beware of luting

In today's Music 101 lecture, I was giving a very short description of early music continuo instruments - particularly the lute and archlute (aka. theorbo).

There are a couple of good pictures in our textbook - the one of the lute is shown below:




A few things strike me funny with the above photo - mainly the look on this poor girl's, or maybe young boy's face (you never can tell from these early paintings).  I just think it is the epitome of the "practicing sucks" look.  That and the fact there is a violin there, which makes me think "After I've done my three hours of lute, I have to do two and a half on this blasted violin!"

Below is a picture of the Archlute that is in our textbook as well.

The joke I attempted this morning?  "The Archlute is kind of like a lute, on viagra".  It was received with a moderate amount of laughter.

Sometimes, I should really think before I speak, before I am fired.

Music in our daily life

One of the many things I enjoy about teaching at the U of A is the ability to watch the trends, fashions, and social interaction of today's youth.

In this morning's music 101 lecture, we were finishing up with the late renaissance, including in-depth discussions about the Madrigal.  I explained to the class how the secular music of this time was intended for just pure entertainment - keeping in mind that we are hundreds of years away from the iPod or any personal music device at this time.

It got me thinking - how much does the average student rely on music in their lives.  So I did a careful study which I believe is to be to within +/- 2% of accuracy.  Ok, so what I really did was, on my walk across campus to find my wife and our car at the end of the day, I counted how many students walked past me with headphones on (by the way - why do people wear God-awful-huge-ugly headphones out in public?  The ear buds are far more attractive folks!)  I determined that approximately every fifth person I passed had some kind of music device playing in or on their ears, and for the record, every seventh person was talking on a cell phone, others were walking with friends and chatting - but very few people were walking alone without a phone or music device.  From this I determine that music is a very important part of everyone's daily life.

I grew up in a house where there was always live music.  From the sounds of instruments being practiced - between my sister and I, this included lots of piano, voice, guitar and a brief stints of trumpet and flute.  On top of this, every family gathering ended around the piano with singing, not always in tune, but it was live music - not the same genre of music discussed earlier in this post, but certainly the experience must have been pretty close.  I'm afraid that this tradition is lost in most of us now, thanks to the stereo.  I have to admit, I'm a bit of a sterophile.  I buy high quality components and speakers, and I spend a lot of time (and money) finding the right fit for me, and as I type this, I am listening to recorded music in my living room.  

Many people have asked me what the best equipment is for sound - my new answer is going to be  "Your Ears"  Why do we spend so much money trying to recreate the sound of a live performance, when the best place to hear a live performance, is at a live performance?

Filling up empty spaces

Quoting myself on January 1st, while looking at my calendar:

"How nice - Aside from my church obligations, It looks like from now until March most of my Friday, Saturday and Sundays are free!"

Three weeks later:

A look at my calendar this weekend, as of 9 AM this morning:

Friday night 7-9:30 Da Camera Men's sectional rehearsal

Saturday Morning 10-12:30 Da Camera Women's sectional rehearsal

Saturday Evening 4-7 PM Rehearsal for Monteverdi concert in February

Sunday afternoon 3 PM - playing Organ at a Hymn festival

Can someone tell me how I went from zero hours to eleven hours of work?

A fate of my own making I suppose.

Conducting IS Teaching!

In reading my RSS Feeds this afternoon on Google Reader, I was drawn to the blog of David Griggs-Janower courtesy of ChoralBlog (Thanks for sending this out Philip - David's blog is now being added to my reader!)

In case you don't read ChoralBlog, the post that caught their eye and subsequently my eye was his post on "being on", and what it is like to have to be on the ball, or as he put it "in three times zones at the same time" for a full rehearsal.  He also draws comparisons of how conducting, which is teaching, can be extremely draining, full of overtime responsibilities like marking, score marking, rehearsal preparation and the list goes on.  In fact, my hat goes off to full times teachers who need to be in teacher mode all day long, not just for a few classes and rehearsals like me.  Not only that, but I work with adults all the time, so I don't need to think about discipline, worry about class attendance, or deal with ... ahem ... parents!  If there is any profession that deserves two months off in the Summer, you certainly have my support.

I remember way back when I was in my undergrad looking at my choral prof's schedule, wondering how he could do it.  Three university choirs a community chorus, a few voice students, and teaching conducting courses.  Every night must have had one rehearsal, if not two every day with his University choirs.  I couldn't fathom his lifestyle at that time, yet here I am living it, and surviving (and even finding time to blog about it).

His subsequent post as a reply to the comments he received from the previous one is also great, and raises the usual point of teachers holidays, and responding to the all to many comments of "well, you're so lucky as a teacher you two weeks off for Christmas and two months off for Summer".  Now, don't get me wrong, I've never had a 9-5 job, so I can't fully appreciate the responsibilities that tied into a job like that.  My wife, however, does have a full time day job, and I certainly know that she works hard.  Probably harder than the average actually, and doesn't take things like sick days, early departures, or long lunches for granted.  I once heard of someone though who after getting their full time government employment was very quick to point out how great the Friday afternoon lunch was, which usually involved drinks, and then going from the restaurant, straight home.  All I could do was smile, and wonder what it must be like to have that kind of freedom in a job - where you aren't being literally watched all the time (maybe I shouldn't have used the word literally there ... as people tend not to watch conductors enough)

I'll agree, the time off in the summer is great.  It makes up for working most evening until 10 PM, and most weekends through the year.  However, there is no income, and yet, there is still work to be done!  Preparations for the next season, re-writing course outlines, organizing rehearsals, programs, program notes.  And although sick days can be taken in the year, they are not without major consequence.  Unless you have an assistant, finding a last minute sub is often impossible.  You are faced with either canceling the rehearsal in the hopes to make it up for it later, or working while sick - and as a result, having a slower recovery time.  I conducted a full concert once with an inner ear infection that would put most people in the hospital, and certainly you wouldn't see them at work - however, after eight weeks of rehearsals, and over 250 tickets sold - who was going to conduct it if I called in sick?

Musicians are also suckers for punishment.  If you were, say, a dentist, and were offered to take off a portion of your holidays to do some complimentary crowns for approximately 18 hours, would you do it?  Or an accountant who would spend the time between December 28th and January 1st doing taxes pro bono?  Probably not.  Yet, there I was in rehearsal from December 28th, 29th, 30th and 31st for a concert on the evening of the 31st and a recording session on January 1st - my week off, just two days after Christmas, and 4 days before classes begin on the 5th doing this, for not a penny.  Don't get me wrong - it was fun, I got to visit with old friends, and sing great music, but it was hard work (and to be fair - I could have said 'No')

The bottom line is this.  I love my work, I wouldn't trade it in for the world.  What I don't like is when people assume that because I love what i do, it means I don't have to work hard!

There must be something about the first week of classes, whether it be first or second term, that I'm allergic to.  Once again, I found myself leaving the university after teaching my 9 AM class in favour of a bag of Ricola, a couple of Tylenol, and a box of Kleenex.  I canceled my 3 PM class, missed one scheduled meeting (oops) and took the next day off as well.  If my memory is correct, this happened in the first week of September too!

I do feel much better this morning, although I'm still sniffly and phlegmy.  We'll see how I'm doing after lecturing the second half of my music fundamentals chapter this morning.  Perhaps I'll be able to cough out examples of hemiolas and hybrid metres!

Hope you have all managed to avoid the 2009 edition of this nasty virus!

"Breaking in" the new students

Day one of the new semester is now in the books.

Highlights of the day:

1. 150 students showed up for my Music Appreciation class, which has an enrollment cap of 120. There might be some disappointed course shoppers who won't be able to get into the class. I am however making allowances for an auditor, who also writes in the culture section of our city's major newspaper.  I actually fully expect that many people will drop the class in the first week as they figure out what courses they want to take.  Most people overload their courses for that very reason.
   
2. My conducting class has 15 students - which is very manageable, both for the podium time as well as for the class "choir".  Balance?  7 sopranos, 7 altos, 1 bass.  Not ideal, however since I did direct a women's choir for four years, I should be able to find enough music for us to work on.  My only male in the choir might not get a lot of singing in, but he'll have a great choir to work with.
3. Da Camera started working tonight on our next concert and CD project.  It was a good rehearsal, even with so many absent with this years New Years cold and flu.  It's an all Canadian CD, with the main topic of DEATH.  Great music, although might be tricky to market.
4. Someone broke into my Grand Am for the 2nd time in the last two months.  This time they managed to break in BOTH door locks, and take nothing (as I learned from last time not to leave anything in the car).

Anyone want to buy a 2002 Grand Am with low mileage ... and pushed in door locks? Highest bidder wins!

One last Christmas post ...

Had to share this.  

I'm pretty sure the harpsichord is of a period vintage ... however, I doubt the broccoli is.

What to expect in 2009

It seems that with a new calendar year, one must make up a set of New Years Resolutions.  I, like most of you, have often made resolutions only to find that a month later I didn't keep any of them longer than a week.  So, rather than resolutions, I'd like to put into print the things I expect to get out of 2009, and perhaps a few things that I might change in order to achieve them.  Hmmm... that sounds an awful lot like a set of resolutions doesn't it.

On Teaching ...  I took it upon myself to completely overhaul my course outlines for this coming semester.  It will represent a fair bit of work to revamp the course, in particular the choral conducting course I am teaching, but I think it will be better for the students to have a fresh perspective on the course from someone who has taught it now for about eight years.  I've overhauled the Music Appreciation course as well, not so much on content, but I've added one extra test to help ease the burden of memorization in between the midterm and the final.  I'm quite fortunate to have a teaching assistant this year for the course, so adding an extra exam for a class of 140 students won't overburden me with marking - and I need to make this PhD student work the required hours in - and this seemed like an easy way to fix that!

On Scheduling ... This semester is full up again with concerts, and my first recording venture with Da Camera Singers.  The first two months are actually quite light, March is going to be this year's November from last year.  I've taken on a few extra projects, including a in city workshop with a local community choir, and examination weekend for Conservatory Canada (again, in town), I am, however, free of music festival adjudicating this year, which will make April a bit more relaxed.

On Family ... This Summer, We plan to travel to Ontario, marking our first return to Ottawa and area since we were engaged.  We're also in a bit of a transitional process, looking for a new house that will suit or current future needs.  The last month we've been blessed(?) with temperatures in the low -20s to -30s (this morning, was a -41 windchill ... for my American friends ... -40 Celsius is equal to -40 Fahrenheit, which in plain simple terms is COLD) so a house which has better heat efficiency, a two car garage, and at least TWO bathrooms is on the "must have" list.  We are weighing the pros and cons of commuting, as well as distance from local family - which will play a very important role in our decision.

On Weight Loss ... Last September (which is really the educators' and musicians' new year) I made a commitment to get healthier.  I'm happy to report that between September and December I lost nearly 30 pounds (although with Christmas and New Years I gained a few back) and I intend to keep up the regiment to lose another 25 -30 more by next September.  I know it's a very traditional New Years statement to make, but for me it's more of a continued commitment this time, rather than a post-holiday pledge to loose a few pounds. 

On Golf ... This is a tough one.  The course that I've been a member of for the last four years has just eliminated the membership option that best suits me, a monday through friday membership which for a church musician, who likes to spend the weekend with his wife, is quite useful.  I'm not quite prepared to pay extra for a membership which includes weekends when I can't make use of it.  These are decisions I will have to make at a later date - as right now, it's too bloody cold and snowy out to even think about golf.

Wishing you all a prosperous and successful 2009!