Concert Review of the Calgary Wind Symphony's Hilarious Holidays

The Calgary Wind Symphony performed a selection of upbeat and amusing band music at its Christmas concert on Sunday, December 2, 2012 at the University of Calgary's Rozsa Centre. Cellphone soloist Wendy Freeman and pianist Julie Jacques drew the crowd in with their energetic performances.

The CWS Set the Stage for an Afternoon of Hilarity

Various members of the Calgary Wind Symphony glittered. Literally. There was a wide assortment of blinking and non-blinking elf caps, Santa Claus hats and reindeer antlers, which set the tone for a lighthearted musical afternoon.

“

It only gets more garish as the afternoon goes on,” quipped CWS Music Director, Dr. Jeremy Brown after walking on stage with his fire-truck red cummerbund beneath his tux.

Fanfare and Cell Phones Highlighted at the Calgary Wind Symphony Concert

The CWS its Christmas programme opened with Jim Colonna's “Fanfare on Adeste Fidelis”, a lively number that featured a witty fugal fanfare in the brass. This was followed up with Jan Van der Roost's “Flashing Winds”. This energetic number contained sweeping themes reminiscent of the classic TV show “Bonanza”.

One of the highlights from the first half was the “Concerto for Cell Phone” by James M. Stephenson. Yes, you read that correctly – cell phone. Soloist Wendy Freeman scoured the malls to record “the six most epic ring tones”. Each ring tone was “introduced” by the cellphone and then developed by the CWS. The fugal treatment of the infamous NOKIA® ring tone was beautifully done.

The first half ended with “Pequeña Suite para Banda” by Luis Serrano Alarcón. This suite featured some polytonality, instruments played in extreme registers and catchy rhythms. The flute solo in the “Rana” was simply exquisite, while the melodic themes in “Galop” weaved a twisting soundscape, punctuated with energetic, Batman-like “SPLATS”.

The CWS Presents the World Premiere of Le Tombeau de Liberace and More Season Favourites

The hilarity reached epic levels in the second half, beginning with the world premiere performance of Michael Daugherty's

“Le Tombeau deLiberace”

. This suite in four dances is scored for piano, flute, clarinet, French horn, violin and percussion. Julie Jacques of Calgary took on the role of Liberace at the piano.

It showcased everything you'd expect for a Liberace tribute – glittering rings, feather boas, candelabras and trademark Libarace piano riffs. The first dance, the “Rhinestone Kickstep”, featured a dialogue between the marimba and the piano, boogie woogie rhythms and crunchy harmonies.

“

How Do I Love Thee” is named after Elizabeth Barret Browning's sonnet of the same name. Liberace often recited this poem at performances. It featured a mournful melody on the French horn, glittering

arpeggii

on the piano and some lush Debussy-esque harmonies.

“

Sequin Music” is a classic example of

dodecaphonic

music. The 12-tone motive was presented and then developed through various permutations, such as transposition, inversion and retrograde. It became more embellished once the piano cadenza was reached.

The final dance in the suite is “Candelabra Rhumba”. The Spanish-flavoured theme weaved between the instruments against heavily syncopated rhythms played on the piano.

The stage lit up even more for the next piece, with a sudden increase in blinking Christmas hats and antlers. The CWS performed “Canadian Brass Christmas”, arranged by Luther Henderson and adapted for band by Howard Cable.

This upbeat number opened with the Big Ben clock theme before launching into a contrapuntal treatment of “Ding Dong Merrily on High”. The medley also included “Here We Come A Wassailing” as well as “Huron Carol”.

Another highlight from the second half was “A+: A Precise Prelude and an Excellent March” by Thomas C. Duffy. To set up this number, trombonist and band

teacher, Jim Kramer shared this quote by baseball legend Ted Williams:

"Baseball is the only field of endeavour where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer.”

With “A+”, Duffy wanted to demonstrate the difference between a performance in which everyone is trying to play as proficiently and expressively as possible (A+) and a performance akin to Williams' 3/10 game stats. Suffice it to say that Duffy and the Calgary Wind Symphony proved that getting 3/10 notes right in music is unacceptable.

The final number on the programme was Leroy Anderson's “Sleigh Ride”. As an encore, the CWS performed Karl L. King's “Circus Days – Galop”, featuring Monica Leong on bicycle honker horns.

About the Calgary Wind Symphony

The Calgary Wind Symphony is a 60-member ensemble, directed by Dr. Jeremy Brown of the

University of Calgary

. Formerly known as the Calgary Concert Band, the ensemble has been active in Calgary's musical community since 1947. The band went on a European tour in 2011, performing to enthusiastic audiences in Italy and Austria.

In the summer of 2012, the CCC changed its name to the “Calgary Wind Symphony”, operating under the Calgary Concert Band Society.

Music aficionados can check out the Calgary Wind Symphony's upcoming concerts for the 2012/13 season. On Sunday, March 3, 2013 at 2:30 p.m., the CWS presents “Music of Mysteries, Legends and Ritual”. On Sunday, June 2 at 2:30 p.m., the Calgary Wind Symphony presents “Apollo Sings! Music that Soars”. Both concerts will take place at the Rozsa Centre on the U of C campus. For more information and to buy concert tickets, please visit the

CWS's website

.

The Calgary Wind Symphony's “Hilarious Holidays!” concert in Calgary on December 2, 2012 boasted a lively and amusing programme guaranteed to elicit giggles and chuckles from the audience. From the downbeat, the CWS had audience members tapping their toes, chuckling and cheering in appreciation for not only a proficient performance, but a highly entertaining one.

Why Can't Musicians Wear Progressives for Music?

My Musicians and Progressives experiment wrapped up just over a week ago. I'm eagerly awaiting my snazzy purple frames, which will return to me as "normal" eyeglasses. Part of me has been mulling over exactly why so many musicians say that that it is impossible to use progressives for music and also, why I am in that 5 - 10% of people who had an adverse reaction to progressive lenses.

To answer that, I reviewed one of my clips from last week. In the span of of 70 seconds, my eyes flitted rapidly back and forth, up and down, left and right 70 times. In those 70 seconds, my eyes were looking at the music and the choir director from all regions of the lenses - top, middle, bottom, the far right and the far left. Peripheral vision was used just as much as looking at my subject head-on.

To do that with progressives resulted in my eyes looking through the long-range, intermediate and up-close reading range and well as the sides of the lenses that are essentially dead space repeatedly. Visual distortion occurred every time I moved my eyes, which is exactly what happened here:

With such rapid eye movement meeting with visual distortion, it's no wonder I got nauseous. Later in this clip, I tried moving my head as many times as my eyes would move normally in the span of a minute. Moving one's head that often in the span of a minute is also a recipe for nausea (and extremely impractical for a musician). I'd say it's also a recipe for whiplash and inexcusably sloppy playing.

That clip was just over one-minute. Ensemble rehearsals run anywhere between 90 minutes to three hours. To extrapolate, a musician's eyes may move rapidly at least 10,800 times in a three-hour rehearsal. Why was my nausea far worse than my music colleagues who have met with some success wearing their progressives in non-musical situations? I think it's because I use my eyes in a similar fashion when doing non-musical things. If I look at my main tasks in a given day, we can extrapolate how often my eyes rapidly flit around:

1. If my eyes shift 70 times in the span of 70 seconds, we can extrapolate that if read and play music for 60 minutes (my desired minimum, my max seems to be four hours), my eyes will shift 3,600 times in that hour.

2. I use my eyes in a similar fashion when I work on the computer, doing office studio work, writing, researching, transcribing or editing (text, audio and video). I work on the computer anywhere between three to seven hours a day. If I'm on the computer for five hours a day (my average), my eyes will shift 18, 000 times.

3. I use my eyes in a similar fashion when I drive. I drive between one to three hours a day. If I drive three hours in day, then my eyes will shift at least 10,800 times.

4. On average, I teach four hours a day. My vision usage is similar to the aforementioned situations. My eyes would then shift rapidly 14,400 times in that time span.

By my count, my eyes flit quickly - using all areas of my single-vision lenses and contacts an average of 46,800 times a day. This doesn't even include watching shows or operas with subtitles or playing a video game!

It's no wonder my nausea worsened as I forced myself to wear the progressives for longer periods at a time. It's no wonder I couldn't last a week. However, some of my music friends and colleagues wondered how I lasted as long as I did.

A Progressive Exception

For those of you who have been following my Musicians and Progressives Experiment, you'll be happy to hear that I did go to my optometrist's office today and asked for "normal glasses". I did learn a few interesting things that I can share:

1. My prescription is correct. Always good to know.

2. Approximately 5 - 10% of people in my age range (early 40s) do not adapt to progressives. It would appear that I am in that group.

3. This number (of patients who can't wear progressives) increases significantly as patients get older. If my memory serves correct, this number goes upwards to 20% for those in their mid-40s.

4. I seem to know a lot of people who can't wear progressives (oh wait, that's because I know many musicians and other creatives).

5. If you can't adapt to progressives, you can explore trifocals, bifocals and different pairs of single-vision lenses and/or contact lenses.

Therefore, my optometrist was being proactive by starting me on progressives early.

He doesn't feel that office progressives will do me any good at this point, as it's mostly for intermediate and up-close vision (at least, that's what I remember of the conversation). That shoots down my wish for progressives that only have long distance and intermediate range lenses (and then I'd use separate reading glasses). Interestingly enough, it's it's my "up-close" range (AKA, the range I hardly use) that's degenerating first (Note to self: exercise that range more).

I just heard from another music friend. He's a percussionist/conductor/teacher. His eye doctor is having him try trifocals INSTEAD of progressives. In fact, it was the optometrist who said, "

Progressives don't work for musicians

."

I remain hopeful that in time, progressive lens that don't severely limit the periphery will be developed. I look forward to the day that one pair of glasses/contacts will serve my and my fellow musicians' aging needs. That there will be a type of lens that I can wear without having to juggle multiple pairs of vision wear. Someday.

Back to today. I fell back on the non-adapt clasue. Ironically, the new pair is nearly identical in prescription to the single-vision glasses I'm wearing now. They are over four-years old, so they are a little beat up. The old pair will make a great back-up pair. The new pair will make a great dedicated music pair when the time comes to revisit multi-focal lens options.I could have tried bifocals today, but when it comes down to it, I just want normal glasses. 

Quick Links to the Musicians and Progressives Experiment posts:

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 1

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment: Pre-Experiment Control Videos

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 2 - Cooking

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 3A - Cleaning the Studio

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment 3B - Office Work and Practicing Music Meltdown

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 4 - Driving Mini-Meltdown

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 5 - Office Work Meltdown

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 6A - Teaching Meltdown and Testing a Theory

• Musicians and Progressives Experiment Day 6B - Confirming a Theory & Choir Rehearsal Meltdown

• Musicians and Progressives Post Experiment Musings

• Why Can't Musicians Wear Progressives for Music?

Post Musicians and Progressives Experiment Musings

This is my third day with my short-corridor progressives firmly closed in their case. It's been heavenly without the nausea. My appetite has returned in full force, I'm back to being my mostly even-keeled self. I've returned to my regular activities. I continue to receive feedback from various sources. Here are some of the comments that I've received from of of my piano students' parents:

• In one family, the mother adjusted to the progressives but the father did not adapt. The mother actually has to juggle more than one pair - reading glasses and progressives. It sounds like she's even having challenges with her progressives and needs office progressives. The father, who drives trucks, now wears bifocals and I believe uses single-vision wear for driving.

• Another parent, who learned music as a child, said "NO WAY!" when I told her that I was supposed to use my progressives to read and play music. She also juggles two pairs - office progressives and reading glasses.

• One of my adult students detests her progressives. Not only can't she read her music but she's having trouble with her other daily activities. She is shopping for a new eye doctor who will work with her to explore other options.

• Another parent said that the transition between the vision zones should be "seamless". His entire eye exam was computerized, so his readings were extremely accurate. Wow. I want that eye exam!

There is an addendum to my colleague Gwen Richardson Bartek's office progressives success story, "I am lucky with my optometrist. :) I teach his children piano lessons." That's so convenient! She added, "My "office" progressives work."

What it's boiling down to is that musicians and non-musicians alike aren't asked enough questions at the beginning about their daily vision needs. It's taken several tries for most of them and the ones with progressives still have to juggle another one or two pairs of glasses.>Nor are progressives for everyone.

Hindsight is 20/20. This is what I've learned: If you are told that you need progressives, do not feel pressured (and do not let them pressure you) into ordering them on the spot. Go home and do your research. Come back with questions. Do not place the order for them until:

1. You actually have the funds to pay for them.

2. You feel confident that your eye care practitioner understands your daily vision needs.

3. You are satisfied with the purchase and return policy.

4. Ask more questions and do your research.

If you feel that your concerns (and those of your esteemed colleagues) are being dismissed, listen to your gut and go get a second opinion (or try that fully computerized test that my students' father had). If you feel that you need to run an elaborate experiment just to make your daily vision needs understood, there's a huge disjunct.

Gwen's story and my optician-pianist colleague's recommendation of office progressives, namely the NIKON Home & Office Lenses, do give musicians a viable option as far as progressives go. Now, some will find that they must still use single-vision wear for their musical (and driving) needs. It depends on their musical instrument(s) and their playing environment. My colleagues - and my experiment affirms this - that standard and short-corridor progressives do not work for reading and playing music (at least for piano, singing, percussion, conducting and teaching). Those NIKONs may very well work for me. Although they may be passable in everyday situations, I do know that I may still need my current single-vision pair for music and driving; and that my older set of glasses can be used as reading glasses. I do recognize that my prescription has changed and that I may not be able to use my current single-vision lenses for everything.

Whether or not I try the Home & Office progressives really depends on if it costs me extra to get them (or to switch to non-adapts if even those do not work) and how my appointment goes. Otherwise, like I said before, I'd rather just get my non-adapts and be done with this.

Using Multiple Cameras in a Music Lesson Demonstration

After reading "On Teaching Piano with Multiple Cameras", one of my readers had mused how wonderful it would be to see a demonstration of using multiple cameras in a music lesson. My student Dylan and I were happy to oblige.

Here we are working on a short chord progression from U2's "Stuck in a Moment". I used the three claps at the beginning to synchronize the videos (à la Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir).

We used the following cameras for this demonstration:

1. POV Camera on Dylan's head (Top Left): GoPro Hero 2

2. Profile Camera on the Studio Desk (Top Right): Microsoft HD LifeCam 3000

3. Pedal Camera (Bottom Right): Canon PowerShot 5S IS (I can't bring myself to retire it completely because it's still a good camera)

4. Overhead Camera (Bottom Left): Logitech HD Pro Webcam C910

I took a photographer friend's advice and turned off the auto-focus on the two webcams. Another thing I do is try to minimize the number of background programs running on the computer when recording video.

The profile view is essential for checking posture and hand position. The overhead view gives you the musician's peripheral of the keyboard geography. The pedal view is essential with students who are having issues with timing their pedal changes. As for the POV camera - isn't is just fun to see how another musician sees when they play? It's also good for checking where they are focusing.

I will probably swap the positions for the pedal and profile camera.

Now, when a student working on something new, I can show them various perspectives that they can review at their leisure at home. Or perhaps they'd like to show off a newly polished piece to their relatives across the country.

Students, "Record & Review" has never been so easy to do at home. Use any of your portable devices, such as a smart phone, iPod, tablet, netbook, laptop, camera. You can place them at various positions as we have here.

Find out more about how to incorporate webcams into your studio here.

* Special thanks to my student Dylan and his family for granting permission to record Dylan for this demo. *