June 2022
I don't like this American school at all. It was clearly a bad buy, I can't do anything with it. Good thing it wasn't expensive.
I continue to work with Trevor Wey, Weinzierl and Wächter, Klaus Dapper and my daughter's folk songs.
I feel at home and comfortable in these schools. It's slow motion but it doesn't stress me out one bit. I allow myself to take as much time as necessary until my fingers and mind become familiar with the notes or the new piece.
I learn to play "Tiritomba" and "Kalinka" from the folk booklet. Tiritomba is also in the Dapper, the C sharp is required there. I still remember exactly how much my daughter liked to play these two cheerful and merry songs.
And an "Allegro" by Francoise Devienne. He was an important flutist and music teacher in the 18th century. His name is still very significant for today's students and flutists, and the 12 flute concertos and 300 instrumental works are still played with pleasure. The piece looks visually more demanding because it has more notes, but it is not that difficult to flute.
I have lent the Yamaha flute to a choir colleague at the moment. She wants to see if she can get along with it. She used to play the soprano, tenor and alto flutes and then the clarinet for a short time. Maybe I'll find a playing partner in her. Unfortunately, my other choir friend (the one with the Muramatsu) has moved, so it's no longer possible to play the flute together. What a pity.
I practise standing up most of the time. However, when I do unknown or difficult scale exercises, I try to concentrate so hard that I sometimes have to sit down while doing them. I can't get the passage right standing up. If I have to stand for too long while practising, I do some yoga exercises to stay flexible and stable at the same time.
I suspect that Ian Anderson, with his strange movements on stage, may have had some hip problems and compensated with wild contortions. I do that sometimes for fun, it seem to help.
But the Ian Anderson thing is just a very private assumption of mine and not at all certain.