Orchestra Concert!!!

Music is really important in my life. I am always listening to music as I walk around school, or I'm driving in the car. I especially love to drive around town, during the summer with my windows rolled down blasting music (tastefully of course).

Music is expressed in so many ways: band, orchestra, ballet, musicals, and everyday life...musical groups and composers. When I was 12 years old, I went down to Branson, Missouri with my mom, grandma, and church. I saw Soji Tabouchi perform at his amazing theatre, his Violin. He was spectacular, he could play the violin with it behind his head and back!!! It was an amazing show.

At the University of Northern Colorado, we have an amazing music program. I've got many friends who I know are vocal majors, or are majoring in musical composition. Everyone at this school is so talented. Tonight, February 9, 2009, I went to the Union Colony Civic Center (UCCC) to see the UNC Symphony Orchestra perform. They were spectacular.

There were three parts to tonight's program.

THE FIRST:

The first performance was focused on pianos. The two people who played were Lei Weng and Jonathan Bellman. The two of them sat across from each other each at their on grand piano, and they played together as the orchestra accompanied them. It was so neat to see. Each pianist had their own style. Jonathan was more relaxed as he played. He played very focused and relaxed. It was interesting to see them both play. I personally gravitated towards watching Lei Weng play more. I loved his style. He was so passionate as he played. He was really active as well. He played with the music, flowing each hand movement with another. It was like watching a painter paint each stroke as it flowed into another painting at last a masterpiece. I was watching him play, wishing I had continued playing. I started to play the piano when I was seven years old. I was being taught by a close family friend. Donna Dunkle, taught me for like five years, and then she quit doing lessons, because she needed to spend more time with her family. I was learning with her, how to play mostly by ear, and then when I changed to the new piano teacher, I had a rude awakening. She wanted me to play only with music. I didn't like her much, and instead of getting better I got worse. I finally found a great teacher who had a great balance between ear and sight training, but then college came, and here I am. As I sat and watched the first performance, I couldn't help but feel my mind painting a picture of what the music really truly was saying...to me.

THE SECOND:

The second performance was also really neat! A Sophomore girl, named Natalie Padilla, was the soloist for this number. She was amazing!!! I was just in awe at her performance. She was playing a Concerto that hasn't been performed since 1890. It was written, piece by piece, and then when the last bit was added, it was disliked by many...because "it didn't flow or fit" WELL...finally that has changed. Tonight, we the audience had the pleasure to see it performed. Natalie, had won a Concerto competition in her Freshman year, and so this year, she was given this opportunity! She was the first Freshman to ever win the competition!!! She is amazing, I was watching her play her violin and I could not believe it. Some parts of the concerto was incredibly fast and it was just exciting to see her play so quickly, and manipulate the violin to play the higher notes when needed. Natalie did something that I liked in Lei Weng. I liked that she too moved with the music. She played and you could see the passion and the excitement she has. You can tell that playing the violin is really important to her, and the way she played was expressed even more with how she let the music itself affect her. That's how I feel about dancing. I love to dance, letting the music and the movement over take me, and I like to dance with passion. It's hard in classes...but once it's rehearsals, it's much easier to just dance in the moment. I feel that that's what she was doing, playing in the moment, and living in the moment. The concerto was so beautiful, and it was such a treat to see her as the soloist. I KNOW that she's going to have a spectacular future with whatever she decides to do.

THE THIRD:

The last performance we saw this evening was Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88 by Antonin Dvorak. This symphony was very alive. It had it's subtle, calm, and quiet moments, but it was also very loud and dominating. I was just enjoying the music, looking at everyone playing, when a question hit me. There was no on on the stage playing left handed. Like...Everyone held the violin with their left hands and then used the bow with their right hands. My question was "What about those who are left handed? Do they have to learn to play right handed like that?" It was a weird thought, but watching the violinists I remembered, my good friend, Lauren Carpenter who played the violin. She was in Orchestra starting in Elementary School...then Middle School, and into High School. I remember she was opposite from everyone...but then again I could have just made that up. I was curious...because even everyone on the Cellos used the bow in their right hands. YES, it gave a very uniformed look, but at the same time, I just wondered. :) In this last performance of the UNC Symphony Orchestra, I noticed it the MOST, how even the whole Orchestra ITSELF becomes one. They were moving with the music, all together! They were playing and it was just so neat to see! They were ALL TOGETHER! I realize that that's very important with performing music like they do, just like dance. You need everyone to dance in unison otherwise it looks weird and off. I just was fascinated at watching them playing and seeing everything down to the last string of the bow in unison. I did this activity in my Improv class last semester, where we (actors) walked around the room. We just walked and moved with a purpose, but we HAD to stop together. WE as a class had to read each other to figure out when the moment was that we were all going to stop. It was really neat! We then did it in smaller groups, and we walked around in a circle, and had to stop as a group, we did the same with running. It was fascinating to see it WORK!!! Watching the orchestra play like that, reminded me of the class.

The whole night was such a joy to get to see! I haven't gotten to go to the Symphony since I was in 5th grade. I am more inclined to go to the ballet, but this was enjoyable. It was so neat to see familiar faces of people that I've seen around Frasier (The college of Performing and Visual Arts building) and campus. I had a great time tonight, and know that I will probably see another Symphony in the future!!!