Laurel Black Music

I'm a planner. Husband makes fun of me for it -- my need to carry around my HUGE day planner everywhere I go.  I like making lists. Even more, I like checking off things to be done from said lists. In light of my overall positive experience from the Italy competition, I've decided to take on a few more projects. Are some of them out of my league? Maybe. But, I figure the practice I'll do getting ready for them will only serve me well in the future. So, to put my marimba-focused To Do list out there: 2015 Houston Symphony Ima Hogg Competition      My teacher, Nancy Zeltsman, told me about this competition a few years ago. I'm just now grown the cajones to try it. The top players receive a cash prize, but also get to perform with the Houston Symphony.           PRELIMINARY TAPE DUE January 28, 2015           REP: 2 movement from a Bach sonata or partita; 15-20 minutes solo rep         ...

I figure I should update everyone on how the competition went, especially now that some time has passed. As a person who has always felt that competitions just 'weren't for me,' I must admit that I enjoyed the experience.  The negative aspects were more negative than expected, but the positive ones were MUCH more positive! So, you let in the bad with the good, I suppose. The Positives 1. It's really, really  good for you to practice so meticulously.   I decided rather late to participate in this competition. It was announced in January(?) but I didn't register until late May - mere days before the deadline.  I knew I'd have to practice differently than usual, considering I had months to catch up on.  Having to memorize the music quickly, including the tempos and all markings, wasn't a new experience, but it was good to do it again after a few years. Since my accompanist job is all about reading and listening, it felt good to focus so intently...

Nothing written here for longer than I like.  Between starting the church job officially , preparing for  classes, and freaking out about the competition, (all while trying not to spend TOO much time sewing), I've been a little busy. Today marks the end of week 2 of classes, and I am LOVING my new schedule. I'm teaching classes to music majors only , a first for me, and it's really rewarding. I like teaching Intro to Music, but this is soooo much better. Not too much playing yet for me, but that will change rapidly as students are assigned repertoire in their lessons. Luckily, I've been able to focus (somewhat) on the competition, and will be presenting a recital in about a week to get a run-through of the rep in front of lots of people. I've played for Casey and for students, but I need a scary auditorium full of folks to make me nervous. My involvement at the church is enjoyable, but the week does get long. Wednesdays are now 12-hour work days, and if there...

Not much has changed around here these days. Just keepin' on, keepin' on. I'm making videos about twice a week in preparation for competition. They're not made to share, but made for me to pick apart and plan the next day's practice session. Some have been close to being share-worthy, though!! In the meantime I made a satirical video about White Knuckle Stroll , one of the obligatory pieces in the first round. As it's by Casey I feel like I'm in the unique position of making fun of the preparation process. It's difficult to prepare a piece that is FAST and DOESN'T STOP. Practicing slow helps you learn it incorrectly, but in the end, how it feels to play it at tempo and how it feels to play it slowly are so far apart technically that there's no point in slow practice once the notes are down. Naturally, this makes preparation of this piece require organization, as I know I can't just practice it for 2 hours on a whim. I have to strategize w...

After saying all summer that my substitute church gig was just that, I accepted a longer commitment last week.  I'll be the pianist and choir director (let's call the whole deal Music Director ) of a local church in Princeton. I've worked out a trial period, through Christmas, with the pastor, at which time we can both evaluate and see if it's a good fit.  I'm comforted by things like this because I am a commitment-phobe about all things except marrying Casey.  Seriously, don't ask me what I'm doing tomorrow because I'd like to be free to change my mind and it affect nobody . I had my first rehearsal with the choir last night.  There will be some sneaky "lemme teach ya how to read music" moments, but overall I can tell that everyone just has a good time and is glad to be singing.  I think they've had almost 2 months off due to the whole substitute/no regular director situation.  Everyone there seems to be really nice and was courteous d...

It's funny how at the end of May I always feel like Laurel, you have plenty of time. Make your little schedules and don't procrastinate. And then I make the schedules and I stick to them, but here we are at the beginning of July and I feel like I have SO MUCH left.  I suppose this is the life of a musician and a general busy person, really.  I enjoy being active but hate having too many commitments.  In the "achievements" category, I've memorized 4 pieces for the Italy Marimba Competition in September and am now in the record/critique stage of preparation, which isn't too far behind where I'd like to be.  I'm still working on the final round rep choice. I finished one class only to begin another this week. I prefer face-to-face teaching, without a doubt.  Online classes always result in snarky emails and students accusing you of "losing" their submissions.  Plus, I like to use my computer time for blogs, writing, and research, and ...

Daily life at this point is extraordinary, if I can say so myself. I'm teaching an online class, which is ideal for a flexible work schedule and morning grading/coffee time. Sometimes I go for a runwalkrun in the morning, sometimes I sit outside and read, other times I get to the practice room early. Now that I'm officially registered for the marimba competition in Italy, my practices are regimented and planned. Oddly enough, I've memorized a few pieces in a short timespan. As a player who usually reads everything, I'm pretty proud of this. One of the pieces is by husband, and I find it hard to practice that piece when he's in the building. It's my own insecurity, I know. I'm sewing some each day, which makes me happy. I'm restarting The Artist's Way , which means I'm reconnecting with myself. I'm reading The Power of Now , a book that was recommended to me years ago by Dr. Sousa. I'm preparing my Movement for Musicians course for t...