Day Four--Challenges and Rewards at Humboldt

Hermann Goetz

As I discovered last time I came up to the Humboldt Chamber Music Workshop, there is one day that is a little tougher, and Thursday, for me, was that day. The piece I was assigned, the Quintett by Hermann Goetz (1940-1876), was a little more challenging, and so there were a few areas that I really didn't have down when we went on stage to play the piece. I had to work a bit harder during the rehearsal periods, and although I liked the feeling of stretching my abilities that the tougher piece brought out, it still gave me a little anxiety.

I was playing with seasoned musicians, too, so I didn't want to slow them down. I had a time in the afternoon where I needed to go over a couple of sections and it was still tough. But I can see now the areas that I need to work on to make my sightreading and technique even better for next year. And it still felt wonderful to participate in a day of "work" and to attend an afternoon and early evening of remarkable performances.

In the evening, after dinner, I went to the library to assist with the music. I'd never been inside it before--just to its front window--so it was an adventure. There were rows and rows of piles and piles of carefully organized manila envelopes of music, arranged by category. The numbering system was devised, I assume, to help musicians determine where to look for what they wanted.

After refiling some envelopes, I helped Tom to put away music that belongs to the University collection. We made lots of progress, although the job remained unfinished when I left three hours later. It felt good to do something to help the Workshop.

I then joined the party, which was in full swing at 11 p.m. and went past midnight. Hard to believe that this little island of delight in the sea of life is approaching its final day. I took a little stroll after breakfast on Friday morning:

The century-old Humboldt campus is beautiful

Another Chamber Music Workshop Is Done

It's late in the day, but I'm happy. I got to play chamber music on my bass all day today--and all evening too.

Over the last few years, I've attended gatherings of the Chamber Musicians of Northern California (CMNC) that take place three times a year at a San Francisco Bay Area campus. After about 12 of them I know the drill, and always learn something. Also, it's great to be with people who are interested in what you're interested in--and being a "workshop," it's about developing yourself as a musician--not being a perfect concert performer. Good thing, too, because I make lots of mistakes!

We were assigned a Piano Quintet by German composer Hermann Goetz, who lived from 1840 to 1876 (see photo). The piece was beautiful and challenging. Goetz wrote it late in his short life--1874, while he already was suffering from the tuberculosis that would kill him.

We opted for the slow second movement, and even after a day's work of practice, I never quite got it right. Some parts are simply harder to play. But it was worth it to try to figure it out.

My work on this piece helped me realize that it's one thing to play every day, but for my next step, I need to work more on the basics--hand position, intonation, bowing techniques, scales--to move to the next level. That's something worth knowing--and acting on.

After dinner, I joined seven other musicians in playing through Schubert's Octet--a favorite ensemble piece that gives the bass plenty to do. Much of it is easy to play (for me now) but there are some challenges. I did a better job than the last time I played it--gratifying.