Just home from a wonderful concert with Yo-Yo Ma and the Nashville Symphony. What an incredible night.
I was almost moved to tears during his encore performance of the Prelude to Suite 1 of Bach's Cello Concertos. To see arguably the world's best-known classical musician, playing one of the world's best known classical masterpieces was something I'll never forget. That's not to minimize the Dvorak's at all. I particularly enjoyed Silent Woods.
I'm not qualified to judge his technical skills and whether other masters might be better. And yes, he is sometimes overly expressive on stage. Neither matters. He was superb and the room just resonated with his larger-than-life presence.
If you ever have the chance to see Yo-Yo Ma, do not miss it.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Shifts and more shifts
I'm happy to report that after my first lesson with my new instructor, I've really seen some improvements in my shifts. While nobody has mentioned any of the classic shifting problems like squeezing with the thumb, I had been using a "guide note" (think glissando) to decide where to stop. While the shift was executed from point A to point B, it was naturally, extremely audible. I'm excited to say that now not only is it much less audible, but sometimes, even silent.
To be fair, it wasn't any magical technique my instructor showed me, but rather just being able to watch his motion and then work diligently on repeating it.
My forward shifts are better than my backward shifts, but I'm guessing that's probably the norm for most people. I'm sure with time, both will continue to improve.
Seeing improvement in my shifts is an extremely exciting event for me. While it will take a lot of practice to get to where I can shift confidently and competently, I know that the rest of the fingerboard is now within my reach. Granted, there's still many, many years of practice to learn and become competant at the upper positions, but just knowing that the pathway to this additional range is now open to me is thrilling.
To be fair, it wasn't any magical technique my instructor showed me, but rather just being able to watch his motion and then work diligently on repeating it.
My forward shifts are better than my backward shifts, but I'm guessing that's probably the norm for most people. I'm sure with time, both will continue to improve.
Seeing improvement in my shifts is an extremely exciting event for me. While it will take a lot of practice to get to where I can shift confidently and competently, I know that the rest of the fingerboard is now within my reach. Granted, there's still many, many years of practice to learn and become competant at the upper positions, but just knowing that the pathway to this additional range is now open to me is thrilling.
Loss of an instructor
My instructor called the other day to say she'd be unable to continue lessons since she's moving away for a least a while.
It was a sad day for me. It seems unfair that she was the one that walked through the door to find a middle-aged guy without the first bit of musical ability and a horrid ear, and she's not going to get to see my (hopefully) continued development.
I can't imagine the pain she suffered as she heard my fledging attempts. She was so gracious to pat me on the head when I'd come in so excited about how I'd nailed my intonation and she'd say, "Well...that was better...but let's see if we can get it even better." She never failed to lift me up even as I was crashing and burning.
I'm certainly grateful for the solid foundation she's given me. I've obviously still got miles (light years?) to go, but I'm definitely not only on the track, but on the right one.
On the bright side, I have a new instructor. We've only had one meeting thusfar, but I'm excited to see what a new perspective will bring to my playing.
It was a sad day for me. It seems unfair that she was the one that walked through the door to find a middle-aged guy without the first bit of musical ability and a horrid ear, and she's not going to get to see my (hopefully) continued development.
I can't imagine the pain she suffered as she heard my fledging attempts. She was so gracious to pat me on the head when I'd come in so excited about how I'd nailed my intonation and she'd say, "Well...that was better...but let's see if we can get it even better." She never failed to lift me up even as I was crashing and burning.
I'm certainly grateful for the solid foundation she's given me. I've obviously still got miles (light years?) to go, but I'm definitely not only on the track, but on the right one.
On the bright side, I have a new instructor. We've only had one meeting thusfar, but I'm excited to see what a new perspective will bring to my playing.
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