Seasons Greetings 2020

 My first multitrack recording. Guitar, cello, violin1 and violin2.

Maine Fiddle Camp - Videos

Berentanz / Dancing Bear
 
Cello Tango

Balkan Camp + Maine Fiddle Camp

This turned out to be a major camping year.

One week in Balkan Camp followed by a week of the Maine Fiddle Camp.

At the Balkan Camp I took Albanian and Greek fiddle workshops.  Played the cello in the Albanian and Bulgarian ensembles.

I did several hours of cello workshops at the Maine Fiddle Camp but also tried some Irish fiddling and other stuff.

It was nice to remember tunes from thirty years ago.  I could actually play some of them in a group setting!   I definitely want to go back to Maine Fiddle Camp. It was wonderful.

Here are two tunes I learned at camp.



Da Slockit Light - Supposedly the composer was thinking about a fishing village in the Northeast islands that was being abandoned.

 
Something Albanian.

Summer Keys Recital

Summer Keys, Lubec, Maine.

This was my first time at a music workshop.
I've been off the cello wagon for a couple of years.
Hopefully, I can get back into practicing now.

The week of group and private cello lessons culminated in a recital.





Could have been better, could have been worse. Was pretty nervous as it was a new performance venue for me.  Also had a long wait as performer #20 of the 23 pieces that were played that evening.

A big takeaway from the recital was that one must learn to accept praise and applause graciously.

Scandal

I scandalized the teacher today by showing up without practicing the Quantz this week. Irregardless, we'll play the first movement for concert next week.
Maybe you can hear the quiet muted cello in the background :)
Boomp3.com

This is Just for My Hysterical Files

Decided to post this at the two day mark so I can benchmark my progress. I was having fun reading this until my husband came in, grabbed my shoulders and insisted that I clean up a phrase. That's probably why I look grumpy in the video. You can obviously tell I'm surprized by the big leaps.

Eighth Month Progress Video

I figured it was time to submit another embarrassing video to YouTube. It's been over half a year since my last video. Gives me a chance to see how my playing looks. Here's an attempt at the Bach Bouree. I know it's supposed to be more staccato. There are quite a few bad notes. I skipped the trill, started over at one point, well you get the drift. I figured if I wait till I get it note perfekt, you guys won't be seeing any videos for a long, long time. I was mostly trying to not rush. The jury is not out yet on how to hold the bow. I have had conflicting reports.

Day 150

After we finished taking our final in Music History Class, Ayin (a violinist from my chamber music class) and I played some of the Suzuki Book arrangements of Bach Minuets together. Ayin made a recording with his mp3 player. My husband says it sounds like it was created in 1902. Our performance is certainly not note perfekt, but there's a certain charm.




Boring stats: Sad to say, 15 days of No Practice (NP) this period.
17 days of not playing. Things should be better now that classes are almost over.
2007.10.04 Day 112 - 113 Sick
114-Scales CGDA, F Blfat, Eflat, Arpeggios, Octaves, Thirds
Bow Exercises (BE), Pachelbel
115-116 No practice (NP)
117-BE, Chamber pieces (CP)
118-119 NP
120-Scales, BE
121-BE, Swan
122-NP
123-Review, Scales, BE, CP
124-Xmas
125-NP
126-127 Xmas, CP
128-BE
129-130 NP
131-134 Xmas, CP
135-NP
136-137 CP
138-140 CP
141-Xmas, Minuets
142-147 NP
148-Xmas, Minuets
149-NP
2007.12.17 Day 150-Minuets

Still More Flowers of Edinburgh

Maricello inspired me again.

Day 84 (12th week) - Video of my attempt to play this morning from memory the Scottish Reel "Flowers of Edinburgh". I decided to do it "song style". Usual problems with bowing and intonation.



Anyway, I'm off to Baltimore tomorrow morn, and then its full-time school after Labor Day. Whee...

Boring stats:
8/13M - Read Schroeder 17, Scales A F#m, Bow exercises
8/14T - Day off for no good reason. Too much accounting work.
8/15W - Schroeder 18, Scales D, Bm, Bow exercises
8/16R - Scales C G D A, F, Bflat, Eflat, Bow exercises, Vibrato & Trill exercises
8/17F - Scales C G D A, F, Bflat, Eflat, Bow exercises
8/18S - Day off for no good reason. Too hot and humid.
8/19U - Schroeder 19, Scales C G D A, Em, Bow exercises
8/20M - Review old pieces, Schroeder 20, Bow exercises
8/21T - Schroeder 20, Bow exercises
8/22W - Work up "Flowers"

Bow exercises consist on full bow verbalizations -- Papa, mama, lala, tata, Pepe, Meme, Lele, tete, Pipi, mimi, lili, titi, Popo, momo, lolo, toto, Pupu, mumu, lulu, tutu. All on one bow 4 stops, Frog 4x full bow Tip 4x, Silent bow exercises 20x each per string. Suzuki rhythms.

Day 75 Progress Video

Posted attempt at playing the Gavotte attributed to Lully in the Suzuki Cello Book 3 [M6].

Having the usual intonation and bowing issues. Also rhythm control goes haywire when taken off the metronome leash. Constructive criticism always appreciated.

Boring stats
M 8/6 Weiner 1-4a, Trill, Vibrato, work on M6, Schroeder 11, Bowing exercises. A flat and Fm scales.
T 8/7 No practice - done in by the dentist
W 8/8 Review M1-M4, Work on M6, Schroeder 12, D flat and B flat minor scales, Bowing exercises
R 8/9 Thumb exercises, Look for notes on the swan, Work on M6, Schroeder 13, F# and E flat minor scales, bow exercises
F 8/10 Thumb, Trill, Vibrato, work on M6, Schroeder 14, B and G#m scale, bowing exercises
S 8/11 Trill, Work on M6, Schroeder 15, bowing exercises
U 8/12 Work on M6, Schroeder 16, E and C#m scales, bowing exercises

60 days and Old Joe Clark

Today is the two month mark for my cello studies. I'm counting all days except vacation and sick/injury time. Here's something a little different thanks to Maricello. I decided to make Old Joe Clark a position and shifting study. Issues: intonation and still need to get more wrist into the bowing.



Boring stats:
7/9/07 - 7/16/07 - Review Essential Elements Cello Book I
7/17/07 - Review M1, M2, M3, M4.
7/18/07 - C Am Scale, bow exercises
7/19/07 - bow exercises
7/20/07 - Weiner 1-4a, String crossing exercises, Thumb, Schroeder Exercises 1 to 5. F Major Scale, bow exercises
7/21/07 - Dminor scale. Scroeder #6, Upper Bow only exercise.
7/22/07 - Thumb, try to find more notes for the Swan, Bflat Major Scale, Reading Old Joe Clark

Day 45

Not too happy with this progress report video from Suzuki Book 2, Bach Musette. I should have spent more time working on it. I found the bowing challenging. On a positive note (pun intended) I think my bowing and tone is pretty good.

My camera battery was ready to die so I have to make do with this "Take 3" video. The first two takes I had to throw out because I stopped in the middle of the piece. However in this version, my 2nd position intonation is terrible and dynamics went out the window (what dynamics??)

Oh well, that's life. Perhaps I'm getting more self-critical now that I've been practicing for a month and a half. Still, this is part of the deal in learning an instrument. Setting a benchmark and trying to meet the challenge. I wanted to post this before I ran away to Russia for two weeks.

I leave at 3pm today. Didn't get a lot of Russian language study done other than the Pimsleur I. My feeling is that a little knowledge of the language of a country one is visiting is better than none. Got a couple of tour guides for St. Petersburg out of the library and there are lots of recommended walks.

More fun later.

28th day

Well thought I'd post this progress video before running away for two weeks.

Also, that same friend who asked for a video at day 14, asked when the next video would be up.

Could be better, could be worse.

I think the bowing's improved. Notes need to ring more and be more articulated -- more fingers and wrist work.

OOPS...what's with hitting two strings at one time :)

So here it is folks, the 28th day - less two days off for good behavior???



Link
M3

Okay, Time to Laugh

I've gotten my first request from a friend wishing to hear me play...so here are two pieces with a few "wince" moments. Yes, yes, I know the bowing hand is way too slanty, the bowing erratic and the intonation could be better... and I look way too serious.

On the other hand, what do you expect, I've only been playing for two weeks :)


M1


M2