Month Long Trip

I'm sitting in my favorite coffee shop, thinking about all the things I should/need to accomplish yet before I go to Russia tomorrow.  

Let me start with the first clause of that sentence: My favorite coffee shop in this area is how I should qualify it.  I have another favorite coffee shop in southern California.  And what does this tell me?  It tells me that no matter where I go, I will always find a community I enjoy being a part of.  This is important, because I believe it is partly my calling to help create and guide community.  I have always felt this.  I want people to feel welcome and loved.  It just so happens that my career field (choirs!) is one that creates community.  And I have been a part of ensembles that create amazing community... and create bad community.  My goal is always to create a support, positive community of people coming together and doing "good" things- spreading joy and love through music.  And in a tiny way, finding a coffee shop I frequent is a way for me to develop community for myself.  This happens in many other places too, but there is something very special about places where people gather.  I will find a coffee shop in Omaha.  And I will create and promote a support community among my choirs.

Next thought in the opening sentence: All the things I need to or should accomplish!  Sometimes, I joke around with a friend of mine about "we can do all the things!"  We laugh about this, but in a way, this is how we really feel.  We believe we can accomplish all the things- but it also puts a large amount of pressure on us.  There are little things I have to do today to finishing preparing for my trip, but none of them will ruin my trip if I don't get them done.  And it's nice to be at that point.

And the last bit of the opening sentence: I go to Russia tomorrow.  It is going to be an excellent trip.  I plan on seeing ensembles.  Aside from my research, I am very excited about listening to music in Russia.  What an amazing opportunity!  And this goes to a larger point: music is music (perhaps that is like saying "love is love").  Music is likely to be a unifying force all over the world.  And I am ready for good music!

Latin!

Gloria in excelsis Deo.

How many ways are there to pronounce this?  

I actually don't know the answer to that question.  Ecclesiastical Latin, German Latin, French Latin, other Latins, all the dialects of the stylized Latins... 

I think it's possible to make a decision and be clearly wrong.  But I also think there are multiple options that could be just fine.  I don't want to say the "right" choice, because what does that mean?  Let me give an example.

My students, as a part of their choir auditions, will prepare the first two (short) sections of the "Gloria" from Haydn's Harmoniemesse.  If I were to ask my students to prepare this using French Latin, that likely could be considered a wrong choice.  Or at best, a bad choice.  Now, if I were to ask them to prepare the piece using German Latin, there is no longer a clear line that this is wrong (or bad).  There have been many people who choose to have their choirs sing German Latin on this piece.  However, due to the information I have at my disposal, I'd likely choose Ecclesiastical Latin.  I wouldn't call this the "right" choice, but I think it is a "good" one.  

And why all careful language about "right" and "good" and "correct" and "bad" and "wrong"?  (Sorry, I know that the question mark is supposed to be inside the parenthesis, but it just looks wrong).  Because even IF you could say the HIP (Historically Informed Practice) is the "correct" way to do something, the issue is that we don't truly know how any choir pronounced it during the time period.  So, let's pretend we came across an authentic Haydn-document that said, "Haydn's Harmoniemesse rehearsal 1: Tell Choir we are singing in German Latin." Even this document would not be clear, because it may still include stylistic nuances we do not know.  

The larger point, which can be applied to many choices, is this: what is "fashionable" changes.  It was, at one point, really cool to sing most things by German composers in German Latin.  We know now that likely didn't happen, but we can't be sure there weren't some German-language influences.  I would never scoff at someone who made a choice to sing a Mozart work in German Latin.  I may or may not make that choice myself, but it doesn't require any sort of pretentious response from me.  The same idea can be applied to tempo, phrasing, or a variety of other musical ideas.  Thoughtful choices are all that are required for me to be engaged with the music.

Nervous or not to Nervous

Two weeks tomorrow.  That's when I leave for Moscow.  To be exact, two weeks from tomorrow morning around 7:30.  That's when I leave for Moscow.

I have had many people ask me if I'm nervous.  That's a difficult question to answer.  Nervous of going to a country where English is not primarily spoken?  No, not really.  Many people speak English.  On top of that, I plan to have my own Russian speaking skills vastly improved.  I speak a little now.  I hope to speak a lot better in six weeks.  Am I nervous about being in Russia?  No.  I have not met any Russians I dislike.  I doubt anybody is going to ask me for my political or social opinions.  I am there to study the manuscripts of a composer, and I am thrilled to learn about the culture and history.  And I hope to see some musical events- opera, ballet, symphony.

I could share many other things about which I am not nervous.  But instead I'm going to share two things that have given me a slight pause (because to call it "nervousness" is giving it too much weight): 1) Less smiling.  I have been told by a couple of people that smiling a lot around strangers is not really the norm.  Smiling with friends is fine- but I won't have many friends there.  So maybe I'll try to give myself time away from people so I can smile.  By myself... no, that's lame.  Who am I kidding?  I'm too extroverted to be AWAY from people.  At least I am aware that I should not smile at people in the subway.  I can make that sacrifice.  2) I'm nervous about getting the research done that I need.  I have time to do it, but I hope that the people I meet are helpful.  If they aren't, this will make for a long month.  However, I do think that it is wasted energy to worry about that.  I have the appropriate documentation stating the museums will help.  And I know friendly people in Moscow who are happy to help me regarding transportation.

I am at a bit of an impasse with my dissertation writing.  I can continue to write, and I will do some writing tomorrow.  But I now need Russian scholarship translated into English.  I could attempt to do it myself- at which point my dissertation would take me 11 years to complete.  Or I could spend the money on translators and get it done.  I started reaching out for help with translating about a month ago.  It was not a priority for me then, because I thought it would be easier to find translators than it has been.  To be fair, finding a translator is easy.  Finding a translator that doesn't cost me an arm and a leg?  I don't think that's possible.

I think my next blog post will be about music.  It's way more interesting than blogging about logistics.  But I can't help myself...

Less than Three Weeks to the Big Trip

The next few weeks are going to be very busy.  Less than three weeks until I leave for Russia with my father-in-law.  I'm very excited about this trip for many reasons: a trip to a new country, exploration of a new culture, knowledge gained from research, bonding time with my father-in-law, practicing my language skills... the list goes on and on!

What happens before I leave for Russia?  The apartment will get packed up into boxes.  I will finish the first draft of my dissertation proposal and start my first chapter.  I will begin the process of getting scholarship translated (and hopefully some of it will be read).  A couple more trips within driving distance.  Picking up cleaning supplies for the apartment.  Packing for Russia.  Solidify the repertoire lists for this upcoming fall.

I am already looking forward to some of the music I have chosen.  I'll bring some of it with me to Russia so I can prepare it.  I will look forward to discussing these repertoire lists once I make decisions.

I know one large work, however, that my choirs will be singing in a joint concert with the local symphony and other choirs: Dvorak's Stabat Mater.  I am quite excited.

Dissertation-gate: Not sure what day

Maybe day 14?

I started my outline of my proposal today.  Kind of.  I typed my name in a word document, put a couple headings down (that were given to me by the proposal syllabus), and copied and pasted the bulk of the information I plan on using from old essays about my project to this new document.  I will likely spend just a little more time working on this tonight.

It's difficult.  I feel as if I have written my proposal (or some version of it) twice now.  This would be my third time.  I have had to gather and shape this information into a proposal for two different grants.  The trick is not making sure I have the correct information down, but rather that the information is typed up in the correct order according to what the thesis syllabus requires.

Also: it strikes me as odd that we switch prepositions based on verb usage.  "I typed my name in a word document" versus "I wrote my name on paper."  "I typed up the information" versus "I wrote down the information."  Prepositions are fascinating.

Dissertation-gate, Day 12

It's day 12 of dissertation researching/writing/thinking.  I know this because I counted the days on my calendar and excluded the days I took off.  I spent 3.5 hours this morning organizing all the Russian scholarship I have into a handful of categories: Biography, Scholarship with significant information on choral works, scholarship with limited information on choral works, Scholarship that I am unsure what it is talking about, Scholarship I probably don't need translated, and Scholarship I don't have yet.  From this last category, there are perhaps only two pieces of scholarship I don't have yet: A journal article about the tonal characteristics of Taneyev's figues and a journal article about his chorus cycles.  I need to re-evaluate the list and eventually I'll send it off to another scholar on Taneyev for her help with translating.  In addition, she gave me a heads up about a Taneyev event happening next year in her area of the world.  More to come when I know more.

Speaking of more to come when I know more, I was offered a job.  I took that job.  I am very, very excited about said job, which I'm not publicly sharing until it's officially announced.  I do have to write a bio, though.  Next week we are heading to the town that the job is in and looking at apartments.  I'm busy planning for that job!

Here are some ideas I brainstormed earlier today (when I should have been working on my dissertation, which is why I don't have 4 hours of work in yet): My large, non-auditioned chorus will sing something with organ, likely Festival Te Deum by Britten.  I want to program some Taneyev and Martinu with my Chamber group.  I'd like to try my hand at a Bach cantata with my chamber group, too.  I'm interested in doing a double chorus piece (maybe Rheinberger or Pachelbel) with my large, auditioned group.  Also, I'm very interested in doing some Michael Haydn.  Perhaps Franz Haydn Mass of St. John with the large-auditioned group.  Oh, and maybe the Cherubini Requiem with my large, non-auditioned choir!  I could do this all day... really I could.

But, I have at least 30 minutes of dissertation thinking to do.  Likely longer.  My goals for today, then: Write my bio and send to my new job (with a picture) so they can update the faculty page.  Read an article and take notes on Taneyev.  Read a chapter in a book about Russian choral music (take notes).  Look at the handful of pieces that we do have access to and make some notes of characteristics, idioms, motives that Taneyev uses.  And maybe try to find someone to translate some of this scholarship.

I better get to work...