On the advent of change

Last night was our choir director's last Mass with us. She will be missed. It's not good-bye though. She will fill in when I'm unable to play the piano and there are other musical projects that we can collaborate on. Having said that, my days with my church choir are also numbered.

Our choir continues to attract new singers, but pianists, guitarists and leaders are harder to come by. We can only hope and pray that more instrumentalists and a new director steps forward before my last Sunday.

I had a good chat with one of the choir members about these changes a few weeks ago. She and I have served on three or more church ministries for several years now. Since joining the choir, I had to drop my other ministries.

That evening, we talked about the need to take time to rest and renew.

Rest and renew. I like the sound of that. It is something that I think as adults, we have a tough time doing. It is something I will need to do more regularly as I concentrate on several big projects.

When I visited my old dojo in the summer, I realized how much I missed practicing iai. Practicing mushin. Engaging in active meditation.

I learned that one of the training nights had moved to a non-teaching night. However, it conflicts with choir practice and the church service I play at.

I still plan on serving the church community in some way. I do look forward to serving in ways that aren't tied down to a specific Mass and to be able to attend any Mass.

Just like I am looking forward to returning to studying Iaido and learning Jodo in the new year. Will I be able to grade for my Sho-dan next year? Who knows? I'm not going to rush it though. For now, it is enough knowing that these changes are over the horizon.

When a Cell Phone Interrupts a Concert or Event

This seems to be happening more frequently: you're at a concert, gymnastics meet, jazz club, tennis match, movie or church, you're at a dramatic or intense moment when a cell phone rings. It cuts across the conversation, the action or a performance.

This video was making the rounds last week on various social networks, entitled: "Haydn Killed by a Cell phone." It shows just how loud a cell phone can be in a concert hall:

This is a video I showed my students last year. When a cell phone interrupted a concert, the violinist incorporated the annoying Nokia ringtone into his performance:

One more for you, in which a New York Philharmonic concert was halted because of a cell phone ringing:

It really kills the moment. Not only that, it can also shatter a musician's or athlete's concentration to the point of rendering them unable to carry on (especially if it's a young person).

If it happened to me, I'm not sure if I'd be as quick-witted as the violinist above or as polite as Christian Zacharias. Depending upon the piece, I might stop. I'd definitely be bitchy. I would even be tempted to call up the cell phone owner to the stage and let him or her try playing from the point of interruption.

If the cell phone user is close to the stage, perhaps I'd even ask for the phone and answer it. I could picture how that conversation could go:

Me: Hello?

Person calling: Hi. Can I speak to X?

Me: I'm sorry, (s)he can't come to the phone right now. (S)He is at a concert right now and your call just interrupted my performance... 

Leaving your cell phone is disrespectful on so many levels. First, it's disrespectful to those on stage, be it a musician, athlete or pastor. It has taken them hours of care and hard work  to be prepared to stand before you.

Second, if it's disrespectful to the composer (if it's a music performance), the teachers/coaches and all other individuals and groups involved with making that performance, service or event happen.

Third, it's disrespectful to the other patrons. Perhaps they had to scrimp and save to attend that event. Or, they had to juggle their schedule around. Either way, they made a choice and/or sacrifice to be there.

I know, I'm probably preaching to the choir. The ones who need to hear this message probably don't read my blogs. Perhaps the only thing that would get through to those people is if their special moment is rudely interrupted. However, they still probably would deny that they are guilty of doing the same thing.

A friend of mine mentioned that in Japan, cell phone signals are blocked in some concert halls. My piano families and I joked that there may come a time when we will have to check-in our phones before setting foot into a concert hall, church or event venue.

Is it that hard to put the phone on "Silent" or "Vibrate"? Last time I checked, it's as easy as a swiping down to get your quick menu and pressing a button.

Cell phones interrupting concerts or events, as frustrating as that is, is not the main issue. Rather, I think it's that we as a society can't seem to handle being fully present "in the moment", as this video sadly demonstrates:

Calgary Jazz Orchestra 2013/14 Concert Preview and Schedule

Get ready to groove, bop and swing with the Calgary Jazz Orchestra when the group kicks off the 2013/14 season later this month. The upcoming season promises a diverse mix of jazz and popular music to engage and entertain music buffs of all walks.

2013/14 Calgary Jazz Orchestra Season Highlights

The CJO kicks off its 2013/14 season on Sunday, October 20, 2013 with "Video Game Music Live | Duke Ellington's Peer Gynt Suite". Some of the popular VG themes that will be featured include music from the Super Mario Bros, Zelda, Halo, Fallout 3 and EarthBound. Also known as Swinging Suites or Sweet Thursday, the Duke's big band interpretation of Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite is also a tribute to John Steinbeck's Sweet Thursday.

The CJO gets into the Christmas spirit with "A Perfectly Frank Christmas" on Sunday, December 22, 2013. Popular Christmas hits made famous by Frank Sinatra, such as I'll Be Home for Christmas and Oh Holy Night. This concert tends to sell out, so patrons are advised to purchase their concert tickets in advance.

The Calgary Jazz Orchestra warms up the winter with "Romance" on Sunday, February 16, 2014. R'n'B classics, along with jazz and pop ballads will be on tap. In previous seasons, music made famous by Billie Holliday, Chet Baker and Ella Fitzgerald have be featured in this love-filled evening.

The CJO wraps up its 2013/14 season on Sunday, April 13, 2014 with "The Music of Science Fiction | New Orleans Funk". Programme details will be announced later in the season, although Star Wars and Star Trek are two definite possibilities.

About the Calgary Jazz Orchestra

The Calgary Jazz Orchestra was founded in 2004 by trumpeter, vocalist, composer/arranger Johnny Summers. The CJO is comprised of 16 musicians who are performers and dedicated music teachers. The orchestra performs arrangements by Johnny Summers, Gerry Hebert, Shane Statz, Carsten Rubeling, Greg Baker, as well as guest arrangers.

The CJO has performed at the Canada Day Celebrations in Calgary, the Calgary Jazz Festival, and the Red Handed Campaign for the United Way and the Alberta Centennial celebrations. Various members of the Calgary Jazz Orchestra perform frequently locally and abroad at jazz clubs and festivals such as the Calgary International Blues Festival.

Attending a CJO Performance

All concert season performances by the Calgary Jazz Orchestra are scheduled to take place at River Park Church on 3818 - 14A Street SW Calgary, Alberta. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. while all performances commence at 7:00 p.m.

Single concert tickets are on sale for $25 each ($15 for students), while season passes are available for $95 each ($55 for students). Tickets can be purchased through the Calgary Jazz Orchestra's website.

Concert tickets can also be purchased at the door by cash or cheque. The Calgary Jazz Orchestra opens their 2013/14 season on Sunday, October 20, 2013. The season promises to entertain music aficionados of all walks with varied programming filled with memorable tunes.

Anything Goes at the 2013 Calgary Omatsuri

Fingers crossed that my website issues are sorted out until the next major Wordpress framework upgrade. Now, I can get back to the business of blogging and merry music making! The final performance from the 2013 Calgary Japanese Festival was by the cover band Anything Goes. They're a young band, founded this spring. However, they've been making a splash at events such as the Calgary Expo,  GeekM00t and the  Show and Shine, "On Wheels for Kenya" event. Their next big gig is at the Edmonton Comic & Entertainment Expo.

Here's some clips that I took of their performance at last month's Omatsuri:

Afterwards, I had the opportunity to chat with Vanessa, Gladzy, Joe and Trent as everyone else was packing up:

My apologies for the soft audio.  I tried to bump it up as much as I could.By the end of the day, my camera batteries had died and I didn't have the proper adapter to use my external mic with my phone. But dang! I still love my keitai.

My one wish is that that the next time I hear Anything Goes perform "God Knows" from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, the band will perform it in Japanese. ;-)

Anything Goes on Facebook

About the featured photo: Anything Goes perfoms at the Calgary Japanese Festival. Photo by Christine Kohl. Published by Kathleen Irulanne Boucher.

Catching up with the Koto at the 2013 Calgary Omatsuri

The koto is a traditional Japanese instrument. This stringed instrument actually came originally from China. At the 2013 Calgary Japanese Festival,  Mizue Asai-Kaufmann and Kaori Akiyama performed several numbers after the short drizzle:

I had an opportunity to chat with them afterwards about learning to play the koto. How interesting that they both learned the koto at the same age!