20 Questions: Take 1

I've gained quite a few followers in the past week or so, and I thought it would be fun to share some things about me. Now that you know I'm a violinist.

I found these questions in a magazine about Greenville, and I thought they were fun.

***

What one thing really makes your day?

I always smile when I get a sweet text from Daniel.

Is your desk messy or neat?

It's messy at the moment, but usually I'm very neat.

What was your first job?

I'm looking for it.

What is your pet peeve?

Besides people invading my personal space, it annoys me when people don't know how to drive. That's pretty much the entire population of Greenville.

What is your favorite thing about Greenville?

I love that it's close to the mountains and only a short drive to the beach. I also love that it has the cultural appeal of a big city yet still retains a lovely small-town charm.

What was your first car?

A mauve 1995 Toyota Camry.

What is your favorite comfort food?

Macaroni and cheese. And chocolate, of course.

What is your idea of a dream vacation?

Well, if we're talking about a location I've never been to, I would love to relax by the blue waters of Santorini, Greece. But London will always hold a special place in my heart.

What store would you choose to max out your credit card?

J. Crew. Or Banana Republic.

What is your favorite thing to cook?

Chicken and snow pea pasta.

What was your favorite subject in school?

Music, of course. And English.

What advice would you give a student just starting out?

Do what you love!

Do you prefer the mountains or the beach?

Mountains!

Have you ever met a famous person? Who?

I've met lots of famous classical musicians including Arnold Steinhardt and Lynn Harrell.

If you could invite five people, living or dead, to dinner, who would you invite?

Jane Austen, Itzhak Perlman, Elizabeth I, Johannes Brahms, and Abraham Lincoln

What is the best gift you have ever received?

An education!

What makes you laugh?

My friends.

What chore do you really hate to do?

Wash the dishes.

What do you like to do on your day off?

Curl up in a comfy chair and read. Watch movies. Craft.

I can't live without my...what?
Computer. Sad, I know.

If you want to find out my favorite things about summer time head on over to Maegan's blog, Chesterrific, where I'm being featured today!



The Onyx Trio

Remember the Brahms post I did awhile ago?

Well - my piano trio, The Onyx Trio, gave our graduate chamber recital on Friday night! While I was nervous, I also had a lot of fun!

Of course there was some pre-recital backstage silliness...

...and some post-recital trio goofiness...

...and a bit of seriousness.

Well, only a little bit...

Before the recital, Julie Anna and I decided to make our own dresses - the one-shouldered ones! Now, despite receiving a sewing machine for Christmas, I was reluctant to do any of the actual sewing. I'll admit it - I was scared. So Julie did the sewing, and I think she did a fabulous job!

I did, however, make a pretty group of satin rosettes to sew on to the waistband of my dress...

...and a cute bunting sign thanking our professors for working with us.

:)

Dear Brahms, I Love You.

If I'm curiously absent for the next few days, it's because I'm in Charlotte rehearsing with my piano trio.

(Ok, we'll be doing a little shopping, too. And eating. And hangin' out. But also some serious rehearsing.)

We're rehearsing for our graduate chamber music recital in February.

And we're playing this - Brahms' Piano Trio No. 1:

Sigh...Oh Brahms, how I love you.

I know it's long, so just listen to the first couple of minutes. The opening is just...perfection.

(This recording is fantastic, too. The performers are all legends in the classical music world. And Isaac Stern has long been one of my favorite violinists.)

I'm so incredibly excited about playing this piece!!!

Maybe I'll put up a video of us playing later... ;)

And speaking of Brahms - if you've never seen the Raisin Brahms commercial, you must. It's hilarious. If only Brahms would come crashing through my wall...

(Ok, maybe it's only hilarious to music majors who have spent way too much time in a practice room. But still cute.)

There's a video for Van Goghgurt too.

(After my last recital...)

I'm off to rehearse! And shop!

:)

School. Ack.

My life has reached epic proportions of busyness.

This was quite possibly the most insane first week of school ever. Thus, my absence, once again, from the blogging world. However, despite the fact that I might not sleep until December, this semester should be a fun one. I'm looking forward to playing the Brahms Piano Quintet for my graduate chamber recital (If you don't know it, go listen - right now.), teaching my eleven (!) private violin students, and getting in lots of practice time.

This week has been extra busy because I'm playing with the Hendersonville Symphony Orchestra. Although rehearsals have required a lot of driving, most of the trips have been through the Blue Ridge Mountains at sunset, which makes my heart happy. This concert has been a lot fun because we're playing all Rodgers and Hammerstein. It has brought back a lot of memories - mainly the fact that I wanted (still want?) Anna's dress from The King and I.

(source)

Um, yeah - still want.

One Rodgers and Hammerstein concert down, one to go.

To bring a bit more calm into my life, I'm going to remember a bit of Silver Bay and show you the last of my pictures. Here are some of my favorite places to sit around the bay.

Sigh...

As much as I miss Silver Bay, though, I was delighted to return home to this...

...the necklace I won from Mandy at Mandy's Yellow Corner! It made me smile!

I know I haven't been blogging about crafting much recently, but I hope my photos count as one of my artsy adventures. It is something I've been wanting to work on, and I'm glad I had such a beautiful place to practice.

In Etsy news - I've had two sales in my shop! (One was my mom. Shh, don't tell.)

I also have one new necklace in my Etsy shop:

I decided to add my tatting to a necklace.

What do you think?