Concerts, books, and CDs

Hey there, fellow blog monkeys! (I just had to say that.) Long time no post, sorry about that. The thing is, I've been meaning to upload some more pictures, but I haven't had the time. Life happens, after all!

This week we have some really fun concerts. We're doing Young People's Concerts at work, and we're doing Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries (I'm convinced I was a Valkyrie in a former life), the opening of Also Sprach Zarathustra, and the three loud brassy movements from The Planets (Uranus, Mars, and Jupiter). I'm sure it's the brasshole in me, but man, I just adore playing that loud stuff, taking deep breaths and then feeling my body connecting with the horn. It's a really, really good orchestra I play with. It's a lot of fun to play in it.

Last week was actually kind of slow; we were doing a bunch of pieces I didn't play on (Mozart Violin Concerto, Hummel Trumpet Concerto, and Strauss's Capriccio for Strings), and the Shostakovitch symphony we played didn't really have a lot for the horns to do. It was his first Symphony, which he wrote when he was 19 while he was still successful and nothing bad had happened to him yet. I suppose that's why I wasn't as into it as I am his other Symphonies (5, 9, and 10 are my favorites so far). I love him when he's at his darkest and most morbid. :)

A funny story - we did an encore called "Tahiti Trot" that Shostakovitch penned shortly after the premiere of the 1st Symphony. Apparently it was a challenge by one of the conductors to see if he could orchestrate "Tea For Two" before the concert that night so the orchestra could play it as an encore. Not only did Shostakovitch do it, but the report is that he did it in an hour! So the conductor is telling us this in rehearsal, and Bill Cowart, who plays 2nd horn, mutters under his breath, "Wasted a perfectly good hour...." I about died. Classic horn section humor.

So have you read any good books lately? I have! I finished David Sedaris's Naked last week, which I didn't like as much as Me Talk Pretty One Day - I was hoping it would be as sidesplitting as the latter; it was more serious, but it was still quite good. Then I decided it was time for something completely different, and picked up James Patterson's Honeymoon. Man, if you are looking for a complete escapist page-turner thriller, you need to go out and buy this book, like yesterday. It was so fantastic that I couldn't put it down; I finished it in less than 3 days! I've been a huge fan of Patterson's since I read 1st to Die and 2nd Chance, and now I'm going to start reading 3rd Degree, which is the next book in that series. I love finding an author who can give you that thrill and escape.

Speaking of fun, have you bought any good CD's lately? I have! I had asked my sister-in-law, Anne, for Mariah's new album The Emancipation of Mimi which has the classic diva singing her R&B soul out. Anne gave it to me for Christmas and I love it! I also bought Dead Can Dance's Best Of album called Memento and it's great; I love how they combine older renaissance music with ultra-cool techno effects. On a whim, I got Ryan Cabrera's new album, You Stand Watching. His lyrics are a little bit trite and predictable, but his voice is quite lovely and so are his instrumentals. I love the track "Fall Baby Fall".

But by far the best album I have recently purchased is Gwen Stefani's Love. Angel. Music. Baby. Oh. My. God. This album is SO HOT!! I literally can't stop listening to it. Gwen Stefani, if you don't know much about her, is a huge fashion pioneer whose style is sort of punk meets Marilyn Monroe. It's sort of the classic beauty with an edge. Anyway, this is her first solo album ever (following her huge career as the lead singer for No Doubt) and it's just fantastic!! You have to listen to my favorite tracks: Rich Girl, Hollaback Girl, Luxurious (it has the same harmony as Notorious B.I.G.'s "Big Poppa" but with GOOD SINGING instead of gangstah rapping! Imagine that!), and Harajuku Girls. She blends her fabulous voice with fun boppy 80's style disco beats and a modern, edgy twist. It's really an impressive hybrid of sounds. I LOVE it!

Here's a picture of Gwen with the Harajuku Girls. I just adore her edgy fashion daringness!

It's so strange, isn't it, that me, a 35 year old and a professional classical musician no less, is so totally into pop culture? I mean, you would not peg me as the kind of person who would be downloading Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake and Mandy Moore songs on MusicMatch.com (Dell's music jukebox program), or going out and buying Avril Lavigne albums, would you? I suppose the allure is that it is so radically different from what I do that it really is so refreshing.

As far as the new years resolutions are concerned, the health kick is kicking me back and I'm feeling like I need some major motivation again. I have been having the weirdest sweet cravings lately, and for some reason I've been indulging them and sabotaging my weight loss efforts in the process. Krispy Kreme donuts taste so good, but damn, the ones I like (of course) are the creme filled ones which are 350 calories a piece and each has a whopping 20 grams of fat. (For those of you who aren't diet monkeys, that's 33% of your daily fat intake for the day. In ONE donut.)

I'm not giving up, though. I'm still doing www.ediets.com, which is keeping me accountable (before I wouldn't have cared about the donuts or even known about my weight gain). I'm also going to listen to my Tony Robbins CDs again. He really helps me get an edge on my life and recharges me with lots of energy and focus. It's all about knowing what your values are, and man, does he help me get in touch with what they are.

That's all for now. Have a great week!