No help for the Music Majors

Sometimes, especially during the intensive undergrad years, we frequently forget that we picked this major because we enjoy music. I mean, that's the best part about college, right? That we get to study the thing we want to study? But between theory and music history and counterpoint and 47 million hours of rehearsals each week, it can just get plain exhausting. We get lost in the trees instead of frolicking in the forest, just playing notes instead of feeling the music. Which is not necessarily a skill that helps when playing wind ensemble music, as Doc pointed out on day.

"It's much more fun than you're making it. You're hiding from it guys." (I wish Blogspot would let us upload .gifs here. If there is a way to do it, please someone let me know. Otherwise, I'll just be over on Tumblr and leave this here for you: Hamster)

Later on in the piece, there was a very fast double tongue/complicated rhythm thing for the poor trumpets where they had the poly-rhythm on top of the rest of the band's simple rhythm and they just could not keep it together. At the time (almost 2 years ago - such shame!), we had five trumpets, two of whom were music majors. At such a small school, non-music majors fill over half the slots in all of our ensembles. We are very grateful for them, but sometimes it shows that they're not in private lessons or practicing 18 hours a day - although, let's get real, nobody does that but that weird Asian violinist or the the piano prodigy anyway - and this was one of those times.

So Doc tried to help them out and offered them a cheat. After running it that way, he proclaimed, "I like that fix on that, if you need it, use it. Those of you who are music majors have to play what's on the page." And then he gave this grin that was like, so pleased with himself for making life harder on those poor overworked students.

Afterwards, we ran the section again, and it was even better than before. Doc was shocked and spoke to the trumpets again. "That was acceptable. But it hasn't been up to this point. Why? You just wanted attention, huh? I understand." 

Because I mean, really, what trumpeter doesn't?

*Disclaimer: Attitudes and statements on this blog are not necessarily representative of the blog creator and are merely representations of other's opinions. I am not a trumpet player. Nor do I want to be one. 

Just so we're all clear.

Hobey-Ho!