Percussion Music!

Hello all!

My final recital (my last college recital EVER) is fast approaching, and so I have recorded myself playing two of the pieces I will be performing! Partially for you to hear what I get up to on a day to day basis, but also so that I can see and hear what other people see and hear when I perform, so I can make improvements and what not! At the start of July I will be graduating for music college and moving on into my career in holistic therapies. My blog, from there on, will therefore more likely be about matters in that area, rather than in music, so whilst Im still studying music, I thought I might as well spam you with a bit of my playing!

I hope you enjoy!

1/ Ghanaia – Matthias Schmitt

2/ Over the Rainbow – Harol Arlen, arranged for Vibraphone by Max Leth

Thank you for listening and reading! Incase you haven’t already seen, my 100 reasons project is on day two, and two more blogs have already been written, ready to be uploaded on the correct days! Keep and eye on it if you want a smile a day!

Much love

XxxX

What I’ve learnt from my dissertation!

So I have nearly finished my dissertation…I say dissertation, it was in fact an extended essay of only 5000 words instead of 10000. This is because I have chosen to weight my final year on my end of year recital which means that my final performance and repertoire exam will be worth over half of my overall mark for my degree…no pressure then.

My essay was entitled: The effects of music on childhood development from prenatal up until the age of five.

This is something I have always been interested in, and a topic I was keen to cover right from the start of my degree. Now I’m at the end of it, I realise how much I have learnt, not only from the research I’ve done, but about myself and my abilities.

Firstly, I honestly wasn’t sure if I’d have the motivation to write 5000 words, not just the writing stuff, I can ramble on when I need to, but the research it entailed and the attention to detail I needed when structuring each chapter and proof reading the final product. Although I had my moments where I was unable to find any words to fill any of the areas I wanted to cover, for the majority of the time, I found it relatively easy to motivate myself to write the words down and research all the topics precisely and effortlessly. I actually enjoyed most of it!

Secondly I learnt how much my writing skills have improved. My course is not overly academic, I’ve written a few ‘essays’ in my four year here, but they are nothing compared to what I was writing at school, most of them were more like reflective journals. At school I always held the belief that my writing was no good. I am mildly dyslexic, and when it comes to structuring essays, let alone the spelling and grammar, I really tended to struggle. However I must have done something right at school, maybe over my A-levels when I was writing long scientifical pieces of coursework, as a lot of my writing through my dissertation was well spelt, grammatically corrected, and structured in a way that not only made sense, but read easily! Yay for me and learning to write!

Thirdly was the amount I learnt about the subject. I always knew that music was beneficial at any age, it uses both sides of the brain, and requires many skills to be used that you may not use in other situations, such as memory, hand-eye coordination etc. and often at the same time. Now I have learnt that, when a child is developing, music can be one of the biggest helps in encouraging progress and stimulating the brain.

It starts from before birth, as the baby can hear from as early as 16 weeks. Scientists have noticed that breathing and pulse rates of a foetus will sync to the music it is being played. Then after birth, music will aid the development of: the brain, emotional understanding, language, spatial awareness, motor skills, mathematics and more. So many different skills we will all learn are linked in one way with music, a lot through the fact that the brain that is activated when listening to music is also activated when doing these other activities. The fact that music has such a large, beneficial impact on the brain shows how important music is to our lives, especially when we are young and are learning new things and developing daily.

The fact that I chose to do music at uni was often looked down upon by my peers and teachers at school as it was seen as a ‘doss’ subject. The fact that I do 12 hour days, without having any lectures, is enough to tell you that it is not, and it is by no means easy, and now, looking at the proof above, how can anyone deny music is good for us! Lets just hope we can continue to find a way to inspire the youth!!

XxxX

A bit of christmas cheese!

So for the past two days me and two of my friends have been sat recording, editing, filming, editing again, mucking around and producing a short cover of a well know christmas ditty!

Please take a look and let me know what you think! Gave me plenty of laughs so hope it does for you too!

 

Merry Christmas everyone!!

 

 

XxxX

Work experience

For my fourth year at college, I have to spend at least five days doing professional placement. This can be anything from performing professionally, such as with an orchestra or in a pit for a musical or other show, to orchestral management, concert organising, teaching … etc.

For my placement I knew I wanted to do something involved with music therapy, specifically working with children or adults with learning difficulties! I am currently working with a man known in the community as ‘The Music Man’. He works with a variety of children with varying needs by going into their schools and doing workshops with them. He has also been able to work with BBC NOW and WNO, both individual players and the orchestras, to put on concerts for the children, so that they can experience a new sound world and be in a different situation to what they are usually in.

I have worked in special needs schools and workshops previously, for my GCSE work experience and with Touch Trust in Cardiff, but it is something I havent done properly in a while. My first day at the school I am currently working in reminded me how much I enjoy this work! I love seeing their eyes light up when they hear different sounds. The curiosity and unaltered interest into playing instruments in different ways, something that is taught out of us in mainstream schools, and seeing the benefits they have from each session.

I took my ukulele into the sessions, and was able to walk around the group, playing basic chords, letting the children have a go if they wanted, and the response I got was incredible! Some were fascinated, wanting to touch the wood, the strings, interested to see how the sound was made. Others were happy to sit there quietly and just listen to what I was doing. Even in the children who had extreme disabilities you could see a response. I know a lot of people expect a visual response when working with special needs, but sometimes, the biggest and best response is them not doing anything!

I have been in twice now and will be going in again in a couple of weeks, this time to spend a full day in the school, spending the morning in the music sessions and the afternoons volunteering in the classroom!

Spending time in the school has reminded me of my passion for working with children, especially those with learning difficulties! Eventually, once I’m settled in an area permanently, I wish to set up my own workshop, most probably afterschool type thing, for children with and without disabilities. I grew up with an Aunt who is mentally disabled. Because of this, I grew up with an understanding of how to act around her, which I could then transfer when working with other adults and children with disabilities. A lot of people who have not grown up in similar circumstances do not understand how to act around them. They can be patronising and uncaring, although this is often not intended, and although we can learn how to interact in a more appropriate manner, I think it can help if we learn from a young age, and we can begin to accept it as norm and don’t think twice about what we do.

This is why I wish to set up a music workshop for mixed abilities. The children can learn musical concepts and can also see how each other work, both beneficial for those without disabilities as for those with. It will also give mainstream children a chance to understand the differences at a young age, meaning they grow up with a better appreciation and understanding. Music is a good way to express oneself, and a good way to be creative. At mainstream schools, experimentalism, to a point, is often taught out of them at a young age, but at the school I am working at, they are encouraged to explore sounds more. Although they can’t get away with everything – throwing an instrument across the room is not encouraged – the sounds that they hear and they create are incredible, because they look at the instruments in a different way to us. I want to explore this further and encourage mainstream children to think this way too, so that they see the world in a different way, and are more willing to explore.

Its not for everyone, Im sure many people would disagree with me, but I believe it would aid children’s growing up and could open a whole new world to everyone involved!

XxxX

Dead or Alive??

Have a read of this article: http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=3%2C3759%2C0%2C0%2C1%2C0

Its an incredible story, something I certainly didn’t think was possible.

Incase you don’t want to read the story, heres a brief overview:

A buddhist monk in Russia named Itigelov died in 1927. He wished to be buried in the same lotus position that he died in and requested that his body exhumed several years later. This was done in 1955 and 1973, although it was kept secret due to the communist regime in Russia at the time. In 2002 it was finally exhumed and since then has been put on display. On first examination, it was seen that there was no decay on the body. Whole muscles, sections of tissues, joint and skin were completely intact, like it was mummified, although this was not the case. Since 2002 it has been on display, in contact with people, no temperature or humidity control, in open air and, surprisingly, his body has not perished at all! Although it has been written about in buddhist texts, this is the only know case to be seen.

It is believed that meditation may have been a part in how this phenomenon occurred, but there are now also suggestions of how he was buried, such as in salt, and techniques such as types of fasting, that enable the skin to remain so well intact so long after death. Whatever the case of how he has survived for so long, this story is something to be marvelled at, and can give us something to fascinate on!

There are so many phenomenons written about in buddhist scriptures, my favorite is monks being able to levitate stones of substantial weight with incredible precision through the use of sound waves. Although this can be done, and has been done by NASA, it has not been proven on such a large scale through not electric devices!  Its nice to see that one of these has now been proven beyond doubt!

With science slowly becoming more interested in the spiritual world, I hope more marvels are proved soon.

XxxX

The Future

In two weeks time I will have finished my third year of college and will be heading into my fourth and final year. In just over a years time I will have finished my university degree and will be heading into the real world. This past week and the two to come are filled with meetings to discuss what will happen in my final year and after. I even have a meeting with the principle of college to discuss my career plans post college. Scary stuff!

I’ve known for about a year know that I don’t want to do too much playing once I’ve left college, partially because of a shoulder injury which I have realised is unlikely to heal back to its full strength in which I could play and perform on a regular basis, but also because much of the playing no longer interests me. I don’t dislike performing, infact I quite enjoy playing in concerts, especially when playing solo or small ensemble works, but I don’t enjoy the rehearsing, a rather vital part of being a performer. Up until this year, all I wanted to do was teach, but, having spent time in a deprived secondary school, I have come to terms with the fact that working in such a school would not sustain me or let my soul thrive, something I feel vital when you spend day after day there for years. 

As of this year I have started training as a spiritual therapist. I have been able to practice my oracle readings on people I know very little about, have seen my abilities thrive my spirituality grow. I can now honestly say that I am the happiest I have ever been and know that a career in holistic therapies is something that is not only right for me but something I was meant to do.

I have never been one to be scared of the future. For as long as I can remember I have been discussing my aspirations, ideas and dreams with friends and family and I am known for jumping upon an idea before fully thinking it through and even now my school friends are leaving university and become ‘real adults’, I am still not scared of having to live and survive off my own back. The reality, however, is starting to hit me. My dreams are becoming reality and I am seeing how much work goes into living, let alone working. There is still so much left that I have to learn, I have no idea how taxes work for example, but I am getting there slowly. I brought my tax disc for my car for the first time this year and later on will be booking it in or an MOT, all tasks that seem simple to many people but for me is another step towards independence. In september I will start looking for a house to move into with my boyfriend and with that we may start setting up our own home properly, discussing many other things that come with long term relationships.

Reality is slowly dawning on me and, although excited for all these things to happen, I am appreciative of how big these things really are. I am thankful that I have my spirituality, not only to ground me so that I don’t get caught in a dream world, but also to keep me strong when things get a little too much. And, as I watch my school friends graduate from university, I am thankful that I have another year of college left to fully make my decisions and make sure they are well informed, before heading into the big wide world.

XxxX

 

 

 

Music

How many people have you heard say ‘Music is my life’? How many people do you think really knew what that meant?

As a musician, it used to really wind me up when people would say that phrase to me, as, in my eyes, they didn’t know what that meant. The majority of people that said it to me merely listened to music, and only one kind at that. I very rarely said that phrase but, music really is my life. I am currently studying it at college, which means I can spend anywhere up to 14 hours a day, playing, practicing, rehearsing, listening, analysing…

At school people didn’t understand why I got frustrated. I spent nearly all my free time in the music block composing and practicing, I had to give up sports because they clashed with rehearsals, stayed late most days after school to attend some rehearsal, spent most of my weekends either in lessons or rehearsals and had planned a career around teaching and performing. I literally did nothing but music and there were my friends saying that music was their life.

I’ve grown up a little bit now and can understand what they mean. Music surrounds us constantly. Even now, I’m not listening to anything in particular but I can hear a van’s engine on the street behind me, music from the house across the road, people chatting as they walk by, and there is forever some song singing in my head. All of this is music. Ever heard of 4’33” by John Cage? That helps prove my point! Its 4 minutes and 33 seconds of nothing. But its not silent. It helps us appreciate the music in everyday situations.

We all need music, it helps us in everything we do, from wanting to relax, motivation or getting ready for a night out. Music helps encourage what we are already feeling or helps bring on emotion we wish to feel. Music is what makes feel emotions when we watch a film. Can you imagine a film without music? Watching the titanic sink with only the actors shouting would not have the same effect on us.

That, I believe, is why people say that music is their life. They come home from school or work or just from a day out and put on music, to help them remember the day they had or help them relax. When there by themselves they put music on, either as background or to really listen to what the music is saying. It affects their lives in everything they do and brings them happiness!

XxxX