I recently received a call to play with the San Juan Symphony- a professional orchestra in the Four Corners region and I was glad to oblige. The orchestra seems to exist thanks to what must be a massive endowment (but who knows). The pay is good enough, and it looks like over half the orchestra came in from points far beyond the four corners (Flagstaff, Boulder, Albuquerque, Salt Lake City, etc). They put me up in a hotel in Durango for the weekend and since I'm a fan of this town, including Steamworks Brewing Company, it's been nice on a few levels:
1. Playing with orchestras was my original goal in life. When I won my first "real" audition with the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and spent a few seasons playing with them, I realized, even if I were to win a major symphony gig, I'm not sure it would be that fulfilling... which leads me to #2.
2. In the second movement of Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances, I sit there for about 10 minutes before standing up, picking up my crash cymbals, feel my heart beat race to levels one feels with 200 meters to go in a bike race, hope I am in the right place, hope these two pieces of metal in my hands come together artistically in the way I've studied for years, and boom (or crash!) it's over and I sit back down. I can play a two hour gig with a rock band or a jazz group, jam hundreds, if not thousands of notes, and never feel an ounce of pressure.
3. There's a lot to be said about contributing to the performance of music with 100 others playing the works of great composers. You really can appreciate the importance of every sound and movement you make.
4. During my five years in California, I honestly must have played well over a thousand concerts. Since January, I believe I've played... including recording sessions.... maybe 10-15? I became desensitized from the process of performing and lost the connection to the composers and audiences from too many performances and I wasn't able to focus on growing as an artist. Of course I have a big gig coming up this Thursday, which leads me to #5.
5. My faculty recital preparations have worn me down. Chops are tired, my mind is cluttered, and I just want to play the music and move on. At first, I was hesitant to take this gig in Durango, for fear the time away from my marimba would hurt, but as I sit here in my hotel room, enjoying the fresh mountain air blowing in through the window and not feeling a care in the world, I know I made the right choice.
6. Back to #2... I am in the right place. Playing occasional orchestra gigs satisfies those earlier desires to do it for a living while allowing me to take on newer and more interesting challenges as a musician and educator. Playing with an orchestra recharges the creative energies as a "legit" musician which is very important personally and professionally.
I am off to find lunch, take a walk by the river and watch the kayakers and rafters work their way by. Next time I'm here, I'm bringing my bike. Maybe I'll even see this guy.
(I'm still a big cycling fan and Durango is a Mecca... Bob Roll, one of my favorite old school racers is around here somewhere...)
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