A new week

Well, one weekend down, two to go. This past weekend's concerts went great. What excellent audiences we had! And I think that people really enjoyed the new pieces we played. Myself, I thought it was a really good balance of new and old. It was a challenging week for all of us, and Steph and I are definitely feeling it. It's hard to put together new music that doesn't have an extensive performance tradition. You have to figure out the style as you go. With Mozart, you KNOW the style. It may be hard to play, but the style is something you can feel. It's hard to rely on your musical instincts when you're faced with an unfamiliar style!

Kevin Puts, our featured composer, arrived Saturday afternoon. What a great guy! And, more importantly, as a composer he's the real deal. We're hoping to get him back here next season to play his piano quintet "Red Snapper"—written for the same instruments as Schubert's "Trout" quintet.

Today, Monday, our week 1 artists departed (Doris, Randy, Timothy, Dane), and our week 2 artists arrived (Ara, Jean-Michel, Irina). Kit Taylor and I started on our two-piano pieces—what a thrill to play with him!—and he, Steph, and the string players started on the David Diamond flute quintet and the David Baker piano trio. They already sound good! David Wells and I made a big pot of chili (a strategic choice, as we were able to largely empty the fridge), and I make a poppyseed-almond torte that's really yummy. We're all salivating at the prospect of Tom Terry's BBQ ribs on Thursday night.

We really should change our name to the Bach Dancing and Dining Society. Or Bach Dancing and Dine-o-mite. 'Cause it's about the music AND the food.