a day in the life of piano monkey

http://www.reverbnation.com/artist/artist_videos/2938003 *small golden sparks from the tango cafe eve often, after a good bonfire, the ground stays warm over night. an echo that rings through, carrying the sparks of the night well into the back of one's mind, always there, burning bright and effortlessly. the tango cafe event was a roaring success. we packed the venue- probably the most people ed had to pack into gallery 345 ever (so said he!), and we had dancers- through the entire second half. people got up and chatted, held one another in embrace, adored graceful slivers of human life- against all the roughness and the difficulties of daily life.  i find it shocking to think about one's daily 'required' tasks and how violent and vicious they may be- for instance,  eating: mastication: bearing teeth and consuming living things, pulverizing, tearing, swallowing- covered in mucus (saliva), to take things into long and bacteria-ful digestive sys...

on friday, my idea of three concerts in spring will come reality once again, concerto no. 2: tango! with small idea, i got a core group of people interested and the thing just grew (thanks to beautiful soo for being eager and enthusiastic. sometimes when there is a good thing to happen, it's hard to sit still and do the daily mundane... haha), and by friday night rolls, we will have amazing accordion player, gusty bassist, romantic cellist, a young and enthusiastic violinist and older and experienced, yet still enthusiastic violinist,  a quiet yet sharp-humoured guitarist and an unruly monkey on piano. for me, the best thing about being a musician is well, being alive and being able to enjoy certain kind of flexibility. while in school (and working in school), it is easy to forget why all these things matter- practice, assignments, classes, even playing sometimes.  i think it's inevitable- as soon as there are rigid structure, it can either help you to be produ...

'habemus papam.' two antiquated words rang through me as i was walking through manulife centre, bay-bloor radio. i stopped. ah, a new chapter, it arrived with vigor and sense of nice surprise. i worked at a local catholic church from age 14-22.  as the main mass organist, my friday nights were spent with the choir and my sunday mornings were full of sleep and sermons, all at the same time.  it is hard to appreciate at that age, what such tradition may hold, especially if the event is closely linked with pocket money income! i was raised as a catholic, baptised as soon as they could, as i was a preemie and no one wanted to see me run away to purgatory. my name cecilia was chosen by family friend nun at the local parish.  mom was active with the community and we always had church people in and out of the house.  my kindergarten was attached to the church and i went on a bus (couple stops), with two other boys, monday to friday.  as i walk past the sanctuar...

as it's march break, there were many kiddies around... and as i got my hair cut, i was running around town. and as always, with open ears. couple funny things that i overheard: A: --but that audi has four cylinders! B: but what about the torque? - both kids were no older than 10 years old, i swear. A: but it was a quiet one! B: dude, silent fart still is a fart, even when it doesnt sing... - somewhere on bloor st. west, two boys. A: - so i got 62%, i thought i would get 65% and pass, B: well, i donno what to say- A: what did you get? B: i dont read numbers, i just look at the letter grade, C- A: he said average was 73%? B: yeah, so many people did worse than us! *passer-by man shakes head violently. -right through ryerson campus

1. you think i have control issue (fair) 2. may be it's because you also have control issue? (i think very fair) because, you see, if you are not trying to control me, perhaps you would not think im trying to control you.... this makes me feel inquisitive (what am i doing?) and silly (eeeek. didnt mean to be oppressive). perhaps the balance is in accepting the fact we all have desires and ideas and we need to let certain decisions to be made, if brutally put, regardless of individual principles.  however, i will try to not forget that if someone finds another oppressive, perhaps it's a mutual situation. heck, it's usually a mutual situation. after all, we care because we love. including conflicts, ha! loads love! :)

i will show you how i am put together pieces of scarps and bits that haven't been fed to the dogs. incomplete, just a bit short of who i wish to be. a superhero or a rock star wish i had something amazing worthwhile to show you, which i do not have. i the stringy bits of desperate efforts stand here wishing that i blended to the walls so that it is not visible how broken i am but there you are looking right at me in the eyes not speaking or judging but acknowledging. thank you.

ive been doing much work and my brain has been rattled when i get home- not a great situation for writing blog post. and i have missed writing greatly. there has been so many wonderful rehearsals, new and old friends, etc. even concerts! and it just flew by! what a shame... so before i forget more stuff, here are some thoughts regarding audition process. the grad audition weeks were quite demanding- i accompanied about 29 grad auditions. however, i do enjoy this season immensely- people have been preparing to be at their best and i do like being part of this exciting process! and if there are things i can add or suggest that may allow the player to be more of 'who they are that day,' i am a happy monkey! :) 1. always, always double check the requirement.  if they are asking for full-concerto (apparently mcgill did, this year), do prepare the whole thing. if they say no repeats, well, dont bother.  not being able to tailor your program means that you either did not read t...

01.03.13. what a nice day it was! after running around doing auditions, masterclasses and course work, my friend and i decided that it's time to do a wee concert... so we did! and here's a small vid clip from it. nikolai kapustin, a ukrainian composer who does jazz for classical peeps, wrote three very enjoyable works for cello-piano one year (1999) and burlesque is the the most unruly one... we will be doing the whole set on 22 april tuesday, 2013 at gallery 345- stay tuned! what an exciting adventure...!