Andrew Paa on Violinist.com

Auditions, Decisions and More Good News

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:07:37 GMT

Clearly, I've been insanely busy since the last time I updated my blog IN JUNE!! Thinking back on it, I have been busy. I've been all over the place actually, visiting schools and doing auditions. Since June I have visited the University of Iowa, University of Northern Iowa, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Michigan, and Kent State University. I had a a lot great visits and many, many terrific lessons. In the end, however, I opted to pursue a second masters degree rather than the DMA. Overall, I felt I needed more study before I could pursue the DMA at schools I truly wanted, like Michigan. I auditioned at four schools for the second masters: UNI, Kent State, Ball State, and Illinois State. Not only I was accepted at all four, I also received assistantship offers at three of the schools. It was a very humbling experience and it was nice to see the progress I've made in action. Out of the four, the school I was most interested in was Kent State. After my visit there I knew that it was "it." I felt like it would be the place for me to ultimately accomplish my goals. The teacher was fabulous, the campus nice, the town quaint and the fact that it was so close to Cleveland all these factors together made this decision easy. My audition went well and I ended up having two lessons before I returned to South Dakota. After the audition, the wait to hear details regarding an assistantship began. While on Chamber Singers tour, emails began trickling in with snippets of information about the chances of me getting an assistantship. Finally, on the last day of tour after the final emotional concert, I received the first email confirming that I had one. It was a relief and I was overjoyed: I officially had a place to go next year! However, it was not from my "it" school. Shortly thereafter, the email came and I had my second assistantship offer (a very generous one) and it was the school at the very top of my list! I was ecstatic and just yesterday I made the official decision that Kent State is going to be the place I attend. I couldn't be happier! My final recital at USD will be April 22 at 3:00 and will feature the Triple "A" Piano Trio in the Arensky Piano Trio, Mendelssohn Violin Concerto and Beethoven's 7th Sonata for Violin and Piano with Pianist Adrian Ries. On a personal note, my weight loss since my lost blog now stands at 110lbs.

I did it!!

Wed, 08 Jun 2011 17:55:42 GMT

Well, I'm sure everyone was waiting to hear how my violin search had gone and it has gone well indeed!� I'm now the proud owner of a John Johnson violin made in 1759 in London.� I'm really happy to own this instrument and I really think that it is a violin that I will keep with me for a long while.� It has a lot of great qualities and it's been really fun exploring it thus far.� It reacts to bow speed, pressure and sounding point changes fairly differently from my old violin and it's been fun to explore those three variables.�

Other than that, I'm going full steam ahead with my DMA audition repertoire and it's going fairly well.� I had a lesson with Dr. Kim on Monday and it was nice to get some feedback.� From here on out, I am having weekly lessons.� I can play through the entire second movement of Barber without too many problems, now I just need to make it more musical.� I'm only planning on spending another week on it and then I'm switching to the Bach Fugue, working solely on the third movement of Barber and getting the St. Saens in my fingers.� I'm enjoying the challenge of learning all of the music and I'm glad my job is flexible enough to let me get as much practice time in as I want/need.� I'm also working my way through some of the exercises in Basics; specifically the ones focused on intonation!� My intonation is worlds better than it ever used to be but I must get it closer to perfection.� Violinistically, this is going to be a great summer for me.� I'm also doing a lot of scales work.� Eventually, I'm going to need to start doing intervals as well.� I don't do enough of that kind of work and it takes me longer to learn those passages in music.� Another thing I need to work on is 4th finger vibrato.� i used to have a pretty good one but it seems to have disappeared, so I'm working on getting it back and getting it stronger.�

Yesterday, I spent a fair amount of time giving my website an update.� I added a new page and updated all of the pictures.� Some of them were really old and didn't match up with how I look now.� I've lost quite a bit of weight and looking at those old pictures made me realize how different I looked in my recital versus the other photos of me performing.� If you want, check it out at www.andrewpaa.com.� I think it's a much better website now.

Currently, I'm trying to draw out students in the area I live in.� There are actually quite a few violinists and it's hard to make them aware of your presence as a teacher when there isn't a music store in the town you live in.� But, I keep trying anyway. :)� In August I'll put an add in a few of the local papers again.� It seemed to work last time.

Six Months Later

Wed, 20 Apr 2011 23:46:17 GMT

Hello, everyone! & nbsp; I hope you are all doing well. & nbsp; I know that I certainly am. & nbsp; It's, of course, been forever since I updated my blog here. & nbsp; It's been an incredibly busy year. & nbsp; & nbsp; I just recently completed my first recital in a 3 years and I have to say that it went really well. & nbsp; I & nbsp;had some slip-ups but I was overall happy with how I performed. & nbsp; Since the last time I updated, I won USD's concerto competition and am peforming the Barber with the orchestra in just over a week. & nbsp; & nbsp; It's bringing me all kinds of new challenges but overall it's a good experience. & nbsp; & nbsp; I've also started the search for a new instrument. & nbsp; I've realized this year that mine simply doesn't have enough guts and it takes an insane amount of work to be heard, even with just the piano. & nbsp; Plus, I'm always scared that I & nbsp;am going to overpower my current instrument, which is easy for to do. & nbsp;

I am also for sure staying at USD for an additional year before going on for my doctorate (hopefully anyway). & nbsp; Next year I have no academic classes will be heavily involved in chamber music in a piano trio, chamber orchestra and Beethoven's 7th Sonata for Piano and Violin. & nbsp; & nbsp; I'm incredibly excited for this!! & nbsp; I've been a little starved for chamber music this year. & nbsp; I've started work on Introduction and Rondo Cappricioso, the Bach G-minor fugue and the other two movements of Barber. & nbsp; All of those are going to be used for DMA auditions. & nbsp;

Anyway, I'll try to update more later. & nbsp; Have a great day!

Life of a Deflating Violinist

Sun, 03 Oct 2010 16:34:38 GMT

Now that it's been a small fraction of eternity, I've decided to update this blog. & nbsp; This summer ended up being an interesting summer where I & nbsp;did almost nothing of what I planned. & nbsp; In total, I & nbsp;had one lone violin lesson. & nbsp; It wasn't completely intentional, but I just didn't feel like it was something I needed to do this summer. & nbsp; Instead, I & nbsp;just practiced and I practiced really whatever I wanted. & nbsp; I & nbsp;worked my rep for my recital a little but not all that much. & nbsp; I also took about a month off from playing...I'm fairly certain I was burned out from last year. & nbsp; During this time a miraculous thing happened: my intonation seems to have nearly fixed itself. & nbsp; According to Dr. Kim, my intonation is miles better than it was just 4 months ago...even though I have done nothing completely intentional to make this so. & nbsp; I played violin the community theater production, Oklahoma. & nbsp; It was fun and it was nice to do something outside of the classical music realm. & nbsp; Otherwise, I worked in the music office on campus this summer, which resulted in a ton of painting and organizing of the orchestra library. & nbsp;

I've decided that I'm not going to attempt the second masters degree idea. & nbsp; I find myself somewhat bored with the classes here and I don't have any desire to take further history classes at another institution while all I really want to do is accumulate more violin rep. & nbsp; In the end, I also decided I & nbsp;would like as much consistentcy as possible going into DMA auditions. & nbsp; So, I've instead decided that staying here at USD would be the best option, though, in case this is completely unfeasable, I would like to audition at UNI. & nbsp; I & nbsp;would still consider this consistentcy as I've studies with the violin teacher there before and enjoyed it very much. & nbsp; I've already decided where I & nbsp;want to look for the doctorate. & nbsp; My top three schools are UNT (Julia Bushkova), UW-Madison (Felicia Moye or David Perry), and FSU (Corrine Stillwell). & nbsp; I'm guessing that I'm going to send pre-screenings to 5 or six and would like to round this list out with Indiana or CIM (I & nbsp;doubt I have a prayer but it would be nice to have a & quot;shoot for the stars & quot; school) and Ohio State University. & nbsp; Other schools on my list include the University of Minnesota (Sally O'Reilly), University of Colorado at Boulder (Linda Bahn or Oswald Lehnert), University of North Carolina-Greensboro (Marjorie Bagley or Fabian Lopez) and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (Sherban Lupu or one of the Pacifica Quartet violinists). & nbsp; The main problem is that many of these schools have different audition requirements, like the post 1950's piece at Boulder and the Sonata requirement at Inidiana. & nbsp;

On a personal note, I have lost 40 pounds!! & nbsp; It feels so nice to have accomplished something which I have struggles with my whole life. & nbsp; I still want and need to loose more weight but I have the confidence to do it. & nbsp; Actually, I & nbsp;think this weight loss contributed to my improved intonation because my fingers shrank a bit, making the left hand mechanism work better. & nbsp; I achieved this weight loss with healthier food and lots of long bike rides and walks. & nbsp; Apparently the freshmen 15 applies to the first year masters students as well...cause I gained weight in my first year here. & nbsp; But, now I weigh a little less than I did my last 3 years of undergrad. & nbsp;

Back to the violin. & nbsp; I & nbsp;have a recital this year and I'm really excited about the rep. & nbsp; Barber violin concerto, Brahms G-major Sonata, Bach g-minor sonata (Adagio and Presto) and the Prokofiev Solo Sonata. & nbsp; As many of you know, I've worked on some of this in the past but since I took the summer off from serious playing, I hardly touched most of this stuff. & nbsp; So it's back to the drawing board for the Prokofiev and the Bach. & nbsp; I can already play the first movement of the Brahms relatively well and hack my way through the Barber. & nbsp; The exposition and recap are going well in the Barber but the recapitulation is not going so swimmingly, it's just awkward for me. & nbsp; But I'll get it learned and hopefully to the tempo of the rest by my lesson this week, I have until Thursday. & nbsp; I'm also doing this for a concerto competition or two and need to get everything really well memorized by the middle of the month...even though my teacher gave me til the end of the month, I & nbsp;just really want it memorized. & nbsp; I'm hoping to begin the second movement this semester, which I & nbsp;think is absolutely gorgeous. & nbsp; I'm not so sure about that third movement, I know I & nbsp;need to study it but it's the most daunting of the three movements from a technical point of view. & nbsp;

Last night was the first concert of the season for the Sioux City Symphony with Sir James and Lady Jeanne Galway. & nbsp; It was a good concert but I & nbsp;felt like we weren't playing as well as we could have. & nbsp; We did Beethoven Symphony No. 5, which is well known and makes it a dangerous piece. & nbsp; The audience received it well. & nbsp; This wasn't my best performance, which was disappointing because I was playing it well at the dress rehearsal but somewhere along the afternoon and night, I lost my energy. & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; The next concert is all movie music, which should be fun and some of the music is actually fiendishly difficult. & nbsp; Thanks John Williams and your Harry Potter score.

A Most Wonderful Day: Updated

Sat, 24 Apr 2010 03:24:00 GMT

This morning I woke up to darkness. & nbsp; No, it wasn't an early morning but a late one with dark rain clouds covering the sun. & nbsp; What started out as a dreary day turned into a day full of great news and interesting discoveries. & nbsp; This past Wednesday was jury day. & nbsp; Overall, I was dissatisfied with my performance and was not eagerly awaiting receiving the comment sheets and my grades. & nbsp; Somewhat begrudgingly I traveled to the music building to warm up for my violin lesson where I would have to watch the video of my jury and get the comment sheets. & nbsp; To my pleasant surprise, Dr. Kim was fairly pleased with the jury and it turned out to be an & quot;A & quot; jury again this semester. & nbsp; & nbsp; I am pleased with this and it was nice to read the comments which acknowledged my growth on violin this semester and through the year.

It would appear that I didn't finish my blog, the story continues:

On the comment sheet, one of the professors asked me if I was going to be taking lessons this summer. & nbsp; Shortly after my lesson, I ran into the professor and told them that I was. & nbsp; I also told them that I was planning on going on for a second MM in Performance. & nbsp; Not only did they encourage this idea but also suggested a possible school: & nbsp; Kent State University. & nbsp; Their former cello teacher, Keith Robinson of the Miami String Quartet, teachers there and his wife, Cathy Meng Robinson, if a wonderful violinist and teacher as well. & nbsp; This professor thought that Cathy Meng Robinson would be able to do wonderful things for me and would love to send a student from USD to study there. & nbsp; So, I checked out the school and the quartet and found that I would LOVE to study with them. & nbsp; The school looks great and it would be awesome to be mentored by the Miami String Quartet. & nbsp; Plus, I would ultimately like to end up at CIM & nbsp;for the DMA and Kent, OH would put me in a good position to aquaint myself with the Cleveland Orchestra and the faculty at CIM. & nbsp; & nbsp; & nbsp; So, that completes my list of schools I am planning on applying to and auditioning for: the University of North Texas, the University of Minnesota, Illinois State, Ball State (one of my teachers former teachers teaches there), Kent State and, Bowling Green State University.

Also, I finally took the plunge and spent the money some new violin books: & nbsp; Basics, Agopian's No Time to Practice and Gerle's The Art of Expressive bowing. & nbsp; I just got the books yesterday and have already begun to explore them. & nbsp; I'm most excited for the intonation and tone production chapters in Basics. & nbsp; Though I produce a pleasant tone, I sometimes have issues with bow speed changes, creating some unevenness in my phrasing. & nbsp; Intonation is a constant battle for me and it's light years better than it was last year but it's still not where I want it. & nbsp; My recital for next year is essentially set as well: & nbsp; Barber Violin Concerto, Prokofiev Solo Sonata, Bach G-minor Sonata, and (probably) the Brahms G-Major Sonata for Violin and Piano. & nbsp; And this summer I'll be studying with both my teacher here at USD and hopefully studying excerpts with my teacher from last summer, Dr. Auerbach. & nbsp;

I also happy to report that my teacher, Dr. Eunho Kim is no longer the interim violin teacher at USD but is the Assistant Professor of Violin and Rawlins Trio Violinist! & nbsp; Meaning, she'll be back next year and I'll have consistency in my violin instruction. & nbsp; I've really learned a lot from her and I & nbsp;am looking forward to learning more over the summer and into next year! & nbsp; So, if you're looking for a great string faculty at a small state school, USD is for you and here is a little info on Dr. Kim: & nbsp;

Originally from Seoul, Korea, Dr. Eunho Kim is an active teacher, orchestra player and chamber musician. She has been an adjunct instructor of violin at Northwestern College and Dordt College in Iowa, and has taught violin and music theory at Morningside College.

A devoted ensemble player, Dr. Kim has played the associate concertmaster of South Dakota Symphony, the violinist of Morningside Piano Trio and recently completed her fourth year as the concertmaster of Sioux City Symphony. Her former positions in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area during her graduate study include being a member of the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, Kentucky Symphony Orchestra and Sorg Opera Orchestra. She has worked with maestros such as Charles Dutoit, Michael Tilson Thomas, Myung-hun Chung and Peter Oundjian, and studied with Piotr Milewski, Peter Oundjian, members of Tokyo String Quarte and Dorothy Delay.

Dr. Kim holds a B.M. degree from Seoul National University, and the M.M. and D.M.A. degrees in violin performance from College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati, where she also earned an additional M.M. in music theory.

About my first semester.

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:22:11 GMT

It's been one heck of a busy first semester of grad school!!� I can't believe that classes ended last friday and that I'm in the midst of finals already.� If feels like just yesterday I was starting my first day of classes and finding out that I was in the Sioux City Symphony.�� For the most part it's been a� great semester, full to�the brim�with music and traveling.� I happy to report that it has been a semester of musical progress as well.� Two weeks ago was juries and I received my first overall "A" for juries ever!� It was quite exciting to get the comments from the faculty back.� While they noticed improvment from earlier in the semester, there is still much to be worked on.� My teacher seemed very happy with how it went and the cello professor commented that it was my best performance to date.� However, I still need to work for intonation stability.� While it has improved significantly, it can be a lot better.

According to my teacher, it's not that I can't play in tune, it's that it is unstable and inconsistant.� Some weeks I'll walk through her door with nearly perfect intonation and then the next week, it'll have gone completely out the window.� We have made it our goal to develop a consistant and stable intonation by the end of this forthcoming semester.� So, scales and Sevcik it is.� I'm also working on getting intonation aboslutely right the first time on my solo literature I'm working on.� It's quite the list actually, but I'm going to be learning it in smaller chunks.� We're also already thinking ahead to my future auditions for a DMA program.� Basically, all of the DMA programs want a complete concerto, complete bach sonata or partita and another complete work of the applicants choice.� So, my teacher and I have decided that a good concerto for me to work on now would be Vieuxtemps No. 5 in A-minor, I'm going to continue my work on the Bach G-minor Sonata and I'm going to start the Prokofiev Solo Violin sonata as well.� In addition, I'm going to also work on Beethovens Sonata for violin and piano no. in D-Major.� The sonata has a two-fold purpose; to give me futher experience working with piano and to begin building up a sonata repertoire.� Unfortunately, I don't have much in the way of collaborative work with piano, so I need to start building that rep now.� I have a lot to work on before DMA auditions, but I'm also very likely to spend an extra year here.� However, that still remains to be seen and it mostly has to do if i can afford it because my fellowship only lasts for two years.�

If you're curious, the schools I am looking into for the DMA are:� Peabody, University of Michigan, University of North Texas, Arizona State University, University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign, Ohio State University, University of North Carolina-Greensboro, University of Wisconsin, University of Minnesota, University of Oklahoma, University of Kentucky and University of Connecticut.� I assure you that I wouldn't actually apply to all of these schools, but will select 5 or 6 of them.�

I will more than likely also be pursuing a second master's in music history if I do in fact stay.� My violin teacher really highly encourages this course of action because she herself got a duel MM in performance and music theory from CCM.� If it does not work for me to stay an extra year, I will most likly apply to some schools for an extra MM in performance.� I would likely be applying to UMN, Bowling Green, UW-Madison, UNI, UofI-Urbana/Champaign and perhaps some bigger schools that I haven't decided on yet.� Many of these are aslo schools to which I woudl also apply to for a DMA.� I'm sure this sounds absolutely ludicrous to some people but I have given this a lot of thought.� It has been suggested that I take�a year off from school to get more orchestral performance experience and to study privately.� However, if I were to do that, student loans would start to come due and I would have to work a 40 hour a week job to begin paying off my loans.� I would probably be in two orchestras as well and studying privately.� Also, with the economy the way it is now, I highly doubt I could get a job I would enjoy doing...especially in South Dakota.� As such,�I don't think this plan would work, so that is why I've decided on a second degree in the same area if need be.�

�Next semester, I'm also taking conducting to not only become a more competent conductor, but also because it will help me develop a better sense of rhythm and timing.�So, suffice it to say that this past semester I've been busy and I will continue to stay busyin the forthcoming semester.� However, I've been banned from being in�a string quartet...which is probably a good thing, because I have a lot to work on anyway.�

10th Time's the Charm

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 19:05:23 GMT

With so much to do and so much going on (not to mention that I haven't had great internet access for a week), I've again neglected my blog!! & nbsp; & nbsp; So much has occurred since my last update that I could fill page upon page as I write. & nbsp; I & rsquo;ll try not to ramble too much though. & nbsp; Let & rsquo;s just travel back in time a little bit to July. & nbsp; After I played for all three candidates looking to be the violin teacher at USD, I realized that I would happy if any of the three was chosen to be my teacher. & nbsp; All three were very knowledgeable and genuinely seemed to like teaching. & nbsp; After the master classes, I eagerly awaited to see who my next violin teacher would be. & nbsp; As a week turned into three weeks, I began to get frustrated by the lack of a signal that a new violin teacher had been picked. & nbsp; However, as my patience was wearing thin, I received an e-mail stating that the hold-up was clearance from the government on the new teacher & rsquo;s visa. & nbsp; So, I would not know my new violin teachers & rsquo; name for another three weeks. & nbsp; A week ago, they were finally able to reveal the name of the teacher, on the first day of classes at my new Grad School. & nbsp; Thus, my new violin teacher is Dr. Eunho Kim. & nbsp;

While waiting to hear back from USD regarding the status of the violin teacher, I was still preparing for my auditions and getting ever more frustrated with my lack of ability to play my excerpts better. & nbsp; I was running out of time to practice for both orchestra & rsquo;s (a combined excerpt packet of 27 pages), so I ended up choosing to audition for only one of the orchestra & rsquo;s. & nbsp; I decided to audition for the Sioux City Symphony only. & nbsp; In the end, this was an excellent decision because, as of this last week, I & rsquo;m a member of the first violin section. & nbsp; Really, I & rsquo;m not quite sure how I managed this feat, but I am quite pleased with the results of this, my first professional audition. & nbsp; The audition went really well according to my teacher, who is concertmaster of the orchestra. & nbsp; My Mozart was quite good as was the more difficult excerpts that I had to perform. & nbsp; Really, this is all due to the fine teachers I had over the summer, Dan Auerbach for my solo lit. and Sonja Bundy for my excerpts. & nbsp; I couldn & rsquo;t have done this without their help and constant pushing of me to the next level. & nbsp; It was because of winning this audition that I realized the line between me as a student and professional violinist are much more blurred; also because I & rsquo;m looking to teach students here. & nbsp;

I & rsquo;ve already had one week of graduate school under my belt and I must say that it & rsquo;s quite different from undergraduate work. & nbsp; For one, I have much more time when I don & rsquo;t have anything actually going on. & nbsp; It & rsquo;s really different but it gives me more practice and rehearsal freedom than I & rsquo;ve experienced before. & nbsp; However, my schedule is about to get a lot fuller because ensembles will be added in this week. & nbsp; I & rsquo;m signed up to be the first violinist in a new string quartet, I & rsquo;m the violinist of the Townsley Duo/Trio, I & rsquo;m also going to do Chamber Orchestra and I & rsquo;m concertmaster of the USD Symphony. & nbsp; One top of that, once a month one week will be filled with long rehearsals for the Sioux City Symphony. & nbsp; It makes me wonder when I & rsquo;ll have time to practice my solo literature! & nbsp; While this is a lot of ensembles and playing, I & rsquo;m doing it to get used to a lot of rehearsing, playing and performing. & nbsp; It & rsquo;s what I & rsquo;m here to do and if it turns out to be too much, I can get rid of something next semester or next year. & nbsp; Plus, my academic work is reduced because I only have two actual classes, so I don & rsquo;t have to spend as much time reading and studying, which is actually a nice change. & nbsp;

On this last Thursday, I had my first lesson with my new teacher. & nbsp; I found her to be an exacting but polite teacher who expects a great deal out of me. & nbsp; It makes me quite happy to have a teacher who will push me at every lesson to play at the highest level that I possibly can. & nbsp; Over this last year and a half, I & rsquo;ve become pretty used to being pushed and I & rsquo;m glad to see that I can continue this tradition. & nbsp; I & rsquo;m working on some very difficult repertoire this semester, including St. Saens 3^rd Concerto, Bach G-minor Sonata-Fugue and the Wieniawski Polonaise Brilliante in A-Major. & nbsp; Also, I will be heavily working on technique as well, which pleases me to no end. & nbsp; I think I & rsquo;m going to finally fill in all those gaps in my technical training because I believe she is going to have me work through most, if not all, of the Kreutzer this year. & nbsp; I really enjoy technique work and have begun to reap the benefits of doing a heavy dose of technique. & nbsp; I & rsquo;m a much more secure violin player than I was even a year ago. & nbsp; I & rsquo;m able to learn notes more quickly and to be much more musical with phrases. & nbsp; Also, I & rsquo;m becoming better able to come up with my own fingerings and bowings & hellip;though they often look like something Galamian would have written. & nbsp;

Well, I could go on but I won & rsquo;t. & nbsp; Suffice to say, I & rsquo;m going to have a very busy semester full of making music and really going into the technical and musical depths of the violin with the pieces of music. & nbsp; It & rsquo;s my goal to learn those three pieces fully by the end of the semester. & nbsp; I & rsquo;ve already begun planning on auditioning for music festivals including Killington, Brevard, Aspen, Chautauqua, Rocky Mountain Conservatory and Rocky Ridge. & nbsp; If anyone has any insight into any of these programs, I would be happy for any information. & nbsp;

& nbsp;Have a great rest of Labor Day!!

Andrew Paa

& nbsp;

Changes Around the Middle

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:35:29 GMT

I�have literally visited the "Post Blog" page three times a day for the last two weeks, yet have never actually written the blog entry!� Well, as you can see, that changed today.� I think my lesson yesterday spurred me to this.� Over the last few weeks, my tendonitous has acted up but it is now subsiding again.� I've discovered that my biggest weakness as a violinist is my "heavy" fingers.� Though not as a bad as a few years ago, I still tend to pound the fingerboard.� My left hand gets heavier the louder I play with my right hand.� It's quite amusing really and something I never really noticed, until my summer teacher, Dan Auerbach, pointed it out.� It's the whole reason I've never been able to play quickly!� So, I'm using a menagerie of Sevcik, scale exercises and special practice on my repertoire to get my hands out of the habit of pounding.� I'm also working on seperating my left hand and my right hand, or to play forte with my right hand but keep my left hand at a piano dynamic.� Apparently, my intonation is better than I thought because he wants me to focus less on intonation (that is, don't spend as much time working for the intonation I already have) and to focus more on the light left hand, shifting and phrasing.�

It's always interesting to get a new teacher and realize what's improved and what it's needs work.� I'll have another new teacher this coming fall because the violin teacher at my grad school has decided to not return after a semester away.� Now, the school has 3 candidates coming in for the position and I've been fortunate enough to be invited to play at the public masterclasses.� The first candidate that I'm playing for tomorrow is Eunho Kim and the second, that I'm playing for on Thursday, is Michael Jorgensen; I don't know who the third candidate is yet, but I play for them a week from today.� Both are highly qualified violinists, going to outstanding schools.� They're also pretty young, which is somewhat different to me because I'm much more used to working with older teachers.� I'm very excited to play for them and it will be an excellent experience for me, as I've never actually played in a masterclass before.� Also, it's intimidating because there will be students and faculty listening that I�have never met.�� But, let's be honest, I'm more excited than nervous.� I'm quickly becoming much more comfortable with performing; which is good since that's what I'm getting my masters in.�

Also, on a personal note.� I've lost 10 pounds since getting back from San Francisco!

�

The Bad and then the Extremely Good

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 15:14:59 GMT

When one auditions at a grad school, no one suspects the violin teacher they wished to study with will decide to leave the school. & nbsp; However, that is not the case with me. & nbsp; After 15 years at USD, the violin teacher is leaving. & nbsp; Shockingly, I'm not as worried as I might be but the worry is beginning to creep up on me. & nbsp; What am I going to get for a violin teacher? & nbsp; He only recently announced his official dicision to leave and the announcment of his open poisition was only recenty put up on on the USD website. & nbsp; Thus, I'm stuck. & nbsp; I don't want to end up with a bad teacher and one that is not completely qualified. & nbsp; On the other hand, I could end up with a fantastic teacher. & nbsp; I'm trying to keep my mind on the positive but it's just difficult. & nbsp; So, I'm hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. & nbsp;

Just last night I returned from a vacation in San Francisco, Monterey and PIsmo Beach. & nbsp; While in San Francisco I & nbsp;got to hear the San Francisco Symphony with a program featuring the Berg Violin Concerto and Schuberts 6th Mass. & nbsp; Gil Shaham was the soloist for the concerto and I counldn't have been happier with my first live performance of the concerto. & nbsp; His ability to phrase was astounding and his dynamics were extremely diverse. & nbsp; He made a concerto that isn't easy to make beautiful, completely beautiful. & nbsp; I also realized taht importance of the bow during his performance, most of the beauty came from what he could do with his bow, not with what he could with vibrato. & nbsp; His performance gave me a lot to think about and of course the symphony was absolutely fantastic. & nbsp; After the concert, I & nbsp;met with the soloist briefly and found him to be a very nice, talkative and personable. & nbsp; I took a picture with him and will hopefully post it at a later date. & nbsp;

Have a pleasant day!

Past, Present and Future

Sat, 30 May 2009 02:07:03 GMT

So, I don't update very often. & nbsp; Well, violin is going amazingly well and I've made a ton or progress. & nbsp; & nbsp; Specifically with intonation. & nbsp; & nbsp; I'm working on implementing the last major issue that Jubal was working with me on before I graduated and it's working well. & nbsp; That is arm support, which is an amazing tool for the improvement of intonation. & nbsp; This past Sunday I graduated from Luther. & nbsp; It's a hard adjustment, knowing that I'm no longer a student there. & nbsp; I'm going to miss it a lot next year; specifically the music environment there. & nbsp; I decided to go go USD, there I was offerred the Rawlins Trio Fellowship, so I'll be the violinist of the Townsley Trio this fall. & nbsp; While I'm excited, I know the musical environment is vastly different from Luthers. & nbsp; It will be an adjustment. & nbsp; Also, I'll be auditioning for the South Dakota and Sioux City Symphonies. & nbsp; I've already began the excerpts and there are a lot of them. & nbsp; I'm also starting a bunch of new repetoire; Bach g-minor fugue, Wienawski Polonaise Brilliante in A-Major and perhaps the Mendelssohn concerto. & nbsp;