I could get used to this

I fixed a friend's piccolo today. It was my first piccolo, but it was so much easier to work on than the flutes I've been tweaking these past six months. I don't understand what the big deal is with fixing piccolos. I think the combination of shellac-seated pads, and cork bumpers and silencers makes it a fairly straight-forward woodwind to repair. They seem much friendlier than clarinets or oboes.

My point: Bring me your piccolo if it needs some work. I really enjoy working on them.

Ibert - check
Feld - check

Tomasi - 5
McAllister - 5

Lauba - 9
Albright - 9

Ticks to go: 28
Days until the first auditon: 7
Ticks needed per day: 4.0

Well, I have less than one week until I make the first trip out to audition for my doctorate. I'll probably leave next Tuesday, but I still need to confirm whether or not I can stay with an old friend from Indiana who currently goes to school there.

I'll make sure to take lots of pictures.

The saxophone and clarinet pieces are becoming much more challenging now that I'm getting their tempos up. The Albright Sonata is starting to get a little wild, especially in the 4th movement. My double-tonguing on saxophone gives out around 140 bpm, and the movement needs to be at 168. I guess I'll have to water down those sections for the first audition... maybe all of them.

Things are looking up for next year... I really wish I hadn't screwed things up so badly with Lauren last year. You live and learn, I guess. I wish I had a do-over. I'd do anything for another chance with her, but I doubt I'll ever get that opportunity.

Ibert - check
Feld - check

Tomasi - 6
McAllister - 6

Lauba - 11
Albright - 12

Ticks to go: 35
Days until the first audition: 8
Ticks needed per day: 4.38

Cork Palm Key Risers

I put cork palm key risers on my alto today and I like to think I did a pretty professional looking job on it. I used 1/32" sheet cork, contact cement, a razor blade, sand paper, and Sally Hansen's 'Hard as Nails', a clear coat nail polish that protects the surface of the cork.

In order to do this you need to:

1. Apply a layer of contact cement on each of the palm keys and two layers of contact cement to each pre-cut sheet of cork. Using two coats of contact cement on the cork is idea because cork is a poreous material, and in order to have uniform layer of contact cement the first coat is used as a primer.

2. Let the contact cement dry for 15 minutes and then apply the cork to the palm keys.

3. At this point take the razor blade and, using the metal surface of the palm key as your guide, trim the cork to the size of the key.

4. Once the cork is trimmed to size, sand the edge of the cork to remove any excess contact cement that may have oozed out the side.

5. Apply two layers of contact cement to the exposed side of the cork on the palm keys, repeating steps 2 through 4 until the desired palm key height is achieved.

6. Once the desired palm key height is achieved, apply a few coats of clean nail polish in order to seal and protect the surface of the cork.

With a little practice you'll have professional looking cork palm key risers.


Ibert - check
Feld - check

Tomasi - 7
McAllister - 7

Lauba - 13
Albright - 15

Ticks to go: 42
Days until the first audition: 9
Ticks needed per day: 4.67

I got an e-mail today from the admissions coordinator at Eastman saying that the clarinet and flute professors would like to hear me audition. Could this be a good thing? I'm applying for a DMA in Saxophone at this school. Since they don't have a doctoral multiple woodwinds program, I can only assume that perhaps I might be in consideration for the woodwind skills class for undergraduate music education majors... That would be pretty sweet. I hope I can back it up with a decent saxophone audition.


Ibert - check
Feld - check

Tomasi - 8
McAllister - 9

Lauba - 15
Albright - 15

Ticks to go: 47
Days until the first audition: 10
Ticks needed per day: 4.7

I've been surfing the web a little more often than usual lately. Recently I started looking up some of my old friends from Indiana University. Many of them have professional websites outlining all of their professional accomplishments since leaving. Several of them never got their DMA, yet they're all pretty successful.

Maybe it's time to take the plunge and move to New York. It's definitely time to hire a professional web designer to put a site together for me.


Ibert - Full speed!
Feld - Full speed!

Tomasi - 11
McAllister - 11

Lauba - 20
Albright - 19

Ticks to go: 61
Days until the first audition: 12
Ticks needed per day: 5.08

I went to the emergency room about a month and a half ago because of severe stomach pain that was affecting my breathing. They ran a lot of tests on me, but eventually the pain went away and they weren't able to find anything wrong with me.

This afternoon I had pasta with alfredo sauce for lunch; the very same thing that I had for lunch the day I went to the emergency room. I haven't had the alfredo sauce since that day..

About 30 minutes after lunch I started getting HORRIBLE stomach pains. They're starting to subside, but I'm pretty positive now that this alfredo sauce has been tainted in some way. It's in the trash now.

Problem solved.

I found out this afternoon that some close friends from the past are applying to some of the same schools that I am. This is a very nice feeling. I might have a couple potential roommates lined up before the auditions even take place! Very cool.

Ibert - 1
Feld - 1

Tomasi - 13
McAllister - 13

Lauba - 20
Albright - 20

Ticks to go: 68
Days until the first audition: 13
Ticks needed per day: 5.23