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F truly loves piano. He picked one really easy and one really challenging piece for his spring recital this year. The challenging one, an arrangement of the Jim Brickman song Rocket to the Moon, marks the first time he hasn't had his recital piece 100% memorized, but it's also the longest/most complicated piece he's played.
When he chose this song we came to an agreement - he could perform it only if he put in extra practice so he would be prepared come recital day. Boy, did he ever practice. Most days it was about an hour and he only complained once (he bargained for practice a different time of day, not to give it up altogether). It paid off!
I want to give a very special shout out to my aunt Pam who decided F would be a good recipient for my grandma's piano. I hope you know how wonderful that made F feel and I believe that having a piano that is his very own is part of what makes music so special to him.
Showing posts with label performance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label performance. Show all posts
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Mother's Day Composition
This morning I was presented with a lovely card and an announcement that in my honor FFM was releasing his first ever composition on Mother's Day. He's been working on it for a few weeks and yesterday he finalized it. Presenting, "Shooting Star" by F. Moore.
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Spring Piano 2014
As requested by his grandmas, FFM's Spring Recital performance.
He was thrilled to lead off the performance, and this year's recital was the best one yet. At the beginning of the year his teacher decided to leave the school where she had been teaching and a few students followed her for private instruction. Because we've done both group and solo lessons with Kelly for 2.5 years now we knew almost every other student at the recital. It's way more fun to listen to kids you know than strangers! The kids all did very well, and it was obvious they are all enjoying their music. No two kids repeated songs (unlike days of old), and the evening went by in a flash.
I missed the introduction, but here's Amazing Grace and Star Wars Main Title.
(a side note, Ms. Kelly's piano is a couple hundred years old and has a unique sound. Because a lot of these kids listen carefully when they play several of them fumbled around for a note that sounded different on her concert piano than on her practice one or the one they have at home. Normally I don't hear any of these kids stumble during a performance, it's good practice to play on all kinds of pianos!)
He was thrilled to lead off the performance, and this year's recital was the best one yet. At the beginning of the year his teacher decided to leave the school where she had been teaching and a few students followed her for private instruction. Because we've done both group and solo lessons with Kelly for 2.5 years now we knew almost every other student at the recital. It's way more fun to listen to kids you know than strangers! The kids all did very well, and it was obvious they are all enjoying their music. No two kids repeated songs (unlike days of old), and the evening went by in a flash.
I missed the introduction, but here's Amazing Grace and Star Wars Main Title.
(a side note, Ms. Kelly's piano is a couple hundred years old and has a unique sound. Because a lot of these kids listen carefully when they play several of them fumbled around for a note that sounded different on her concert piano than on her practice one or the one they have at home. Normally I don't hear any of these kids stumble during a performance, it's good practice to play on all kinds of pianos!)
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Piano Recital 2013
So
Far
Behind
!
FFM's piano recital from December. He was the youngest pianist at the recital and the only one that played without his sheet music. He LOVES recitals and practiced night and day (thus the no music). This recital was at a church, and while the piano wasn't the beautiful grand piano that we usually have for recitals it was a nice trade for having plenty of room for family and friends to come along to watch.
I was slow and missed the beginning of the first song, "Land of the Silver Birch." Second song, "Cossack Ride", which he fumbled a little bit trying to play faster than his little fingers will go.
Later he and the three other children in his class played a four person version of "O Tannenbaum" which was quite a feat.
Far
Behind
!
FFM's piano recital from December. He was the youngest pianist at the recital and the only one that played without his sheet music. He LOVES recitals and practiced night and day (thus the no music). This recital was at a church, and while the piano wasn't the beautiful grand piano that we usually have for recitals it was a nice trade for having plenty of room for family and friends to come along to watch.
I was slow and missed the beginning of the first song, "Land of the Silver Birch." Second song, "Cossack Ride", which he fumbled a little bit trying to play faster than his little fingers will go.
Later he and the three other children in his class played a four person version of "O Tannenbaum" which was quite a feat.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Summer
It's a lot harder to post in the summer. The great outdoors beckons, FFM and I play a lot, read often, and generally poke around. We've been slowly doling out the bounty of birthday gifts he received so the fun lasts all summer. There's always a new Lego set under construction, outdoor toys to test out in the greenbelt, and new books to read. We go to the library a couple times a week, avoid the grocery store and pluck dinner from our garden instead, and we're both always up for a trip to the pool.
Last week F wrapped up a two week theater camp that gave him a little change of pace and me time to do a quick swipe over all the house to get the worse of the grime and to start (not finished yet!) a painting project. The first week of camp they learned about stage direction, projection, and tips like to face the audience even if they are talking to the person next to them. The kids worked in small groups of about 4 and rewrote a traditional fairytale in their own words. They learned how to create and use storyboards, and at the end of the week there was a small performance.
The second week they spent more time on the BIG stage and learned more theater speak. I got a tour and was shown the house, pit, backstage, lighting tech, etc. Week two the kids broke into different small groups and wrote their OWN play from scratch. They were great! Good plots, interesting characters, and great DIY costumes. Friday brought the Final Performance. F's group performed "Good VS Evil" or as he puts it, "The Queen, The Kitty, and The Witch."
Synopsis:
The Princess falls ill and her mother, The Queen, sends off Magical Kitty Miracle to find the Magic Flower that will cure her. Kitty is intercepted by the Evil Queen who casts a spell on him, renames him Darkenss AND kidnaps the Princess! The Queen sends the Magical Dove and once the Dove saves the Kitty the two have enough power to defeat the Evil Queen and turn her to stone. In the meantime the Queen has found the magical flower, saves the Princess, and they all live happily ever after.
Guess who was the Kitty?
Video quality is poor, my phone camera struggled. I promise it's not too painful to watch, but the sound is bad.
P.S. I had no idea the magic bird was a dove until she told me. I was fully under the impression she was a magical crow.
Last week F wrapped up a two week theater camp that gave him a little change of pace and me time to do a quick swipe over all the house to get the worse of the grime and to start (not finished yet!) a painting project. The first week of camp they learned about stage direction, projection, and tips like to face the audience even if they are talking to the person next to them. The kids worked in small groups of about 4 and rewrote a traditional fairytale in their own words. They learned how to create and use storyboards, and at the end of the week there was a small performance.
The second week they spent more time on the BIG stage and learned more theater speak. I got a tour and was shown the house, pit, backstage, lighting tech, etc. Week two the kids broke into different small groups and wrote their OWN play from scratch. They were great! Good plots, interesting characters, and great DIY costumes. Friday brought the Final Performance. F's group performed "Good VS Evil" or as he puts it, "The Queen, The Kitty, and The Witch."
Synopsis:
The Princess falls ill and her mother, The Queen, sends off Magical Kitty Miracle to find the Magic Flower that will cure her. Kitty is intercepted by the Evil Queen who casts a spell on him, renames him Darkenss AND kidnaps the Princess! The Queen sends the Magical Dove and once the Dove saves the Kitty the two have enough power to defeat the Evil Queen and turn her to stone. In the meantime the Queen has found the magical flower, saves the Princess, and they all live happily ever after.
Guess who was the Kitty?
Video quality is poor, my phone camera struggled. I promise it's not too painful to watch, but the sound is bad.
P.S. I had no idea the magic bird was a dove until she told me. I was fully under the impression she was a magical crow.
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Rookie Swimmer
Saturday was F's first ever swim meet. He's loved swimming for years, no exaggeration. Back when he was a mere one year old the Bejing Games were on and I had the TV on in the background most of the day when we were home. He wasn't really interested except when the swimmers competed.
Prenatally he was a wiggly bump, so much that I had motion sickness. Anytime I got in the pool to swim, or later just float, he'd settle down and take a nap. His first trip to a pool, at four months, he threw his head into the water and came up giggling. He had excellent swim lessons in Australia and mediocre ones here until we met his current teacher, Ms. Louise. He's been anxious to get involved in a swim team for about a year and a half now, Missy Franklin is his idol, and he just about exploded his first week of practice he was so excited.
Saturday he was excited, but very focused. He knew all of his event numbers, exactly when and where to go for his heats, and managed to keep track of his towel, cap, and goggles the entire meet.
He swam in two relays (8 and Under) and three individual events (6 and Under). His first relay got disqualified, the swimmer before him quit halfway and pulled himself along the lane ropes for several meters. His second event he forgot to kick. His third event, 25 backstroke, he pulled it all together and not only won his heat but got 2nd overall! His last individual event, 25 breaststroke, he also took 2nd.
F and Emma both had a great day. We did, too. The weather was gorgeous, our volunteer jobs were fun and easy, and it was a lovely way to spend a Saturday morning. Our team runs a fast meet and we were done before I expected, even though F swam in the last set of free relays. I had a very nostalgic day, remembering the countless meets I swam in and the hours spent playing cards or reading a book waiting for my events. He's already asked me if he can swim year round, but I think we'll stick to summers for a few years.
Prenatally he was a wiggly bump, so much that I had motion sickness. Anytime I got in the pool to swim, or later just float, he'd settle down and take a nap. His first trip to a pool, at four months, he threw his head into the water and came up giggling. He had excellent swim lessons in Australia and mediocre ones here until we met his current teacher, Ms. Louise. He's been anxious to get involved in a swim team for about a year and a half now, Missy Franklin is his idol, and he just about exploded his first week of practice he was so excited.
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| F and Emma after the team cheer to start the meet |
He swam in two relays (8 and Under) and three individual events (6 and Under). His first relay got disqualified, the swimmer before him quit halfway and pulled himself along the lane ropes for several meters. His second event he forgot to kick. His third event, 25 backstroke, he pulled it all together and not only won his heat but got 2nd overall! His last individual event, 25 breaststroke, he also took 2nd.
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| swimmers take your mark.... F's in lane 5, the one closest to me in this shot |
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| leading his heat, in lane 5 closest to me |
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| super happy swimmer! |
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Still Alive and Kicking
Things are slowly getting back to normal here. I'm still uber-tired and am in bed before 9pm every night, but I'm weaning myself off of the daily nap(s). Last week I started driving again, like everything else it makes me tired. While FFM enjoyed riding to and from school with his buddies he's happy to have Mom back in the saddle again. I still can't bend down to reach things on the floor and I will have to sit lounged back in my chair like a guy for another four weeks, but I can walk reasonably well, if not fast. The nerves on the outside of my thigh are repairing themselves from the trauma of surgery so my leg feels like it raw and on fire most of the time, but it doesn't hurt to put weight on it. It's not stable enough to hop around on, but I can take short walks in the neighborhood without too much trouble.
Other than putting my leg up and watching entire seasons of TV shows from the DVR and reading endless books I haven't done much of anything the past couple of weeks. FFM is in class plays next week and he started getting nervous when he realized I hadn't started his Big Billy Goat Gruff costume. He's had enough on his mind lately so I started on it right away.
Since my excursions are limited, I looked around the house to see what we already had. I used the same concept from his lion costume that we did a couple years ago. Luckily I am very well stocked in yarn and we had a spare headband from St. Patrick's Day that I could cannibalize.
I knit a tube and attached two ears to it. Then I cut about a zillion 7" strips of various colors/textures of yarn and used a crochet hook to pull them through the knitting on the headband. I used about half a zillion twisted brown pipe cleaners to make the horns and a knitted triangle "pocket" for the chinny chin chin. If you're on Ravelry, find the pattern here: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/lion-mane-with-ears
Other than putting my leg up and watching entire seasons of TV shows from the DVR and reading endless books I haven't done much of anything the past couple of weeks. FFM is in class plays next week and he started getting nervous when he realized I hadn't started his Big Billy Goat Gruff costume. He's had enough on his mind lately so I started on it right away.
Since my excursions are limited, I looked around the house to see what we already had. I used the same concept from his lion costume that we did a couple years ago. Luckily I am very well stocked in yarn and we had a spare headband from St. Patrick's Day that I could cannibalize.
FFM is in two plays (I think most of the kids are) and his second role is narrator for The Gingerbread Man. Luckily this role requires no costume, but FFM dug out a sparkly gold top hat from his dress up bin to liven things up.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
February Fun
I'm always glad February is only 28 days long. It's not usually a banner month for me so having fewer days is fine and dandy. This year I've barely noticed it's February with all the good times we've had lately.
A few weeks ago FFM skied his first legitimate black run. For those locals, he skied Cataract on the east side of the Rose Bowl. It's a tricky run, but he was game. After a few nerves he got the hang of the steep stuff, which wasn't very bumpy due to a nice big dump of snow. He fell a few times and learned it's easier to get up on a steep slope than down on the flats. I can't wait to get my hip fixed, I'm going to need to be in top form to keep up in no time at all!
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| "Yeah, take my picture Dad. I rocked that run." |
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| Ready for the show to start! |
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| Little boy heaven |
My end of February-March fun arrived in the mail this week. The Moores have signed up for a plot in our Community Garden this year and we're going to grow all kinds of yummy stuff. Purple carrots, yellow tomatoes, lime green cucumbers. I hope they all work! The plot ended up being about twice as large as I remembered, so we've got quite the assortment. We'll have some prep and planting to get done starting in a few weeks. Travis built a lovely, lovely seed starting station and soon our basement will bathe in the glow of grow lights.
In the meantime the mountains keep getting more snow and while my hip aches the boys are itching to get some time on the slopes. I'll take it easy the rest of the season and end a little early with hip surgery scheduled for March 29. I'm hoping it's as successful as my other surgeries and that I'll improve my mobility and get back into activities like biking and yoga.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Laurie Berkner LIVE!
Music is almost as popular as reading here at our house. F has an inborn talent for singing and playing that neither Travis or I have. We both did music in various forms but had to work at it. F sings and plays his piano with such simple effort that it's a joy to get to listen to. We have the rear entertainment system in our car set up for all kid music or audiobooks, and it's a toss up as to which one is F's favorite.
One of the artists that fills F's world of music is Laurie Berkner. If you've got a child who is less than 7 or so I'm sure you've experienced LB (and maybe even some of you with older kids who have outgrown her). She's not just one of the artists, she's his hands down all time favorite. I'm relishing this time as he listens to music I don't mind, I know that right around the corner are pop music and goodness knows what else.
Saturday Laurie Berkner played at the Boulder Theater. F and I had front row VIP tickets (which were only nominally more expense than general admission, go figure) and part of the package was meeting LB live and in person. We were the last ones of the before-show meet and greet and Finn blushed and wiggled as he waited his turn. He was all prepped with a couple questions for Laurie, and she had a few of her own for him. FFM was in HEAVEN. He got hugs, he got autographs, and when Laurie asked him his favorite song she offered to sing it with him.
Live with Laurie Berkner, FFM singing "Drive My Car"!
We could have gone home right then and there and FFM would have been over the moon. He now counts Laurie as one of his friends and asked when we could see her again. LB was magnificent with all the kids, giving each one her full attention and infinite patience. She made sure everyone got a great photo, even the kids who got a bit nervous.
One of the artists that fills F's world of music is Laurie Berkner. If you've got a child who is less than 7 or so I'm sure you've experienced LB (and maybe even some of you with older kids who have outgrown her). She's not just one of the artists, she's his hands down all time favorite. I'm relishing this time as he listens to music I don't mind, I know that right around the corner are pop music and goodness knows what else.
Saturday Laurie Berkner played at the Boulder Theater. F and I had front row VIP tickets (which were only nominally more expense than general admission, go figure) and part of the package was meeting LB live and in person. We were the last ones of the before-show meet and greet and Finn blushed and wiggled as he waited his turn. He was all prepped with a couple questions for Laurie, and she had a few of her own for him. FFM was in HEAVEN. He got hugs, he got autographs, and when Laurie asked him his favorite song she offered to sing it with him.
Live with Laurie Berkner, FFM singing "Drive My Car"!
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| Getting ready to go in to the famous Boulder Theater |
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| Sharing a moment with LB |
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| Getting some hugs |
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| Leaning right up against the stage for the whole show |
"Pig on My Head" is a song about exactly that, a pig on her head. I was impressed that she managed to balance a giant stuffed pig on her head before she got started singing. Then during the song you do things like touch your nose, touch your toes, and then touch your nose to your toes. The woman must do some killer yoga because she stood there on stage, with a stuffed pig balanced on her head, in a skirt and pretty tall sparkly high heels and brought the toes of one foot up to her nose. Without so much as a wiggle to regain balance. Awesome.
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| I should have gotten a photo of the toes on the nose, but all I managed was the pig on her head. |
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| Having a super great day |
Friday, January 4, 2013
Winter Piano Recital
FFM's class finished their assigned music book early this semester. The parents voted to wrap up the year with some Christmas music. This recital was a bit different, instead of it being only students of our teacher it was several different teachers. Including violin. That part was painful. The rest, pretty good.
We bring you a joyful performance - Ode to Joy (in two different keys) and Joy to the World.
We bring you a joyful performance - Ode to Joy (in two different keys) and Joy to the World.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Keeping up with the Season
I finished my last knitted gift this evening. I had a brainstorm that I'd handmake all of the teacher gifts this year. Then I added one or two more...the last one finished will be gifted tomorrow at a family get together. Nothing like cutting it close, I think it must be the knitter way this time of year. I had a good time knitting this gifting season, I learned a new technique and scored some divine wool on sale. There are two more pieces that didn't make the picture because they're already wrapped up.
I haven't been enthusiastic about baking this month. I think I'm still full from Thanksgiving. I plunged into the baking scene anyway to make sure we had treats for all our neighbors. I remembered a new cookbook I got this year that specializes in high altitude baking. A trickle of inspiration struck when I found a new sugar cookie recipe. Then I got a request for gingerbread cookies, so I started baking. I still want to try these eggnog cookies and F learned about Spritz and subsequently filed another cookie request. After those I'm done, no more cookies!
It's not all work around here. We are making good use of our symphony membership and attended the annual Colorado Christmas performance. Our seats are on an aisle very close to the stage and F was utterly transfixed as the Colorado Children's Chorale entered the theater right next to him. Like last year he really wanted to be up there singing with the kids. Maybe when he's seven (the required minimum age) he'll get past the steps and actually onto the stage under the bright lights.
I haven't been enthusiastic about baking this month. I think I'm still full from Thanksgiving. I plunged into the baking scene anyway to make sure we had treats for all our neighbors. I remembered a new cookbook I got this year that specializes in high altitude baking. A trickle of inspiration struck when I found a new sugar cookie recipe. Then I got a request for gingerbread cookies, so I started baking. I still want to try these eggnog cookies and F learned about Spritz and subsequently filed another cookie request. After those I'm done, no more cookies!
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| 1st go at new sugar cookie recipe. Decor by F. |
Monday, November 5, 2012
The Grandest Puppet Show
We had some spare time a couple nights ago and FFM put on a puppet show for us. It was the "GrandMax Puppet Show" in the Grandest Puppet Show Theater. It started out great and then got really, really, really repetitive. Travis requested some new dialogue and perhaps a plot twist.
I suggested that perhaps F could draw from a story he knows for some inspiration. He thought for a while and then said, "I know, someone could get in trouble!" Perhaps we need to change up our book selection.
After some more repeating...Travis suggested perhaps the animals could DO something. Abruptly, instead of the kangaroos just making friends, the Mama Kangaroo took action and politely told the baby kangaroo, "You can't go outside right now I didn't put sunscreen on you!"
You just never know what twists and turns will take place in fine theater.
I suggested that perhaps F could draw from a story he knows for some inspiration. He thought for a while and then said, "I know, someone could get in trouble!" Perhaps we need to change up our book selection.
After some more repeating...Travis suggested perhaps the animals could DO something. Abruptly, instead of the kangaroos just making friends, the Mama Kangaroo took action and politely told the baby kangaroo, "You can't go outside right now I didn't put sunscreen on you!"
You just never know what twists and turns will take place in fine theater.
Friday, October 5, 2012
DJ F
I know he's not spinning so isn't really DJ-ing, but it's the classic headphone to the ear move that makes me think of DJs. I did not teach him to do this, he generated this move all on his own so he could listen to piano and other stuff all at the same time. He's gotten to a point with piano that he plays ALL the time so I plugged in the headphones a few days ago because I had to arrange a bunch of appointments on the phone one afternoon and I wanted to do it without Ode to Joy blasting in the background. I turned around today and there he is, DJ style, rocking out to a tune of his own making.
