To some people, classical music is best enjoyed in a crowded concert hall, with a glass of wine and good company. To others, the best classical music is enjoyed alone, perhaps in a darkened room with a great stereo system. Still others will enjoy making their own classical music in the company of family and friends, perhaps playing their own piano or enjoying a night out.
Good luck getting that glass of wine into the concert hall, though. 😉
I blogged about my eyes and glasses and quickly headed out the door. Well, it might be easier to wear my normal glasses to blog, but then I couldn’t see clearly at ALL when I tried to use the glasses while driving. That’s obviously not the solution. I’m sure the eye doctor will help me out. I go on Thursday.
Meanwhile, I’d better nap before I teach or I’ll be a zombie through all three lessons!
Ahhh … I am realizing that it is better to use my regular glasses when using the computer, and skipping the computer/music glasses all together. Interesting. I suppose it’s because (DUH) the regular glasses are a newer prescription and inclue the reading portion in them (they are progressive lenses; I think the name is really stupid, as I don’t feel like my vision is progressing in anything but a negative way, but whatever). In any case, I’ll be curious to see if I can go a day without an eyeache.
In Other News
Today should be a “down day”, meaning I might be a bit down as I recover from the end of an opera run and I shouldn’t have as much hanging over my head work-wise. But actually it’s turned into a busy one. First I drove our younger son back to Santa Cruz, and the drive back home was probably one of the worst I’ve ever had due to the rain. But I’m here. Next I’m off the opposite direction to deliver packing boxes to our older son, and enjoy a lunch with him. And then, as I have every Monday, I’ll be teaching for the afternoon. So my “down time” will wait until tonight. And I suspect I won’t really be down as in depressed because I have more work very soon and I’ll be getting my act together for that.
Meanwhile, check this out:
One of my parents’ deepest fears, I suspect, is that society would not properly value me as a musician, that I wouldn’t be appreciated. I had very good grades in high school, I was good in science and math, and they imagined that as a doctor or a research chemist or an engineer, I might be more appreciated than I would be as a musician. I still remember my mother’s remark when I announced my decision to apply to music school—she said, “you’re WASTING your SAT scores.” On some level, I think, my parents were not sure themselves what the value of music was, what its purpose was. And they LOVED music, they listened to classical music all the time. They just weren’t really clear about its function. So let me talk about that a little bit, because we live in a society that puts music in the “arts and entertainment” section of the newspaper, and serious music, the kind your kids are about to engage in, has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with entertainment, in fact it’s the opposite of entertainment. Let me talk a little bit about music, and how it works.
You can read the rest here. It’s a welcome address to incoming freshmen at the Boston Conservatory by Karl Paulnack.
Painful : Judging region band English horn auditions. Torture : Judging 24 oboes immediately after. Oy.
