February 14, 2005 at 7:02 AM

Another weekend has come to an end!

School this past week was interesting. It was a "different" week for me. I had to take my violin to school with me one day and my English teacher and class ganged up on me and made me play. What do you play for an English class of largely un-classical music lovers? Why not some Yankee Doodle? So that's what I did! English was also highly amusing this week for other reasons. We are drawing to a close in our study of Shakespeare's Macbeth. On Friday I, along with two other people in my class, had to act out part of a scene. We were witches. Everyone in the class had to take part in this acting assignment. We weren't marked on our acting abilities, that's just to make it fun, but on our ability to memorise lines and recite them ."Thrice the brinded cat hath mew'd..." Burning fires and bubbling cauldrons anyone?

On Saturday I had my first rehearsal EVER with an accompanist who wasn't a member of my family. We did the Barber concerto and Robinovitch, Adieu Babylon together. They actually came together much easier then I had expected, especially the Robinovitch, which with improvisitory sections and "piano and violin play independently of each other" I was a little worried how it would all come together, but overall it seemed to work pretty good, just a couple of little details and some of the tempo changes and transitions of the sections need to be smoothed over. I really enjoyed the experience though, and it was really great to have a collborater is very good at what they do and who is willing to listen to my ideas and contribute his own.

This week I will not be seeing my locker at school at all! I'm going on tour! 7 concert, 4 cities, 3 days! How's that for busy? Rehearsals start tomorrow and Tuesday morning an educational tour kicks off. I'm very excited about getting to take part in the symphony event that got me really into classical music. They are known as school concerts, even though the performances aren't actually at schools, the schools come to us. It should be exciting! It's a somewhat annoying program to play, but I know the kids will love it and with some of my students in the audiences it will be an extra special thing.

It's going to be cool and feel good to take part in what got me interested in classical music, and hopefully some of the kids will be inspired to take up an instrument or keep playing. I think we need to be more connected with the kids in our communities and find ways of getting them excited and interested in classical music, or even just playing an instrument.

Last year I played a bunch of fiddle style stuff at the International Children's Festival held here. It was a 3 day event and I played on two of the days that it was held. There weren't tons of kids, but the kids who were there seemed to really enjoy it.

I think another important thing about music education and getting kids interested is that you've got to make it personal! To them, attending a concert and seeing these people play instruments on a stage seems like an impossibility to many of them and something they can only watch and dream about or imagine what it would be like. We need to be in tune with the kids and make it seem real and physical to them, talk to them and get to know them, ask them questions and let them ask you questions, no matter how crazy. I've been asked some rather "strange" questions (what's the difference between a first and second violin? They both look like the same instrument to me.) but when you know how to respond and are nice about it, generally the kids, adults, whoever, are really appreciative and find it very insteresting.

As a kid, I would have liked to have been able to ask more questions and be able to talk to the people on stage. Now, as one of "those people" on stage, I make a point of being in touch with the audience and going out and spending the intermission in the lobby and talking to the audience. You need to make your audience feel connected to the people on stage, I think. If it's a solo recital, greet your audience from the stage and tell them a bit about the piece, or your own personal experiences with a piece that you are playing that night, but be in contact, get your audience engaged.

I realise there are many people who come to hear the music, and the music only, but I think on a whole, our audiences are now (or at least here, anyways) largely filled with those who need to be engaged in order to come back again to another concert or to get more interested in classical music.

That was a rather peculiar entry, with a couple things running together, but hopefully whoever reads this found it interesting!

I'm off to go and educate kids in classical music in an engaging, fun way, and I'm pumped about it. What's better then sharing the thing I love most with the kids that I once sat with and imagined with. I hope this week minds are captured, a good time is had, and that I can make some difference, no matter how big or small, for the kids who attend.

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February 14, 2005 at 7:02 AM

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