Family photo Oct 2010

Family photo Oct 2010

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Big Girl Orchestra

This past weekend I quit the community orchestra that I was currently in, the Grand Rapids Symphonette.  There were numerous factors to it, but it boiled down to the fact that it was a 2 hour drive every week and the nights were getting late... especially for this preggo who needs her sleep!  My sister is moving so she wasn't going to be in it, and Mr. D was taking this year off so there really wasn't a whole lot of incentive for me to keep going.  The people there are great, and the venues that we play are a lot of fun and I know the residents of the retirement homes love it when we do come... but if I was strictly to be doing it on a musical sense I would've quit a long time ago!  The music is very suited for the audience it's catering too... a lot of medleys and easy Christmas stuff, but not very challenging.

I love playing in a group and so I was sad to let that part go, but a friend suggested that I play in this orchestra that she's apart of.  So... she emailed the conductor, even though they had already started their season, and got me an audition!  That was all on Saturday night and my audition was Monday.  Short notice, but do able all the same.

I went and had my audition and he said that I was good enough to join.  :)  He put me in the first violin section, which was generous, and gave me the music.  He gave me a list of the music they were playing before hand, but actually seeing it was another story.  So, he invited me to stay for rehearsal and for the next 2.5 hours I got my butt kicked.  I'm fairly good at sight reading music, but this music was TOUGH.  Much more serious than anything I've been doing since high school!  It was good all the same.  My stand partner is a little out of control... Andrew, the conductor, warned me about it before hand, so we will see how I can handle it once I know the music better.

So... this is WAY in advance but our first concert is Nov. 10th at 8 at Dalton Theater at Kalamazoo College.  We are playing Beethoven's 6th "Pasterale" and Nielson's 4th "Inextinguishable"  You should youtube and listen!  They're great pieces!  :)



http://www.kzoo.edu/philharmonia/current.html

JVG

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