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Final Concerts at CU

It's a final week of concerts to end the spring semester. I, along with the percussion studio, have been very busy.

4/27: 4pm General Recital (for any music student wishing to perform)
          7pm Band Concert

4/28:  7pm Sr. Recital: Austin Bolden, percussion and composition
            performed two world premieres:
            2012 for marimba and piano. Concert Music in E-flat for solo euphonium and piano

4/29: 7pm Sr Recital: Matt Harvey, percussion
           "Chromatic Foxtrot" by George Hamilton Green (me, piano; Casey, drum set)

4/30: 6pm Percussion Ensemble Concert
             Marimba Spiritual - soloist

5/1: 5pm Sr Recital: Chelsea McGlothlin, voice

5/5: 5pm Faculty Recital: with David Ball, low brass
          BASTA for solo trombone, by Folke Rabe
          Marimba Spiritual
         Concerto for Trombone, by G. Christoph Wagenseil
         Sonata for Trombone and Piano, by Stjepan Sulek
         Toccata from BWV 830, premiere of my adaptation
         Concertino for Euphonium, by Julius Klengel
         Concert Music in E-flat for solo euphonium and piano, D. Austin Bolden


It has been a crazy, crazy ending to the semester.  For whatever reason, this one seems extra busy, most likely because I'm trying to also enter competitions, keep up with my creative projects, and plan a gathering of mine and the husband's immediate families. (They've never met! Honestly, there's not much to plan with that, but the excitement takes time, right??)

We took the percussion students out to eat after the Percussion Ensemble concert and had a great time joking and laughing around the hibachi table. Strangely, we are leaving at the same time many of them are graduating, so there's going to be quite a "changing of the guard" for next year.

Performing Marimba Spiritual has been really wonderful.  It's a piece I've always wanted to play but never had the right opportunity, so I'm grateful Casey wanted to program it this year. The guys did a great job with the drum parts, and were willing to perform it somewhat last-minute on my recital on May 5! I'm excited to see the tape from that concert, as there was energy but not so much that it felt out of control. I know I won't be happy with my accuracy, but I think I'll be very happy with the overall effect.

We aren't looking forward to packing up our offices, but know that it must be done sooner or later. We have maybe 7 weeks left in WV, and we plan to make the most of them with our dear friends here.  The students have worked hard for the art these last few days, and we're grateful that this was our experience here at the very end.  We look forward to keeping in touch with them and hearing about their future projects.

Bright stage lights!! A photo after striking the stage on April 30.

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