Musician Mommies Pedagogy 101
My daughter never had a chance. Her mom was a musician before she was born. By the time I was six months pregnant, I found I couldn’t get a deep enough breath to execute a Bach sonata line. And if you’re crazy enough to attempt a Bach melodic line, you prepare by ramping up your cardiovascular, as much as the technique and phrasing. Takes beaucoup breath support.
By the time she was a year and a half, I was processing into Sonoma State University, taking a two year senior year, and she was with me a good bit of the time. She loved the brand new, on-campus children’s school, and soaked up the musical vibes.
Here’s a tip that got us through: in order to get to the end of your Bach sonata, or whatever musical experience speaks to you, dedicate yourself to the things that matter. Don’t sweat the small stuff, focus on being the best musician and the best mommie that you can. They don’t have to be exclusive.
I’d be practicing. She’d ask for some attention. I told her, “I’m going to play through this phrase, and then you will have my full attention.” And finish the phrase, put down my flute, and we’d go make quesadillas, or toast some dulse we’d gathered from the rocks below, then get back to our activities/practice.
These days we’re in touch digitally. And our conversations always include music. It’s very nice to have another way of communicating music with her when we’re miles apart. It’s light years more fun to visit and hit the Boston Lyric Opera. Or the ballet.
So I’ve been listening to Pandora for a while, then all of a sudden last.fm started popping up. I’m in love with both, but do I want to have two network radio stations in addition to the other stations I listen to, like KUT-FM, or KMFA?
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POSTED IN: Impressionism, Uncategorized, Vocal
2 opinions for Musician Mommies Pedagogy 101
Miss E
Apr 14, 2008 at 12:30 pm
By the way, the BLO is playing “Abduction from the Seraglio” by Mozart in April and May. This is the last installation of the season and I am very sad. Hopefully the Set Director has not decided to set the stage in Middle-America Suburbia or some such distracting, ego-maniacal locale. Despite the set misdirection, the first two programs of the season showcased good musical talent: Puccini’s “La Boheme” and Donizetti’s “L’elisir d’amore.” Wish you were here for the opera!
Love from Beantown
csnowden
Apr 17, 2008 at 10:35 pm
So do I, sweetie! We had such a good time at “Butterfly.” You should write reviews of the operas, you certainly are familiar with all the components–music, production, marketing, and a good eye and ear :)
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