Arizona, Revisited

After yesterday's day off spent blogging, shopping at the grocery store, cooking my mom's soup, tending to my battle wound, practicing, and watching a movie, I definitely feel ready to tackle six shows in a row starting tonight.

The sun is shining here in the Netherlands. And, you know what they say: write blogs while the sun shines.

...they don't say that? Oh...

Regardless, it's a perfect time to catch up on some happenings from the fall.

Right before we made it to Arizona back in November we stopped in Austin for a short bit. Having first visited Austin in 2003, one of the things I've always remembered was watching the bats on the Congress Avenue Bridge. The bridge is home to the largest urban bat colony in the world, and every night throughout the summer the bats emerge at dusk to begin their night. It's a pretty incredible experience and it's free to watch! Thanks, Nature!

I never really wrote about our visit to Arizona right after Texas, though I did write a thank you note of sorts, inspired mainly by my experience in Gilbert.

It was incredible being home, and Arizona brought its A game with perfect November weather. My parents once again had Barrage over for dinner, my mom made her soup (the same I made yesterday), and we finished the night with a jam in my backyard. Dean, Barrage's music director and a former Canadian National Fiddling Champion, even joined in. It was an incredibly inspiring thing, sitting in a circle jamming in my backyard with the musical mastermind of Barrage, the guy whose music motivated me for so many years. The man is a genius. I'll never forget that night.

Beautiful moon in the backyard.

The always popular "Ring Your Glow Necklace Around an Empty Bottle."

Sunset on the night of the first performance in Gilbert.

Another thing I'll never forget was in the first show when the lighting guy turned on the disco ball during the build of "Viva La Vida." We had yet to see the disco ball on and didn't know if it was going to be used. I nearly started crying on stage because the timing of it couldn't have been more overwhelming -- writing about it right now actually just gave me chills.

I certainly can't speak for all of the members of Barrage, but I could not have been more impressed by the students at Highland. I think Barrage was getting annoyed with me talking about Highland because I was so excited for the visit, having worked with them on their retreat, but I think they all understood why after we spent a few days there. Bill Bitter and Amy Bennett have undeniably built one of the best orchestra programs I have seen in my travels, and it's filled with some of the most wonderful high school students I have met. I haven't stopped by Highland since the residency as we've had tour every day they've been in school, but I hope to catch them again before school is out in May!

It was also a great week because we traveled east out to Eager/Springerville, a region of the state I'd not previously visited. I've always loved Arizona's extreme geographic diversity (I have one word for you: Sedona) and the drives did not disappoint. I didn't get pictures because I was driving, but we did stop at Salt River Canyon and I snapped this photo.

Salt River Canyon.

In hindsight, our week in Arizona could not have been more perfect. I had time to take the band to some of my favorite restaurants, the weather was perfect, and the residency at Highland went off without a hitch. Thank you again to all of the students, Bill, Amy, my family and friends, and everyone who made that experience what it was.

I should probably go now to take advantage of the time I still have before today's call.

But, a quick update on the leg: the wound opened up while I was in the shower yesterday evening and stayed open for the rest of the night. I put a band-aid on it before I went to bed, though, and it didn't bleed while I slept (which it had the night before). The healing process continues! 

Also, I can now confirm practicing scales with an open wound makes you feel incredibly hardcore. I laugh in the face of danger!

Taylor: 400+, Stage: 3

There's a point in the show, during the encore, when I get a running start from the audience, leap onto the stage, and propel myself high into the air.

Usually I measure the height of the stage before the show, as I know I can jump onto a stage no higher than an inch above my belly button; anything higher and I'll take the stairs or set down my violin and pull myself up.

In the 3.5 years I've done the show, I've successfully executed this jump hundreds of times. 

Last night marked the third time I have failed.

The first time was a few years ago at a venue in Florida. While I had noticed the curtain across the front of the stage, I had not realized it was being held up by a round, brass rail an inch in front of the stage. When I jumped, my foot made contact with the curtain, encased around the brass rail, and instantly slipped back to the ground. It was shocking, because I had never not made the jump. At first, I couldn't really process what had happened. I remember turning to look at the people in the front row, who seemed confused and bewildered...as though not making the jump was somehow intentional.

The second time was a few months ago at a school show. The students had set their cellos and basses in front of the stage (a common occurrence), and it seemed from the top of the aisle I would have space to fit in between the instruments. I realized right before I started to jump, however, that my left foot was about to clip some cello's scroll. Since breaking an instrument would be pretty awful, I instinctively moved to the right, losing all of my momentum though already physically committed to the jump. My right leg made it up and over the edge, fully extended onto the stage, while my left foot stayed on the ground, hopping, trying to maintain balance so I could pull my right leg back down. Crisis averted. No injury to a student's instrument or my person.

Last night's theatre required that I run down a huge set of stairs, ending maybe four feet in front of the stage, and then jump. In theory, I should have made the jump: it was an inch above my belly button. In practice, I didn't have enough momentum coming off the stairs.

What ensued was a comedy of errors.

My right foot made contact with the stage and slipped off. Since I still had momentum forward, however, my shin grated against the edge of the stage as my leg was coming back down. I had a one bar solo coming up, so my first priority was to get on the stage for my solo. I pulled myself up, hit my mark, and played my one bar solo...only to discover that the collision had knocked my violin wildly out of tune. About the same time, one of my suspenders popped off my pants and proceeded to flap about wildly during our next bit of choreography where we jumped in place while playing.

I was laughing so hard onstage at the hilarity of everything that I failed to become acutely aware of the pain in my shin until we bowed and I ran off stage. I found some light, looked down at my pant leg, and realized I was bleeding through my pants. I pulled up my pant leg to examine my battle wound, and my hearing kicked back in...

...no, it can't be...they're asking for a second encore?!

Of course the night I collide with the stage, bleed through my pants, knock my violin out of tune, and lose a suspender, is the night the audience asks for a second encore!

The band went back out and started playing "Rasputin" while I tried to pull myself together.

I attempted to tune my violin, but it was a lost cause. For situations like this, we keep a spare violin offstage, tuned and ready to go. So, I made the necessary equipment changes, re-clipped my suspender, and went onstage just in time to sword fight with Shaina. In hindsight, that little fact could not be more poetic.

Ironically enough, I'd been having a great show, one of my best in recent memory. And yet, in last minute of the encore, almost everything that could go wrong did, and incredibly so.

I skipped the signing for the night and cleaned up my bloody leg in the bathroom. The theatre manager grabbed a first aid kit and put some disinfectant on my wound, small but surprisingly deep. It's pretty swollen and sore today, but it should heal just fine.

Rest assured: the stage may have won this battle, but it certainly has not won the war.

-----

In other news, my mom's famous beef barley soup is now cooking away on the stove. It makes me unbelievably happy that eating it here in the Netherlands on a day off has become a tour tradition. Dinner in two hours!

Action Verbs: Cook, Practice, Create.

You know those days when you are heading to bed and whatever you did in the morning feels like it must have been weeks ago because you did so much during your day?

That was yesterday's day off. And it was awesome.

Here's what I first saw out my bedroom window yesterday morning:

How could it not be a good day after that?

I kicked it off by inviting the band over for breakfast and cooking Dutch pannenkoeken (thicker than crepes, thinner than pancakes) for everyone. I have cooked them a few times at home, picked up some tricks along the way, and found myself preparing them more consistently. Pannenkoeken has become one of the few things I feel really confident about making, which in turn makes them more fun to prepare...it's one of those the-better-you-are-the-more-fun-it-is things. [Young musicians, take note: playing an instrument is definitely one of those things!]

I watched some inspirational videos of musicians on YouTube and parlayed that inspiration into an afternoon of practicing.

We went to dinner at a restaurant across the street. More of a miss than a hit for me, but it was still shared with great people.

Then, a group of us watched the Janine Jansen documentary on the really nice TV here in our house.

All in all, a great day off. Few actual activities, but all quality, great ones.

We've got a show today, another day off tomorrow (!), and then the ever-popular six shows in a row.

Before I leave to go on a run with Kiana, there's this quote I want to share that's been on my mind. 

I'm not much of a magazine reader, but since I joined Barrage and found myself on planes all the time, I have become an avid reader of Esquire. I love the variety of content, I love the way it's written and laid out, and I love the experience of reading it. I don't have a subscription because I'm never home, but I think I've read nearly every issue in the past three or so years because I actively look for new issues in airports.

Anyway, every once in a while I read something in an issue that sticks with me. Maybe it's because I'm a musician, or a blogger, or even just a pannenkoeken enthusiast, but I haven't been able to stop thinking about this quote. So, I'll leave you with it:

"You should make something. You should bring something into the world that wasn't in the world before. It doesn't matter what that is. It doesn't matter if it's a table or a film or gardening--everyone should create. You should do something, then sit back and say, 'I did that.'" - Ricky Gervais, Esquire (February 2012)

Second Home, Sweet Second Home

We arrived yesterday morning in the Netherlands and we're already settled in! These bungalows in the woods really feel like a second home to me.

...that a bungalow in the woods of the Netherlands feels like a second home is absolutely crazy! After all, this is our fourth time at the same place in three years, so we've definitely begun to know our way around. But still, it's nonetheless absurd.

As I've written before, the best thing about being here is not staying in a hotel room. We've got kitchens, couches, and bedrooms! Here's mine:

Look, mom! I even made my bed this morning!

The other great thing about being here is getting time in the mornings on the couch to blog. That being said...

It's been a whirlwind of a tour since my last post.

We started in Atlanta and worked our way toward New York, giving me a chance to meet up with friends along the way, and even for the band to spend a day off in New York City!

With Tara in Alpharetta, GA -- one of my best friends from high school who just moved to the area!

Outside DC with Bethany and Katie, two bridesmaids from Nora's wedding, and Emma, a great friend from college at her fourth Barrage show!

With Barrage alum, Annette, in NYC's Union Square! (Can you tell it's winter from all of the scarves in the last three pictures?)

Mini cupcakes in NYC.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

First stop: musical instrument collection.

An unused string from Paganini's violin case!

Second stop: European paintings, specifically the area with paintings by van Gogh and his contemporaries. I'm a real sucker for Impressionists and post-Impressionists. (Coincidentally, my favorite composers tend to have composed around the same times.)

Why, hello there, Juilliard!

At the NYC Ballet in Lincoln Center. I purchased the cheapest seats thinking they were in the first balcony...only to find out that they were actually in the first row! It was awesome.

With my hilarious friend Matt in Fairfield, CT.

Each time I visit NYC, I like it more and more. The amount of stuff going on there is truly overwhelming -- there's always something to see, do, or experience. What an unbelievable place.

Well, it's been nice to sit on the couch all morning and catch up on stuff, but I am here, after all, for work. Time to go practice!