Sticking to Your Word

This week concluded the KZN Phil's collaboration with the Cape Town City Ballet Company; Prokofiev's "Cinderella". Needless to say, there was much neck-craning from the pit to catch a glimpse of the beautiful costumes and audiences full of little girls in their own ballet-inspired outfits. As the orchestra made its way to the parking-lot after the shows, one couldn't help but observe the many spontaneous reenactments of the ballerinas by little kids and their parents, who were already thinking of ways to prevent their offspring from winding up as another starving artist. It made me think about what pivotal words of advice had an impact on my ultimate decision to go into music, and interestingly, the words that stick out the most were not the positive ones.
I'd like to think that my career has been filled with nothing but those Hollywood-style pep talks, like the one in the locker room right before the "big game". There are certainly words of confidence and encouragement that are meaningful to me, but it was the desire to overcome the negative feedback that I believe had the strongest impact on me. None of these comments stemmed from pure maliciousness; their power comes from the fact that they were said with no ulterior motive, simply very honest feedback.
The earliest I can remember was some summer music teacher who graded me on how well I prepared a book of etudes. I can only imagine how dedicated I was to preparing scales and etudes when I was 11-years old...but I remember her writing a large "F" on one in particular. My total lack of preparation resulted in an unacceptable rendition; it was a very small but visual symbol of failure. I was the only oboe student I knew of at the time, and therefore I believed that my achievements should be setting the standard; how could I fail with nobody to compare to? Perhaps I wasn't actually fooling anyone when I didn't practice...for as much encouragement as I am sure I received during that first summer, I only remember that lesson.
It was during this same summer that our neighbors next door called and asked, in all seriousness, if I was taking up the bag-pipes.  I'm sure it was an accurate description but I can remember vividly wanting to sound better. This strong desire to improve had a clear inception point, it did not stem from the words of encouragement that I had received. A few year later in middle school, my own band director would make the judgement call to introduce my oboe as "the nasal instrument" in front of the entire school; the Loboe Project itself is a manifestation of my determination to overcome that very perception.
The words that stuck to me the most came at perhaps the most critical point in my education. I was fortunate enough to spend a summer at the Eastman School's "Music Horizons" program, a two-week crash course of what conservatory life is like, aimed at high-school musicians. Most students left the program with either a burning passion to make it into a music school or an extreme feeling of relief that they were going to avoid this path. I had not only decided that I wanted to go into music, but that I wanted to study at Eastman itself. Clearly, the school had made a good impression on me...
However, it was during a lesson with the program's oboe instructor at the time, (a former alumna and incredibly talented oboist who would later go on to a successful orchestral career), that I received some shocking information. I played a solo oboe work and asked her if she thought I was on track to study music in college (I had two more years of high-school at that point). She said right away, "oh no, I don't think your conservatory material". I respected this oboist's playing so much and had been trying to soak up as much of her advice as possible; this was devastating to hear. Two weeks in this amazing environment were instantly replaced by the one candid opinion of a former student. I don't remember what the rest of the lesson was like, only my determination to overcome this verbal set-back.
In the end, whatever one's motivation might be, or how it developed, perhaps it is the negative feedback that is the most powerful catalyst for success.  Dance-class enrollment may have increased in Durban following the ballet production; I wonder how many students will be motivated to persevere beyond their own inevitable negative critiques...

What Would Your 50 Pounds of Music Look Like?

What Would Your 50 Pounds of Music Look Like? 

The reality of musicians moving abroad is that space for our scores and sheet music is severely limited to a mere fraction of its original amount.  Thanks to the flash drive, scanner and programs like Google Documents, we can still bring most of our music back to life, though be it through a printer. But there are some scores one simply cannot part with, not to mention bigger collections of work, no matter how practical their use may be in the new location.

Between chamber music, solo literature and other technical books, filtering out which physical scores made the cut was a process that took a great deal of editing; no musical “Kindle” equivalent would cut it for these.  As we all know, music adds up fast. I think for all musicians, there are those certain scores that have been through countless master classes, lessons, and performances and have those personal markings that make them invaluable to us. Of course, one can have things shipped and bring additional materials over on subsequent trips back home, but for me, the following music felt as vital to have as the Loboe itself:

In no particular order...
Concerto for Oboe - Mozart
Fractured Colloquy - David Plylar (oboe and piano)
Gillet Etudes
Musik fur Oboe und Orchester - Wolfgang Rihm (solo part and piano part)
"The Oboe" - Geoffrey Burgess and Bruce Haynes
Sequenza VIIa per Oboe by Luciano Berio
Silvers - Hannah Lash
"Patterns for Improvisation" - Oliver Nelson
"Techniques of Oboe Playing" - Peter Veale and Claus-Steffen Mahnkopf
Ten Klezmer Duos by M. Curtis
Wildlife - Robert Morris for oboe, piano and percussion

Music and the Internet - Food for Thought

 My last post was dedicated to the very serious issue that South Africa's artistic communities face when it comes their relationship with the Internet. I learned of an incredible news story that I feel sums up the problem quite well, click the headline below to read the full story.

Carrier pigeons are being used to transfer data between offices because bosses believe it is quicker than broadband. 

Indeed, a carrier pigeon named "Winston" was able to deliver 4GB of data faster than the Internet. And not just by a little bit. The pigeon flew 70k and yet still managed to deliver the data card strapped to his leg and have the information successfully delivered in just over 2 hours, whereas the same information sent via ADSL downloading was only at 4% complete by the time the pigeon experiment was complete. 

It should be a fundamental right for musicians to be able to refresh the "job opportunities" page on a site like MusicalChairs.info or stay current with arts journals and such without it costing a small fortune. Once musicians leave the music conservatory, access to opportunity listings is greatly diminished simply by not being in an academic environment with artistic networks. The image of the 21st century classical musician is evolving quickly and so is the way we learn about other opportunities.

Since we couldn't bring our beloved pet guinea pig Webster with us to South Africa, perhaps we should consider getting into the pigeon scene; this new pet could really come in handy.

Can Classical Music Survive Without the Internet?

Every week countless emails go out to musicians about how to use social networking to their advantage, creating new marketing strategies via blogs and twitter, and countless other ways to turn your home computer into your career's most critical tool.  Success stories are frequently featured on NPR and arts journals about how small-time artists beat the odds and succeeded in a down market. It's unthinkable to not have a personal website in Los Angeles, whether you are just a private teacher looking to increase your studio or a major performing ensemble looking to book gigs. Music organizations are judged for their site's accessibility and interactive components, as well as elements like YouTube and Pod casts. It has become industry standard; the key to self-promotion is through one's personal knowledge and command of the Internet.

Introduce "Capped Internet" to the picture... 

To our shock, South Africa has a very different relationship with the Internet. Here your access is based on how much bandwidth you use and general web surfing speed as just a tad slower than the US norm. Every download of an image, song, and God help you YouTube broadcast, eats away an incredibly large percentage of your monthly allowance.  Emails are generally harmless as purely text items, but a signature or company logo at the bottom instantly takes more away from your allotment and forget about uploading your ensemble's photos onto Facebook! There is one way to access uncapped Internet, it's true, but this involves renting a special line that has to be installed or rented and is the equivalent of about $150 just for the monthly Internet fee (for one computer only). This has been perhaps the hardest change to get used to and we have never been more appreciative of the luxury of uncapped Internet in the US.  

So what does this mean for the artistic industry in South Africa? How do orchestras, chamber groups, and soloists compete in the current music world with Internet that is terribly behind the times? The answer is not through the schools, as I learned that at the local Universities, features like Facebook and YouTube are blocked specifically because they eat up too much bandwidth. Granted, I have occasionally fallen victim to watching things on YouTube that are more for their comedic value vs. artistic merit...but in the bigger picture, these Internet features are critical to musicians being able to self-promote their work and gain exposure to the music scene around the world, not to mention share information and resources within the country. Web surfing does not have the same impact here, which means loading up your website with all the latest interactive features simply means people will avoid your site, as it takes too long to load and eats up too much bandwidth.  It wasn't until the last few decades that Internet access changed the world, and the arts proved that they could succeed without it. However, I challenge you;  could you promote your art as effectively without a dependency on the Internet?

As students in the US are taking courses dedicated solely to concepts like "using social networking to boost concert attendance", South African organizations are needing to think outside the box, or in this case, computer.

Out of Africa, Into the Orchestra

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This week marked our first week working for the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra in Durban, South Africa and needless to say, there is much to get adjusted to as neither of us have ever been to the African continent before. Like so many musicians, we decided to look a little further for opportunities and felt like we beat the odds finding employment together in the same organization. I took this photo during our four-day trek across the country from Los Angeles to Chicago in our moving truck, our guinea pig Webster sitting between us the whole ride. 


Life as an active free-lance oboist and self-employed chamber musician was a constant balancing act between striving for artistic merit and basic survival. While many of my former school friends and teachers might be surprised to find me in a full-time orchestra, it was the unique chance to perform with a quality ensemble and pursue other artistic interests like new music, chamber music and of course, the Loboe Project, that attracted me to the position. Tomorrow marks our first full week in South Africa and the completion of three concerts. 


I was initially struck by certain similarities that a full-time orchestra in Africa has in common with the free-lancer life-style.  In Los Angeles, a good week for an oboist might consist of some sort of church gig, teaching and various kinds of regional orchestra concerts. Playing everything from Pop and Jewish music concerts to Mexican Christian CD releases and independent film scores in LA gives a musician consistent practice in being able to sight-read just about anything and quickly perform the concert/recording session. The first concert this week was called an "Indian Experience", reflecting the interests of the largest population of Indians outside of India here in Durban. The experience reminded me so much of a concert that could be done in Los Angeles and oddly enough, resulted in a very familiar feeling for me. The following night was a traditional symphony orchestra concert and this weekend there will be an all baroque-music concert. 


While studying in school, many musicians dedicate their time and energy to the orchestral literature.  This is obviously an essential act for those seeking an orchestra career, however; musicians should take the opportunity to play music of different genres very seriously, as the ability to master music in any style is in fact a critical skill set. Whether in school of not, I highly encourage oboists to expose themselves to as many genres as possible.  While not all music that a free-lancer encounters warrants extensive preparation, showing an understanding of the style certainly makes for a more enjoyable experience for everyone involved.  Times being as they are, we need to make the best of these Pops concerts!


I was also quite delighted to find a practical use for the Loboe during my first week. In an overture by Handel, the oboe part doubles the violin and behold! A low "A" that does not need to be left out! Though I do not know it for an absolute fact, I was informed that there are about fifteen professional oboists in all of South Africa and thus I am fairly certain that the Loboe will not find any siblings here...for now! 

Chicken Soup for the Double Reed Soul - How Well Do You Really Know Your Instrument?

 
The relationship between musicians and their instruments is like the business-person with their laptop or the Tween with their iPhone. These tools can literally craft our very identity. So why is it that for so many students and pros alike, making regular adjustments and upkeep to our instruments proves so difficult and easy to avoid? I wish that I could say that every time I sit down to play I obediently check to make sure everything feels correct; I usually only stop if something is drastically out of the ordinary and that's after I try to blame the reed before resorting to the screw-driver. While in college, the difference in time spent learning about reed-making to learning about oboe repair is, shall we say, vast. It is such a crucial part of the professional musician's life, yet repair shops are usually overbooked. Cracks and pad replacements are one thing, but I am willing to bet that repair people see many more cases of basic upkeep neglect.

This all begs the question;
you know oboe but do you really know your instrument?

This thought was running through my mind a few days ago as I made my final trip to the incredible RDG Woodwinds store in Los Angeles. I have been terribly fortunate to have always lived in cities close to an oboe repair shop and Friday's trip was an attempt to cram in as much maintenance knowledge in two hours as possible. The reason for all of this is that I recently won the principal oboe position with the Kwazulu Natal Philharmonic Orchestra in Durban, South Africa and my husband will be running the orchestra's New Music Initiative starting on September 20th. Needless to say, the idea of what my reeds will do and how my oboe will react to the change in climate have dominated most of my thoughts. The safety net is gone in terms of immediate repair solutions, and I find myself questioning how much I really know about the intricacies of the Loboe and how important this information is proving. Not only is there a good chance that this will be the only low-A oboe in possibly all of Africa, but the odds of any repair person having common knowledge of Loree oboes is probably small. While I have completely devoted myself to learning all of the basic tendencies of this instrument, I still am a bit nervous about my abilities to make both the regular and unexpected repairs/adjustments that go along with any woodwind.

I will be making a long road-trip from Los Angeles to Chicago before flying to South Africa on the 17th where the Loboe will be my one allowed carry-on.  Traveling on the road across the country has been a platform for countless writers to "discover" themselves and the country; I'll settle for some meaningful realizations about how to tune that high C#!

There is much excitement in the idea of performing low-A works in such a new location and I will do whatever it takes to feel as comfortable making daily adjustments instead of just "working around them" as I have done at times... Perhaps this new commitment to learning about the repair world of oboes will result in a deeper understanding of the instrument and I will truly know the oboe.

Low-A Update - Rep List

Low-A Update - Repertoire List

I have started seriously working on Hannah Lash's piece "Silvers" for solo oboe. It's about five pages long and I have to say, I am loving working on it! It's a substantial work and she is not afraid to challenge the performer with some very quiet dynamics on some of those low A's. The solo oboe genre is a difficult one to tackle, as there are currently more jaunty, jig-like pieces than I'd care to admit...what a difference it makes when the composer writes for an instrument with respect and celebrates what it can do!

Here is an updated look at Original Works and Transcriptions for the Loboe Project:

ORIGINAL WORKS for the LOBOE:
Wolfram de Marco TBA for Solo Oboe
Paul Coleman "Coupling" for Oboe and Piano
Vera Ivanova TBA
Hannah Lash "Silvers" for Solo Oboe
Ryan Oldham TBA
David Plylar "Lobotomy" for Solo Oboe
     "The Prophecy of Dante, With Commentary By Keats" for Soprano and Mixed Ensemble
Isaac Schenkler TBA for Solo Oboe
Austin Wintory TBA for Solo Oboe

NEW TRANSCRIPTIONS:
David Plylar - Trios for Oboe, Horn and Piano
     Beethoven / Liszt "Adelaide"
     Brahms "Symphony No. 3, 3rd Mvt."
     Chopin "Etude in E Minor" Op. 25, No. 5
     Saint-Saëns / Liszt "Danse Macabre"
Damjan Rakonjac  - Wind Quartet
     Chopin "Mazurka" Op. 50, No. 3