******Posts now in reverse chronological order!!!******
“Super je!”
Nan wondered why the blog couldn’t just be ordered newest post to oldest… Answer: Um wow…It can… It totally can… Thanks!
Sunday 12–10–2014 — Rehearsals Resume
Phrase of the week : Samo malo = Just a little. A phrase that seems to be used for everything. If someone is in your way on the train, “samo malo.” As in, move ‘just a little.’
Try-hards and Transposition
After a nice little break my hectic schedule of painfully arduous rehearsals resumed… False.
Rehearsals did start once again but only sectionals (small instrument groups). The brass rehearsed together at 10 am this week and they were in rare form. I mentioned before the lack of productivity in sectionals but this week their efforts to show no effort, went above and beyond my expectations. We have more music to prepare for than ever but we skipped much of it and plowed right through the rest. Logic would dictate that if people screw up a section of music, we should stop and rehearse that part. Logic apparently has it’s own sectionals and they’re not at 10am with us. It was not one person in particular that was responsible, although those ‘leading’ the group could be blamed. It was mix of equally unproductive attitudes. For about half the group (including those running the sectionals) it was a collective “We’re doing this because it’s in our contracts”-attitude. For the others it was either an “I’ve given up trying to make these rehearsals productive” -attitude or an “I don’t even know what they just said”-attitude. This combines for a lovely mess of a rehearsal, one where little is accomplished and my hour commute seems like a total waste of time. —
— I have long term goals though. I am getting a little more comfortable with everyone in the brass section and I plan to be a stick in the mud. I am not here to make friends, I am here to make music… O_o Harsh words, I know. Don’t worry I already have friends and I don’t plan to be so ridiculous in rehearsals that I lose them all. However, when I am in rehearsal, we are NOT friends, we are co-workers. It is our job to make this music as heartfelt and accurate as possible and we are doing an injustice to ourselves and our listeners if we don’t try our best to make that happen. Camaraderie is important but there are other important details as well! It is easy for me to say being the new guy. The naivety is bound to wear off and I’ll stop fighting the inevitable eventually, right? I have a feeling I won’t… I spoke up a tad in rehearsal the other day and I think world stopped. As I gain confidence I plan to do this more and hopefully it will be contagious. Productive rehearsals are not rehearsals where one person is pointing out mistakes and addressing issues. Productive rehearsals are rehearsals where everyone is chiming in. Those are incredibly rare! At every level of playing!
It saddens me that folks who land jobs in orchestra often let the monotony get the best of them. They’ve played Beethoven 5 a thousand times only to say, “we don’t need to rehearse that part, it’s fine.” To be fair in a high level orchestra, they are probably right but that doesn’t mean it is a healthy mindset. It can always be better.
What separates the Greats in music from everyone else? Everyone in an orchestra has dedicated much of their life to practice, surely that’s enough to make you great? They can play all the notes on the page and even the right dynamics and markings, what more is there? MUSIC! Music is not just the notes and markings and the dynamics. Music is an emotional expression through said notes and between said notes! We can practice till we’re blue in the face but if we only play with our brain why would someone come to a live concert when the Vienna Philharmonic has a recording on Youtube… We have the ability to make our performance unique, it may not be at the same level as the Vienna Phil but it can have life and emotion and can keep the listener engaged and at the edge of their seat! If that’s accomplished it’s something to be proud of. Playing with true musicality is a approach that I believe could change the future of the orchestra if everyone was involved. Too few good men and women do so but the ones that do continue to learn and to try hard. They go beyond what is written and focus on what is heard and felt by the listener. You cannot teach that. It is a state of mind that is only contagious when observed in another. Spread the word.
Transposition
Ok ok, I understand you may not care but give me a chance to explain why being a horn player is a daily struggle. Transposition a something that can be done for a player or it is something a player can do while playing. A piece of music has a key (C or B-flat or F etc…). The key involves a group of notes that all sound good together and combinations of these notes ‘harmonize.’ Composers mark the music to say what key the piece is in and the players can easily read the notes accordingly, but not horn… Once again we’re an exception to the rule. Horns before the late 19th century had no valves, buttons or keys of any sort. The horn was simply a curly brass tube like those things you see hanging on christmas trees. You blow air in and get a select group of notes out. These notes fit into one key. In order to play in another key, horns had to change the size of their instrument by using additional lengths of tubing called ‘crooks.’ The tube itself plays in the key of F but horns back in the glory days would need crooks for every other key as well (12 in total). You can imagine how silly they looked with 11 tubes on their laps and one big tube that still can’t play the right notes. Since horns could just put in a new tube, composers would simply write all the parts in the key of C-major and say “Horn in D-major!,” the horns would know to put in the D-major crook and voilà, D-major! Fortunately an instrument was invented that could play all the notes in every key and led to what is the modern double-horn (what I play). This eliminated the need for all the extra equipment, however the music from the pre-valve days is still the most commonly played in repertoire. No one was nice enough to write it all in F (the key modern horns play in naturally) ergo transposition. In order to play something that says “Horn in E” horn players must look at the notes on the page but play one note lower… If I see an F I will play an E if I see a B I will play a B-flat and so on. Orchestral horn players must do this for every key sometimes having to read the notes 5, 6 or 7 notes away from what is written. After years of struggle a good horn player can read never before seen music in this fashion. Once again, why with all our technology haven’t we updated the parts to be in the key of the instrument? Too much work I suppose and besides, transposition is good for you it puts hair on your chest (or something)…
I explained that so you can understand how much effort goes behind each insignificant note in a horn part. Also, because this week was full of transposition and not just for the horns!
To fulfill our musical needs after rehearsals, a few of us have been resorting to chamber music, music written or arranged for small groups of instruments. Chamber music is an addiction of mine, I love to compose and arrange for different groups and playing it can be so satisfying. One day after rehearsal we decided to do horn quartets with 3 horns and a trombone… Trombones do not read in the same key as horns so I was kind enough to print out some trombone parts in the appropriate key which sounded lovely. Bravi tutti! However, we also brought some other quartets along, for which Mr. Trombone had to transpose. Trombones are not so used to this. He kept up with us until we realized that the horns could all just transpose and let the trombone play it as if it were in his normal key. A couple days later we played some trombone trios this way with 2 horns and a trombone, which requires playing different notes and pretending you’re in a different clef as well… Later we did the same with a trombone a horn and an English horn. The english horn (bigger more sonorous oboe), reads in the same key as horn but their parts are always written in the correct key (they’ve always had buttons) in orchestral pieces. So, poor english horn had to transpose her trombone parts along with me. She did a fantastic job and I must say the Trombone, Horn, English horn combination is really fantastic! The sounds blend well together, I may have to work on some more tunes for this set up. It’s great to have a group of people who are all so versatile and can do what it takes to collaborate with any instrument. I feel collaboration outside of the structured orchestral setting is just as important and shows the world we enjoy what we’re doing!
Masterpiece arranged for Horns!
I mentioned that I’ve been working on arrangements for horn choir. To many this is apparently hilarious. Why would anyone want to hear 12 of the same instrument playing music. You’re such a nerd, Dan. True but I think you’d be surprised how interesting it is to hear familiar music with totally different instruments. You notice different interesting parts in the music, certain things are louder, certain things are softer. It’s a great way to get to know a classic piece of music better; often we’re at the mercy of whoever programs the orchestras concerts. Although flute choir may not be the most versatile choir, horn choir and trombone choir (in my opinion) are two that work extremely well. The choirs at a pro level have over 4 octaves in range allowing for a prominent bass line as well as melody line. Horns especially have different tone qualities in high notes and in low notes. Horns can also play quite quickly even in the lowest ranges and this makes for some shocking possibilities in the large ensemble pieces. There’s nothing quite like a dozen horns playing. Even if some aren’t the best players the sound is rich in overtones and is somehow still quite pleasing to the ears.
My most recent project has been Beethoven’s Overture to Egmont! You may very well recognize the ending of it from commercials and movies. The piece was originally for full orchestra and I transposed (in advance beacuase I’m nice) and customized the parts so that they are playable by 12 horn players. It’ll be interesting to see how it sounds. My last project for 12 horns was the ‘Largo’ from Dvorak’s Symphony of the New World. It was a difficult piece to pull off with very few rehearsals but the group in Milwaukee that I premiered it with did a fantastic job. Here’s hoping the Beethoven does just as well. If you’d like a copy just go to artofsoundmusic.com and pick one up! You’ll help put food on my table and help spread Dvorak’s gorgeous melodies to horn players and horn listeners alike.
A copy of a copy of a copy of a performance of the Dvorak. I apologize for the very poor audio quality. I need to have another group play and record it! That’s me on the right playing the top part.
A beautiful view of Sarajevo
Biban
This Friday I was introduced to a wonderful little restaurant called Biban. It is on top of a mountain in Southeast Sarajevo and looks out over the entire valley where the city lies. It could not have been more perfect weather as well. We were near 80 F and not a cloud in sight. The mountains surrounding Sarajevo are an extension of the alps but are not particularly large in stature. The largest are around 2000 meters ( ~6000 ft) and usually don’t have year round snow caps. Despite this they still provide a magnificent view, great ski resorts and in some cases have houses built aalllll the way up the side of the mountain. “Watch your step.” The food at Biban was fantastic and the company was too. It was a great way to end the week. While up there a local, Flute 2, was explaining a bit about some of the structures we could see from the restaurant. There were some old military buildings and fortresses visible and Flute 2 explained a bit of the history of Sarajevo as well. He explained why sniping was such an issue during the war. It was painfully apparent why. The cities in a valley and surround that valley are thousands of structures and mountains on higher ground. Skendarija a western region was one of the worst areas for sniping. Which further confirms my notion that nothing good ends in “-ria.” It was fascinating to see the city from this angle and to learn more about it as well.
Status
I am healthy, I have been paid and I will continue to write this blog as regularly as I can. I appreciate the love and support. Also, In lieu of food just send me money, lots and lots of money. ;)
Sarajevska Filharmonija : Daniel Worsham
Obala kulina bana 9, Sarajevo 71000
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Tim Worsham!!!
Thirty-cough years young. You’re a fantastic human and an above average brother! Here’s to Thirty-cough more! See you next year! -Love, Dan.
ALSO
Opera! i Pauza!
Saturday 4–10–2014 — Verdi’s ‘La Traviata’ and a break.
Phrase of the week : Pauza = Break. For the locals this generally involves coffee and cigarettes.
The First Opera
This week we had our first opera of the season! We put together Verdi’s famed ‘La Traviata’ in one rehearsal and had a single performance on the 30th of September. Fortunately this is an opera both the orchestra and the singers are very familiar with and we were able to put it together without much more than a run-thru in rehearsal. The ease of this operation was aided greatly by our guest conductor Andrije Pavliča. It’s not that he was amazing, he was simply…capable.
The season opener had an additional draw as well. Our lead soprano was the nationally aclaimed Aida Čorbadžić. This was her first public performance since her bout with breast cancer. The theatre was filled to the brim and Aida’s ovation was justifiably strong. Traviata is another work that has moments everyone reading this blog would likely recognize. The most recognizable is perhaps the most famous Italian drinking song of all time, “Libiamo ne’ lieti calici” (Let’s drink from the joyful cups).
Verdi is most well known for his operas and they all have beautiful moments. However, very few of them involve the horn… Traviata with only a couple of exceptions is entirely “Oom-pa-pa’s.” For those of you not acquainted with this technical term, think of a waltz. In a waltz there are three beats in each measure. When you dance to a waltz you must think in 3's. The first one is the strong beat and the next two are the weak beats. Horns essentially only played the weak beats, the basses say “Oom” we say “pa, pa.” Practically every measure, for the entire opera…
Despite how seemingly boring the part was, I actually got quite a bit of enjoyment out of it. It was great section practice. All four horns were playing different notes during these parts so we needed to be immediately in tune on those short notes. We also needed to be exactly in time with each other, following Asim’s lead on first horn. When you’re playing simple parts like this you can also zone out a bit and enjoy the beautiful melodies and harmonies being played around the pit and on the stage.
Our section seems to be developing a great blend. We’ve already received some compliments. I’ve discovered most of Asim’s Asim-isms and can adjust when needed and I think me and 4th horn are both getting used to the European style of playing as well as tuning. We’ve had a fairly heavy work load up to this point so I haven’t pressured the section into playing quartets yet but it’s bound to happen. I’m hoping Asim will be up for it!
After our opera came NOTHING! Our first little break in the schedule. We got the rest of the week off as well as this coming Monday. What to do with six free days? I know, I know travel, right? Unfortunately, I’m not in the market for a trip but there are plently of other things I can work on in my free time. When left to my own devices I play music. When I’m bored I write music and study music and and and listen to music… These last few days most of my social interactions have been on skype and my internal introvert is celebrating. It may seem weird to some of you, but I like being alone. I haven’t lived alone…ever! Until now. Of course now I am back doing dishes manually and drying my clothes the European way but that’s a small price to pay.
Chef BoyarDan
Turns out I’m still not much of a cook. I don’t usually burn things but I simply have no will-power when it comes to the culinary. Also, I’m cheap… Especially when it comes to food. Why splurge when pasta is good every time? And eggs? Gotta love eggs. I’ve switched things up occasionally but mostly I just make different combos with rice, eggs, pasta and sausages of all kinds. I usually accompany them with frozen veggies (no, for real, Mom). I assume at somepoint I’ll get more creative but for now my belly’s full and that’s good enough… Don’t worry, even if I do, this won’t become a food blog.
Still painfully American
Of course I didn’t expect to blend into a culture so swiftly but apparently my accent is quite strong and Bosnian quite broken… I’m trying though. Most interactions where I speak first have gone well but when they start the conversation I feel like some stranger is giving me a pop-quiz! Quick what’s the capital of Vermont!!! Yeah, that’s what I thought. Not so easy, eh? I’m hoping the next time someone says “šta je sati” (what time is it?) or something similar, that I won’t freeze up and say “uhhhh ummm!”
At least I homogenize visually. I don’t dress flashy or dorky or wear American Apparel and I was even told by a colleague before I left that I could pass for Croatian, Haha. In any case I’ll be working on my Bosnian so that one day I can form coherent sentences…
Interwebs
Ahhh modern technological spoils. I’ve been enjoying the luxury of taking to Nan and my fam from 5000 miles away with equal the amount of effort it took in the States. I am trying not to take it for granted, it’s an incredible thing and I don’t know if I would have left without the existence of this technology. That being said, me and Bassoon-2, (screw it I’m using his name) Kevin, had some internet drama the other day… Ugh. We share a internet connection between our apartments (Kevin’s is directly below mine) and for the most part Kevin’s connection is fine, despite the router/modem being in my flat. He did say that it’s a bit weak in his far room though. It wasn’t a big issue at first but the other day he asked if I could try moving the router/modem to the kitchen so it’s more centrally located. I said of course, that should be simple, right? Wrong again, Dan… I unplugged it and realized the cable wasn’t going to reach anywhere so after some trouble decided to just plug it back in. BAM, no internet… The lights were all on but our router locked us out and wanted us to enter all of these IP addresses and numbers and letters and crazy stuff that I’ve never heard of before, ah! Me and Kevin were troubleshooting on and off all day, calling the internet provider and using his data to search for answers until finally, we get a competent agent from Telemach. He reset everything and essentially did exactly what me and Kevin tried first… only better, because it worked. Needless to say I’m not moving that router or modem again.
I’ve got some new songs in the works, a new piece and some new horn choir arrangements upon request! It’s a lot of work ahead of me but I have plenty of time here and I’m trying to fill it up so I don’t get stir crazy. Also, the Sarajevo Philharmonic Woodwind Quintet may be reading an arrangement of mine in the near future (fun fun). So far I’m enjoying the free time and life in Otes is just fine. No gypsies have tried to break in or steal my groceries, yet. Since I sleep in the main room of the apartment now, Barkley is no longer an issue… And I’ve been able to practice unhindered during most hours of the day.
Next on the agenda is preparations for a concert of works by Smailović and some others, as well as preparations for Brahms’ Requiem! We’ll be taking the Requiem to Mostar (another city in Bosnia), which apparently is a very beautiful place. I’m looking forward to more collaboration and more music!
“Here’s to you, Nan! You are missed.”
Ballet Keeps You on Your Toes…
Saturday 27–9–2014 — Ballet Fest!
Phrase of the week : Dobar Dan = “Good Dan…” I mean “Good Day!” Used generally in the afternoon.
Getting a taste of my other job requirements.
Ćao! This past week mainly involved the orchestras preparation for Ballet Fest, which is the 19th thru the 27th of September. Ballet companies from Bosnia, Croatia, Austria and Serbia all have performances at the Norodno Pozorište (National Theatre). The Orchestra only accompanies the last two shows which is Adolphe Adam’s “Giselle” featuring a ballet company from Zagreb, Croatia.
Ballet and opera preparation can be extremely tedious. The works are often a couple of hours long and to synchronize an act on stage with its accompaniment in the pit below can take a great deal of work. Fortunately, after our first performance last night, it is apparent that we prepared just enough… We have the second and final performance of “Giselle” tonight and hopefully it goes as smoothly as last night.
Our parts look like a 3 year old wrote them. They’re completely hand written and I think they may have even used crayon for part of it… A great deal of time was spent with the orchestra figuring out how to make the parts line up with the score. The horn parts were missing measures, repeats and notes in many spots and it was a bit frustrating to spend so much rehearsal time on something that could have been taken care of before the first run through. There were a few moments of semi-heated discussion in rehearsal regarding this issue. I am able to understand enough Bosnian to at least know the subject of discussions in rehearsal. However, I am sure my Bosnian vocabulary is still smaller than the 3 year old that wrote our parts.
I was not at all familiar with “Giselle” or Adolphe Adam before we began rehearsing. I must say, I’m not a huge fan. There are some great moments, the end of each Act has interesting material and there is a lovely viola solo towards the end of the work. The piece is just so painfully classical. It’s about as cliché as you can make a ballet. Cutsie little themes, waltz’s galore and text book classical orchestration (orchestration dictates which instruments play melody, accompaniment, harmony and when etc). I suppose it is composers like Adam who define what makes a ballet cliché in the first place but none-the-less, It drives me a bit mad. It doesn’t help that the horn parts are a bit dry. Me and Asim have a couple nice little duets in the first act but other than that it’s fairly simple stuff and a lot of counting rests. Overall I can’t complain too much. We only have to play it one more time and we did quite well, considering we only rehearsed with the dancers once before the performance.
BankoBosnia
Although you may assume otherwise, I’m not a rich man… I came here with some money saved but not nearly as much as I would’ve liked. We get paid monthly, in theory… Though I’ve heard many stories that say checks often come late, particularly around the new year and I still have not been paid for this month. We began doing paper work for our Visa’s and bank accounts here upon arrival and it still hasn’t gone through. The last word was that the U.S. was reviewing our tax information and making sure none of us owed money but that was a while ago.
Although I’m living in the less expensive apartment, there have still been a lot of unexpected expenses for example my computer cord. Before I left I noticed that the very end bit of the cord was beginning to kink. So I quickly applied some tape and was extra careful with that part of the cord. After a couple of weeks here suddenly the cord had a kink right after the box and the problem worsened swiftly. Try as I might I was still having issues with the cord maintaining a complete circuit. I didn’t bring electrical tape but had some duct tape on me so I figured why not. Duct tape is supposed to fix everything, right? Wrong. Duct tape melts… The cord split underneath the duct tape and the heat from the exposed wires melted the tape to the wires completely cutting off power. I was bit heatbroken when I discovered this but I figured I would try some surgery anyway. For those of you who read my last post you may remember seeing the result of my attempted procedure (scroll up to last weeks pictures). It didn’t go well and I began to hunt for a replacement. I remembered seeing a little Apple store in BBI. BBI is a bank but when people here refer to BBI it often means the BBI mall. It’s a large mall in downtown Sarajevo owned by a bank and because of its owners’ religious affiliations, is the only mall in Bosnia that doesn’t sell liquor. After a long search I finally found the little Apple store in the mall and it was even smaller than I remembered; a glorified kiosk. I asked the worker if they sold power cords and he said that they sold them all, try next week. I wanted to believe him but the store didn’t even have computers for sale, just ipads, iphones and accessories. I gave it sometime, borrowing 2nd Bassoon’s power cord occasionally and tried again yesterday.
Always double check which product you need! Especially in regards to technology. Everything updates and advances so quickly and when it’s an Apple product they may just change the design of their products to encourage sales of their new products… I went to the Apple store in BBI and lo-and-behold they had chargers! I looked at the prices and although they were fairly expensive If I would have ordered online I would have had to ship mine from the U.S. The price would have been similar and because most places don’t ship directly to Bosnia it would’ve taken nearly a month to get the cord had I decided to go that route. So I coughed up the cash and told the lady I needed the 60-watt Magsafe 2 charger… Magsafe 2, is for the brand new Mac’s… My year old computer is apparently archaic and I needed just the Magsafe charger (the new ones don’t even fit). After I internally scolded myself for not double-checking before buying, I decided to see what return policies are like in Bosnia-Herzegovina. I explained my issue to the new guy on shift and he was very understainding and said “we always check this, I’m sorry she did not.” Apparently I’m not the first one who’s fallen to Mac’s design change. The return went seemlessly and they had ONE magesafe charger in stock! Thank God I’m not stuck with a useless charger.
Dusted off an old transcription job
As many of you know, I like to transcribe and arrange music as a side hobby and to make a little cash. Transcription is essentially taking existing music and putting it into a new form. Sometimes this is simply taking the written music to a piece for Orchestra and altering it, making it playable for another group of instruments (visual transcription). However, what I most often do is Aural Transcription. Aural transcription is the act of listening to a recording and writing down the heard notes into the heard parts using music notation. I worked for Finale (music notation computer program) for a year so I have great rescources and plenty of training in the program which helps a ton for transcription gigs.
I received an email recently from a transcription gig I had started months ago and had never finished. I sent him a draft and he never responded with edits…I forgot….He forgot. Until just the other day he responds back hoping to continue where we left off. Sure, why not. I have plenty of time on my hands and any income is good income. I finished another round of edits on his piece today and sent them off. I’m hoping this may lead to more business for me and that he won’t take another few months to respond to these edits…
Lingua
So, despite my studies and my several weeks of emersion, I’m still not fluent in Bosnian…who knew? I’m trying to address people first in Bosnian but it’s so tempting to do things in English when many of them speak it already. I realize that English is essentially the International language of business (in most places) but I do see how an American who doesn’t try to speak Bosnian can be a bit of an annoyance. I know plenty, PLENTY of Americans who would be the ones to say “You live in America, speak English!” Well now the rolls are reversed for me, I’m in Bosnia “Priča na Bosanskom!” Who is right? Is it fair to ask someone who has known the existence of a language for 3 months to speak it? Is it fair to ask a legal citizen of a free, melting-pot country to speak their non-native tongue? Neither one is right… However, I believe an effort should be made on all sides to…drumroll….better communicate! Let’s be honest most Europeans probably think American’s who don’t know a second language are just lazy. We can blame our “hegemony,” we can blame our distance from other countries compared to Europe, we can blame our education system or we can look up language tutorials on youtube to communicate with the Garcia’s next door. We could buy rosetta stone, we could use google translate on our iphones for crying out meatloaf!!! I know it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks, heck I’m not even that old of a dog and learning Bosnian has been incredibly taxing. Not to mention that many of the great people I’ve been hanging with speak primarily Albanian or Italian aside from Bosnian and English. Don’t believe everything you read on the internet and don’t let one bloggers’ opinion effect how you view the world but I think the cause of much conflict is the inability to effectively communicate.
Reader 1 : “I thought you said your blogs weren’t going to be so preachy???”
Onwards! — The First Concert
Phrase of the week: “šta ima?” = “What’s up?” or “How is everything?” literally translates to “What do you have?”
Getting comfortable
Ćao! I am seated here watching Indiana Jones in Bosnian and reflecting on the week past. Once again, so much has happened that I can’t remember what’s happened. Never-the-less I will try my best to recall the important bits or at least the bits that make for a decent read.
A considerable amount of playing has been done in the last week between rehearsals and my own practice sessions. Practicing at my apartment in Otes has been fine for the most part. The flat is a 3 bedroom, two came with furniture, one without. The one without furniture seemed to be the logical choice for a practice room. However, the room is surrounded by four concrete walls… It’s like playing into your own ears from every direction at once. It’s not the ideal space for most works but perhaps a certain soon-to-be-released unaccompanied horn solo would sound cool in there? Who knows…wink wink
Oh yeah, I live by myself now! ☺
Over the past week some of the new American musicians discussed the possibility of moving into Sarajevo-proper. Again for reveiw, Otes (my place) is far West of the city. Specifically it’s a 15 min walk and a 40 min tram ride into the city. The walk is not bad (in the summer) and the train ride wouldn’t be so bad if I was an oldman — Let me explain…
It’s customary in most cultures to give up your seat to the elderly. Makes sense, the tram is a long and bumpy ride. Although I’m familiar with this, I’ve realized that in all my years of public transit I’ve rarely had to do this. “How could this be, Dan? You’ve frequented the public transit systems of Minneapolis/St Paul and Chicago?” Well apparently old people in the US avoid public transit? Perhaps because they all still drive? ☹ I have noticed a distinct lack of Buicks and Cadillacs in Bosnia… I can’t remember one time in Chicago or Minneapolis where I needed to empty a seat for the elderly. I certainly would, but there was either plenty of seats available or no elderly. I think it’s partially due to the amount of buses and trains available in cities like Chicago and Minneapolis. They’re so frequent that even in Chicago there’s generally enough space for everyone. In any case I think I’ve had about one or two tram rides where I haven’t had to get up and offer my seat. I’m not complaining but when the proposition of moving to the city arose, the commute-less-ness sounded rather appealing.
The pros of moving for me essentially would have just been geographical convenience. That is a key benefit but there were too many other cons for me to follow through, at least for now. The extraineous costs of a move, potentially having to buy furniture or appliances, being tempted to always go out for food. It all adds up and I’m ok sticking with the much cheaper, allbeit more-distant alternative. After much deliberation Horn 4 and Trombone 2 decided to move into an apartment about 5 blocks from the National Theatre. It’s a great place, 2 bedroom, furnished with a piano! The process of aquiring the place was faster than any transaction at a market and it does make me think that moving into the city may be on the radar further down the road. Now me and Bassoon 2, each have a 3 bedroom apartment to oursleves in Otes. This is okay with me.
Being sick in Bosnia
Don’t worry, it’s simply a cold. I came down with it a couple days ago and initially it hit me pretty hard. A few bad nights of sleep didn’t help (thanks Barkely). //For those who didn’t see my facebook rant, Barkley is a Black and White dog that barks at any living organism that comes near his fence. He happens to live right out my bedroom window and his owners are either deaf or immune to his cries. // Being sick in Bosnia, is like being sick anywhere else…duh…. There’s a store in Ilidza that has all sorts of meds and an apoteka “pharmacy” even closer to my place, should I ever need it. I’ve been drinking gallons of water and things seem to finally be on the mend today. I imagine I picked something up from the many sick folks that I ride the tram with. Either way, I am glad to have this experience under my belt. Hopefully I remain healthy throughout the upcoming winter months.
The first concert!
Rachmaninoff -Piano Concerto no.2 ; Mussorgsky “Night on Bald Mountain” ; Fauré -Pavane ; Smetana -Vltava
The concert went very well. Our season opener featured Coratian pianist Lovro Pogorelić playing Rachmaninoff’s most famous Concerto. The piece is frequently performed but I must admit, I’m not sick of it yet. Gorgeous melodies. Pogorelić did a fantastic job especially once his piano was tuned to a recognizable key. In our first rehearsal with him, the theatre apparently forgot? to tune his paino. At rehearsal time it was standing at A= 447hz. To you non musicians this means nothing, but essentially it’s reeeaaaaalllly sharp (high in pitch). I was prepared to play A = 442 (where most European Orchestras play) but 447 a bit extreme. We politely tuned to that and then collectively ended not much above 442 by the end of rehearsal. Fortunately, it was all remedied by the concert. The next piece was “Night on Bald Mountain” which is one that all of you would likely recognize… Google it, I’ll wait… It was in that one scary scene in Fantasia, ya know. The group could let loose a little during this one and it’s definitely a crowd pleaser. The Fauré and Smetana are perhaps less known to some but each have their moments. Bravi!
The horns did quite well, if i do say so myself. Great, sensitive ensemble playing and Bravi to Mattia and Asim on their solo moments. I’m looking forward to our upcoming feature in “Ballet Fest” playing Adam’s “Giselle.” We’ll also have a performance of Verdi’s “La Traviata” later this month. Hajdemo! <(that’s probably wrong)…
I’m finding a rhythm!
I’m learning what things are in the market.
Learning not to buy ‘that one kind of tomato sauce with the green label’ because it tastes like death.
Learning which direction is hottest on my unlabled stove dials.
Learning to enjoy the many pauzas (breaks) throughout the day for coffee and cigarettes ( I instead choose tea and 2nd hand smoke).
Learning that finding a power-cord for my mac book pro (because I broke mine) isn’t the easiest…
Learning to speak the language.
Learning to love the culture.
Learning to love the people.
Learning the true meaning of long distance.
“Živjeli! Here’s to you, Nan!”
The First Week! — Bosnian Tutorial
Phrase of the week: Vidimo se! = See ya!
So far a busy but successful beginning to an adventure.
I arrived at O’hare airport a few hours early on the 3rd just to be extra careful. ORD is a popular place so I assumed security may take a while even in the International terminal. Fortunately, I was wrong. The whole process took about thirty minutes or less. Also, I mayyy have gotten my extra checked bag on for free(normally costs a Benjamin). The lady at the desk seemed new and when she said “That will be $100,” I gave a slightly shocked look then lowered my head in defeat… She turned to her colleague and said a few words and since no one else was near, her colleague said “We’ll just check it as a carry-on(free).” I politely nodded and swiftly walked to the security checkpoint -being fully aware that I already had two carry-ons. I took this stroke of luck as a sign of good things to come. I only had one more bullet to dodge in regards to plane travel…
Mildred (the horn)- 63 years old, ~8 lbs and 22 ft in length.
Mildred was my only worry at this point. Now-a-days horns often come with detachable bells. The flare simply screws off making it more convenient for travel and they generally fit in the overhead bins of an airplane. Mildred was not born with this attribute and in her carrying-case, the bell flares to around 14". Which will NOT fit in the overhead and the space under a seat is only about 10" tall. On previous flights I would simply take my hard case and check the horn under at the gate. This can work but for a flight that long with a transfer, it’s risky business even in the hard case. So with the advice from a fellow horn player, I decided to try to shove the horn as far under the seat as it would go. It goes up to about the bell and then sticks out (into my precious leg room). Some flight attendants get real upset when bags are not completely under the seat, so I was a bit nervous. I just quickly walked to my window seat, shoved her under and put my complimentary-blanket over the situation. No issues what-so-ever!
Little old man from Moldova
I promise I’ll get to the good stuff before you get bored of reading (assuming you’ve made it this far), but on the first flight I got an early intro to what some Eastern European culture can be like. The man who sat beside me on the plane had to have been about 80 years young. He was dressed in Sunday’s-Best for the flight and promptly began conversing with the older couple behind us. It was all in russian but I could tell they were discussing their final destinations. The couple behind us said “Uzbekistan” and the man beside me replied “Moldova.” For those of you who aren’t aware of where either country is, keep in mind they both spoke Russian. Both countries were part of the Soviet Union so people from their generation speak fluent Russian despite the countries also having their own languages (Moldovan/Uzbek).
The flight dragged on for a bit until our first in flight meal. We both had salmon which came with a salad, bread, “cheesecake” and a drink. As soon as the dinner hit his tray, he was off to the races. I didn’t by any means stare but being the spoiled “Middle-Class” American I am, I’m not used to seeing people so ravenous. Every crumb that fell eventually made it to his mouth. He hit-up the flight attendant for at least 3 extra rolls and several drink refills. After the initial surprise of his consumption I continued on with my business until… Out of the corner of my eye, I see the man drinking his salad dressing… “Not that there’s anything wrong with that.” Followed immediately by the man eating his packets of butter, sans-bread! I had an internal giggle but obviously there’s no harm in breaking the cuisine rules of Western society. After I helped him open his last packet of butter (I didn’t have the heart to tell him), we were both content and it was off to dream-land. I’ve always felt that because of my upbringing and my lifelong fascination with other cultures, that I was somehow less susceptible to “culture shock.” Sometimes it’s the little differences that are the most striking. Knowing full well that Bosnia-Herzegovina isn’t anything like America I decided, while I’m here I will try to fall into this culture and I will try “eating the butter sans-bread.” Not literally of course, that’s just gross…
The important stuff!!!
Arrival in Sarajevo went smoothly. Only three of the four Americans joining the group arrived in Sarajevo together. Me, Bassoon and Trombone. We met up with our wonderful coordinator/translator/help-us-with-anything lady in the airport, converted some money and headed for Otes (our home). I had heard that many of the buildings throughout the city and throughout Otes were still riddled with bullet holes or completely demolished but it wasn’t so drastic. There were a few here and there but many of the bullet holes had at least been mortared and/or painted over.
Otes isn’t the prettiest of venues. The streets are littered with trash, thanks to our gypsy neighbors and it smells a bit like a sewer, thanks to the sewer…All in all it reminds me of a few neighborhoods in Minneapolis. Simply replace the distant high-rises with mountains and replace the ubiquitous squirrels with stray dogs. I’ve never seen so many many mutts, someone call Bob Barker (10 points for whoever gets my reference). “Have your pet spayed or neutered.”
The apartment is a step above my first apartment in Minneapolis, a few things that need some love but nothing debilitating. We caught up on sleep for the first night and the next day we were off to our first rehearsal and to take care of some business/paper work.
Rehearsal ended up just being Brass sectionals. Everyone greeted us with a friendly “ćao” or “Hello” as many of them speak English. We introduced ourselves and then after a bit of a warm up, we began rehearsal. Our Principal or Bass trombone (Marin and Vanja) generally lead the group by announcing where to start. Both are great at English so they say it in both languages before we began. I was pleased to hear that every player sounds pretty darn good. The Filharmonija is the only professional orchestra in Bosnia-Herzegovina. You’d think this would mean an orchestra bursting with world-class talents but you must consider this country is less than 20 years out of a revolution. Many people died, many people fled, and until recently there was no draw for outsiders to some into the country. All things aside I’m ok with this level of playing. It’s not as refined or detail oriented as I’d like but it’s good!
Rehearsals throughout the week have all been with the brass minus our principal horn player… Asim is not a permanent member and is only contracted to work with the orchestra as a whole and therefore doesn’t come to sectionals? I guess… I’m not entirely sure… Anywho, me and Horn 4 held down the fort in rehearsals until Horn 3, Mattia Bussi arrived from Italy. Although rehearsals have sounded ok, the level of productivity is quite low. The attitude of “Good enough, next section!” seems to rule the group. Mattia however, comes with a more refreshing attitude towards the music. He doesn’t step on anyones toes in rehearsal but after each one he’s asked me and horn 4 if we’d like to be productive and run through a few more things in detail. Of course! I think we may have some differences in playing style now, but I’ll simply adjust to what works best with the section. I’m just glad that our section, even without Asim, has a good musical mind-set. We even read some duets after rehearsal today, I’m a fan…
Ok, ok enough with the musical crap… You’re all here to read about the beautiful city of Sarajevo! Although I’ve heard the locals complain about it already, that’s what locals do! If you’ve been anywhere long enough you start taking it for granted. I personally love Sarajevo so far.
There are malls, stores, bars, restaurants and banks absolutely everywhere. A few gorgeous Cathedrals and Mosques and some great little parks to relax in. The evenings feel extremely safe downtown, some bars stay open till 5am or never close so things do not actually stop moving. The food is real cheap here and you can get your fill at a variety of places for between 3 and 6km ($2-$4 USD). We’ve already found a few favorite spots. There’s Chipas, essentially fast-food chicken dinners with a variety of styles. Pirpa, the Bosnian equivalent of Chipotle and then this little sandwich shop called…drumroll…. “Alf 2.” Yes, like the 80's citcom with the alien puppet that eats cats. The awning is graced by his likeness and as if it couldn’t get any better, it sells enormous-delicious sandwiches for about 3km ($2).
One evening we decided to stay downtown Sarajevo to attend a gathering of Americans in Sarajevo. Our 2nd Oboist (who is also American), has meet a few people outside of the orchestra who are U.S. citizens. One person we met is “American” but only by association. Her parents work for the U.S. embassy in Sarajevo but she’s never actually lived in the states. Along with us were three United States Marines, who currently have duty at the embassy in Sarajevo. All four in their 20's and all very nice people! We also chatted with a couple blokes from New Zealand who heard us speaking English in a pub downtown. The two friends make an effort to travel the world every year after they work a few months bulding bike tracks in New Zealand. When asked “Why Bosnia?” one replied, “Cuz we hadn’t been here yet.” I can’t argue with that… Night life in Sarajevo has gone well thus far, we were warned of cabs without meters who will steal your money and gypsies who will…steal your money. Fortunately, we haven’t had any bandit taxi drivers but we have had a slight run-in with the gypsies, specifically the gypsy children.
We were sitting at an outdoor table at a pub downtown. Me and about 6 others had just come from the theatre so we had our instruments at our side. I happened to be sitting closest to the alleyway behind us when a little gypsy girl no more than 5 years of age comes up and begins begging in Bosnian. Despite the initial pitty you might feel, this is their game… Most locals say “I don’t want” and then turn away. As soon as we did this I notice the little one reaching for my horn! “Necu!” She moved on to the next group and from then on I kept the horn a little bit closer.
Fine, I’ll admit it, I have a lot to say. There still are many things I haven’t mentioned, some I’ll refrain from putting in this blog others will simply show up at a later date. Due to the overwhelming amount of stimuli in the last week I may update this again sooner rather than later.
I finally have wifi set up in Otes and can work on this at my leisure and I was pleased to find that wifi is just as valued here as it is in the U.S. Even before I had internet in the apartment I was able to keep those close to me updated semi-frequently. The theatre, coffee shops and malls all have ways to connect for free or if you’re a customer. Facebook me for my contact details if you are interested. I have some free moments this weekend but keep in mind we’re 7 hours ahead of you central-time-folks.
Still feels like a vacation at this point but I imagine things will slowly settle in. Thank you all for the warm regards during my travels. I made it here with all of my luggage and not a scratch on me. Vidimo se!
Storm before the storm before the calm…
Tuesday 2–9–2014 — Short Early Update
Phrase of the day : Zdravo! = Good health or hello! (also say, ćao!)
Don’t get your hopes up, this will likely end up a once-a-week blog (we’ll see). It may however, take me a few days to get the internet set up over there, so I thought I’d fill you in now.
I’ll officially be living in a region known as Otes. It’s west of Sarajevo-proper and north of the also populated Ilidža region. From what I have heard it is a safe neighborhood, in fact I’ve heard from a few sources that crime, particularly violent crimes, are not commonly an issue. Pilferage and theft can be an issue for travelers but I feel prepared in this regard.
Packing was…dreadful. Prioritizing your possessions so that your whole life can fit into a 50 lb bag is nearly impossible! Which is why I decided to take two bags. Even so, it’s a bit humbling to leave so much behind. In any case I have everything to weight and with a bit of luck, I should make it to Sarajevo with all my belongings. I fly out of O’hare tomorrow afternoon. Me and my future roommate who also secured a position in the orchestra will be on the same flight to Vienna, Austria. Ten hours in the air, a layover and then we meet up with our other two American colleagues and take a short flight to Sarajevo. The last couple of days have been a mess of frantic, preparatory thoughts in my brain and I imagine the first few days or weeks over yonder will be similar. All-in-all I’m not alone on the trip which is a great help and the staff has been very supportive thus far. The schedule for the job itself will be involved but not overwhelming so at some point, I should be able to stop and take a sigh of relief.
There was obviously no way I was going to ship my keyboard… Would have cost me almost as much as the chintzy Casio did itself. As a composer/arranger this creates a bit of an issue. I can ‘get by’ with the tools built into my computer but it’s sooooo much slower and can hold back the compositional creativity quite a bit. I’ll have to see what I can find in the national theatre or invest in a cheap keyboard there eventually. I had originally planned to get more heavily involved in music transcription and arranging projects again to help pay the bills. I’m sure I’ll make it happen somehow, tell your friends to give me work! ☺
This is all starting to get very real. The goodbyes, the packing, the Bosnian study sessions, all stir my mind into a mush of information. I’m going to miss this place, these people, these American spoils but I’m excited to see what’s in store for me across the pond. Thanks for all your support!
Thursday, 28–8–2014 — Preface
Less than a week till the move to Sarajevo to take the reigns as 2nd horn for the Sarajevska Filharmonija. To quote the great Scottish poet David Byrne, “How did I get here?” To be honest Mr. Byrne, it’s all a blur. One moment I’m working/practicing 65hrs a week with nothing but uncertainty on the horizon, the next moment I’m moving 5000 miles away to play professionally with a Symphony Orchestra. C’est la vie?
The life of a classically trained musician is not for the faint of heart. Only the elite make it into positions of merit and this takes incredible dedication, sacrifice and tenacity. Not to say I am any of those things, as a wise man once said “Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in awhile.” I say this just to inform the uninformed of the fierce competition in the world of classical music and the inspiringly dedicated individuals who make up it’s core. These are the people I get to play with, for which I am very lucky!
For everyone not familiar with what I do, here’s a bit of info that may help explain some of the lingo I’m bound to say in this blog.
In a European orchestra there are four horn positions. Solo horn (1st horn) also called Principal horn, is the leader of the section. What he/she says, goes! Unless the section is instructed to do otherwise by the conductor. The Solo horn is named due to the frequent, and often exposed lone moments in repertoire. It can be an incredibly stressful job, as horn is about the only instrument where professional level players still audibly miss notes… Solo and 3rd horn are the “high horns” of the orchestra. They play most often in the range everyone is familiar with. Third, depending on the piece, is also featured melodically but the music is not usually as difficult or as involved as the First horn. Second horn is the support of the solo horn, and along with the 4th horn is often a “low horn.” Low horns still often play in the normal range of the horn but are also needed in ranges not usually associated with the instrument. I’ve always said a good second horn is what makes the first horn sound amazing! If a second horn is out of tune, the first horn gets blamed. If the first horn is out of tune, the second horn better be right there playing just as out of tune! It’s the responsibility of the 2nd horn to follow exactly what the 1st does, wrong or right. I’ll be working under Mr. Asim Gadžo the orchestra’s solo horn and will be playing on the orchestra provided Yamaha 667sv, a change from my usual axe -(conn 8D “Mildred”).
Dan-Rant vol 1:“Perfect timing. Dan’s long distance woes. (Warning! mild sap!)”
Being willing to uproot oneself comes with the territory but it’s not always so easy…
I don’t expect you all to be interested in my personal life but I’ve been dealing with something lately and it has inspired much more than just the words to follow.
I’ll spare you all from the details but God, and his wise sense of humor, put someone in my life at the most hilarious of times (and I’m ok with it)!
Above I mentioned “sacrifice” as a quality necessary to make it in the world of classical music. Sacrificing time, a social-life for practice and things of that nature are-let’s be honest- a given with most classical musicians. Many of us are stereotypical introverts and are usually ok spending our Friday nights alone in the practice room… The sacrifices that are most challenging come in regards to friendships and relationships. How can someone have involved relationships knowing that at any given time, they may have to pick up and move across the country or the world? Not to mention, how do you maintain a relationship when you are abroad!?
Fortunately, this is the 21st century and this internet fad hasn’t expired yet. “Thanks Al Gore!” However, this doesn’t exactly solve anything. It merely provides a medium to continue the struggle of being in a relationship as a dedicated classical musician. I’ve actually heard some in my field say that relationships hold back one’s progress or that relationships only distract from practice! However skilled those particular people may be (or think they are), I can only imagine they are twice as lonely... Many classical musicians have sacrificed healthy marriages and relationships for better jobs and to that I say “for shame.” I say the answer to making things work in a life like ours that has times of travel and times of distance is, once again, sacrifice but of a different kind. Not just time and social-life, in fact if you have a job I would encourage you to enjoy those things. In order to truly make a sacrifice for someone it needs to be a sacrifice of self!
Many of us on specific career paths consider the career itself to be our top priority! When in reality, we often put our own needs before everyone and everything. “Oh, I’d love to talk but I have to practice early tomorrow,” when really you just want to be alone, watch Game of Thrones and pass out… Of course it’s hard to maintain relationships when you give your all to a career while also spoiling yourself with everything that makes YOU happy…What about the poor soul you have a relationship with? My goal is to humbly enjoy this experience abroad. I plan to be dedicated to the music and also dedicated to my significant other. The “my needs first” ideal can take a vacation. With these things in mind and the support of the man upstairs, friends and family, there’s nothing stopping us from flourishing in our time apart. “Here’s to you, Nan!” This move to Sarajevo is an adventure on many fronts and I know when I’m back I will be a changed Dan….
I assure you my blogs won’t all be so preachy. I just wanted to get things started with a heavy-hitting opener! This is the most terrifying and most exciting thing I have done to date. I hope you enjoy some of the fun stories and thoughts this adventure is bound to bring.
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