I can play the oboe now

So as of today my instruments I can play are...
Flute (Proficiency Level: Yayyyy!!)
Piccolo (Proficiency Level: Hasn't been taken out in a while but I can probably still play it just fine, though I used to be the piccolo queen)
Piano (Proficiency Level: Not great but I can do my music theory keyboard homework and that's what matters)
Alto Saxophone (Proficiency Level: What? I have to play lead now? I guess I'd better learn me some vibrato skills)
Oboe (Proficiency Level: REEDS ARE EVERYTHING. IF YOU THINK YOU SUCK AT OBOE SERIOUSLY GET A GOOD REED.)

Ahem. So yeah, I'm not adding any more instruments to this list, haha. I think that five instruments is more than enough for any music major, and I only really practice two of them consistently. Need to change that, haha. But yeah. Now I need to try out clarinet again because I wanna be woodwind queen. And then bassoon. AND THEN THE WORLD. Just kidding, I though I said no more instruments. XD

Princess Tutu (2002) Review Time! (Part 1)

So my sister and I just finished the first half of the anime unfortunately titled Princess Tutu, and it's just great. This is a show that uses classical music as the soundtrack and draws a lot of the plot and thematic material from ballet. The premise is as follows...
There's a writer called Drosselmeyer (lulz) who died in the middle of a novel. His characters got bored waiting around, so they broke out of the story. Those characters are a prince and an evil raven. To stop the raven from destroying the town, the prince 'shatters his heart', which seals away the raven because fairy tale reasons. But because he did that, he's pretty much just a mannequin who can talk and move around, so the story has ground to a halt. The author is still alive as a ghost, living in a bizarre clockwork realm, and he still wants to continue the story, so after many years he finally finds a way. A little duckling who has a crush on the prince wishes she could become a girl and hold hands with him and other cute things. So the author gives he a magic pendant that not only turns her into a girl, it also turns her into a character from the story, the only one who can return pieces of the prince's heart.
Phew. Premises should not take that long to explain, but there you go. The show is a little confusing at first, but it's fairly easy to get into. The first two episodes are pretty weak, and they look even weaker when you consider how strong the episodes at the end of the season are.
The cast is strong and dynamic, which is one of my favorite things about the series. Especially in regards to once character, their arcs go in very unexpected directions. The main character, literally named Duck is a very sweet character once she gets out of the first two episodes, where she is a little manic and over energized. Once the show as a whole settles down she does too, and we get to know her personality more. Duck is hyper and cheery, but she is equally insecure and constantly questioning herself and her motives. The other two interesting characters I can't really say much of anything without spoilers, but suffice to say that they are really interesting to watch. The only weak link in the cast is the prince himself, who has his moments but is mostly bland. Unfortunately he is the one that Duck is in love with, but we can't really find anything about him that's worth it.
However. The interesting thing is that the show itself mentions this. There's a scene where Duck questions why she loves the prince (called Mythos, apparently pronounced Myu-toe), and the dialogue goes in a really interesting direction before they are interrupted by killer crows. There's a lot of those in this series.
Anyways, let's get to the music! Each episode has a piece of classical music that sums up the thematic material of the episode, or just fits really well with the action. Or acts as sneaky bits of foreshadowing. The episode music includes these pieces, as well as many more that are just used as incidental music, or character themes.
Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, The Blue Danube, Pictures at an Exhibition, Scheherazade (!!!), Cinderella, Romeo and Juliet (the ones by both Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev!), and Danse Macabre! So far all the music has been really well used, and the Scheherazade episode was probably the best of the season.
We're looking forward to the second season. The show is very sweet, even if it has random weird things that kill the mood sometimes. Like the fact that the ballet teacher is a human sized anthropomorphic cat. Ahem. But anyways, school starts tomorrow and I wanted to do a fun post before I start complaining about school. Which might happen. Anyhoo, see you guys later. :)

Clara's Theme by Murray Gold (from Doctor Who)

Hey-o! Want to hear us play? Here's a video of my sister, boyfriend, and I playing a cover of Clara's theme from Doctor Who. It was composed by Murray Gold, who is so seriously awesome.
I think we sound really good together, enjoy!
We call our trio TriTone, because hey! Tri=Three!

My Pieces...

I'm assigned so much that I feel like I'm not getting done, haha. But I'm doing okay with my massive pile of audition prep. So here is a list of the pieces that I'm working on and will be using to audition with!

Mozart Concerto in G Major
We've all got to do Mozart, over here in Flute World. Seriously. Mozart is great though, and his flute concertos are really cute. They aren't my favorite, but they're not too hard and they feel rewarding to play, so I'm happy to learn them. I know most of D major already, but my teacher tells me that G major is a little better for an audition, especially since it was written for the flute. D major was actually first written for the Oboe (Oboe Concerto in C major) but it was transposed into D and some things were changed to make it technically different.
Out of the two, I always thought that G major sounded more 'royal', while D major sounds more 'rustic'. Those adjectives really help me to put some life into my playing when I perform or practice these pieces!



Bach Sonata in E Minor
It's actually kind of a toss up between this and the Mozart. I'm learning mvts 2 and 3, which are fast and slow respectively. We want to see which set of 'fast and slow' showcase the good things about my playing. Displaying a knowledge of Baroque flute playing might impress the flute instructor at my top pick, so it could be this one, who knows, we're deciding next lesson. I don't know much about Baroque flute, but I know that you're not supposed to use much vibrato at all. The quality of phrase leading is what gives Baroque playing life. The sonata itself is one of Bach's best pieces for flute, and it's really fun to play. It's pretty hard, but not like Ibert level hard, so it's actually fun. I'm not a fan of harpsichord though, I like it a little better with piano or guitar.



Fantaisie by Philippe Gaubert
So we swapped out Chaminade in favor of this, saaaad. Well, not really. I love both these pieces! French flute showpieces are a genre by themselves in Flute World, and it's a genre I really like. I'm still maybe going to play the Chaminade at a recital later this year though. :)
Fantaisie is kind of like two pieces in one. It starts slow and well, fantastical, with lovely melodic lines. The second part is fast and full of energy, with bits of the original theme from the slow part coming back! It's a beautiful, well-rounded piece that will be very rewarding.

Poulenc Sonata
This piece is pretty nice. It's a three movement sonata from the 20th century that Jean Pierre Rampal first performed. It's whimsical and has many different moods. The first and second movement are fairly easy to manage, but the third one is absolutely insane! Thankfully, my teacher says they are more likely to be interested in the first movement, which is hard, but I've 98% got it down. Better safe than sorry though, I'm learning all three.

Here are the pieces that I may or may not be using, depending on what the schools want to hear.

Hungarian Fantasy by Doppler
Hard rhythms everywhere! It's very fun and fanciful though, and I get to use my low B foot!

Ibert Flute Concerto mvt. 3
Hard hard hard hard hard why. Cool piece though.

Prokofiev Sonata mvt. 1
I'm just so happy I can play this. ^_^ I hope somebody asks for it so I can show them how much I like it!

My favorite Doctor Who Episodes

The Doctor Who wildfire is currently sweeping through my house. At least with me, my mom, and my sister, haha. Thing is, we got out of it during season 7 because let's face it, season 7 was a bit lame. Recently though, we caught up and watched seasons 8 and 9, and the currently airing 10, and now we're kind of hooked. Help up. It got good again. Actually, it got more than good, 8 and 9 are amazing. So there are a few episodes that really stick out to me and just amazed me. Be it a clever twist, emotional depth, or just a really creative monster of the week, here are the episodes that rank as my absolute favorites. Listed in chronological order, all from the new series just because I'm most familiar with those. :)

The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances (Season 1, 9th Doctor)

Such creepy episodes! I remember seeing these episodes back in 2006 (i think) when I was either eight or nine years old. Old enough to not get scared by a tv show, right guys? Well... apparently not, because when we watched this I was scared stiff and made up an excuse to sit in the kitchen and watch the show from afar. The premise is that the Doctor and Rose are in 1940s London, and the Doctor encounters a young woman named Nancy, who is seemingly being followed by a creepy young child who is always wearing a gas mask and calling for his mummy. It's a really good story, and the ending is really good. Makes me so happy. Spoiler alert. ;)

Blink (Season 3, 10th Doctor)

Now here is an episode that is very clever. In this one, the monsters are 'statues' that can move when you don't look at them... like when you blink, for example. If they get you, it's enough for me to say that nothing good happens. This episode actually doesn't have a whole lot of the Doctor on it, it mostly focuses on two normal people who have to solve the problem with minimum help from the Doctor. Once again, it's a very spooky episode, and even though I was three years older at this point... I was still scared and hiding in the kitchen. Didn't stop us from playing Weeping Angel though, haha, that was a fun game. And you know that you've made a cool Doctor Who monster when kids want to make a game about it. :)

Vincent and the Doctor (Season 5, 11th Doctor) 

Tied for my favorite episode. This episode deals with themes of mental illness, but it is by no means depressing. Rather, this is an incredibly uplifting episode. Here, the Doctor and Amy go back to visit Vincent van Gogh, and he helps them to find a monster that is terrorizing the small village he lives and paints in. It sounds very cheesy, but I'm not good at explaining plots, in case you haven't noticed by now in the post ;) Everything about this episode is just lovely. The setting and characters, the visuals, the music, and the thematic material. I consider this the 11th Doctor's best episode.

Robot of Sherwood (Season 8, 12th Doctor)

The last episode I did was very heavy, but Doctor Who is also really funny sometimes. Really funny. Here, the Doctor and Clara go back in time to England in the middle ages, because Clara wanted to meet Robin Hood. The Doctor is determined to prove to her that Robin Hood isn't real, but... he is. Mayhem ensues, and it's really, really, funny. There is some really hilarious dialogue, I love how the Doctor interacts with Robin Hood!

Heaven Sent (Season 9, 12th Doctor)

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Everything about this episode is so awesome. It's probably my favorite episode tied with Vincent and the Doctor. After the heartbreaking ending of Face the Raven, you don't really expect this kind of episode to follow. Almost the whole thing is mysterious and you don't really have any idea what's going on, where the Doctor is, or how he got here. Fortunately, the Doctor is just as lost as the viewers and we find out together what's going on, with an incredibly satisfying reveal/twist at the end.
So what's going on is that the Doctor, immediately after the events of Face the Raven (or is it?), finds himself suddenly and mysteriously transported to a maze-like castle, and he's not alone. With him in the castle is a veiled monster that follows him everywhere, and will always eventually catch up.
If that wasn't enough, the soundtrack is amazing. We're waiting for the Season 9 soundtrack!! This episode could have it's own disc, with lovely and melancholy music all throughout until the ending, where the soundtrack seems to 'gain confidence' and rises to a peak of excitement, as the mysteries of the episode are all revealed at once in a terrific montage.
And of course, there is some A+ acting from Peter Capaldi, who carries the episode almost entirely by himself, which is quite a feat. Good on!

Here's the cool Heaven Sent poster, by the by. :)

What I'm Working On... June 2017 Edition

I'm assigned a lot of stuff. I'm coping by blogging about it. But seriously, help me, haha. I'm supposed to start applying for schools in the fall and I don't feel anywhere near ready, but I guess I'll find a way to do it. If I have to do something, I'm usually able to muster up the energy to do it.

Ibert Flute Concerto, 3rd Movement
This piece is insane. I mean, I like it and stuff, but I'm not happy about all those accidentals, triplets, and wonky trill fingerings. This is going to be a very rewarding piece though, I can tell! I'm just not even off the first page, though I can stumble through most of the first page at a very moderate tempo. Urgh.

Doppler Hungarian Fantasy
This is a little more bearable than the Ibert. It's really demanding, of course, but it's easier to imagine myself playing it competently. I'm currently assigned the middle section to the end, starting with the coquettish bit in 4/8, and leading up to a spectacular ending that involves a cadenza that is secretly fun to play because it's probably the least testy part of the piece.

Poulenc Flute Sonanta
Yeeks! Not that hard, but still pretty capricious. The rhythms are tricky and there are some parts that are like torture to an embouchure, but hey, it's something I think I can learn in a few months. The second movement just has difficulty in the phrasing department. I haven't really touched the third movement... it looks hard but I think I can do it. :)

I'm back

Hi guys :) I'm back, I've been back for about a week, and the picture posts should be coming soon unless I get lazy. I had a really good time. I went to many cities, almost all the big ones. Madrid, Toledo, Sevilla, Córdoba, Granada, and Barcelona. :)

Here's the Plaza de Espana, which was one of my dream locations to visit. ^_^ It was really beautiful there, even though I didn't get to explore as much as I wanted to... it was extremely hot, but I got some ice cream and enjoyed the scenery, it's a wonderful place.

Here's me and my salamander friend at Park Guell in Barcelona! Gaudi's architecture really gives Barcelona a lot of whimsical charm, and it's part of the reason I enjoyed the city so much. Definitely one of my favorite places! I'm going to bring my favorite people here someday. <3