened leaving the garage to return to the house. I had just finished taking out the recycling and garbage for pick up. A particularly invisible task that rarely…