Random-ness!!! And Kermit.

Oh my goodness!  I can't believe that the semester is almost over already.  I actually only have about two more weeks of class, plus a week for finals and a little break for Thanksgiving.   I WILL SURVIVE!!  :-)

I still need to learn most of my music for juries though (for those of you who don't know what a jury is in music school: it's where you have to sing a few songs at the end of the semester for all the teachers on the voice faculty, in order to receive part of my semester grade).


Did I ever show you what I bought from a lady on the street in San Francisco?  I was coming out of the conservatory one day and she had a bunch of puppets that she had made by hand... Including one of my favorite characters from my childhood:

That's right. It's Kermit.  

He was only $15. 

Kermit I had some fun Skyping together with my little niece. 

     I once had a hand-writing analysis done when I was at some sort of fair somewhere...(my brothers and sisters and I all did it... We had to write a few sentences and they put our writing samples through some sort of machine where it listed our personality traits supposedly from analyzing characteristics of our handwriting).   One of the things it said about me is that "You cheer yourself up by indulging in whims."  I had never thought about that before, but it is VERY true.  I don't remember anything else the handwriting analysis said. But that one was right on.

         Here's another whim.... Big, dangly earrings for which there are not many occasions to wear in public...    Next singing performance maybe :-)

Oh life.   I manage to keep myself entertained in the midst of it. 

Stream of Consciousness

Oh, Little Life of Music... Aren't you full of trouble? But everyone has it, everyone goes through it.

We are not alone in our solitude.

I am a dream, you are the waking,

I am a scheme, you are the making,

I am a heart, you are the breaking,

I am a hope, you are the taking.


Do you care if I ramble?  What if I scramble through a bramble?  What if I fall into a shamble?

Do you mind?

This is my mind you are reading...

You are reading my mind.

I'm sorry if I'm winding, down a twisted road

Sometimes we do that, in finding our

True home.

Are we ever home?

It feels like I'm a wandering

Minstrel

Singing in a different town,

Every day,

Looking for a softer bed to rest my weary head.

But everywhere I carry

My little mandolin,

And I play, and I play,

And I play.  

This is my life, I say.

This is my music.

This is my life: my music.  

Walls

Sometimes in life it seems like you just keep hitting walls...or maybe the walls keep hitting you?  Somehow you keep running into the exact same trouble, trying and trying for years to overcome the same problems, the same weaknesses.

It's hard to be an artist.  It's hard to be a human being...a human being who needs things like, food, and sleep, and love, and exercise, and music, and accomplishment, and relationships, and fun, and relaxation, and meditation, and change, and constancy.  It is hard to be human...because we are all human, and we are constantly moving and searching for our needs and trying to provide for the needs of others and somehow always being not quite competent at either.

Life is hard for humans.

But of course I would rather be a human than any other creature.  Especially since I have known the joy of making music...and now I would be absolutely miserable without it.  It's such a constant nagging in me...and I HAVE to do it, one way or another. Whether or not I'm ever really "famous" or "successful" at it, I still have to do it, no matter what.  I have to keep improving my craft, keep expressing myself through this beautiful and amazing art form.  I HAVE to, you know?  I just cannot imagine myself ever devoting myself to something else instead.  Not in this life, anyway...

So even when the walls are there, I cannot stop. I'll keep beating my head against them until either they break, or I am dead. :-)

I will do this thing.

  

New Goals

I am happy because I got this email from the Bachauer International Piano Competition a few days ago:

Dear Jacquelyn Weitz:

The GINA BACHAUER INTERNATIONAL PIANO FOUNDATION is pleased to acknowledge that we have received your official application for the 2014 GINA BACHAUER INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS PIANO COMPETITION to take place in Salt Lake City, Utah from June 11-25, 2014.

We are pleased to report that we have received 200 applications from candidates throughout the world.

It is our pleasure to invite you to audition in Salt Lake City on February 4, 2014 at 2:00 PM. The auditions will take place at:

The Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center

Jeanne Wagner Theater

138 West Broadway

Salt Lake City, UT 84128

801-297-4250

We recommend that you arrive at the audition site 30 minutes prior to your audition time in order to have a warm-up period and to become accustomed to the setting. 

During the audition, candidates will begin with a selection of their own choice, followed by one or more requests from the jury (as time allows).

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to e-mail or telephone the offices of the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation

            Telephone:  +1 801.297.4250

e-mail:  info@bachauer.com

We look forward to the pleasure of making your personal acquaintance and the opportunity to hear your audition performance, and we extend our very best wishes for much success.

Sincerely,

Kary Billings

Chairman of the Board

Douglas Humphreys

Artistic Director

I sent an application in to them the DAY of the deadline....nothing was working the week before with their website and I kept losing all of my saved work and having to start over again and again.  But once I finally got it submitted I heard back from them pretty quickly.  I am excited to have a new performance goal to be working toward in my piano!

The audition on February 4th is just to audition to GET IN to the competition in the first place, so we'll see if I actually end up a competitor.  That would make me happy, though!

I am also really happy because people have been telling me recently that my singing is improving a lot.  My friend, Crystal, heard me sing one of my arias from Serse in the practice room the other day, and she said she couldn't believe how much I have improved since last year.   She said my sound is  thicker and more focused. And when I auditioned for the operas this fall, one of the directors told me that my voice has gotten much bigger since last year.   

Jane was also really happy with me at my lesson that day, and even suggested that I might continue with a Postgraduate Diploma in Vocal Performance from the Conservatory, after my Master's Degree.   That was really encouraging to hear.  The reality is that it's only sort of an option, depending on my financial situation in another year or two..... In my current situation it's a bit of an impossibility, but we'll see what happens!   As Jane said, "Well, you never know...". 

New Reflections

From the Reflections blog, once again:
http://jacquelynsreflections.blogspot.com/2013/10/down-in-river-to-pray.html
http://jacquelynsreflections.blogspot.com/2013/09/forgiveness.html

New Song

Hey there...

I am taking a class this semester called "Intro to Recording Techniques,"  and this morning we had our first real recording project due.  It had to be something that included speaking, music, and some special effects/sounds.  So I decided to record one of my songs that I had started writing a while back.  I finished the lyrics in a night and then made the recording over two nights.  It's pretty rough (as all my home-done recordings are), but I think it gives a good idea of the song's potential:

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Good News

Today (well I guess technically now it's yesterday) I got some good news!   Last week I auditioned for all of the vocal ensembles at the conservatory... and today I found out that I got a major role in the Baroque Opera!  It will be performed this coming spring.   I am so excited.   I will sing the role of "Romilda" in the opera Serse by Handel.  I have been dreaming of singing with the Baroque Ensemble since I first moved to San Francisco to study piano about three years ago... and now at last I get to participate fully.

Do you know what else that means?  This will be my first time ever singing with an orchestra!   Of course, I have already played piano with orchestras many times before, but now I will sing.  That makes me so happy.

We will start rehearsals and coachings almost immediately.... our first meeting will be Friday of next week.

I am so excited!!!!


  

Another Ravel 2nd Movement

I just uploaded a video from my Saturday night performance of Ravel's Concerto in G Major.  The performance I had already uploaded to Youtube was from the Sunday matinee.    I think I actually like the Saturday night version of the 2nd movement better... so I decided to upload it.  

The school's video recording system malfunctioned on the first night, so I only had one camera angle to use (thanks to my friend James!) sitting in the 3rd row.

New Blog, New Reflections

Hi there!

     I know it's been a while since I've written... This summer sure has been slipping by me.  I got a job teaching at a little music academy here in San Francisco and I have quite a few students.  It's paying my rent this summer, so that is wonderful.  Teaching sure takes a lot of energy.  But I really love my students.

I just decided to start a new blog, with posts about little remedies and health tips I have come across in my life that have really helped me (or others I know).  For now I've called it "Jackie's Little Health Journal". That may change, we'll see. 

Here is the link: http://www.jacquelynshares.blogspot.com/

I have two posts on it so far.

Also, I posted a new post on my Reflections blog: http://jacquelynsreflections.blogspot.com/2013/07/prayer-and-scriptures.html

Until later,

Jackie

 

Monteverdi

My performance from April with Tatiana on baroque guitair, at the Baroque Ensemble concert. The song is a madrigal by Monterverdi.

 

Here is the translation:

 

“Se i languidi miei sguardi” 

Se i languidi miei sguardi, se i sospiri interrotti, se le tronche parole non han sin or potuto, o bell’idolo mio, farvi delle mie fiamme intera fede, leggete queste note, credete a questa carta in cui sotto forma d’inchiostro il cor stillai. Qui sotto scorgerete quegl’interni pensieri che con passi d’amore scorron l’anima mia; anzi, avvampar vedrete come in sua propria sfera nelle vostre bellezze il foco mio. Non è già parte in voi che con forza invisibile d’amore tutto a sè non mi tragga: altro già non son io che di vostra beltà preda e trofeo. A voi mi volgo, o chiome, cari miei lacci d’oro: deh, come mai potea scampar sicuro se come lacci l’anima legaste, come oro la compraste? Voi, pur voi dunque siete della mia libertà catena e prezzo. Stami miei preziosi, bionde fila divine, con voi l’eterna Parca, sovra il fuso fatal mia vita torce. Voi, voi capelli d’oro, voi pur siete di lei, ch’è tutta il foco mio, raggi e faville; ma, se faville siete, onde avvien che ad ogn’ora contro l’uso del foco in giù scendete? Ah, che a voi per salir scender conviene, ché la maggior celeste ove aspirate, o sfera de gli ardori, o paradiso, è posta in quel bel viso. Cara mia selva d’oro, ricchissimi capelli, in voi quel labirinto Amor intesse onde uscir non saprà l’anima mia. Tronchi pur morte i rami del prezioso bosco e da la fragil carne scuota pur lo mio spirto, che tra fronde sì belle, anco reciso, rimarrò prigioniero, fatto gelida polve ed ombra ignuda. Dolcissimi legami, belle mie piogge d’oro quali or sciolte cadete da quelle ricche nubi onde raccolte siete e, cadendo, formate preziose procelle onde con onde d’or bagnando andate scogli di latte e rivi d’alabastro, more subitamente O miracolo eterno d’amoroso desìo fra si belle tempeste arse il cor mio. Ma già l’ora m’invita, o degli affetti miei nunzia fedele, cara carta amorosa, che dalla penna ti divida omai; Vanne, e s’amor e’l cielo cortese ti concede che de’ begli occhi non t’accenda il raggio, ricovra entro il bel seno: chi sà che tu non gionga da sì felice loco per sentieri di neve a un cor di foco!

If my languishing looks If my halting sighs, If my unfinished words have not yet been able, Oh my lovely idol, To make you completely aware of my devotion, Read these notes, Believe in this letter, In which I bled my heart in the form of ink. Here you will discern those internal thoughts That with loving steps run through my soul. You will also see how in its own sphere My passion blazes amidst your beauty. There is no part of you That with the invisible power of love Does not draw me to itself. I am after all nothing but The prey and prize of your beauty. To you I turn, o tresses. My dear snares of love, Oh, how could I ever safely escape If like snares you bound my soul, Or purchased it like gold? You, yes, you then are The chain and price of my freedom. Precious threads, divine filaments, With you the eternal Fury, on her fatal spindle Twists my life. You, golden tresses, you are The rays and sparks of she who is my only passion. But if you are sparks, How is it that you descend at every moment, Unlike fire? Ah, since one must descend in order to rise to you, The highest celestial sphere to which you aspire, O sphere of passions, o paradise, Is found in that lovely face. My dear forest of gold, richest of tresses, Love weaves in you that labyrinth From which my soul does not know how to escape. Then let death cut down the branches Of the precious forest And free my spirit from its delicate flesh, For among such lovely foliage I will remain a prisoner, When I have become cold dust and a naked ghost. Sweetest bonds, my beautiful golden rain, As you now fall, let loose from those rich clouds Where you are held, And in falling form precious storms, Golden waves with which you bathe Crags of milk and streams of alabaster, Dying suddenly. O eternal miracle of amorous desire Among such lovely storms I burned my heart. But now the hour bids me, O faithful messenger of my affection, Dear love letter Which now frees itself from my pen Go, and if Love and merciful heaven grant That the rays of her beautiful eyes don’t ignite you, Seek shelter upon her breast. Who knows if you may not find your way to a heart of fire From such a fortunate place!