Not too slippery, I hope

February 5, 2008 at 12:40 PM

I'm running seriously now into the problems of trying to play two instruments. Last week at orchestra rehearsal, I acquired a semi-"permanent" seat in the front of the violin I section. The concertmaster can't play the concert due to a family conflict, so her stand partner is going to be concertmaster, and I am going to be his stand partner. I was asked to do this by the orchestra manager, the new concertmaster, and one of the other first violins who said he didn't want to move up, and the conductor is also fine with it. This is theoretically good by me--I like sitting up front where I can see and hear--but I'd been concentrating on practicing the viola that week and thinking that I'd take a little breather on violin at rehearsal back in the back where I started out. No. Then we went skiing, to Okemo VT, this weekend. My daughter had a day off school and it was a long-planned trip. I didn't take an instrument. Didn't break any limbs, either--but still, 3 days off of practicing suddenly really matters. I am not really done with Fiorillo #10, although I'm making some progress, and my double stops in the Clarke Passacaglia sound crunchy. And so I postponed my viola lesson yesterday. I normally take them every two weeks, but this will be a 3-week gap until next week. I'm feeling guilty, hoping this isn't some kind of slippery slope where I end up doing neither one well.

From Tom Holzman
Posted on February 5, 2008 at 3:22 PM

The problem you raise about trying to juggle the two is a very real one given your other obligations. Good luck in resolving it. Ultimately, you need to prioritize your various musical activities with your instruments and act accordingly. One consideration is how important playing orchestra is to you. If it is very important, then you should be playing violin 1 rather than violin 2 or viola, with whatever extra concentration on the violin is required. If you do this prioritizing, there are certain options but probably no wrong answers.

From Karen Allendoerfer
Posted on February 5, 2008 at 11:27 PM

Thanks Tom. Actually, playing in an orchestra is very important to me. My original goal was to play in the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, which is more serious than the orchestra I'm currently playing in. By serious, I mean a number of things: first and foremost, the LSO plays with excellent soloists. They also have auditions and I know one person who tried out and didn't make it (but I've never heard her play). What attracts me to them most, however, is their program called the "Healing Art of Music." All their concerts raise money for medical charities, and the players are health professionals and researchers from the Boston area. I'm a PhD neuroscience researcher, so I fit that characteristic. However, I am not sure that my playing is up to the appropriate level yet, on either instrument.

My teacher knows the LSO conductor and she plays for him in the Boston Ballet and she thinks that trying out for the LSO is a realistic goal for me to have, but she isn't sure either which instrument I should try out on. The audition isn't until next September. We've even discussed the possibility of my preparing two auditions, one on each instrument, and being prepared to let them decide.

Seeing as I don't enjoy auditions in the first place, the thought of having two of them (voluntarily!) seems a little nuts. But I'd do it if I thought that's what it took.

From Tom Holzman
Posted on February 6, 2008 at 2:02 PM

Karen - good luck! The LSO sounds great. My orchestra, the NIH Community Orchestra, uses its concerts to raise money for the NIH Charities (Children's Inn, etc.), so I understand the draw of an orch that has that sort of goal. I hope you make it.

From Karen Allendoerfer
Posted on February 6, 2008 at 2:46 PM

Cool, I didn't know the NIH orchestra had that mission. Thanks for telling me about it!

This entry has been archived and is no longer accepting comments.

Not too slippery, I hope

Subscribe

Laurie's Books