Springtime Recital Musings

My student that is scheduled at this time is M.I.A. so I thought I'd take the opportunity to muse on my studio recital, held on Sunday. It was mostly a blur, although I remember snippets quite vividly:

• Two young students became confused over the concert program. There were a few program changes, which threw them into a panic. They came running up to me during a performance in a tizzy. I had to sit with them to calm them down.

• One young student had the crowd in the palm of his hand while he performed the James Bond theme. I saw heads bopping in time to the music and parents smiling. It was clear to many that he enjoyed being on stage and enjoyed the music.

• One young girl who stomped up the stage and then did an adorable curtsey.

• A few parents smiling (some out of sheer pleasure while others in sheer puzzlement) over a student who performed to a Technobeat accompaniment on CD.

• One adult student who had a rough performance but returned afterwards to play through.

• One student nailed her rhythm troublespots in a piece she has been struggling with for most of the year.

I did wind up performing by memory. It was my first public performance of Andaluza. There were a few odd notes and I got the rhythm mixed up in a few places, but I negotiated them smoothly. It still sounded like a Spanish dance. Memorizing the patterns and chords helped immensely.

I believe that most people miss the glitches, if handled right. Studying Iaido certainly helps as I don't think I flinched when something went off track.

I've come a long way since being the performer who always choked on stage. I hope that inspires some of my more timid students. If I could transform from an uncontrollable bundle of nerves to someone who can fake it through trouble spots, so can they.

At a teachers' meeting yesterday, several of us were discussing recital etiquette. I do have some recital etiquette pointers on my student/parent section on my website however, my colleagues and I agreed yesterday that this is an area to be explained for EACH performance to ensure that the performers have the least amount of distractions.

Here is an article on recital etiquette.

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