Carnegie Hall

So I did it. I performed in Carnegie Hall

Let me break it down into a timeline:

May 27 - the string quartet I'm in flies out along with our coach to Boston, MA for the semi-finals of of ICMEC (International chamber Music Ensemble Competition) at Boston University. Rehearsal for 1.5 hrs that night after arrival.

May 28 - travel to BU fine arts building and rehearse for 2-3 hrs with breaks. Audition in a small studio with an audience of 3 judges. That night our coach receives the call that we made it to the finals in New York on the following Monday, and we will be playing the 1st movement of Mendelssohn Quartet Op. 80. CELEBRATE!

May 29 - sleep in. rehearse 3 hrs straight in the afternoon, followed by more celebration in Boston.

May 30 - Leave on a bus for New York City. Once we are settled in, we have an hour of rehearsal time in the hotel.

May 31 - Dress rehearsal in Weill Hall at the Carnegie building. Lose camera, don't get pictures of hall :(. Another hour of rehearsal back at the hotel afterwards. Find camera. Get dressed. Go to Carnegie Hall. Freak out. Perform in Weill Hall.

We performed in a concert with 8 other groups. We ended up not placing in the top 3, but being there alone with amazing musicians from across the world was an epic win from my viewpoint. I mean, seriously, the gold prize was a professional group from Turkey. O_o

Anyway, I just had to get on here and say how awesome it was, and how thankful I am that I got to have that experience. The stage was amazing, and thinking about all the performances that had taken place there before me is a really awesome feeling.

-Phil