If you're gonna play in Texas, you gotta have a fiddle (or 6) in the band.

Is there a better way to celebrate civic engagement than to update my blog? No...probably not (except maybe voting...that's a pretty great way to celebrate civic engagement too).

I had a short break back home in Arizona (which explains the lack of blog update), during which I was able to see quite a few of my friends, practice violin, pick up some new repertoire, and even get a lesson with my teacher from ASU! Also, I had the opportunity to see the Grammy-winning new music ensemble Eighth Blackbird at ASU. Though I usually prefer my music tonal, Eighth Blackbird blew my mind with their well-polished, entertaining, and incredibly insightful performances, and made this usually inaccessible repertoire very enjoyable.

Currently, I'm in Coriscana, Texas, and have performed in Austin, Freeport, and Houston over the last week.

This past week has been pretty intense, as Alicia will be leaving Barrage at the end of this week (to return to school at Vanderbilt University). In order to remedy that, Brian Hansen, Barrage's choreographer, came on the road for a week to help us re-choreograph the show for 5 violinists instead of 6. Over the past week, the 5 violinists would have 4-6 hour rehearsals during the morning and afternoon, and then we'd perform either the 5 or 6 person show at night (to get some 5-person performances under our belt while Brian was still around). As a result, the other violinists and I all find ourselves with sore arms and legs, and very mentally drained--but hey, that's what it takes to get a 5 person show ready for the road!

A few nights ago, my friend Ellen from ASU, who is now studying viola at Rice, came to the show in Houston. Ellen and I actually go way back, having both competed in the Arizona State Old Time Fiddle Contests years ago. It was great being able to see her after the show, especially because she gave me a tour of the music school at Rice!

Thanks Ellen!

The next few weeks look to be exciting as we continue travelling around the States. Then, we leave for Denmark at the end of the month, where the 5 violinists will be performing with Stig Rossen on his Christmas tour. It was difficult to pack for this tour, since I've never really experienced cold like a Denmark winter...but I hope that I've packed warmly enough.

And in other exciting news, the new Barrage "High Strung" CD was released earlier this week!!! As of right now, it's not yet available online. As soon as it's available online, I'll make it known here on this blog.

For now, it's time for me to get back to watching the election coverage!