Preview of Solo Concerts June 29th and July 5th

Here I am just keeping tabs on myself again. I'm into the home stretch of preparations for my first solo concerts (not solo appearances, by the way) after the birth of Nikolai, Sept. 14, 2008.

Now is the time to appreciate all the energy that goes into the preparation of a solo flute concert. Just being able to play the pieces is enough work (could spend a lifetime on that....). But I need to get in physical shape. I know the pieces, and my lips are in shape but as I ran through a few pieces today I realized I need more strength. That is going to be the hard work. Then there is the publicity, photos, program notes.... (sigh...)

Lactation takes some of your energy away. And recovery from a c-section, major abdominal surgery, takes its time. (I don't know why anyone would elect to have one, if not medically necessary. You are in pain for much longer than a normal labor - not at the time perhaps, but afterwards when you need to be working and up and about. No fun for flutists!) So in addition to my lackadaisical yoga routine, my occasional walking and biking I need to get my butt moving.

So enough whinging. Here's what's on:

June 29th, the German premiere of Jüri Reinvere's Requiem for solo flute, 6 voices and video. This 50 - minute work will be performed during the week celebrating Estonian Culture in Münster, Germany.
The concert will be at 20.00 hours at the Apostelkirche. The work is, how shall I describe, "post Sciarrino". Many lovely quiet sounds, very poetic. I really enjoyed working with the composer, making some discoveries and clarifying some elements of extended techniques. However, the composer, and Richard Craig (who did the World Premiere) and I are still scratching our heads over how to notate the last movement. Notation remains the bug-bear and bane of contemporary music.

next, July 5th in Cologne at the Altes Pfandhaus at 19.15
Program will be moderated by local radio celebrity Michael Struck-Schloen, and is the final in the series "unvorhergehört" - a soloist series initiated by local composer Marcus Antonius Wesselmann. Actually, this program will be more of a mix of "unvorhergehört" (not heard before) and "1000 Mal vorhergehört" (heard 1000 times before). I think that will make it fun, though:

Debussy - Syrinx
Varese - Density 21.5
Jüri Reinvere - opposite of thought from Requiem
Marcus Antonius Wesselmann - Solo no. 1
Toru Takemitsu - Voice
Robert Dick - "Electric Blues" from Flying Lessons
Improvisation - title will either be für Enno or That Cat Don't Sit

Wannabe Yogi - and some breathing ideas

I am writing this in honor of my lapse in yoga practice. Once I confess this sin, I can go and sin no more - that is, get back into my practice. Don't know what happened, I was ill at the end of Feb. and since then the dark, grey days of late winter have left me unmotivated for movement.

Why is yoga practice so important? I have enough to do, cuddling my boy, practicing flute, teaching and rehearsing. Why? Because I feel like a dog's breakfast if I don't. Or like a rusted-out car.

I have a great teacher, we've been working privately for the past 6 years. At first we did Ashtanga, then more mixed with Hatha and Universal Yoga. I think she deserves a separate blog entry for the future.

When I was in school, I had wonderful flute teachers. Since graduating, I joked that my Alexander Technique teacher was my best flute teacher, and she was for those three years after school. Now, I think my yoga teacher is my best flute teacher, although she says for my Ayurvedic type (Vata), flute playing is not the healthiest activity for me.

After all these years, I should know something by now about my body and how to use it to breathe and play the flute. Abdominal breathing helps - pranayama (breathing exercise) helps too. These are calming, expanding concepts. I also love Michel Debost's ideas from The Simple Flute about expansion and retention.

Sometimes, however, I find that Uddiyana Bhanda works. That's what all flute teachers tell you never to do! It's the diaphragm lock - you inhale while drawing the abdomen in and expanding the ribcage. This gives you a rush of energy in your upper body. No, I don't play like that, but if I need a kick, this is what I do. Peter Lukas Graf's 2nd breathing exercise in Check Up for Flutists partially uses this concept - although he doesn't use the yogic terms.

Speaking of diaphragm! I learned through Lea Pearson's book Body Mapping for Flutists that the concept of breathing through, or using, the diaphragm is pointless. You cannot control it or feel it directly, as its movement is regulated by the abdominal muscles.

These are the muscles you need to control: these in turn are connected to the long, long muscles psoas major, (if I remember correctly), which are connected to the outer edge of the diaphragm and run all the way down to the legs! That's why it's important to keep excess tension out of the legs, it really can inhibit the movement of the diaphragm.
More research is needed on my part, so I'll stop here. I thought I'd pass this on though, because it really makes sense to me anatomically.

Stook, stook

Can't resist this one. His lower incisors have been visible as little white dots just below the surface. Today, for the first time, they made a click, click sound when we tapped with a spoon. Ground-breaking (or gum-breaking!). We just love him!