The new Piper Piccolo!

On Friday, December 23, as I was closing up the shop at 5:30 PM (after a successful Christmas gift flute showing) and about to leave for the long Holiday weekend, there came a knock at the door, and there was our Fed Ex driver with a package for me.  I wondered if Santa had morphed into a Fed Ex guy?

The package, from Little Piper, carried the new Piper piccolo.

Indeed, an early gift from Santa.

I put down all my stuff, opened the package, and played the little darling.  Ahhh-quick response, lovely centered sound, ease in all the ranges, and articulation of great variety and clarity.  The scale was even and seemed to correct all the typical piccolo difficulties.

The paperwork that came with the piccolo informed that the piccolo is made from "Piperwood", a new, trademarked, special composite consisting of grenadilla wood and other exotic materials.  In the Piper piccolo we now have the sweetness of tone associated with more costly wooden piccolos, combined with the durability and dependability of resin: they will not crack or warp.

What will this piccolo set me back, you might ask?  I'll tell you: $1,450.00.  A very competitive price.

Come to Flute Pro Shop and audition this little beauty for yourself.  I know you will agree with me that this is a great instrument at a very reasonable price useful for a wide variety of atmospheric conditions!

Christmas music even I want to hear!!!

Christmas Music.  Sigh.  My students, family, and colleagues know that I have a very low tolerance for it.  I am happy, content, to hear "White Christmas" once a year.  I would be very glad to never again hear "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer."  Pllleeease.

And then, today, Anne Sullivan (she and I are the flute/harp duo SPARX) gave me her new solo harp CD of....Christmas Music....and I must retract my position on music of the season.

The 12 tracks are all music that she herself has arranged: itself a Herculean task.  Then there is the stunning execution of the project.  The playing is flawless, clear, a breath of fresh air in an over-populated genre.  The recording engineer, Dave Lock of Audio Visions in Wilmington, DE, has done his usual brilliant job of understanding how the performer hears the music, and sets it up so that the listener hears it in the same way.  The clarity of the sound, unprocessed, makes every note stand out in an atmosphere of warmth and clarity.

 (Above: Anne Sullivan tunes her harp in preparation for her series at the Shade Mountain Winery.)

My personal favorites are Es ist ein' Ros' entsprungen (Praetorius) and Divinum Mysterium (XIII century Plainsong.)  If you are like my husband and want to hear Christmas music you can recognize-no worries!   Greensleeves, I Wonder as I Wander, In Dulci Jubilo, and Two Italian Carols, are all recognizable and give you that happy feeling of comfort and joy.

Look for "Break Forth: Music for Christmas and the Season of Light" on CD Baby, and soon on the Flute Pro Shop web site.  And treat yourself to music of light and clarity.  It will clear your mind and soul.

Above: Renae Bloch tunes her students prior to the Holiday concert.



Renae Bloch is a organizer par excellence, and she showed her talents fully yesterday as she coordinated her studio and the Greater Flute Society of Philadelphia representatives in a holiday concert for the residents of the Wiley Home in Evesham, NJ.  My student Miranda and I headed up 295 to Renae's studio to rehearse with a quartet from FSGP, have some lunch, meet with Renae's students, and then head over to the concert close by.  There, Renae set up stands, tuned flutists, organized seating, let us know our places, MC-ed, and conducted/played the whole concert.  Someone's metal stand started sinking, and there was Renae, manipulating the lock.  The alto flute curved head not in sight?  There she was, taking it out and using sanitizing spray on it..  Stand kicked over-she was there.  All with a calm and professional air.  I simply did what I was told.  We started with the quintet, then the high school students joined us, then the middle schooler's, and finally the little ones.  The long song list was in each folder, and Renae even had the words to the carols printed in big type so the residents could join in the carol sing-along.

The residents clapped along, sang, rocked, smiled, and generally enjoyed the music, the young vibrant performers (I was not in that category-I was the old and vibrant player...) and the joy that filled that room.  To me, this is what the holidays are about.  Sharing the joy of music with people that otherwise would not hear it.  I left moved and grateful to be part of such an event.  I will do it next year and bring more students.

So I wish you all a holiday season filled with moments of joy and sharing such as this, with gratitude for the Renae's around us that can put events like this in motion.

Joan's Bucket list entry No. 1

 

Have you ever had an original musical thought?  I haven't really unless I am helping a student write a Mozart cadenza.  But I have always been curious about those who hear in their imagination something that has not yet been written.

So, when I came across Rhonda Larson's Flute Weekend, "So you think you can't write your own music?" I ran for the date book, only to find out that I am booked for March 9 to 11 this year. I know from my reaction that this was something I need to do, and so it was added to my "Bucket List."

Held in an 1887 one-room school house near Kalamazoo, MI, the class features group and individual sessions.  Each participant (class size is limited to 14) will bring an original 8-bar melody to the class, in any tempo or style-something that means something to the performer.  (If you feel you cannot yet come up with a phrase of your own, Rhonda will supply you with your own melody for individual work in the class)

 This melody will be crafted during participants' individual masterclass in which Rhonda will work with you in front of the class. This individual work will include expanding your musical ideas.  Other elements of the course include work on the fundamental elements of flute playing such as sound, posture, and the overall Art of Performance, including performance anxiety issues and proper ergonomics in playing the flute.

All other class activities are GROUP participation, led by Rhonda.

Recording devices are highly recommended in this inventing process, so you do not forget what you just made up....

For more details, visit Rhonda's web site:  http://www.rhondalarson.com/workshops.htm.

Meanwhile, watch for Rhonda's music in the Flute Pro Shop music catalog.  You will want to add these lovely works to your library!  I sure do.