Looking back. Looking ahead.

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Akira Tana, Ali Ryerson, Andover Educators, Body Mapping, Bryan Pezzone, Carol Wincenc, CSU Summer Arts 2016, CSULB, Dana Putnam, Flute, Ian Clarke, Iowa Piccolo Intensive, Jane Conoley, John Barcellona, John Wiitala, Mary Kogen, Merola Opera, Muramatsu America, Nicole Esposito, Oakland Symphony, Oregon Coast Music Festival, Pacific Symphony, photography, piccolo, Robert Dick, San Francisco Opera Center Orchestra, Steve Trapani, The Complete 21st Century Flutist, The Whole Hearted Musician, Warren Jones, Wendy Caldwell

Happy New Year!
It’s that time of year again, time to get back in shape after several luxurious days of holiday merriment and zero days of practicing. I made a decision going in that I would let this break be a honest to goodness break and not stress out about practicing.Taking a week off to decompress, park it on the couch, watch the complete Star Wars saga, and eat pizzelle’s was perfectly delightful. I’m finally learning that breaks without guilt are a good thing.
My practice these past few days have been some of the most mindful and productive practice I’ve had in months. Why? Because during the flurry of the orchestral season and full swing of the semester at CSULB, I simply don’t always have the time to do all the things I want to do. Mindful practice, yes. Thorough practice, mostly. But there are days when I have rehearsals and concerts, or a full day of teaching, where my practice time is whittled down to the bare necessities. I always make time for long tones, technical studies, and études before diving into what’s on tap for that week or the next. But when I return after a break, and especially during winter break from the university, it’s a wonderful opportunity to expand everything out and be more comprehensive in my woodshed. More importantly, it’s a chance to get in there and work on things in my playing that will make me better. My bass trombonist husband Steve often says he “wants to see how good he can get at playing this thing” and I concur.

The new year is also a time for reflection, where I look into the rear view mirror at the year that’s just passed with gratitude, but also ahead with enthusiasm for what’s to come. I recently read an excellent blog post by Dana Putnam Fonteneau, creator of The Whole Hearted Musician. Dana’s posts always resonate with me and this one was no exception, in fact, it inspired this blog post I’m writing now.
In the spirit of that, here are some highlights from my 2015:

Holiday fun at the Oakland Symphony

I love my orchestra, Oakland Symphony. We had a few concerts in 2015 that were definitely career highlights: Backing up the brilliantly talented and entertaining Kevin Spacey, performing the massive Eighth Symphony of Shostakovich, and an outstanding concert production of Bernstein’s “Candide.”  Awesome. All of it.

It’s always a pleasure to work with my friends at the Pacific Symphony. Their production of “Sleeping Beauty” with American Ballet Theater was exceptional in every way. I wrote a pretty detailed account of that back in March, which you can read here.

Steve bought me my first real camera as a birthday gift in March, and I’ve taken more photos in the past 9 months than I can count. I did a fair amount of photography when I was a teenager, so coming back to it all these years later has provided me with some much needed balance as well as being a terrific creative outlet away from music. Here are a handful of my favorite shots from this past spring, summer, and fall.

Sunset in Pacific Grove

Carmel

Limekiln State Park Campground

Limekiln State Park Campground

Oregon Coast

Golden Gate Bridge

NYC

Riverside Park, NYC

Benicia Bridge

Carpenteria State Beach Campground

Carpenteria State Beach Campground

I explored my more adventurous side a bit more this past year with sailing and stand-up paddle. If you had told me even 2 years ago that I’d be such a big fan of both of these water sports, I’d have never believed it.

Sailing with friends in the Carquenez Straits before an Oakland Symphony concert in November

Alamitos Bay – No better spot to go paddle boarding!

After many months of hard work and patience, my proposal for a summer flute course at CSU, Summer Arts was accepted. Words cannot describe how happy this made me. CSU Summer Arts is something I participated in twice during grad school, and then again two years ago as a guest artist, and now I get to present my own course. The line up of guest artists is off the charts, to say the least: Flutists Carol Wincenc, Ali Ryerson, Robert Dick, Ian Clarke, John Barcellona, and yours truly, with pianists Bryan Pezzone, and Wendy Caldwell, and SF Bay Area drummer Akira Tana and bassist John Wiitala. (Flutists, mark your calendars and don’t miss this opportunity to work with these fine musicians and pedagogues!)

We’ll spend two weeks in beautiful Monterey Bay at CSUMB, teaching, performing, learning, gaining inspiration from one another, and basically soaking in all that is visual and performance art from a variety of disciplines. I wrote a blog post about my experience there in 2013, which you can read here. Suffice to say, it’s another one of those soul feeding experiences.

 

June was filled to the brim with goodness, with a return to the Iowa Piccolo Intensive…

Me with Nicole Esposito and my student Katie Hirabayashi

Pre-concert shenanigans with Nicole… what could go wrong?

Tim ‘Philharomonic’ Carey and I

The A Team! Nicole Esposito, Angela Jones-Reus, Sarah Jackson, Tim Carey and I

… and presenting and performing at our Biennial Andover Educators Conference in Portland.

Tea time with Angela Kelly

Post-concert bliss with Amy Likar and Stephanie Cooke

Mary Kogen and I

what?!?

Post conference hike

I dig Portland …Such a fun and vibrant city!

Mc Cullough Bridge, North Bend, Oregon

In July, I headed north to beautiful Coos Bay, Oregon to perform at the Oregon Coast Music Festival, something I’ve done since 1998. Due to other performance and teaching conflicts the previous two summers, I hadn’t been to OCMF since 2012, so returning this past July was pretty special. You can read all about my adventures here.

Warren Jones and I after the SF Opera Center/Merola production of the “Don Pasquale”

Another summer highlight was my other job that I love with the SF Opera Center Orchestra and the remarkably talented singers in the Merola program. I simply can’t get enough of opera, so getting to play “Don Pasquale” under the great Warren Jones was beyond amazing. He told me that my name was the best Italian opera name ever, and as it turns out, Warren really, really likes the piccolo. (Yes!)

I promised myself years ago that one day I’d get my dream flute; a 9K gold Muramatsu. This past summer, I finally did. This flute is gorgeous and makes practicing fun again. It’s as if someone moved the soft/loud goal posts of dynamics and all the sudden I can go way further than ever before, with a more diverse palette of colors than I’ve ever been able to create. (Thanks you, Muramatsu!)

My annual trip to NYC to teach was filled with many laughs, inspiration, and beauty. My dear friend and colleague Carol Wincenc and I presented our second annual “Day of Musical Rejuvenation” in Manhattan. We had a house full of talented flutists, singers, and pianists who performed for us in a master class and evening recital. Fabulous! I also presented my annual Body Mapping workshop at SUNY Stony Brook. It’s great to return year after year, track the progress of students, and make the acquaintance of new, talented musicians. In between all of that and a host of private lessons, I was able to fit in some quality time with family. Look forward to seeing you again soon, NYC!

Me and my president! CSULB President, Jane Conoley and I at the CSU Board of Trustees Poster Session in November.

Yep, 2015 was chocked full of many wonderful things, for which I am grateful. My plan for 2016 is to continue finding balance between work and play and to make time for the people and things that matter most. It’s tricky being a freelance musician. One day I’m working in LA, the next in SF; Santa Barbara one day, Oakland the next. My freeway philharmonic colleagues and I have to keep a lot of plates spinning and serve many masters. Honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Cheers to a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year!

Collaborating, Sharing, Laughing, Trusting … & drinking great craft beer

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Alexander Technique, Andover Educators, Body Mapping, Flute, Flutists, TaKeTiNa

I just returned home from four incredibly full days in Portland, OR at the Andover Educators Biennial Conference. Our AE conferences are a wonderful opportunity to all come together, break bread, share ideas, and learn from one another. I always come away from them feeling refreshed, inspired, grateful, and full of great new information.

Here are a few personal highlights from the 2015 conference:
1. TaKeTiNa with the amazing Mary Kogen. If you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you may recall me singing Mary’s praises two years ago at our 2013 AE conference in Ames, IA. I will go into detail below about Mary and my journey with TaKeTiNa this past week. What is TaKeTiNa you ask? Of course, you can click here to learn more about it, but in a nut shell, it’s an amazing lesson in developing and building better internal rhythm. You gather as a group and form a large circle, in the center of which is a percussionist (ours was Jake) and a leader who calls out the syllables and rhythms that you will clap and step to. It begins simply and grows to a sort of poly-rhythmic, call and response chaos where it’s expected that you’ll fall off the train. But then, Mary, being the genius leader she is, brings you back to the basic rhythmic groove. These TaKeTiNa classes have made a huge impact on my internal sense of rhythm and pulse, which I thought was pretty good before I began with it. But, like anything you practice, it keeps improving.
2. Supervised teaching class with Janet Alcorn. Janet is articulate, patient, generous, and an overall brilliant musician. She has such a calming presence, and I learned a great deal listening to and watching her provide feedback. Thank you, Janet.
3. Melissa Malde’s presentation about creating a “What Every Musician Needs to Know About the Body” course at the university level. Melissa presented a terrific lecture on rib movement in breathing at our 2013 conference, so I was looking forward to hearing her again. This lecture was especially valuable because several other AE’s shared their ideas on how they’ve constructed their courses. I am optimistic one day I’ll have the good fortune to create one at my school.
4. Amy Likar’s “What Every Musician Needs to Know…” Hour 1, and Kelly Mollnow Wilson’s Hour 5 presentations were both AWESOME! Hands down, the best Hour 1 and Hour 5 I’ve seen to date – and to be fair, I have enjoyed several versions of these two hours in past years, all of which were very informative and helpful. Amy and Kelly each took the delivery of this material up to another level and I left feeling full of ideas to implement in my own presentation.
5. My private Alexander Technique lesson with Jim Brody was one of best AT lessons I’ve had in awhile. Jim is a phenomenal AT instructor, and his help with my use of self will be something I think about in practice, performance, and day to day living for a long time.

Speaking of Jim, let’s talk more about that lesson and more about Mary’s TaKeTiNa classes…
It all began bright and early Saturday morning with Mary’s Ta Ke Ti Na class. Let me just begin by saying that Mary is extraordinary and I want to be her when I grow up. Two years ago in Ames I attended my first class. It was pretty awesome. Not being a fan of the whole get up early and be functional thing, it was a pretty amazing feat in and of itself that I was able to peel myself out of my lumpy dorm room cot and make it to ANYwhere at 8:30 am. But after that first class, I was practically jumping up out of bed and skipping to Mary’s class with glee. Needless to say, I couldn’t wait for the opportunity to work with her again this year in Portland.
Side note: I LOVE PORTLAND. I’ll just throw that out there right now. Seriously, I could absolutely live here, in a heart beat.
OK, where was I? Ah yes, my practice room epiphany on Saturday morning…
So there I was, loving Day 2 of TaKeTiNa. One minute I’m totally in the groove and all is well in the world, then the next, chaos sets in, I’m stepping on the wrong foot, and clapping on random beats all by myself. P.S., in real life, i.e. the orchestra, if I were clapping on random beats all by myself (so to speak), I’d be horrified. Not here though. I was able to laugh at myself, and trust that I’d find my way back into the groove.

Just like with Body Mapping.
When tension mysteriously creeps in or when I begin to grip in a way I ordinarily do not, I remain aware, avoid judgment, and trust that I can bring myself back to balance. Once you’ve discovered and continue to rediscover balance, replacing old habits with new, you want to return there. F.M. Alexander said, “When you stop doing the wrong thing, the right thing does itself.” This time around with TaKeTiNa I began to really make the connection between all of it.

After exploring the space between the beats, enjoying all kinds of poly-rhythmic chaos, followed by a brief but grounding few moments of constructive rest, I made my way out to the farmer’s market just outside the music building.
Side Note #2: Friends, the Portland Farmer’s Market is serious business. I can say without reservation, it is hands down, the best farmer’s market I’ve ever been to.

Tea time with Angela Kelly

After a delicious, homemade, 10 lb scone, a cup of tea, and quality time with my friends, it was time to hit the practice room.
Lately, my practice has felt pretty similar to that feeling when one hits their head against the wall. Repeatedly. The only good that comes from that is the trust that you have deep within yourself that it won’t last and that it’ll get better.
This morning, things started out a little rough. I was nearly ready to pack up, go for a walk, and try again later. Instead, I decided to trust that it would improve and that I’d figure out what I needed to do to make what I was practicing come together in that moment. I started thinking about some golden words of wisdom from a couple of my AE friends, from another brilliant AT teacher Bob Britton, as well as the instruction I received at my Alexander lesson on two days earlier with Jim. I took a few minutes to allow it to sink in, reminding myself that I trusted I could get past this road block. Then it happened. Like someone flipped a switch. All of the sudden it all came together. The next two hours were two of the most productive and enjoyable hours of practice I’ve had in months.

Later Saturday night, I performed one of the newer gems of the flute duo repertoire with my Alcyone Ensemble partner, Amy Likar. We collaborated with a terrific Portland based pianist, Stephanie Cooke on Yuko Uebayashi’s “Town Light.”

Post-concert bliss with Amy Likar and Stephanie Cooke

This piece is gorgeous, and flutists, if you don’t already know it I highly recommend you get it and add it to your duo repertoire. Throughout the performance, I kept reminding myself of Jim and Bob’s words of wisdom, and it worked like a charm because our performance couldn’t have gone better. If it were possible to smile as I played Saturday night, I would have.

Alcyone Ensemble

When my alarm went off Sunday morning, I was sure it was some kind of cruel joke. Between three nights in a row of late-night “round table discussions” at our super kick-ass Air B & B, and Saturday’s post-concert festivities, I was feeling pretty exhausted. Nevertheless, I peeled myself out of bed, and let me tell you, Sunday’s TaKeTiNa class was particularly challenging. It was also exactly what I needed to begin my day and end the conference, and I felt like a new person afterward.

These conferences are so incredibly valuable for about 100 reasons. It’s not just about the wealth of information we learn in master classes, lectures, presentations, workshops, etc. All of that is wonderful. It’s also about the little gems we informally share over a meal or a drink, or the late night roundtable-esque discussions in our PJ’s with our herbal tea (or glass of wine). It’s all about relationships; building new friendships and strengthening friendships we’ve had for years. It’s about the silliness that ensues when you’re so tired you get punchy. It’s about the adventures you take to find the perfect donut/cupcake/cup of coffee/book/shoes/craft beer, etc.

Late-night roundtable talks at 1984 SW 5th.

Yesterday, Mary and I had an in-depth discussion about how we might go about applying for an AE grant to fund a joint venture between local craft breweries in the city of our conference and TaKeTiNa — something along the lines of “Tasty Locally Brewed IPA’s and TaKeTiNa; Their Causes and Affects.”  It’s still a work in progress, but we’re optimistic!

Mary Kogen and I

Unfortunately, just like all things in life we love and lose ourselves in, the time passes far too quickly and before we know it, it’s time to head home. When planning our time in Portland, a group of us decided to hang out one extra day and get outside and enjoy some of the beauty of this great city. There’s simply nothing better after a body mapping conference, where we’ve been thinking and talking about how we use our bodies, than to get outside and move! Despite my otherwise verbose nature, I don’t think it’s possible to put into words the beauty we all had the pleasure of experiencing yesterday.
Here are a few of my favorite photos from our adventures around Portland:

Columbia River Gorge

Hiking at Latourell Falls

Looking north across the Columbia River at Washington, from Vista House

Latourell Falls

Kelly Mollnow Wison, Amy Likar, Vanessa Mulvey, Jill Dreeben, and I after an epic hike

Without question, the most breathtaking view of all from the Portland Women’s Forum State Scenic Viewpoint. Wow.

Many years ago, I chose to pursue a life in music because there was absolutely nothing else in the world I could see myself doing that would bring me the same joy. Adding to that the beauty of somatic work, learning how the body works and how to help not only myself but others to play with more freedom and ease, less tension, and how to avoid injury … it’s a pretty awesome thing, to say the least. I can’t help but feel overwhelmed with gratitude for what I get to do for living, and the people with whom I collaborate with each day. Reconnecting with old friends, making new ones, sharing stories and ideas, laughing until we cry, and taking time to smell the roses (literally … I mean, have you been to the Rose Gardens in Portland … O M G!). Coming together and collaborating with like minded artists is a gift to us all; Generously sharing ideas, with a sincere openness to learning as much as we can from one another;  Being able to laugh at ourselves and learning from our mistakes – especially when you clap loudly on random beats all by yourself; Trusting that you’ll always sort it out and get yourself back into your groove, in the practice room or in life, and remembering it’s all about longevity, so we need to take our time and enjoy the ride.

Each time I return home after these adventures, I do my best to keep as much of the “zen-ness” of it all for as long as I can. Rich experiences like this are good for the soul and I feel refreshed and ready to embrace the next adventure with a renewed sense of energy.
Thank you to all of my colleagues and friends who organized a great conference, and also for your friendship and wisdom. You’re all rockstars.

Welcome mistakes because that’s when the learning happens!

I really didn’t think it was possible for this conference to get any better. I mean, the past two days have been remarkable. But, today … wow. Just wow.

TaKeTiNa with Mary Kogen is the way everyone should begin their day. This was my first TaKeTiNa experience and it was awesome. I only wish it had been twice as long! For those of you who are not familiar with TaKeTiNa, you can learn more about it here: www.taketina.org. I simply cannot say enough good things about this rhythmic, sometimes chaotic, full body awareness activity. There were times when I felt as though I was totally swimming in the chaos of the various rhythms and singing and then, like magic, you’re just back in the groove. This little blog can’t possible do it justice. Suffice to say, you ought to check out the website and see if there is a class being offered near you and then GO! I’m super excited to get not one but TWO opportunities for TakeTiNa tomorrow and then another on Wednesday. Mary made a comment early on in the class this morning that we should welcome mistakes because that is when the learning happens. Indeed. A side note, this class was at 8 am. It takes a LOT to get me up, showered, and functional for pretty much anything at 8 am but TaKeTiNa with Mary Kogen was well worth it. 

Feeling like a million bucks, I made my way to a wonderful presentation entitled “The Self Map of a Musician” which was given by two of my fabulous colleagues. This hour long presentation was so incredibly insightful. They allowed us time to be reflective and process a great deal of thought provoking material. I feel a little bit like I just got a take home essay project, to work on in my own time, on my own, if I so choose, or I can “phone a friend” for some call and response, so to speak. Very cool workshop.

I got to teach for a supervised teaching session today, too. The lesson I taught was to a flutist and was supervised by one of our voice AE’s Janet Alcorn. This experience was truly invaluable. Having a chance to be evaluated and given feedback to hone your craft as an educator is a luxury we all should have from time to time. I left there feeling especially energized, with a deeper sense of pride to be an Andover Educator.

I have been following The Bulletproof Musician blog of Noa Kageyama’s for a couple of years now and love it. His blog is so helpful and always seems to be not only exactly what I need to hear, but also what my students need as well. I’m always sharing his posts with the flute studio at the BCCM. After having used the performance routine of Don Greene’s with a good amount of success for years, not to mention having read his “Audition Success” about 20 times, I was understandably excited for the opportunity to work with Noa. He was incredibly generous with his time (I had a 1.5 hour lesson!) and armed me with a bunch of great tools to try. Little things like eliminating “shoulds” and replacing them with “I would like to” or something similar. Or, when playing to lead with your ears and trust yourself. Gold. I could go on for days and sing both he and Don’s praises, but I’ll keep it concise and simply say, I learned so much from him today and am eager to put his recommendations to the test.

The final workshop for me today was one on Rib Movement in Breathing. This really really hit home with me, having spent the last year studying many similar images of the various muscles that are responsible for the movement of our ribs when we breathe. What was especially nice for me was that had I attended a workshop on this subject 4 years ago at our AE Conference at NAU in Flagstaff, much of it would have gone right over my head. It would have simply been a bunch of scientific name of muscles that didn’t necessarily mean anything special to me, just more stuff to memorize. But, the great thing about my injuries this year (yes, I just said that) is that I have become intimately knowledgeable about these and many others. The “upper Traps” for example are not distant Trapani relatives of Steve’s that lived in the northern most region of Sicily.  And, well, OK I did already have a very good map of my Scalenes and Sternocleidomastoid from many years ago when I had TMJ issues in undergrad.  But, if for example, someone strikes up a little conversation around the water cooler about the Serratus anterior or the Pectoralis major or minor I know precisely where they are, what they do, and can even tell you all about how Dr. Santilli and Dr. Smith spent some quality time working on them in a recent visit to Hayes Sports Chiropractic. Perspective is a good thing.

As a bunch of us walked back to Friley Hall tonight, armed with provisions for a little late night afterglow, I looked up, noticing that our little home away from home bears a striking resemblance to Hogwarts and smiled to myself. I may have never gotten that full on “dorm experience” in college, but attending these Andover Educator Conferences and spending the better part of week every other year with these brilliant, amazing, and generous musicians and educators, I feel a tremendous sense of gratitude and pride to be a part of this team.

 

 

 

The Most Secure Teacher is a Teacher Who Learns With Their Students.

As Day One of the 6th Biennial Andover Educators Conference comes to a close, the word that comes to mind is inspired.

First of all, let me just say the campus at Iowa State University is absolutely beautiful. In fact, just the drive up I-35 from the Des Moines Airport was pretty darn beautiful; lush green farm land, tons of trees, fluffy clouds … love it! And, arriving here on the Summer Solstice (not to mention the weekend of the Super Moon) was cool because it was still light out well after 9 pm. The last time I was here was several years ago while on tour with the New York City Opera, National Company. It was the dead of winter so it looked a little bit different then. This lovely lake area is literally right outside the Music Hall (Dept. of Music) and I could easily spend hours just sitting here, enjoying the peace & quiet and the swans. But I digress … back to my conference highlights for the day.

The morning began with five long time Andover Educators presenting Hour 1 of the course “What Every Musician Needs to Know About the Body.” I loved this concept of sharing the hour and tag teaming, so to speak. I also loved how each presenter had their own style for sharing the material. A favorite moment from their presentation today was this definition of music: “Music: an art of sound in time that expresses ideas and emotions in significant forms through the elements of rhythm, melody, harmony, and color.”

The next class for me was Hour 2, or the “Balance” hour of the course, which was also really terrific. I cannot stress enough what an opportunity it is to experience the presentation of this material by a variety of different AE’s. I’ve seen the course, 6 hours in all, presented by two different people; a flutist (twice) and a violinist. Both were outstanding. Having the opportunity to experience so many different colleagues and their style and presentation is invaluable. It will surely shape how I present the course in the future, in a new and different way.

In addition to Hours 2 – 5 of  “What Every Musician Needs to Know About the Body” being presented by 4 different people, simultaneously, plus the Hour 1 presentation by 5 people, we as Licensed Andover Educators are also give the choice to attend a series of Round Table Discussions. The one I attended was centered around shorter Body Mapping presentations. Listening to a table full of AE’s who have been at this for a lot longer than I have certainly gave me all kinds of insight and lots of great suggestions to incorporate into my teaching. Really inspiring. Sitting around with a group of respected colleagues and bouncing ideas around for how we do what we do is pretty awesome. A fellow AE said something which really resonated with me, and when she did, a few of us quickly started typing and scrambled for their pencils to write it down immediately. “The most secure teacher, is a teacher who learns with their students.”

I wasn’t able to catch Hours 3 and 4 of the course, but did get to Hour 5, “Legs” which was not only chocked full of great information, it was super fun, too. Something else that resonated with me today was the reminder that we must take all of our joints through their complete range of motion everyday. Not doing this is why many of us (yes, I include myself in this) experience pain, limitation and in some cases, injury. This is so very important and we need to remember this. I now have a few fun and really helpful activities to try when I present this course next month at the CSU, Summer Arts Comprehensive Flutist Seminar in Monterey Bay.

Tomorrow is really going to be action packed: Supervised Teaching/Lesson, Instrument “Petting Zoo”,  Alexander Technique lesson with Jim Brody, Muscle Function Workshop with Dr. T. Richard Nichols, and Performance Anxiety with Noa Kageyama.

Stay tuned …

Santo’s pearls of wisdom.

When opportunity knocks, be ready.

Seems only fitting to quote my Dad on Father’s Day. He really did know everything, that’s for sure. And the older I get, the more I realize that.

Last night was an example of a great last minute opportunity and being ready … well, sort of.

Let’s start with this past Tuesday, when Steve, Auggie and I set out on a camping adventure to Big Bear. A few days at 7,000 feet, breathing that fresh, clean mountain air, and relaxing by the campfire was exactly what we both needed after a very full spring orchestral season, and before our busy summers get underway. Although I brought my flute, I didn’t really intend on “practicing” per se, but wanted to do some body mapping study in preparation for our upcoming Andover Educators Conference this week. First thing Saturday morning, we made our way back home to Long Beach and back to reality. I had to teach a student and then go play a wedding down in South Orange County, and then since I’d be nearby, I thought I might stop off at the cemetery and spend a few minutes with my sister Marilyn before heading home and calling it a night.

I finished the wedding, was waiting at the valet for my car to be pulled around, and looked at my cell phone to see a missed call and voice mail from an 818 area code number. “OH S#*%!” I thought. As a freelancer in LA, whenever you see an 818 call that you don’t immediately recognize, it could very well be The Dateline, which is the service that makes the calls for a lot of the work here in town. Sure enough, it was them. They left me a voice mail at 6:54 pm about subbing with the Pacific Symphony for an 8 pm concert. It was now 7:11 pm, so I quickly called them back to see if they had found someone. They hadn’t, and in fact figured that they’d just have to do the concert without that third player since it was so late. I let them know I was about 20 minutes away, with my flute, and already wearing concert black, it was now 7:15 pm and I could make it to the Segerstrom Hall in time. When I asked what chair I’d be covering and her reply of “piccolo” hit my ears, I said to myself “OH S#*%! You don’t have your piccolo with you!” OK, think Rena, think! I knew I could get there in time, so I drove like a mad woman and called Steve. Fortunately, he was home and able to drive down to Costa Mesa to bring me my piccolo. He hit the road in Long Beach at 7:32 pm, meanwhile, I continued my commute from S. Orange County. I left a couple of voice mails for Ben Smolen, the Principal Flutist, to let him know I was on the way so if he still needed me, I’d be there very soon. If not and they found someone else, no prob. As I was nearing the parking structure, I saw a trombonist crossing the street, wearing a white dinner jacket.  Again with the profanity “S#*%, it’s POPS!!!” … which meant white tops. Not black, like I was wearing. Then, I remembered that in order to park in the structure I needed $10 cash because it was an event night. Awesome. Guess what else I didn’t have? $10 cash. OK, let’s recap, shall we: it’s about 7:40 pm, I’m in all black with my flute, I need a white top and a piccolo, neither of which I currently have, I also need money to park, which I also do not have, I haven’t eaten AND I have to pee. Great. Breathe Rena, just breathe. I knew for a fact that the parking attendants would not let me in unless I had cash because the previous week when I was working with Pacific, I didn’t have cash to park for a rehearsal and the mean parking attendant guy made me go over to the Westin next door to get money from their ATM. That process took about 5 minutes … 5 minutes I absolutely did not have to spare last night. So, I pulled in and calmly explained to the parking attendant that I did not have $10 cash, but I did have $7 cash and that I was just called 30 minutes ago to play tonight’s concert, and that I was in the wrong clothes and didn’t have the instrument I needed. He was totally  cool, gave me a parking ticket from the machine and said “It’s OK, no problem, really, I understand … GO!”

As I was parking, I saw a violinist in the orchestra and I stopped her to ask if there was any chance she might have a spare white top in her locker or car. She didn’t. So, I ran, literally, and went to the closest door to me which was not the Artists Entrance but another, locked, guarded door. Fortunately, the guard was super cool, opened up the door and must have sensed the urgency of things because when I tried to explain to him who I was, and what I was doing there, he laughed and said “Flute player, right? Go ahead. Have a good show.”

I arrived backstage dressed in concert black, with my super stylish and very comfortable T-strap sandals — perfect for a warm, outdoor wedding that requires a lot of walking, especially up and down many stairs, but considerably less perfect for formal concert attire. I was greeted by a a handful of friends and colleagues from the orchestra with “OH MY GOD, YOU MADE IT, YOU’VE SAVED THE DAY!”  Can’t tell you how nice it is to be met with that kind of greeting, thanks, guys!

One of the kind and incredibly accommodating members of the staff literally gave me the shirt off her back! Then, a violinist came walking up with an extra white T-shirt, and just like that, I had suitable Pops concert attire! At this point I realized I still had no idea what the program was. I mean, I knew it was a Pops concert but what Pops? Pops can be a piece of cake or the opposite of a piece of cake. For a split second I was flooded with images of a folder filled with John Williams piccolo parts. Yikes, what have I just signed up for?! I found out right away that it was “The Midtown Men.” Cool. No John Williams. Whew! Now, about that piccolo. Inside the Segerstrom Hall there is basically zero cell reception, at least for me anyway. So, I had no idea where Steve was in his piccolo delivery adventure, and couldn’t really take the time to run outside to the guards desk where I actually do get a signal, text or call him, and find out his ETA. Fortunately, the Operations Manager was on it. She notified the guards that a man would be delivering an instrument, then she went out to meet him and get my instrument, which then changed hands to the Personnel Manager who then delivered it to me on stage less than 5 minutes before downbeat. I didn’t have my flute/picc stand with me, which in hindsight would have been a great thing to ask Steve to also bring, but Pam Martchev was kind enough to give me her shelf and flute stand. So, now I was all set. Except, I still hadn’t looked through the book, not to mention I hadn’t played a note on my piccolo since finishing my last fortissimo high A on the Rite of Spring with them one week earlier. No warm up for me tonight. Nope, this was a ‘put your head down and run’ kind of night. Ben pointed out the places I should be aware of, I took a quick look at them, and it was show time. It’s also worth mentioning that my super star husband made it down to Costa Mesa in record time: 14 minutes! Yay, Steve!

Aside from a few heart pounding tricky spots, I made it through just fine. Later, a small but enthusiastic group of us celebrated the end of a great season with a decadent arrary of food and drink. Can’t think of a better way to send off the 2012-13 season, or a better group of people to do it with. Cheers, guys!

During one of my tacets in the concert, I sat back in my chair, reflecting back on the events that had just taken place over the past couple of hours and smiled, thinking about my Dad and the many lessons I learned from him about the life of an orchestral musician.

1. Be ready.

He used to say, “Opportunity will knock once, be ready.  If you’re lucky, it’ll knock more than once.”

2. Be a good colleague.

“Go in, sit down, do your job and keep your damn mouth shut!”  Again, more wisdom from the great sage himself. Seriously, after 46 years in the Detroit Symphony, several of which as Assistant Concertmaster, not to mention all of those Motown sessions, he knew.

I carry these two little golden nuggets of wisdom with me all the time. They’re simple and to the point.

The events of last night got me thinking about advice for my students. In addition to those two little gems from Santo, here is another bit of advice: Work to develop your sight reading skills and be equally at home on piccolo and alto flute. Ideally, you want to be just as comfortable on your doubling instruments as you are on your primary instrument. Sure you can practice the big orchestral solos day in and day out, and if you aspire to have an orchestral career, it is essential that you do so. But, when that first work call comes in, it’s a pretty good bet that you’ll either be A. sight reading a concert with little lead time, or at they very least, have far less rehearsal time than you are accustomed to, and/or B. hired to play 4th flute or 2nd piccolo on some brand new, crazy hard, avant garde orchestral work. So, be ready. For anything. Being ready also means that your daily practice routine absolutely must include long tones and other tone studies, and plenty of technical studies, i.e. Taffanel and Gaubert, Reichert, Moyse, etc. These are the building blocks that will truly develop your foundation so that when opportunity knocks, you have the stores of technique and control you need, are as ready as possible, and can do whatever is required of you.

So I say once again, thank you Dad, for all of the wonderful lessons you taught me.  Day after day I am reminded of them. You continue to inspire me in many ways. I love you, and I miss you everyday. I wish you were here so we could have our regular coffee and cake, anytime really, but ideally after concerts. Or, to have you come in while I’m practicing, with your violin, and give me a lesson (and lecture) on Beethoven style, or how to phrase the various tutti lines with the violins in Scheherazade, for example. But then, after nights like last night, I know you are here with me, and always will be.

Keeping it fresh

Keeping it fresh

This post by Noa Kageyama really resonates with me. From Taffanel & Gaubert and Moyse studies, to Andersen etudes, to Bach Sonatas, to the piles of orchestral repertoire – all of which, by the way, still occupy space on my music stand on a regular basis even after all these years – I am always in search of a new way to approach them. Two of my mentor teachers, Robert Patrick and Clem Barone used to insist upon keeping Andersen etudes as a part of my daily flute regimen, reworking them and keeping them fresh. My Dad used to tell me to approach them as if they were short, unaccompanied solo pieces and play them as musically as possible.

The other day, when I said to a friend that one of the things I needed to do that day was to practice, she asked “what are you working on?” I replied that I was simply working on my regular ‘day to day’; to get better.  I don’t need something to “work on” to practice. I mean, I have plenty to work on with out having something to work on. I practice because it’s what I do. Dad taught me well by example; he had the most amazing work ethic of anyone I have ever known. He was still practicing his violin, weak and feeling truly awful from the effects from chemo and radiation, just weeks before he died. Whether it was tearing apart cadenzas from the major concerti, fastidiously tuning double stops in Paganini Caprices, or the tried and true Bach Sonatas and Partitas … ALL from memory, he was always working on something. He was retired from the DSO and really didn’t have to practice everyday anymore … but he did.  Everyday.

I practice those T & G and Moyse studies, and Andersen etudes and dozens of orchestral excerpts regularly because I want to get better just for the sake of getting better. AND if along the way, from time to time, a new way to turn a phrase presents itself, cool! I agree 100% with Fleisher’s recommendation to revisit scores. Sitting down with a great recording and its score may be considered by some to be a little music nerd-esque, but it’s an awesome way to really hear a piece again and approach it with a fresh pair of eyes and ears, not to mention, a great way to gain some inspiration, too. Side note, I am so sooo excited to meet and work with Noa this June at the Andover Educators International Conference in Ames, Iowa.

p.s. Thank you, Dad, Clem and Mr. Patrick.

About Rena

Photo Todd Sharp 

My adventures with playing a musical instrument began when I was about 6 years old. My Dad Santo Urso, who was one of the former Assistant Concertmasters of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, gave me my first instrument; a violin. My Dad was my hero, I wanted to be just like him and as fun as it was to have a violin of my own, it was a little less fun having to practice it in order to sound better. Needless to say, the violin and I ended up not being such a great match. When I came home from school in the 6th grade announcing that I was going to play the flute, my Mom and Dad were quick to remind me that I already played the violin. They had to be kidding. It was no secret that I wasn’t exactly excelling at the violin. But the flute…. now this was my instrument, and more importantly, it was something my Dad didn’t play which meant I was in the clear when it came to lessons at home. I overheard them talking later that night, saying something to the effect of “this won’t last, it’ll be like the violin … or ballet, or tap dancing, or …” I listened from the other room thinking “Oh yeah? I’ll show them!” The rest, as they say, is history. Years later, I’m still fascinated by the shiny, gold tube and the how it can create some of the most beautiful melodies ever written.

Since 1995 it has been a great pleasure being part of the outstanding faculty at The Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University, Long Beach. In 2018, I joined the  Fine Arts Faculty at California State University, Stanislaus. I am also the Second Flutist of the Oakland Symphony and the Oregon Coast Music Festival Orchestra.

Tea break in the pit at Wicked

My life as a performing artist is fluid, diverse, and incredibly fulfilling – I love the variety of ways I make my living. I split my time between my home in Highland Park, IL and traveling for the work I do as a performer and teacher; performing all over California – mostly in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as Los Angeles, as well as teaching in the CSU. The Pacific, California, Marin, Santa Rosa, Monterey, Berkeley, and Modesto Symphonies are among some of the fine orchestras I frequently work with, in addition to recording work for video games, television, and film. I have also played with the San Francisco Opera, Bolshoi Ballet, American Ballet Theater, Mark Morris Dance Group, Seattle Symphony, Hawaii (formerly Honolulu) Symphony, and the Detroit Symphony, as well as for the National Tours for Broadway shows such as Phantom of the Opera and Wicked.

At the corner of Verdi and Rossini – the best place to be if you’re a piccolo player!

Summers are spent teaching around the US and abroad, and playing in festival orchestras: Oregon Coast Music Festival, as well as occasional work with Festival Mozaic and the Carmel Bach Festival. Other summer highlights include teaching, performing, and presenting courses for California State University Summer Arts, Andover Educators Biennial Conferences, the National Flute Association’s annual convention, and the International Piccolo Festival. 

I’m proud to be a product of the State University system in both Michigan and California, having earned my B.M. in Flute Performance from Wayne State University and my M.M. in Flute Performance from California State University, Long Beach. The list of remarkable musicians who I have had the great fortune to study with over the years and who continue to inspire me include: Robert Patrick (Former Assistant Principal Flutist, D.S.O.), Clement Barone (Former Solo Piccolo, D.S.O.), John Barcellona (Professor of Flute, CSULB), Anne Zentner (Former Principal Flutist, LA Philharmonic), Ervin Monroe (Former Principal Flutist, D.S.O.), Julie MacKenzie (Principal Flutist, SF Opera, Piccolo, SF Ballet), Liisa Ruoho (Professor of Flute, Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, Finland) and my father, Santo Urso (Former Assistant Concertmaster, D.S.O.).

In addition to my university teaching and orchestral playing, I wear many other hats, such as teaching students from across the globe via Skype, Zoom, and FaceTime – flute, piccolo and Body Mapping. As a Licensed Body Mapping Educator (ABME), I travel all over the world throughout the year presenting master classes, workshops, private lessons, and recitals. A short list of the conservatories and universities I’ve presented classes and workshops for include; Manhattan School of Music, SUNY Stony Brook, Rice University, University of Texas Austin, University of Wisconsin Madison, my alma mater Wayne State University, and many of CSU’s including San Diego State University, Fresno State, Chico State, and my own university, CSU, Long Beach, University of Southern California, Rutgers, and Juilliard.

I am also a Certified RYT-200 Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga Instructor and Certified Meditation Instructor. This practice pairs beautifully with the work I do as a Body Mapping Educator, giving my students a variety of useful movements to explore, and helping to quiet the inner critic so many of us performing artists deal with.

4 piccolos in Grado

Chamber music feeds my soul and I feel grateful for the collaborative process with my friends with whom I play in various chamber ensembles including my flute and piano trio, Alcyone Ensemble, among others.

Having played Muramatsu flutes my entire professional career, it’s an honor to also be a representative for both Dean Yang Flutes and Muramatsu America. I play a 9k heavy wall Muramatsu, a Yamaha alto, and a vintage Powell piccolo with custom head joints made by the brilliant Eldred Spell. For Baroque period works, I play a Peter Noy boxwood head joint on my silver Muramatsu flute.

Photo Petr Masek

Away from the piccolo and flute, I have no trouble filling my time with other things I love to do: practicing yoga, baking and cooking, and traveling around the globe with my husband John.

Click to view my RENA URSO CV and FALL 2020 BIO RENA URSO.

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