These past few weeks haven't been good for practicing and playing. I came home on Thursday, after a 10-day stretch where I was home for 1 day. I leave again this Tuesday and come home on Sunday. My travel was supposed to decrease, but instead I'm spending most of the month of May away from home. The mix of work projects and helping my mom move means lots of May in the Bay Area and not much time at home.
I don't like to play on the rental cello that I have in the Bay Area. The bow is hideous and my hand starts to hurt after a 1/2 hour of playing, so I rarely play longer than that (assuming I even have time to practice when I'm there). I not planning to keep that cello much longer, which is why I haven't done anything about the bow. My plan has been to take my current cello down after I get my new cello. I'm still not sure when I'll get my new cello, and when we'll be able to drive to the Bay Area.
Yesterday I was on the piano for most of the time for our Saturday group. We played the Arthur Foote piano quartet (it's really nice!) and the first movement of the Brahms C minor piano quartet. Our first violinist summed up the first movement, "That would be really nice if we could actually play it!" Our 2nd violinist showed up and rescued us from the Brahms and we played the Schumann piano quintet. I love the quintet but have only played the piano part once before, and had a really hard time yesterday with it, keeping the rhythm steady. sigh. I will have to add it to my practice list for the piano, along with the Dvorak and Brahms quintets so that I can be ready to play it when needed. Then the other cellist had to leave, so I switched to cello (yay!) and we played Puccini's Chrysantheum - very lovely! I'd like more time on cello..maybe in 2 weeks when I'm in town again!
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