What is up my peeps, my bros, my very cool dudes, my...
ok sorry :P I've gone off of caffeine today after surviving on Dr. Pepper for the past month, so I have been in a very random, bipolar mood for a while now. I started out very phased out, went to being kinda grumpy and mad for no reason, to being really pumped up listening to exciting music in my car, to being really tired and phased out again. So ya, maybe male menopause?? no don't even get me started on that...long story :P
Anyways, hopefully tomorrow I'll be feeling better and more focused, because I have a looong weekend of rehearsals and concerts. Tomorrow I've got a dress rehearsal in the afternoon followed by a quartet performance (there are 9 groups performing. My quartet is playing the 3rd then 1st movements of Mendelssohn Quartet Op. 80), and it is EPIC! If you've heard the piece, you know the ending of the first movement has a hella difficult first violin part (yay more fun for me! haha), and we are taking it FAST!!! But it makes it all the more awesome-sounding and fun to play (as long as I actually can play it).
After that, on Sunday, several of my music friends and I are meeting up for a 3-hr sight-reading party, specifically to read the Mendelssohn viola quintets (if you haven't heard them, look them up!), but we'll also read many other things of course :). Following this, I have an hr-long orchestra dress rehearsal, followed by the performance of Wagner's Dei Meistersinger and Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique. The most interesting part of the concert will the by Wagner, simply because we have about an hour of rehearsal on it 2 months ago and an hour of rehearsal on it in this past week and we're opening the concert with it! Although this Youth Symphony does have the tendency to pull these things together at the last minute, so I'm not too incredibly worried. And Berlioz sounds really good as far as Youth Symphony level goes, in my opinion. I am constantly amazed at how Berlioz can use certain orchestration skills to create such unique and beautiful sounds that you simply cannot find anywhere else in musical history. This will certainly be one of my favorite concerts to play in all semester...
...and just as a final note: Happy Holidays!
-Phil
Friday, December 18, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Chamber Music
Chamber music can be a real pain in the ass sometimes.
Ya I said it. Anyone who has experienced a full-time or part-time chamber music for more than a few weeks (or even less time than that sometimes) knows that tensions can become high during a chamber music rehearsal, especially when there's a strong disagreement on some part of the piece. Who knew the style of attack on a chord could cause so much grief?? No matter how much fun being a part of a chamber music group can be, sometimes the stress of a performance, working on the same piece for weeks and weeks (this especially for younger groups such as the one I'm in), and the constant bickering on how to practice and perform can cause some serious difficulties.
For example, the rehearsal I just came home from was filled with high-tension, and even a few accusations (all accompanied by awkward jokes and cover-up humor to prevent serious anger and fighting). And even if it was a productive rehearsal, and I feel like we're completely ready for our performance on Thursday night, I am stressed and honestly pretty ticked off for no single apparent reason. Arguing is fun. It wastes time, and gets everyone on the edge of their seats. Yet all chamber groups have had their disputes, and this will always be so.
Today, therefore, I present to you some possible ideas on how to avoid all-out arguments when it comes to a chamber music rehearsal:
1. If you stumble upon a disagreement, start out by getting ideas from ALL MEMBERS OF THE QUARTET (very important) on how they think it should be played. Usually this will narrow it down to 1 or 2 options.
2. Take a vote. Sometimes it helps to play it through both ways and then decide.
3. If it's a tie (as it often if not usually is in a quartet), try to find an outside person, musician preferably but anyone will work, to listen to it both ways and help with the decision.
4. If all else fails, each side pick a member for Rock, Paper, Scissors. It's fair, and can settle a dispute easily.
Hopefully this helps any young chamber musicians running into difficulties. None of these are sure to work. In fact, I basically just made them up on the spot, but I have used a lot of them before and they usually work. There's always that odd incidence when they don't though, and you'll just have to figure out a way to settle the argument.
Good luck!!
-Phil
Ya I said it. Anyone who has experienced a full-time or part-time chamber music for more than a few weeks (or even less time than that sometimes) knows that tensions can become high during a chamber music rehearsal, especially when there's a strong disagreement on some part of the piece. Who knew the style of attack on a chord could cause so much grief?? No matter how much fun being a part of a chamber music group can be, sometimes the stress of a performance, working on the same piece for weeks and weeks (this especially for younger groups such as the one I'm in), and the constant bickering on how to practice and perform can cause some serious difficulties.
For example, the rehearsal I just came home from was filled with high-tension, and even a few accusations (all accompanied by awkward jokes and cover-up humor to prevent serious anger and fighting). And even if it was a productive rehearsal, and I feel like we're completely ready for our performance on Thursday night, I am stressed and honestly pretty ticked off for no single apparent reason. Arguing is fun. It wastes time, and gets everyone on the edge of their seats. Yet all chamber groups have had their disputes, and this will always be so.
Today, therefore, I present to you some possible ideas on how to avoid all-out arguments when it comes to a chamber music rehearsal:
1. If you stumble upon a disagreement, start out by getting ideas from ALL MEMBERS OF THE QUARTET (very important) on how they think it should be played. Usually this will narrow it down to 1 or 2 options.
2. Take a vote. Sometimes it helps to play it through both ways and then decide.
3. If it's a tie (as it often if not usually is in a quartet), try to find an outside person, musician preferably but anyone will work, to listen to it both ways and help with the decision.
4. If all else fails, each side pick a member for Rock, Paper, Scissors. It's fair, and can settle a dispute easily.
Hopefully this helps any young chamber musicians running into difficulties. None of these are sure to work. In fact, I basically just made them up on the spot, but I have used a lot of them before and they usually work. There's always that odd incidence when they don't though, and you'll just have to figure out a way to settle the argument.
Good luck!!
-Phil
Thursday, October 22, 2009
A Sonnet
The taste of sweat; the smell of tears I feel
Amongst the angst that anguishes my soul.
The constant blow of slowly turning wheel
destroys my heart and takes its hateful toll.
The ache in heart and pith that I must bear
Is far from what I trust my soul to take.
For broken and alone is he whose tear
Falls from his cheek - his heart to break, and ache.
We trust in those we should not trust, and yet -
Our love for them holds strong, prevailing on.
It traps us: keeps us bound in crushing nets.
But still we seek our love at day's new dawn.
And in our love we find our hope, our want
That life is more than just a game or jaunt.
-Phil
Amongst the angst that anguishes my soul.
The constant blow of slowly turning wheel
destroys my heart and takes its hateful toll.
The ache in heart and pith that I must bear
Is far from what I trust my soul to take.
For broken and alone is he whose tear
Falls from his cheek - his heart to break, and ache.
We trust in those we should not trust, and yet -
Our love for them holds strong, prevailing on.
It traps us: keeps us bound in crushing nets.
But still we seek our love at day's new dawn.
And in our love we find our hope, our want
That life is more than just a game or jaunt.
-Phil
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
My Art
My home is here -
A place of self -
It holds the truth:
No faun, no elf.
Deception is not in its cant,
'Though stories told reveal the truth -
The stories of a world unknown,
That is, my home, within its chant.
But sometimes home must fall away,
And truths must take a break from day.
The emprise of my life will take
A thousand years - but not too late.
My stage awaits, my music sounds
Upon the world: the urbs, the towns.
I yield emotion to the streets;
Reveal my soul and all its feats.
But not just feats must I reveal,
Mistakes and pains they must, must feel.
For in my pains there lies my heart,
and that, dear friends, is called my art.
-Phil
A place of self -
It holds the truth:
No faun, no elf.
Deception is not in its cant,
'Though stories told reveal the truth -
The stories of a world unknown,
That is, my home, within its chant.
But sometimes home must fall away,
And truths must take a break from day.
The emprise of my life will take
A thousand years - but not too late.
My stage awaits, my music sounds
Upon the world: the urbs, the towns.
I yield emotion to the streets;
Reveal my soul and all its feats.
But not just feats must I reveal,
Mistakes and pains they must, must feel.
For in my pains there lies my heart,
and that, dear friends, is called my art.
-Phil
Monday, October 19, 2009
Stream of Consciousness Writing - Part III
The emotion that a stage produces, and the performer on the stage produces, is incredible. The energy that can be transmitted from a performer playing an instrument, to a willing and interested audience, is absolutely incredible. It is my goal to be that performer. To exceed in all aspects of transferring emotion, energy, interest, love, and purity to every audience I might encounter. How should I do this though? I must feel all of this at such an intense level that it practically melts off of me, and finds its way to the audience. This is by far no easy task.
I've seen performers do it, though. I've felt what they felt, I saw what they saw, I realized what they realized. I've experienced performances where everything else in the world disappears. The other audience-members around me. The stage itself. The hall I sit in. It's all gone. It is me and the performer, standing face to face, experiencing every note, every pitch, every interval, every chord, with each other. Feeling the same emotions, having the same kinds of energy, feeling the same tension between notes, which turn into nothing less and nothing more than distances between such feelings and thoughts.
It is difficult to explain it. Especially from the performers view-point. For they have one of the most difficult tasks known to man. To share what they are experiencing with hundreds of audience-members, all at once. To open up every pore of their very heart and soul for the audience to see and - if they choose - destroy. It is dangerous. At the very least mentally dangerous, if not mortally as well. Many musicians go through great trials because of the way they play. The incredible revelation of their soul, over and over again, for the entire world to see, can be unbearable. It can destroy you slowly, if you are not careful about it. For the soul can be pure, or impure, and the audience will see it, have no doubt. And they will judge you based on what they see...or what they don't see.
It is a frightening experience. Incredible, but frightening.
-Phil
I've seen performers do it, though. I've felt what they felt, I saw what they saw, I realized what they realized. I've experienced performances where everything else in the world disappears. The other audience-members around me. The stage itself. The hall I sit in. It's all gone. It is me and the performer, standing face to face, experiencing every note, every pitch, every interval, every chord, with each other. Feeling the same emotions, having the same kinds of energy, feeling the same tension between notes, which turn into nothing less and nothing more than distances between such feelings and thoughts.
It is difficult to explain it. Especially from the performers view-point. For they have one of the most difficult tasks known to man. To share what they are experiencing with hundreds of audience-members, all at once. To open up every pore of their very heart and soul for the audience to see and - if they choose - destroy. It is dangerous. At the very least mentally dangerous, if not mortally as well. Many musicians go through great trials because of the way they play. The incredible revelation of their soul, over and over again, for the entire world to see, can be unbearable. It can destroy you slowly, if you are not careful about it. For the soul can be pure, or impure, and the audience will see it, have no doubt. And they will judge you based on what they see...or what they don't see.
It is a frightening experience. Incredible, but frightening.
-Phil
Stream of Consciousness Writing - Part II
Reality is really undefinable when you think about it. Personal reality even more so. We all view ourselves differently, and we all view each other differently. Why? Because we all have different senses of reality. Sometimes we use the phrase “that person is so in tune to reality,” meaning that person is down-to-earth, and understands what is considered the “reality” of a situation.
But really, can you define reality? I guess what I consider it to be is something that is considered a constant truth, for the better or the worse. But in my opinion, perhaps there are not as many constant truths as we believe there to be. Because in reality (pun very much intended), the acceptance of reality itself forces us to give up the hope that sometimes something unreal can happen. If we must define an unreal occurrence, we could call it a miracle. There are those of us who believe in miracles, and those of us who do not. Those who do not, have “faced reality,” or “come to terms with reality.” Those who do still believe in miracles hang onto hope when there is none. Both could be looked upon with respect. Personally, I believe in miracles. In unreal occurrences. Things that we would never expect to happen, that completely change the way we look at life and, well, reality.
Reality can even inhibit us, sometimes. If we look into the past, though, we see that many historical figures pushed past the “reality” of their situation and reached the impossible, unreal goal. So perhaps, unreality is the true reality, and reality is the true unreality. Perhaps we should look more for hope, and the possibility of the impossible. Maybe - just maybe - miracles happen, but only when we are looking for them.
-Phil
But really, can you define reality? I guess what I consider it to be is something that is considered a constant truth, for the better or the worse. But in my opinion, perhaps there are not as many constant truths as we believe there to be. Because in reality (pun very much intended), the acceptance of reality itself forces us to give up the hope that sometimes something unreal can happen. If we must define an unreal occurrence, we could call it a miracle. There are those of us who believe in miracles, and those of us who do not. Those who do not, have “faced reality,” or “come to terms with reality.” Those who do still believe in miracles hang onto hope when there is none. Both could be looked upon with respect. Personally, I believe in miracles. In unreal occurrences. Things that we would never expect to happen, that completely change the way we look at life and, well, reality.
Reality can even inhibit us, sometimes. If we look into the past, though, we see that many historical figures pushed past the “reality” of their situation and reached the impossible, unreal goal. So perhaps, unreality is the true reality, and reality is the true unreality. Perhaps we should look more for hope, and the possibility of the impossible. Maybe - just maybe - miracles happen, but only when we are looking for them.
-Phil
Stream of Consciousness Writing - Part I
Reading in the wind, amongst the trees, deep in the valley. My place of freedom, of warmth, of wrath. my place to rule, my place to sit amongst the other creatures, filling myself with their knowledge and learning. Learning to breathe. Learning to love. Learning to take in the smell of the air, the warmth of the heat, and shiver of the cold. What is this place? Is it an escape? No. Is it a retreat? Nay, it is not. It is home. A home for the heart. A home where I may reside without bother. Where I may write, read, love, live, explore, adventure into the wilderness, become myself. Be myself.
But evil comes and evil goes. Wherever the wind make take it. Or does it itself control the wind? Perhaps...perhaps it chases me. Attacks me. Runs through me, over me, like a train against the air. I am air. Evil is the train. But the attacks cannot kill me, simply send me into chaos. What is chaos? It is what I am when evil has attacked. Yes, as I repeat it again, evil changes me to chaos. It does not destroy me, but instead it destroys my home. It takes away my ability to write, read, love, live, explore, adventure into the wilderness, become myself. Be myself.
Where does my home go? It disbands, but only temporarily. Eventually I can build it back again. And when the wind blows evil back to my home, it will be destroyed once more, and I will build it back once more. Over and over, building back my home. I wish I could, but I cannot call it my refuge, for it does not keep my safe. If anything, it puts me in harms way. But I must hold onto it. It lets me live. It teaches me to live. It lets me understand. I must keep it. Hold onto it as tightly as possible. My yearning for it is unbearable. No matter how many times evil destroys my home, and scares away the other creatures, and takes away the knowledge and the learning, I must re-build my home. Persevere to keep my home. I must write, read, love, live, explore, adventure into the wilderness, become myself. Be myself.
This is the only way for me to live. Otherwise I will die. Not physically, but in every other way. My mind will rot into nothingness, only to act as feed for the worms and other creepers and crawlers of the earth. My heart will turn to hard metal, only to rust and dissolve into oblivion, forming the ashes of a past fireplace. My soul will disappear. It will never be seen again, nor will it exist. I will die. Nay, I must write. I must read. I must love. I must live. I must explore. I must adventure into the wilderness. I must become myself. I must BE myself.
-Phil
But evil comes and evil goes. Wherever the wind make take it. Or does it itself control the wind? Perhaps...perhaps it chases me. Attacks me. Runs through me, over me, like a train against the air. I am air. Evil is the train. But the attacks cannot kill me, simply send me into chaos. What is chaos? It is what I am when evil has attacked. Yes, as I repeat it again, evil changes me to chaos. It does not destroy me, but instead it destroys my home. It takes away my ability to write, read, love, live, explore, adventure into the wilderness, become myself. Be myself.
Where does my home go? It disbands, but only temporarily. Eventually I can build it back again. And when the wind blows evil back to my home, it will be destroyed once more, and I will build it back once more. Over and over, building back my home. I wish I could, but I cannot call it my refuge, for it does not keep my safe. If anything, it puts me in harms way. But I must hold onto it. It lets me live. It teaches me to live. It lets me understand. I must keep it. Hold onto it as tightly as possible. My yearning for it is unbearable. No matter how many times evil destroys my home, and scares away the other creatures, and takes away the knowledge and the learning, I must re-build my home. Persevere to keep my home. I must write, read, love, live, explore, adventure into the wilderness, become myself. Be myself.
This is the only way for me to live. Otherwise I will die. Not physically, but in every other way. My mind will rot into nothingness, only to act as feed for the worms and other creepers and crawlers of the earth. My heart will turn to hard metal, only to rust and dissolve into oblivion, forming the ashes of a past fireplace. My soul will disappear. It will never be seen again, nor will it exist. I will die. Nay, I must write. I must read. I must love. I must live. I must explore. I must adventure into the wilderness. I must become myself. I must BE myself.
-Phil
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Interesting thought...
So during Youth Symphony rehearsal today, our conductor said something that really made me think:
There is no such thing as playing out of tune, only playing wrong notes.
Let me explain: all pitch is just frequencies traveling through the air, vibrating our ear drums at certain speeds creating the sensation of hearing a note (at least to my understand that's how it works lol). Therefore, each "note" has an exact frequency, double therefore when you are not playing on the exact frequency of the note you are wanting to play, you are not playing that note, triple therefore you are playing the wrong note. He went on to say that most musicians don't accept playing the wrong notes, but they will accept playing out of tune, but in reality there is no difference. So his conclusion was that we should never accept playing out of tune, because then we would be accepting playing the wrong notes and that's just wrong. lol
-Phil
There is no such thing as playing out of tune, only playing wrong notes.
Let me explain: all pitch is just frequencies traveling through the air, vibrating our ear drums at certain speeds creating the sensation of hearing a note (at least to my understand that's how it works lol). Therefore, each "note" has an exact frequency, double therefore when you are not playing on the exact frequency of the note you are wanting to play, you are not playing that note, triple therefore you are playing the wrong note. He went on to say that most musicians don't accept playing the wrong notes, but they will accept playing out of tune, but in reality there is no difference. So his conclusion was that we should never accept playing out of tune, because then we would be accepting playing the wrong notes and that's just wrong. lol
-Phil
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Book Cover
My question for you today is, is it really so horrible to judge a book by its cover?
Now, before I go on, don't get me wrong. I don't believe it's right to "judge" in the literal meaning of the word. But I believe the power of human observation is stronger than many give it credit for. A lot of the time, the cover of a book reveals more than we normally think it would. It gives the name of the author, the publisher, maybe even a few quotes of critics.
It's the same with people. Not always, but sometimes. We see what they wear, how they act, what their movements are like. Many times this can tell a lot about a person, and it only takes a few seconds of talking to someone to learn some basic facts about that person. They're name, where they're from, and what they act/talk like. I'm not saying we can learn every intimate part of that person just by looking at them and saying hello to them, but I think we have the human ability to discern whether they are generally trust-worthy or not.
I do believe, however, this is an ability that is built up from childhood, and the strength of such ability is created depending on past experience. If one has lived in a world that some would call naive, filled with people you can trust, and you have never been betrayed, then maybe you aren't so good at judging a book by its cover, because you've only ever seen one type of cover. It's the same for the opposite: if you've been surrounded by no one but people who've betrayed you and lied to you, then you'll have a hard time having an instant bond with someone. It's those who have had both that I think have the strongest ability to judge people based on an initial reaction.
Anyways, that's my thought for today. I was thinking about it the other day, and I felt like writing a little about it, so there you go.
-Phil
Thursday, September 17, 2009
The Sunken Ship
A fish nibbles on the bow,
Its scales shimmering in a glow
So bright that water clears
To show the spears
And tears
Of long-ago battle.
The ship the bow belongs to sits,
Deep in the shallow’s pits
‘Twere dug deep by the blasts
That cast
A haze of smoke in sea-fresh air.
It has such strong hist’ry,
Covered in an air of mist’ry
From which began
The legend and
The story now long told.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Poetry
So I'm starting to get back into writing poetry. Not really sure why, but I am lol. I used to write quite a bit...I think I had a collection of about 40 poems from 6 months of writing them. And I know that's not all that impressive, but I was like, 12, and had never written a poem before, so give me a break. :P
Anyways, in those 6 months I learned a ton about poetry, and practically memorized the section on poetry in the book Writers Inc. (which is a really good book if you want to learn about writing, btw). Actually, not too long after that I made an hour-long presentation all about poetry for my freshman english class, and loved it! That's actually one of my fondest memories from freshman year. haha
But after that I basically didn't really pay attention to poetry for a really long time. Until now, that is. All of a sudden, I've started writing again! So hopefully I'll post a couple things soon.
Oh, and yay for rhyming dictionaries! they may be cheating, but cheating gets it faster sometimes lol :P (that's a quote from a Jimmy Eat World song fyi)
-Phil
Anyways, in those 6 months I learned a ton about poetry, and practically memorized the section on poetry in the book Writers Inc. (which is a really good book if you want to learn about writing, btw). Actually, not too long after that I made an hour-long presentation all about poetry for my freshman english class, and loved it! That's actually one of my fondest memories from freshman year. haha
But after that I basically didn't really pay attention to poetry for a really long time. Until now, that is. All of a sudden, I've started writing again! So hopefully I'll post a couple things soon.
Oh, and yay for rhyming dictionaries! they may be cheating, but cheating gets it faster sometimes lol :P (that's a quote from a Jimmy Eat World song fyi)
-Phil
Monday, September 7, 2009
Adam
So I just got back from seeing perhaps one of the most incredible movies I've ever seen. Definitely in my top 5. The name of the movie is "Adam." It's about this 29-year-old with asperger's syndrome, which is basically just an extreme form of autism. People with asperger's have trouble in social situations, have very little ability to read body language, meaning they can almost never guess what another person is feeling or thinking emotionally.
Anyways, in this movie, Jason, the guy with aspergers syndrome meets a young woman who has just moved into his apartment building. Keep in mind, this is just after Jason's father died, so he is trying to learn how to survive basically on his own, except for the help of one of his dad's old war buddies. Pretty soon, the young woman makes friends with Jason, and eventually they form a very unique relationship, turning the movie basically into a love story.
So ok, ya, it was a chick-flick. But I think a lot of guys would really enjoy this movie, just because a lot of it focuses not only just on the relationship, but just in general the life of this man who has asperger's. I found this extremely interesting to learn about and watch. There were parts where it became so sad I came close to crying, which is really rare for me in movies (the only three movies that have made me truly cry cry before are The Last Samurai, LOTR, and Marley and Me). It was such a powerful film, and I'll probably end up buying it when it comes out on dvd, just so I can watch it a couple more times and show it to everyone i know lol. Well, anyways, if you get the chance to see it, I definitely give it 5 stars and an A+, so GO SEE IT! haha
-Phil
Saturday, September 5, 2009
MAHLER 2!!! :D
So over the summer, my awesome brother set up an awesome stereo system which can play all of my awesome music awesomely loud! For example, one of my favorite things to do right now is listen to the last 15 min. of Mahler Symphony No. 2 with my epic new stereo system on what is actually a pretty low sound level but, because of the awesomeness of my speakers, is incredibly overwhelming sound-wise!
Allow me to further explain the awesomeness of said speakers. 2 panasonics (very nice panasonics) acting as main speakers. Besides those are Revlar speakers acting as an extra surround-sound-type umph to the sounds. Ending result: awesome.
Have I said how awesome it is??!
Oh and on top of all that, he has these stereos hooked up to my five-disc-holder cd player, tape player, my record player, and a hook-up for my ipod. So I can listen to just about any recording on the planet I can get my hands on in the highest-quality listening situation possible. It's truly hard to express in words how happy this makes me. :D oh and I forgot to mention that it all comes with a remote control, so i can be reading in my king-size bed and decide I want it louder or softer or I want to listen to a different cd and just click a button and it happens!!! hehe I'm so happy happy happy! I love my room.
Yes, I am spoiled. But I mean, I'm the youngest brother of three guys. I lived with the smallest room, the smallest bed, all that all my life until now. I think deserve to be able to live it up at least a little bit. lol (not to sound selfish or anything)
Next step, plasma screen with xbox 360.
Phil
Thursday, September 3, 2009
I don't sing!
This last weekend, I was at my Youth Symphony's kick-off retreat, and every year they have a weird little talent show that involves a lot of really bad jokes almost no talent at all, but still, it's pretty fun and it's enjoyable to watch people make fools of themselves on a stage...especially when you can get in on the action!
So ya, that's what I did this year. Last year I did a strange improv stand-up that wasn't really that funny, but I think it got the show going again at a low point. maybe.
This year, on the other hand, I decided I would try my voice out a little bit and sing. Problem is, I can't sing. Still, I picked one of my all-time favorite songs, Hear You Me by Jimmy Eat World (below) and decided to try it out. One of my friends had brought a guitar with him to the retreat, so I got him to figure out the generally correct chords to go along with the song. Then I got my other friend to figure out the bass line and play it on his violin. So we had a violinist playing bass. pretty epic. :)
Anyways, although we sounded nothing like the real thing, it was fun and I think it was fun for our audience too. Still, I think I'll stick to violin.
So ya, that's what I did this year. Last year I did a strange improv stand-up that wasn't really that funny, but I think it got the show going again at a low point. maybe.
This year, on the other hand, I decided I would try my voice out a little bit and sing. Problem is, I can't sing. Still, I picked one of my all-time favorite songs, Hear You Me by Jimmy Eat World (below) and decided to try it out. One of my friends had brought a guitar with him to the retreat, so I got him to figure out the generally correct chords to go along with the song. Then I got my other friend to figure out the bass line and play it on his violin. So we had a violinist playing bass. pretty epic. :)
Anyways, although we sounded nothing like the real thing, it was fun and I think it was fun for our audience too. Still, I think I'll stick to violin.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Poem
On the branch, a bird
Sits calmly, unstirred.
But wait, it sings!
How its voice rings!
In the stillness of the trees,
One lonely voice rings so free!
But then another, and another:
a friend, a stranger, then a brother.
The singing fills the whole wood,
Showing what is true and good.
The music is hope,
Free of binding rope.
On the stage, music fills
All the minds, hearts, and wills.
The hearts of those playing and list'ning
Are all alight, and in the music glist'ning.
-Phil
So booorrreeddd...
So I'm listening to my physics elluminate, and I am BORED!
Oh yeah, you don't know what an elluminate is.
so elluminate is one of the many wonderful things that comes with my cyberschool! And although that last statement is somewhat sarcastic, it is actually a pretty cool tool. Basically all it is is an online private chatroom for people in whatever class they have one set up for. In my school, they have one 1-hour elluminate every week for each class. A lot of teacher's make the elluminates required, but unfortunately the students can't always make it to them. This is what happened to me! So they make recordings of the elluminates that we can watch later. It works, it's effective, sometimes I even learn something in them.
Right now tho, I'm just plain bored. The teacher is talking about either material that I already know well or material that I have no idea what the heck he's talking about because I haven't read about it yet. Of course I'm picking up a few things here and there. Actually I think I'll find physics pretty interesting. The whole idea that there is no such thing as deceleration, just negative acceleration, is crazy to me! I find that pretty awesome. I'm kinda waiting for the day now that someone will say "I'm slowing down!" and I can say "No! You're negatively accelerating! jeez, learn your basic physics..." lol :P
Anyways, got bored so I thought I'd post something. And I'm pretty sure this recording is going to go on for another 30 min even tho it's already been going for an hour...ugh! oh well, I guess it still beats sitting in a classroom for 7 hrs every day! haha
well, I think I'm going to go find a dumb facebook quiz to take...I'm almost tempted to join farmville I'm so bored right now! but farmville is dumb, so I don't think I'll do that haha (I apologize to anyone who might have that app right now...but seriously?? ok i'm done)
Phil
Oh yeah, you don't know what an elluminate is.
so elluminate is one of the many wonderful things that comes with my cyberschool! And although that last statement is somewhat sarcastic, it is actually a pretty cool tool. Basically all it is is an online private chatroom for people in whatever class they have one set up for. In my school, they have one 1-hour elluminate every week for each class. A lot of teacher's make the elluminates required, but unfortunately the students can't always make it to them. This is what happened to me! So they make recordings of the elluminates that we can watch later. It works, it's effective, sometimes I even learn something in them.
Right now tho, I'm just plain bored. The teacher is talking about either material that I already know well or material that I have no idea what the heck he's talking about because I haven't read about it yet. Of course I'm picking up a few things here and there. Actually I think I'll find physics pretty interesting. The whole idea that there is no such thing as deceleration, just negative acceleration, is crazy to me! I find that pretty awesome. I'm kinda waiting for the day now that someone will say "I'm slowing down!" and I can say "No! You're negatively accelerating! jeez, learn your basic physics..." lol :P
Anyways, got bored so I thought I'd post something. And I'm pretty sure this recording is going to go on for another 30 min even tho it's already been going for an hour...ugh! oh well, I guess it still beats sitting in a classroom for 7 hrs every day! haha
well, I think I'm going to go find a dumb facebook quiz to take...I'm almost tempted to join farmville I'm so bored right now! but farmville is dumb, so I don't think I'll do that haha (I apologize to anyone who might have that app right now...but seriously?? ok i'm done)
Phil
Monday, August 31, 2009
hello
hey people! just saying hi for now...not too much going on here. I recently got back from music camp in Upstate New York, where I practiced 5 hrs a day for 7 weeks...ya I know I'm crazy! lol but now it's just me back home trying to get back into the groove of everything. School has been going on for a week and a half now, and it's already becoming a nuisance. At least this year is definitely better than my sophomore last year! My teacher's are better, my classes are better, everything seems a lot better. But I'll post more about that later...
Anyways, hope someone is reading this somewhere! be back on soon (hopefully)...stay cool!
Phil
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