Thursday, September 22, 2005

mayhem and bedlam

School has finally started, and it's already been really busy. I had my audition on Tuesday, and since it was Anna's birthday we went out to dinner that night. Yesterday I had my first actual class, a string class pedagogy thing where I am going to get to learn bass, which should be fun. I also had my first lesson, and found out that I got third chair in the orchestra for this year. Along with all this (which doesn't sound like much but really has been quite overwhelming), I've been getting up with Anna at 7 instead of 11 like we have been for the last few weeks. That'll make you tired, I find.
I think things are finally settling down for a little bit, anyway. I was talking with another violist today about how this year is different than last year and he told me I seemed much happier. And I think I am, really. It took me by surprise because last week I was feeling bad about my quartet, but I really think that things will be better this year. I feel like I have a right to be here, unlike last year when I was secretly convinced that it was all a huge mistake and I wasn't supposed to be there at all. That combined with having Anna here with me is making all the difference in the world.

1 comment:

a said...

Supposedly, it means I am third best. They like to mix things up, but usually the people with odd numbered chairs or those with lower numbers (1,2,3...) are considered to be pretty good. It's frequently kind of a split between the front and back halves of the sections, and people move around during the year but mostly only within their half. But we all play essentially the same part, most of the time. Sometimes the odd and even numbers play slightly different lines, and sometimes (in music like Richard Strauss especially) there is more than one part to be played (viola A and B, etc). I am a violist, I guess. I read a cute book once about a cellist, and somebody called her a cellist and she thought to herself that up until that point she had only played the cello, she hadn't been a cellist. A small distinction, but important, and I usually say I play the viola, not that I am a violist.