My Week After Concert Week

Last week was tough to navigate. I thought this week would be easier. In some ways, it was. Not so much in other respects.

I got to go out and have fun with my friends (got wasted. oops). So that was one major plus of not being in the middle of a rigorous performance schedule. However, I'd forgotten how badly drinking can mess with my ability to function, and defaulted to skipping section on Wednesday. Oops.

This may be a tiny bit premature, but I'm going to go ahead and call this week a good one :)

In other news, I had to take a listening quiz on Baroque instrumental music today. Well.. and some classical stuff. There were about a dozen pieces, and I had to memorize the names, keys, composers, opus numbers, and number numbers of all of them. The opus and number were the most tedious (and a total pain). In fact, I resorted to juvenile memorization devices to cram it all in. Ex) J.C. Bach's Piano Sonata in D Major is opus 5, number 2 because J.C. Bach was born in 1735 and died in 1782.

I'm not sure why those two little numbers were so hard to remember, especially since I can very clearly recall his dates...??? Maybe it's just because all of those other pieces with opuses 3, 6, 2, you name it. Ughhh.

I understand the importance of listening identification as a part of a music major's education, but I cannot wrap my head around how memorization of trivial numbers is supposed to better my understanding of history. A lot of those pieces aren't even put in chronological order! Why can't "J.S. Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F Major" suffice? That's plenty specific. That's all people ever put on concert programs.

/rant

With that said... I think I did really well lol.

My Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

I usually have chicken and wild rice soup for lunch on Fridays (during the break in the middle of my new music performance class). However, I didn't today because I wasn't feeling hungry. So after my last rehearsal, I braved rainy 5:30 traffic to gas up and stop by my favorite supermaket: Henry's.

I picked up carrots, celery, chicken stock, and a whole rotisserie chicken for my soup... and other miscellaneous items. Such as grapes. And broccoli. And oranges. Delicious. I already had an onion and a box of wild rice in the pantry so I went home to cook some shit up.

Sweated some mirepoix with some salt and pepper, added the raw rice and a few cups of chicken stock. I let that cook up on the back burner for ~25 minutes while I started a roux with 3 Tbs each of butter and flour, cooked it lightly, and whisked in a cup or two ish of 2% milk. Little bit o' nutmeg went into that. Once it was thick, but not quite bechamel-y in consistency, I stirred it into the rice-mirepoix pot. Shredded up some rotisserie-d chicken breast. Stirred that in. Thinned the whole thing out with a little more chicken stock, added the seasoning from the box of rice. Let it heat through for a few minutes.

I had a cup of that stuff... and man it frickin sticks to ya. Soup on a rainy day. So worth the effort :)

Plus I get another two or three meals from the leftovers :) Double plus, I only used one of the breasts, so there's plenty o' meat happening in the fridge. Triple plus, I fucking love chicken and wild rice soup.

My Feral Fury

The past year or two, I've been pretty good at keeping my cool. I've gotten a good hold on my temper as I've gotten older, and, in general, it's been for the better.

But this morning, I read a post that one of my best friends made on his tumblr, and I wanted to scream and cry and throw a huge tantrum, then track down that crazy bitch ex-girlfriend of his and KILL HER. Then I called my boyfriend, who empathized with my position, admired my support and outrage, and brought me to my senses. Thank God.

I know I don't hang out with Eric all that often; he has his frat stuff, we don't roll in the same circle, I'm busy with performances/rehearsals, but he is one of my best friends in the entire world. We've known each other for 20+ years, and he's been a big brother to me all my life. It makes me so hurt and angry that someone could mistreat him to the extent that she did. It makes me upset that people like her even exist. She's been messing with his life because she has a lot of his stuff (LAPTOP? KEYS? WALLET?) He doesn't know how to deal with her without setting her off, but frankly I don't give a damn. I'm not a gentleman. I can, have, and WILL rough up a girl. That bitch is going to get what's coming to her.

It doesn't have to get messy... but I don't mind if it does.

My Smart Work

My mother used to say something to me that roughly translates to "Everything with focus." Whenever I'd absentmindedly speed through my scales on the piano or violin, she'd tell me that I might as well be watching TV. It used to piss me off, but I know now that she's totally right. There is little skill to be gained from going through the motions of something without a clear goal in mind.

When I do my scales now, it's with intense focus on how I'm breathing, the placement of my vowel, and my posture/support system. All of these things I keep in mind work toward the end goal of developing good habits that will enhance my performance capabilities and increase my vocal technique. That brings me to the Alexander Technique.

Long story short, Alexander Technique is a process of sorts which is designed to allow one better awareness of postural efficiency. By studying it, you learn to use your muscles more efficiently and thoroughly relax. It's pretty awesome. I'm really exciting to be studying it with my professor's wife.

So YEA. That's kind of what I've been up to. Focusing a lot on improving myself. Taking 15 minutes or so to meditate, practice aligning myself, and relax. And flossing twice a day. (That's my new thing.)

My Duet

Mariya and I were assigned an opera scene to do together, and I was given the dramatic coloratura soprano role. I generally try not to get too technical when talking about my Fach (the system used to classify voices beyond simple soprano/mezzo/alto/tenor/bari/bass). For the purpose of being brief, Mozart's Queen of the Night is a dramatic coloratura. And even though my voice seems to be headed in that general direction (I am currently a lyric coloratura soprano, which is slightly lighter and has less power), dramatic sopranos don't mature until late 20s-early 30s. My point being that this is an exceedingly challenging role for me.

I might not put a ton of effort into my schoolwork at large... but I do spend a lot of time on my voice. So yea. Challenge accepted. I'm actually really excited to do this. It could be really amazing if I pull this off. And I'm going to.



If you're interested in hearing how it sounds. Fiordiligi (my part) is sung by Renee Fleming (the one on the right in green).