It turns out that my energy finally ran out last night in the middle of the Vigil. I’m rationalizing that it was my usual bedtime habits that did me in. We started this service at sundown which was around 8:45 PM last night. Ahem. I am usually prone at that time, if not asleep.
About half way through the service I realized I was feeling fatigued. The only thing this really affected was the postlude. About 90 per cent of the way through the Widor played cleanly, I realized that I had failed to remove my dress coat.
The ending of this piece requires the organist to reach with the left hand and play on an upper manual, thus crossing the hands. Reviewing the ending prior to service I realized that my coat restrained me in this process. I even mentioned to the choir members that I was reminded of the advise of my teacher, Ray Ferguson, to always rehearse at least once in the clothes you plan to perform in.
I don’t think my dress coat did me in, so much as I got distracted enough that I lost the concentration and needed energy to sustain the perpetuum mobile of Widor’s popular little piece. I had a bad few moments at the ending.
This morning found me searching through Finale files for a descant to this morning’s Baptism hymn, “We know that Christ.” Yesterday I could visualize this descant on the page but couldn’t find copies in the church’s descant drawer.
No luck in my old Finale files. As I waited for my coffee water to boil, I found the descant at another use of the tune in the Hymnal 1982.
I used to wonder what my colleagues were actually so busy with during Holy Week, since my practice was to prepare stuff weeks and weeks before hand.
This past week has found me scrambling with last minute rehearsals and requests of parish musicians (who mostly said no).
Now on Easter Sunday morning I find myself putting a descant into a Finale file and printing it up.
Good grief.
All in all it has been a good Holy Week. My Mom’s anemia was diagnosed and treated. We took her home from the hospital yesterday. I survived the juxtaposition of church and college duties. I even kick started the tax people for Mom’s taxes (unfortunately not quite done, but that’s for tomorrow).
The music went well at all services so far and I expect this morning to be the same. Despite the intransigence of most of the talented people in my congregation, I have managed to involve several people in the music this week.
After church, Eileen and I jump in her Mini and she will drive us to the annual Hatch Easter Egg Hunt. Whew.
**********************************************************************
A Free Web & Mobile App for Reading Comfortably — Readability
Found a new app yesterday. Not sure if it will really be something I use. But it seems to save articles in very readable formats and will save them to a Kindle. Unfortunately I couldn’t get it to save them to my Kindle software for my PC. But still it’s kind of cool.
*********************************************************************
Article by the insanely funny comic, Eddie Izzard, on his training with the great runner, Haile Gebrselassie.
*********************************************************************
“The Errors of Their Ways” by Rachel Giese | The Walrus | April 2012
I bookmarked a bunch of articles to read yesterday (playing with readability.com). This one about fatal hospital mistakes in Canada.
*********************************************************************
Two related links about psychology. I love the quote.
How Western Psychology Needs To Rethink Depression | CommonHealth
“You know, we had a lot of trouble with Western mental health workers who came here immediately after the genocide, and we had to ask some of them to leave…They came and their practice did not involve being outside in the sun like what you’re describing – which is, after all, where you begin to feel better. There was no music or drumming to get your blood flowing again when you’re depressed and you’re low and you need to have your blood flowing. There was no sense that everyone had taken the day off so that the entire community could come together to try to lift you up and bring you back to joy. There was no acknowledgement of the depression as something invasive and external that could actually be cast out of you again. Instead, they would take people one at a time into these dingy little rooms and have them sit around for an hour or so and talk about bad things that had happened to them. We had to get them to leave the country.”
Jerome Kagan: Psychology Is In Crisis | Radio Boston
Transcript (and audio) of interview of author linked in first article.
*********************************************************************
A plea for beauty: a manifesto for a new urbanism – Society and Culture – AEI
This article caught my eye. I’m always interested in public spaces and beauty.
*********************************************************************
Why The New York Times Will Disappear As We Know It By 2015
Power point slides pointing to causes and the exact moment of the Grey Lady’s demise.
**********************************************************************
Angry Birds, Farmville and Other Hyperaddictive ‘Stupid Games’ – NYTimes.com
There is actually a game on this page which is a gas. You can zap pictures and ads on site with a little rocket that flies around. More fun than reading.
New high score: How the NYT created its “stupid game” » Nieman Journalism Lab
And this is a story about the game.
***********************************************************************