Flute Karaoke

I have a confession. I'm a closet American Idol watcher. I know. You can't believe it! Generally I don't watch much tv, but I started tuning into the show because my parents are big fans. RTP and I laugh at the judges' musical critiques as we draw transfers to the realm of classical music. What if you went to an orchestral audition and one of the comments was "Your performance was a little pitchy, Dog." Another regular criticism by the judges is that a performance is like karaoke. That made me think a little bit about fostering your own musical voice and breathing new life into the standard flute repertoire. We classical musicians certainly don't want to perform "auto pilot" when we're on stage. Of course you'll want to study recordings and try different interpretations of a piece. Another way I try to stay fresh is always programming new repertoire and playing at different performance venues. RTP and I are playing at the southwoodstock music festival tomorrow: www.southwoodstock.org. I'm going to play two pieces with cd accompaniment: Ian Clarke's TRKS and Cindy McTee's Stepping Out. This will be my first time playing those pieces in public, so I'm looking forward to seeing what will happen. I suppose there is even more danger of sounding karaoke when you perform with pre-recorded accompaniments....especially with the Clarke. Once the piece feels mastered, you may want to try playing on the back side of the beat at times and exploring the timing each piece allows. Since the accompaniment is fixed, you will have to vary your tone colors or energy level. In the case of the McTee, the percussion part could also be performed live which is neat. Will let you know how it goes tomorrow. Have a great weekend!