Proms Concerts

So last weekend I finally played the Proms concerts with the ASO. I was actually really surprised at what they turned out to be. It's basically a gigantic celebration of England and people are hardcore about it. It felt almost sacriledge for me to be playing in it as an American. I felt like it was something I wasn't meant to witness. The audiences were rowdy too. There were streamers and those little noise makers that you have at New Years parties. The audience was strongly encouraged to sing along. It was pretty wild. During "Hail Britannia" everyone in the orchestra was given streamers to throw at each/at the audience. Some people were making it their goal to get a streamer awkwardly on someone's instrument who had to be playing at the time. I got mine right on the head of a violin player. It was a good time.

Also, in the second half of the program, the orchestra gets to dress up in costume. It was fun. All of the women in the woodwind section dressed up as Morris dancers. It proved once again that suspenders were not designed to be worn by women. All of the brass/men in the woodwind section dressed up in some kind of military uniform. Except for one trumpet player who, for some reason, opted to wear a tux. In addition to the tux, he had a number of accessories that he changed after every song or so. These ranged from wigs to fake noses. It was crazy. The entire trumpet section decided to wear newspaper hats for a few songs. It was a good time.

However, my favorite part of the program was the Sweet Transvestite guy. For some reason, we were playing the song Sweet Transvestite from the Rocky Horror picture show. And the actor for the song was there. In full makeup. And wig. And costume. It was the most hilarious thing ever. On the first night, the orchestra hadn't realized what his costume was going to look like. He comes on with a cape draped around him (we all knew about that) and after the intro of the song, throws it off. This man was wearing possibly the shortest shorts I have ever seen in my life, heals, fishnets, and a corset-type shirt (I guess you could call it that). Half the orchestra stopped playing when we saw. We were just cracking up. It was amazing. The audience was freaking out too.

Anywho... The Proms were a really good time. I was glad to get to play with an orchestra (I miss orchestra) and I got to meet some really interesting people. The people in the woodwind section kept telling me that I will never play in another orchestra like this again, and I've gotta say, I'm pretty sure they're right. They're just so crazy. It was really fun. I was glad Stoven talked me into it, even though it tried to take over my life for a couple weeks.
Peace.

Wrapping Up

So... I think I'm just going to stop promising that I'm going to write soon because I seem to keep losing track of this blog. Sorry guys. I keep getting busy or distracted. But I'm finally sitting still in an attempt to not wear myself out for my performance exam tomorrow, so I will give you an update.

Um, let's see... My semester here in Auckland is wrapping up extremely quickly. I leave in 10 days. I am constantly busy for the next three days with various performances. Then I'm going to Wellington for five days. Then I have two more full days in Auckland plus the day of my flight, which doesn't leave until the evening. I'm actually pretty sad about the thought of leaving. While I'm looking forward to getting to see everyone in the States again, I also remember that in the next week I'm going to say goodbye to a lot of people that I will probably never get a chance to see again. Or if I do, it will not be for a very long time. I also feel like I'm just now getting settled and suddenly I'm leaving again. This semester has absolutely flown by. People told me it would. But I want to make the most of my last days here.

My trip to Wellington is going to be great. I'm so excited. I'm planning on going to a number of museums and art galleries. Wellington's known as kind of an artsy place. The botanical gardens are supposed to be beautiful. There's just all kind of stuff to do. Wellington is also the capital, so I'm going to see all of the government buildings. And apparently there is one day that you can go and watch Parliament do something. Sweet. I'm also looking forward to going somewhere outside of Auckland. I haven't left the city in over a month.

This weekend is full of performances. Tomorrow is my performance exam. Twenty minutes of rather strenuous music. Second movement of Bernstein sonata, first movement of Brahms no. 1, all followed by Raubaud's Solo de Concours. It's a lot of playing. I am currently having to actively keep myself from going to the annexe to practice more. I'm at the point where pretty much all I can do is think good thoughts and try to get a decent night's sleep. I'm well prepared but the perfectionist side of me keeps insisting that I'm not. I have become even more of a perfectionist recently, if that is possible. I think that's a good thing though. It's making me freakishly driven (in terms of music, anyway). On Saturday and Sunday, I have the Proms concerts with the ASO, finally. The music isn't extremely difficult but there is a lot of it. It is seriously about three hours of solid playing. It's supposed to be quite a show. I haven't seen all of it put together but there are dancers and random actors (like one of the guys from Rocky Horror. We're playing Sweet Transvestite, no joke.) and a choir (they're not very good though) and some interesting light effects based on what was happening during rehearsal tonight. During the second half of the program, the orchestra gets to dress up in costumes. The woodwinds and horns are dressing up as Morris dancers. We get cool hats. I'm stoked.

As for what's been going on up to now.... Just day to day stuff, generally. I keep meaning to go do stuff around Auckland but my days seem to disappear really quickly. I had my management exam today. Eh. I'm glad it's done. It reminded me of just how much I loathe essay exams. They are ick. Why would any teacher ever do them? But it's over. I happily sold my book back immediately after the exam. Good times.

AND OH MY GOSH!!! I just remembered something I forgot to write about! I got to see Kari Kriikku play with the NZSO. For those who don't know why you should care about Kari Kriikku, it is because he is a clarinet god. Seriously amazing! I have never seen anything like it ever. I don't even have good enough words to describe him. My words could never match up to his performance. It was absolutely breathtaking. I actually realised about half way through the piece that I was holding my breathe, that's how into it I was. No joke. He is so incredibly expressive. And he does some amazing effects. I'm not sure how to do most of them. It was so awesome. During intermission, Natalie, Rowan and I snuck back to the stage door. And we got to talk to him! For like a minute, but still. We were all a bit star struck. We had trouble getting out much more than, "Thank you so much for playing here!" and "We're university clarinetists. We pretty much worship the ground you walk out." We actually left out that bit about worshipping him, but we were all thinking it. It was the most amazing night. We were all so hyperactive after hearing him play. Except Kevin... Kevin was depressed because he thinks he'll never be that good. And, honestly, none of us will probably ever be that good. But that doesn't mean we're hopeless. So awesome.

I'm going to go ahead and end on that note because now all I can do is think about Kari Kriikku and bask in his amazingness. I've officially gone into nerdy clarinet mode and it's hard to get me back from that. I would say that I will post again soon but I'm not going to promise anything. If I haven't written anything by Monday, then I'll let you know how Wellington was when I get back. And then I'll be home soon.
Peace.

Franz Josef Pictures

I finally stopped being a slacker and posted Franz Josef pics! Yay! These are all courtesy of my friend, Scott. It was raining the entire time we were on the hike, so I didn't dare take my camera out of the relative safety of my backpack. As it was, everything got wet and I was surprised that my camera lived to see a new day. However, Scott, brave man that he is, did have the guts to take and camera out for a few pictures and was kind enough to allow me to have them for my own personal enjoyment and to share with other. And, two months later, I have finally posted them. I have added them onto Part 6 of the South Island Trip. So go check them out if you wish. Coming up, hopefully some posts about my doings in Auckland as of late and more pictures of various stuff, including some pics of where I live and the surrounding area, as requested by Grandma.
Peace.

I'm Alive, Really

So I haven't posted for ages, so I thought I would just let you know that I'm still alive. I have been busy with school and musical things, but nothing ospecial to report. I lost my phone at Foodtown this weekend and had to get a new one, which is a bummer. And the fire alarm went off for the fourth time since I've been here yesterday, which was kind of funny. The wait for practice rooms gets increasingly longer as it creeps closer to exams. So I've been getting some good reading in while I sit in the hallway staring down anyone who does not actually practice in the practice room that they have claimed.

I'm also planning a trip to Wellington in a few weeks. It will be my first solo sojourn out of Auckland. I'm really excited. I will post more fun everyday life stories when I have more time because I've got several but right now I need to get off to wait for a practice room and then meet up with my accompanist. Also, one of these days I will post the Franz Josef Glacier pictures that I stole from Scott ages ago.