I'm here I'm here I'm here!!! Thank you for the birthday wishes, I got a few very sweet emails from old friends, it was grand. I know I'm never here anymore, but I promise that I'm never anywhere except in a practice room!
Update de ma vie: I am currently a Junior Vocal Performance major at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. I have recently switched to Performance from a Music Education degree, because I realized that while I love choir and school, I never want to be in charge of both simultaneously.
Ironically, I am the president of our American Choral Directors Association student chapter, which I love, and I am currently swamped planning our annual Choralfest, a weekend festival where almost 200 high school students come to JMU and sing alongside the JMU Chorale members under the director of a clinician. This year we're bringing Dr. Jerry Blackstone from the University of Michigan. He's amazing, it's going to be a very exciting and educational weekend.
I've also just been cast in our production of Cosi fan Tutte, where I'm primarily ensemble and understudy to Dorabella (there is an amazing senior class this year who, naturally, beat out everyone else).
I just finished up the 11th annual Staunton Music Festival in Staunton, Virginia, where my choir from JMU, the Madison Singers, act as choir-in-residence. We performed a wandering madrigals concert, a Schoenberg concert, Vivaldi's Gloria (in which I had the mezzo solos), and we acted as opera chorus in Handel's Acis and Galatea under the direction of Jennifer Lane. The music festival is an outstanding opportunity for young artists to learn and grow as musicians, and they bring musicians from across the world to participate (the Baroque orchestra is SERIOUSLY legitimate, you should check out the website and read their biographies- world class!!!). The Festival is the brainchild of harpsichordist and conductor Carsten Schmidt.
This summer I worked every day at the newest location of the Clyde's Restaurant Group (pretty popular, classy restaurant group in DC, I'm sure many of you have heard of it!) where I was a server. I made very good money, but the workload was intense. I also had to take 3 weeks off to have knee surgery- last October I tore the meniscus, and because I waited so long to treat it, they ended up removing every last BIT of my cartilage, and I'm stuck taking pills for the rest of my life! Ah, well.
Ummm...personal life, I've been dating the most incredible person for almost 14 months, his name is Tim, and I love him to death. He's a geological tunnel engineer, currently working on the metro extension from DC to Tyson's Corner in Northern Virginia. We are nerds together and couldn't be happier!
I do miss you all...I love reading posts from time to time and catching up, but it's rare that I have spare time to sit still, let alone get on the computer and stay for an hour or so. It is so sweet that you all still wish me a happy birthday every year- I'm lucky to have such long lasting friendships! EVEN YOU JRAND!!!!!!!!
How is everyone?
