Stuck in a Good Mood

I'm finally back to normal following almost 2 months of partial paralysis in my limbs last fall. That can really slow you down in school, especially when you play an instrument eh? It feels like a waste of time to me. I should've been practicing. I should've been going to class.

I went to about 5 classes for one of my music courses and walked into the final exam with my heart in my throat, knowing that this exam would be 100% of my mark in that course. I didn't hold my breath waiting for my mark, though. I knew I had done well on it, and indeed, got an A.

Last Saturday, I got up early and set off for school to warm up for my NYOC audition. I auditioned two years ago for the first time and got in without really intending to. Well, to encourage my friend to do it this year, I paid my registration fee, downloaded the excerpts, and started practicing them... three days before the audition? Yikes.

Oh, I was ecstatic the rest of the day! Four months of not knowing if I would have the control needed to play my instrument, and just like someone flicked a switch, everything works again. Everything went well, from my concerto, to my unaccompanied Bach, right down to the orchestral excerpts.

My friend's audition didn't go so well, apparently. I really hope he gets in because music comes to him so naturally and he wants to be an orchestral musician, but he could use the glorified bandcamp/bootcamp to really fine tune some techniques.

No joke, I learned how to turn pages when I was in it. I practiced page turning. I stood in my tiny room with a music stand and my instrument. I played the music in my head and tried turning the page when it came time to do it. Music flew everywhere, and I played "52 pickup" with Ravel, Dvorak and Beethoven. Ugh. Try again. Always music flying off the stand, or two pages turned at once. My greatest moment throughout the whole program was sitting assistant violist at the National Arts Centre and watching a particularly fast page turn come up. Heart pounding, bright lights in my eyes, and the hall was packed. This was not the time to launch a music stand full of music onto the floor. Maybe it was that the stands were sturdier than the wire one I was practicing on, but my little moment of victory was turning that one page.

I love the little victories in life that remind you that you're not a useless tool.