Camp Is Over

Now that the recital is over and we actually did quite well, I am realizing that Deborah was probably right when she said that we probably wouldn’t accomplish nearly as much in a week if we didn’t have the goal of giving a recital.

It was actually a very intimate audience of about 25 people – mostly people who knew us well. They came with cameras and flowers and they were guaranteed to applaud no matter what.

There were more errors in the printed program than were made during the little concert. I had someone else’s last name. They left our Bach piece off the program altogether, although we got to play it. Someone else was listed as playing the wrong instrument. And during the concert there was a dump truck doing some sort of maintenance outside. Not conducive to the best listening, but good enough.

As I watched Susan play the piano part on the more difficult Bolling movement, I realized that her secret was leaving out notes. Maybe that’s what they teach you in music school. I was still under the impression that you were supposed to play them all. I really got into our Irlandaise movement. You can see a couple of pictures of our quartet above. (You can also see what looks like the remains of a flea market on the stage of McKnight Hall.)

Deborah and I scored a real coup on the Bach sonata. We had never once before managed to get through the piece and stay together for the whole thing. Bill had worked extensively with us on how to recover if we got off without having to stop altogether. But this time a miracle happened and we actually ended together.

There were some wrong notes here and there on both pieces, but nothing that immediately comes to mind. They were fine, everyone clapped, we took our bows, and that was it for another year.

We always leave with big plans for next year. Someone will identify a piece early in the year. Roz will come down from Philly to play her flute with us. We’ll find a violinist. Who knows?

The week taught me a lot of things about myself. It taught me to be more confident in my ability to do something without looking for a way to bail out of part of it like I did. It reaffirmed that I can maintain my nerve under pressure. But most of all, it emphasized the dimension that playing with others adds to the experience of making music.

I’ll miss the sweltering heat of cabin #13 as I sit down to play again in the AC at home. Until next year…