A Full Life

A lot of things have happened since I last posted on this blog. I've come to accept that learning to be an adult doesn't happen all at once, and a lot of us are still 10 years old, just wearing bigger clothes. This first hit me as a teen, when my cocoon of security got it's first little crack, and now after college there's at least 10,000 more little cracks in it. Still waiting on the butterfly part to happen, but all in good time.

The school year brought with it a nice rhythm to the days and weeks, which was a nice change from the loosely structured summer months. And isn't that the kicker, spending months wanting open-ended time and sunlight and green grass, to find myself in July realizing my wardrobe and energy level is much more suited towards a perpetual October. Turns out I crave routine more than I thought. My mistake was assuming a routine would present itself to me, and that someone would tell me what to do. People told me building a professional life wouldn't be easy, but I naively thought I was a unique and special snowflake, and it certainly wouldn't be that hard.
Well...you know what they say about assuming.

I'm learning to be patient and put myself out there, though, and things are steadily looking up.
I'm teaching piano, so I'm working in my field of study, and learning the ins and outs of running a studio. My students are enthusiastic, sharp, and hilarious. One of them keeps calling it the "dumper" pedal instead of "damper," and it brings me so much joy. Little things, my friends, it's the little things! I also have a few accompanying gigs lined up, and would love to do more.

This summer I wrote more for the MPR Classical blog, which you can find here, here, and here. MPR's programs have shaped how I listen, study, and experience music, so writing for them was a thrill. It makes me want to find other opportunities like it, because writing has always been the thing I've been scared to pursue, despite how much I love it and desire to get better. What tips would you share with me as a writer?

As a composer, the last seven months have been astonishingly productive and exciting. Five years into writing music, and having ideas come to life successfully still kind of startles me.
The six-month mentorship program with VocalEssence was a huge vote of confidence, and I am PUMPED to hear the end result premiered next week at the MN-ACDA conference, for a roomful of music educators, many of whom will be from my alma mater. Who knows what will come of it! If anything, it will be a fun day. About half a dozen other projects have happened along the way. Mainly because when I got frustrated with Important Project #1, and was sick of staring at it,
I'd toy with another idea to keep the creative juices flowing. So you'd guess correctly that with half a dozen side-projects, IP#1 was pretty frustrating. Which is good, because I was playing with ideas that were new and different for me, and I wanted to grow. Some of those side-projects will be performed by others eventually, and some will sit in my notebook and simply exist. Both are good things, because it reminds me that I'm doing my job, which is to create!

It's a full life, my friends.