Wrapping up

Hello friends! 

One more week till finals week! 😊 My ACT test was rescheduled due to the huge snowstorm we had last weekend (we got 10-12 inches) and it is Saturday. Sunday is a composition major's recital that I am performing in --- he wrote a really cool string quartet for us high schoolers. Then next week I'm in a student recital, and there's a party for a retiring professor to go to. 
We are waiting on one piece still for orchestra, and we have three rehearsals left, so there's going to be some sight-reading I'm sure. Then the week following we have our Humanities final on Monday, dress rehearsal in the evening, and the concert on Tuesday. But I think for now that's all the things I have during that week. 

THEN hopefully it will be relaxing and not stressful... and spring. Maybe? I will still have some classes at home to finish up, but the travelling back and forth to SMSU will be done.

How are you, dear reader? I love hearing from you.

I Will Never Perform in Church

   Hi guys! Thank you for the 20+ views on my latest post! It's so encouraging to see the stats. :) I hope you like what you're reading!

   I suppose you wonder why I am even writing this post? Well, a friend was speaking of another friend about how said friend always used church services to show off; to give a mini recital. Something about this really bothered me, so I've been hashing it out in my head, and finally decided to write about it. What are your thoughts on the subject? I'm curious. 😊

   I must make a distinction between performing and playing for the church. Yes, both require careful technique and effort, both definitely should reflect God and not focus merely on the musician doing it. But there is an element of care for the music itself and abilities of the musician in performing that I do NOT want to show up in a church service. I will only accompany, support, and work alongside the other musicians and the congregation in the church, and I don't want it to be a soloistic thing. 

Soli Deo Gloria! 

♯ Making Music ♯

(Photo credit to SMSU Today)

It takes work, practice time, and energy. Lots of energy. I never realized how much energy went into a single performance until I was in an orchestra. Also, focus. Focus on the music, the time signature, conductor, bowing, intonation, dynamic, and detail. Playing in an orchestra is a completely different skill than performing solo, or as a duet or small ensemble. 

BUT it's so totally completely worth it. Every ounce of energy, every late night, every note played, and every piece of music performed. Every emotion felt.

I also play differently solo than say, at church with the congregation. It's a different technique altogether. My adrenaline can get pretty high when I compete . . . 😉 If you've only ever heard violins in a solo performance do not expect the same sound if you plop them with an ensemble. There's so much team-work that goes into playing with a group. 

(Photo credit to SMSU Today)

If you have the opportunity to play in a group I strongly suggest it. It's literally eye opening and such a space for learning, not to mention the community to help you learn. 

Music Wednesday with a twist

I'm doing something slightly different this time, as I feel I need to change up my music posts a little bit! :)
My friend Allison (she has the loveliest blog here) recently shared this poem she made, and I really like it, and so I am sharing it with you!

Piano

a funny language

with an alphabet

of dots and lines.

its sentences are

spoken not with

the tongue, but

with the fingers;

not with the mind,

but with the soul.

playing piano is

reading a beautiful

story out loud with

your fingertips, a

story sung by the

heart of the composer

and captured forever

on a white paper page.

Thank you Allison for letting me share this! :) 

Musings and Callings

(a fairy lost in thought)

      This post comes after quite a bit of musing and thought, on my part. In Christian circles, generally not the ones I have been raised in, there is much discussion about callings. "What is your calling in life?" "What does God want you to do?" The problem I am finding with these, however, is that the word calling has many different meanings. "How do you define calling?" I want to ask these people. Some say things like "My calling is to feed geese" or in other cases "My calling is to be a women pastor" Ummmm, yeah, I don't think that's biblical, yet you are tacking a somewhat-associated-with-the-Bible word onto it to justify it? Or to clarify it? It doesn't make sense to me. Is calling a word that used to mean one thing and now means another? Probably.
     You can read all sorts of articles on what your calling is, and take quizzes as well. It's surprising that someone who doesn't even know you knows what you'll end up doing with your life. ;) One of the first sources that came up was Oprah. No, I did not look at it. Others include Tiny Buddha, WomenLeaders, and Pick the Brain. Interesting.
     What will you say when someone asks you what your calling is? The problem, if it is one, that I am running into is that I have so many many interests in life. How to choose what to major in in college, or minor in, or get a job in, or pour my time into? Music, animals, crafts, children, orphans (kinda the same thing as children.....), graphic design, art, all of them? I really would like to go spend some time with missionaries, work with kids, orphans, the elderly, the homeless. I think my heart is too big. It may not sound like a problem, but I'm running into some! :) There is not enough time for all of them!
      Anyway, what are your thoughts on callings? Do you think you know what yours is? How did you know?

The Business of Life and Music

Sorry for the lack of posts around here, life has been, well, what summers usually end up being. Busy. But to make up for it, here's my weekly music post, only a day late. I have some good stuff to share!
First up, what I've been listening to: Paraguay Barroco This album is delightful and cheery, perfect for summer days and listening to while working or not. There is one section in the middle that is a little too "happy clappy" for me, but otherwise I really like it.
Next, what I have been playing: A Practice Day This was tons of fun, and I really hope we get to do it again. Watch for the cat video-bomb too :)
Last, what have you been doing when it comes to music? Any Paganini or Bach in there? :)

(Also, this is my 50th post!)

A Welcome Promotion

(Picture from PhotoTuts)

    Yesterday, after six years of preparing and hoping, I was told that our church's Music Committee had decided that I will be put on the monthly rotation for church pianist. I greeted this news with joy, as you can imagine.
    I first accompanied the congregation when I was ten, and I will be the first to admit I probably should have waited until I had more skill. Sure, I could play all the notes and keep up with the congregation, but I think there's more to being a church pianist than that. I was told not too long ago "I think you've finally got the hang of accompanying the congregation!" Although these words made me happy,  I couldn't help but thinking "But it took me how many years to get here?!?!" I think it does depend on the person and how fast they develop as a pianist.
   Many thanks to those involved in the decision; I am truly grateful! :)

I should mention that for the past six years I have been a congregational accompanist for one hymn each Sunday, and now am being moved to accompany the morning worship service.