Eric Whitacre and Hungary update...

Sunday afternoon, we had a choir rehearsal for the Eric Whitacre festival the next day. While we were rehearsing, Eric actually arrived and worked with us ahead of time. Apparently, he absolutely loves our choir. (He's been here a time before and worked with the choir.) It was really cool. He's a California dude and an incredible musician....genius composer. All day Monday was the festival. Eric also brought his best friend along, poet Charles Anthony Silvestri (aka Tony). Tony was brilliant! He wrote the lyrics to a few of Eric's songs and spoke to us about his poetry and paintings. He was so sincere and honest about everything. And so eloquent, too! He spoke beautifully of this "glowing ball" that is the music we make and that the ball is passed ever so gently to the listeners, as a gift. (It reminded me much of when Lynn says, "Your gift is meant for sharing, not only for show.") He put into words what music does and why we do what we do. Both Tony and Eric just made me smile. Between the two of them, it was all about the beauty and the music and the gift. It was so refreshing. Sometimes, all the work on technique and small nuances and theory can cloud over the purity of the music. Every now and again, we need a little reminder of what it's all about. Because Eric created the music we were singing, he was able to convey to us exactly what he meant by everything, pulling out every colour and layer within the music on his pages. So cool! I love doing that! I got my picture with the two of them as well!

I went up to them after the concert and was like, "Hi guys! Could I get my picture with you? (big smile)" Pretty much being myself. Eric kind of just looked at me, probably thinking, "Who is this crazy girl?" Tony just cracked a smile in return. I kind of forgot that they do not really know me, so I can understand that I may have frightened them a bit. Oh, well. It was fun all the same. And I got to talk to Tony about his stories. (Throughout the day, both Eric and Tony shared some of they story, which was really neat. I love to here people's stories. It makes things more meaningful.) OH! Yesterday, I had my music assessment for the Hungary program! I think it went pretty well. I kind of botched up the piano portion, but it's okay. I am so excited about going! I don't find out anything official until possibly the end of the month, though! Aaahhh! Patience....a virtue God did not instill in me, but He's certainly giving me opportunities to develop it! For now, I need to try and put it out of the front of my mind and concentrate on learning my repertoire and continuing to practice piano and audiation (ear-training). Sometimes I think my motivation is gone, but then I realize that it is probably just my perfectionistic tendencies creeping back in...I've been doing so well not letting them control my life! Easing up a bit once in awhile is probably good for me.