Appalachian Spring

At the beginning of a Utah Winter I listened to my son play Appalachian Spring. Hannah met me at the airport and we drove to good food. You can read about that here. Then we drove up to Logan to see Noah. He showed us the teeny tiny room where he practices - supposedly 40 hours a week (wink wink) introduced us to his friends and then we got to see his freshly cleaned dorm room. After stopping by Kerren and Bruce's lovely home, which is better than any hotel, we had a nourishing dinner and, finally, it was time for the show.

Noah was performing at the Ellen Eccles Theatre with the Martha Graham Dance Company. Now, I have been to a few modern dance performances and not enjoyed them. Not one bit. They confused me and left me feeling like I'd rather been folding laundry. But not this group. Every piece they performed riveted me and left me wanting more. It was beautiful and emotional and the most professional dance performance I have ever seen. The first half of the performance was to pre-recorded music. Then there was an intermission. That was when I tried to take video of Noah in the orchestra pit warming up. A security guard told me I was forbidden to take any pictures. So I flirted and begged and he agreed to turn his back for this 34 second video:



The second half of the performance was Appalachian Spring - with a live orchestra - with my son. It is a 30 minute ballet by Martha Graham in the 1940's and the music written by Aaron Copland (who won the 1945 Pulitzer Prize for music for his achievement).

It was wonderful and so exciting to hear the piano and know that was my son! Here is a link to the beginning of the1959 performance of the ballet - the lead role (the bride) is danced by Martha Graham and she is 60 years old in this performance (amazing). This is the same set and performance we saw on Saturday night. It was super cool.

Got The Blues?

Have I introduced you to Keb Mo?



This is some of my favorite house cleaning music. Put it on and watch your kids dance around. Just try to hold still. I dare ya.

And this one is chock full of great advice when you have the blues:
 Sing along - sing "Hand it over" after he does - echo style.

MNTA Competition

Check out those size 13/14 feet.

I tucked Ike into a merit badge clinic on Saturday morning before Noah and I headed up to DU (University of Denver) for the MNTA (music teacher's national association) National Competition. This is the highest level Noah has competed. On the drive there I was so nervous I wanted to throw up. People kept asking Noah if he was nervous and he would tell them, "not yet, I will be right before I play" but I could tell by the look on his face that he was on red alert from the moment we walked into DU's beautiful school of music.

$20,000 and a grand piano is the prize for this competition.

Most people dressed nice, dressy casual, lots of black. Parents and teachers hovered over their 18 year olds. They would glance over at us trying to assess by our clothing, hair, shoes, how serious of a competitor Noah would be. The grandparents were more friendly than the parents, they didn't feel nearly the stress so they would saunter over and chat Noah up, asking him questions about his music, his plans for college, compliment him on being so tall. Noah deals with this kind of stress by laughing and joking around, so it is fun to be with him.

The kids that compete at this level are impressive. After listening to a few of his competitors Noah told me he was pretty sure we would go home empty handed (dang). He told me who would win the competition before everyone was finished playing. It was the same guy that beat him at state this spring. We had to wait 2 hours before they announced the winner (only one winner - no 2nd or 3rd place consolation prizes) so we snuck back into the performance hall where Noah could play the amazing piano (see videos below).

They called us all together in the main hall, you could smell the anticipation, you could feel the hope, there is always hope you will win, maybe. Noah correctly predicted who would win.

I was pleased with the way Noah conducted himself. I was proud.

As we walked into the cool early evening he said, "I can't wait to get started on my new music!"

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Here is 1 minute of Noah performing Rachmaninoff at DU:



This next video is about 1 minute of his latest composition - still pretty rough:

Everybody Wang Chung Tonight

Gabe is now an official student at Mesa State College in Grand Junction Colorado (insert darling picture of his college ID card here). Wahoo! Go Mavs! I am blogging from the hotel lobby so I can't upload all the pictures of his Handsomeness.

Enrolling your first child in college is stressful, scary, and emotional. But the second child is easy and fun. I just sat on a soft chair in the lobby and let him take care of all the details and decisions, running back and forth between academic advising, the registrar and the housing office. He was stressed, I was happy.

Tonight I had the surreal experience of shopping with Gabe in Zumiez. We were surrounded by uber hip college students. The store was playing Duran Duran (Relax, Don't Do It - who knew that song was so nasty? not me!), Boy George, and Wang Chung. I knew those kids didn't even notice me, the tired mom, until I whipped out my debit card (Whip It! Whip It Good). But that was my college music! I was their age when it came out! I danced to their "vintage pop" when it was fresh! That music was part of the soundtrack from Roland and my courtship! How could they know, looking at me in my brown capris, flip flops (thongs!), and reading glasses, that I was cool before their parent's even thought of them! It will just have to be my little secret.

Gabe said his roommates have posters of girls with beer bottles in their cleavage. Sigh.

Name That Tune

Bruce the Amazing Piano Tuning Man is here for the semi-annual piano tuning. This time he is giving Noah a lesson on tuning. They are starting their 3rd hour of the lesson. Whew!

I snuck in and took this picture without Bruce's permission.

He doesn't talk about the tuning as "good" or "bad". He uses descriptors like: clean, dirty, slow, busy. He and Noah play a 2 note "chord" and discuss at great length if it is dirty/busy/slow/clean. They manipulate the piano, play it again and seem very happy at the change. It all sounds the same to me.

Bruce tunes by ear and it is amazing. It requires incredible focus, a good ear, and endless patience. We love it when he tunes. Noah will play the piano non-stop for the next few days and comment endlessly on how much better it sounds - but as I mentioned before, it all sounds the same to me.

If you have a cranky old piano that you are willing to let Noah practice on, let him know.

Parade of Idiots

I'm not sure what to call this video. Possible titles are:

• Parade of Uncultured Idiots - only appropriate for the first 30 seconds
• Ode to the Page Turners
  
• Being in the Middle is No Fun At All
  

It was taken at the closing recital of USU's music camp. Noah is the one with big hair. The boys are more fun to watch than the girls.

Music in the Nest Part Four (I forget how the Roman numerals go)

Noah's cello composition Variation on Prokofiev. Performed by Noah and Evan (the cellist).

Pike Peaks Young Composer's Contest Winner's Concert June 5, 2009

Music in the Nest III

Gabe has a rock 'n roll heart. This video was taken nearly 2 years ago. Gabe is the tall boy playing the bass.

Gabe has been in countless bands and has a CD that will be released this month. He is currently selling alarms in Philadelphia and getting ready to tour the East coast with his music buddies.

For more information on Gabe's bands and my experience as the band mom GO HERE.

Tuneful Tuesday

Welcome to Part II of Music in the Nest.
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For your entertainment pleasure we offer 15 seconds of Ike's 6th Grade Band concert, featuring the Ike-Man himself with the Saxaphone Solo. You'll recognize him as the tall one.

The band loved this piece because it starts all serious and boring and then BAM! suddenly the percussion takes off on this funky beat that makes you groove in your seat! I watched them perform at an elementary school and the kids all started dancing (sitting on their bums on the floor, but still, they danced) to this song.

Those of you living here know of the difficult time these sweet children had in band this year. I hope you also know how beautifully their director handled it and what an extraordinary program he has built. It makes me proud of them.

Nesting Music

Welcome to Music in the Nest! We will be featuring musical performances all week long! Drop by everyday and leave a little chocolate for our performers!

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The first video is Noah playing at the Pike's Peak Young Composer's Competition Winner's Concert last Friday. He was the only winner in his category that was able to attended the concert and so his 2 compositions were the final performances of the concert.



I sat in the concert hall with tears brimming, feeling complete satisfaction as he played, flawlessly, the most beautiful music I have ever heard, the music my son wrote.

Tuneful Tuesday

Pretend it is Tuesday.

This is our family's favorite Christmas album.

Enjoy

Tuneful Tuesday

The Underdog - Spoon.



Joe (my brother in law from Emily [if you have been reading Bossy, you already know how clever Emily is]) was kind enough to burn me a CD. I asked him to burn me a CD that would make me forget I was cleaning house while I listened to it.

This is the first song on the CD and it does the job. The only problem is, the CD is so good that everyone keeps sneaking off with it and I can't find it and my house is messy now!

Tuneful Tuesday

On Sunday morning Noah's fabulous piano teacher called, she had tickets to the symphony that afternoon. Did we want them? YES! Ms. Sarah's seats are 3rd row right behind the conductor, so we had an up close personal relationship with the symphony. They make eye contact with you. It is rather thrilling.

Noah's Fabulous Piano Teacher, Ms. Sarah (isn't she cute!)

I am probably one of the few moms in the Continental United States who's 16 year old son begs her to go to the symphony with him. The only instrument Noah loves as much as the piano is the cello. He dreams of owning his own. He really wanted to hear this piece by Edward Elgar (1888), who, by the way, also wrote Pomp and Circumstance. You may recognize this because it is what August Rush's mom was playing at the Central Park concert while he was in the Subway.

This is a recording of YoYo Ma playing with the Chicago SO. But we had this exact view of our cellist, Daniel Lee. We were close enough to see the rosin flying off the bow and hear him gasp for breath between phrases of the music. Amazing.

Enjoy.

Losers No More!

My Sweet Little Band Geek

The baby geek who wants to be like big brother.

When you talk about band around our house you have to clarify what kind of band: Band or Marching Band.

Lately all the band talk has been of the Marching Band variety. Today they competed in Castle Rock and have advanced to the Semi Finals in Denver tomorrow. If they do well at Semi Finals they get to play tomorrow night at Invesco Field.

Yup, that's where the Bronco's play!

This is especially exciting because this band has NEVER won anything! Never. Until this year. LHS has had a crummy band forever, but last year they hired a new band director and, Voila!, a fabulous band now! It is wonderful to watch this band grow, improve, and realize that they are good, real good. All that hard work has paid off! The parents are thrilled and ready to do anything the band director asks.

Me and fellow Band Moms, Laurie and Lori.

So tomorrow I will spend the day in Denver, cheering on the Pride Of The Liberty Lancer Band.

Wish them luck!

Tuneful Tuesday

Your Gonna Miss This - Trace Adkins



A few months ago I was picking the boys up from the Y. This song came on the radio and by the time the boys got in the car I was bawling big ol' tears. They teased me about it for a few days. Every time they hear it they call me and play it on the phone and ask if it makes me cry. Usually it does.

Sometimes when I am a little grumpy Ike will sing, "Your gonna miss this!" with his big country music star voice.

I haven't ever been much of a country music fan. Even though the country music concerts I have been to have been great, and the music is usually clean and even funny, I just never got into it. I think I need to give country another chance. If you have a country album that you think I would like, please suggest it in the comment section.

Thanks y'all.

13 Year Old Crush

I rarely listen to the radio anymore. (Except Glenn Beck who reminds me of Roland in so many ways.) I have 2 theories of why I don't listen to the radio:

1. My kids forced me to listen to their music in the car. They are too cool to listen to radio music. It has to be undiscovered music, some of which is good but definitely not on the radio. So I got out of the habit.
2. I crave quiet...again, the kids' fault.

Today, driving to an appointment and tired of radio politics, I flipped the radio station and heard David Archuleta's new song, Crush.

I suddenly felt like I was 13 again.

How I would have reacted to this when I was 13.

First: I would have totally replaced that blond girl with me. I would have watched it over and over and over with me in the blond girl's place (did you notice she is wearing a modest swimsuit? - way to support the Strength of The Youth pamphlet David!). When he looked into her eyes and smiled, I would smile back and feel a little teary eyed. Its so nice to be loved.

Second: I would start scheming ways to meet darling David, once he saw me he would crush on me. I would have to play hard-to-get just a little because so many girls love him. He would write a song about me that becomes famous and he would tell everyone it was about me. I would be shy and try to avoid the fame and attention that came with being his girlfriend. Sigh.

Third: We would go on lots of fun group dates at cabins with pianos on the dock. He would hold my hand around the campfire. He would put sticky love notes on my forehead. All the 7th grade girls in my school, actually all around the world, would want to be me. I would imagine this every night as I fell asleep.

Fourth: Because he is Mormon, he would know I was "The One" and we would get married...in the temple of course! That is as far as I could imagine as a 13 year old.

7th Grade

Look around church next Sunday. See all the Beehives (12-13 year old girls) with the slightly dazed look in their eyes? Now you know what they are thinking about.

Save the Bees!

Sneeze! With the high pollen count right now, the bees should be in heaven. Our family is sneezing and sniffling and suffering. We take zyrtec, nose spray, inhalers, and Dimetapp at bedtime. But it doesn't seem to help us much.

Add to that a new schedule that requires us to wake up at 5:30. We are TIRED. The boys slept through FHE last night. Roland was frustrated because he prepared a lesson with a handout.

Please help us by saving bees! There is a bee shortage and I have a theory that if we can save enough bees, they will take all the pollen and our allergies will go away. Then we can have effective FHE and our children will grow up in righteousness.

If you aren't taking this problem seriously, just watch this video:


I especially like the bee with the Lord of the Dance moves.

Won't you please do your part to save the bees (and our family)?

Pocket full of sunshine

Ike loves this song. He sings "I've gotta pocketful, gotta pocket full of sunshine" over and over and over in the car until I tell him to stop. Then he stops for about 30 seconds.



Drives me crazy.

Last weekend we went to Territory Days in Old Colorado City. It was much better than I thought it would be and I thought it would be good. Mike and Chris were our guides.

Mike and Chris Smith.
They are the nicest people in Colorado Springs and made us feel welcome and loved when we moved here. We are lucky to have them in our family.
We love them and wish them a very happy 34th Anniversary this weekend!

There were thousands of happy people there. Lots of Native American influence, turquoise, and the best smelling food. Yum.

Hannah told me that when she reads my blog it seems like we are a totally different family because she and Gabe aren't in any of the pictures. We are a different family without Hannah and Gabe! We miss them very much and I think Territory Days would have been twice as much fun if they were with us.

The young, hip Smith's with only 2 children.
Noah's new glasses. He bought these at Territory Days. He is very proud of them and wears them non-stop. I have told you before about how I find goofy pictures on my camera.

This is a quick video of the group Brule. They are a Native American band that plays new age music. They are Chris's favorite and I can see why. Their music was so beautiful that it made me tear up a little. I hope the video plays.

Tuneful Tuesday

After reading Emily's birthday post for Roland a friend asked me who James Taylor is. I tried to hide my shock and dismay. I think James Taylor's music is a great example of American Folk with a little blues, rock and country thrown in to keep things interesting. Some of his music is quite sad. If you grew up in America you have heard his old stuff from the 70's. We listen to James Taylor at least once a week. The kids have all his stuff memorized.

If we could have anyone play the guitar around our campfire (besides hannah and joe, of course) it would most definitely be Sweet Baby James.

I just spent about 30 minutes sorting through his videos on YouTube. I ended up choosing one of his more serious songs for this post because it has a story video with it. The people in the video are all members of his band. It is said that he wrote this song after his older brother Alex died from complications of drug use.


Do yourself a favor and listen to Steam Roller too.