Laurel Black Music

This past weekend was an eventful one for percussionists in WV. Casey and his students headed off to the WV Day of Percussion held Shepherdstown.  There were solo competitions and performances by a variety of colleges in the state. Concord performed well, which is great! Casey was enthusiastic about how his students played, and that's always a good thing. :) Also held this weekend was the Marshall Day of Percussion at Marshall University in Hungtington, WV. I was super stoked that Steve Hall, professor of percussion at MU, invited Matt to hold a class and perform during his weekend's events. How cool! Steve graciously hosted Turning Point in October, so I am very excited that Matt was able to bring his brain back to WV to talk about music stuff. Despite these great events, my weekend was spent at home, preparing for the present week. I have two remaining recital hearings, and full run-throughs of 4 recitals tomorrow!! Eek. But, I am prepared. And, since I stayed home this ...

Technically, I'm on spring break. I don't have to teach a class all week, nor do I have to rehearse with any students. What I do have to do, however, is learn approximately 280 minutes of music to a level I deem worthy of playing in front of my colleagues. So what does that mean? It means Laurel doesn't get a break. Laurel spends hours at a piano hashing and re-hashing parts she learned long ago to make sure that the lines are correct, listens to the metronome for hours on end, and sings those bloomin' melody lines in her head until her brain explodes. Laurel also talks in third person when she's feeling a bit overwhelmed. In the spirit of making myself feel like I've accomplished something in these hours of practicing today, I thought I would catalog the rep I'm learning. Without further ado, Here's what Laurel has been cramming into her brain: with alto sax: J.S. Bach - 2. Sicilienne and Allegro (adapted from Flute Sonata No. 2) Paul Crest...

How last week flew by! From shoveling snow, to rehearsing, to talking about improvisation, to designing posters, to finally  playing a concert, the only thing that would have made the week better was not driving 2.5 hours to the airport to send Nati back to Boston. Looking back, this has to be one of my favorite concerts, and that very much has to do with the space we performed in.  It's amazing how a space can transform music. We used a black box theater on CU's campus; before I reserved the space, a platform for an upcoming stage production had already been built and nailed to the floor. Instead of worrying about it, Nati and I used it as a stage for our intimate setting. Plus, the platform was covered with carpet, which made it stand out from the rest of the theater quite nicely. (See: black box.) Our memory play  concept was carried out in our staging by setting sentimental objects around on the platform. From heirloom trinkets, to photo frames, to throw pillows, ...

This is an exciting week! Natalie flew down from Boston last weekend, and we have been rehearsing for our upcoming concert at CU. We are excited about this new program. Titled memory play , our concert consists of delicate repertoire. The perspective of these pieces feels distant, as if remembering a different time and place.  We are very excited to have two world premieres on this concert: Aphorism 10 , by Andrew Paul Jackson , and lyte , by Tim Mainland , a member of the CU music faculty. We will also perform works by Dalit Hadass Warshaw , Marti Epstein , and Elliot Cole .  See the official press release here. Tonight Natalie and I will present an impromptu improvisation workshop for the CU community. Modeled after an approach from our beloved and admired teacher, Pierre Hurel , we hope to remove some of the anxiety associated with improvising as well as encourage them to play and listen openly. We had the opportunity to present the workshop to the jazz band y...

I had a blast playing with Casey at the McCormick Marimba Festival this weekend in Tampa, Florida. The event took place at the University of South Florida, which, it just so happens, built a new music building. Hello, beautiful space . The best part of the trip was spending time with Justin and his family, which includes his parents and the three dogs: Sagan, Lola, and Molly. I heard some cool new rep, some of which I want to program for my February 21st concert with Balletik Duo! Nothing like adding a closer 3 weeks before showtime... Lovelovelove

While drafting my practice schedule for the next few weeks I thought I would share what is currently on my musical platter. It's a rather eclectic collection, and I wouldn't have it any other way. In the collaborative piano realm, the biggies are Brahms' Liebeslieder,  Op. 52, and the Neue Liebeslieder , Op. 65.  Both works are for SATB and piano 4-hands.  I'm also preparing for 6 collaborative concerts, one with each of the following: soprano, counter-tenor, baritone, saxophone, trombone, and euphonium.  It's going to be a busy few months! I'm also very excited to play Marimba Concerto No. 2  with Casey  in Florida and Mexico in the coming weeks. You can listen to the second movement of his concerto here . Balletik Duo is reuniting in a few short weeks! We have a new program, featuring a premiere of a newly commissioned piece by Andrew Paul Jackson : Aphorism 10 .  The program is rounded out with pieces by Dalit Warshaw and Marti Epstein , t...