Reality Check 2: Living in the Moment

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Coffee with Kofi: Espresso Hot-Chocolate, homemade.

Today I learned about William Grant Still (1895-1978). He studied music composition at the Oberlin Conservatory before moving to New York City; a rite of passage for most musical careers at the turn of the century. He became the first African-American to conduct a major symphony orchestra in this country, the first to conduct a major orchestra in the deep South, the first to conduct a radio orchestra in New York City, the first composer whose opera was televised over a national network, and the first to have an opera produced by a major company in the United States, Troubled Island c. 1949. It has never been performed again.

Despite these pioneering efforts, his presence in the orchestral music scene wasn't and still isn't preferential in standardized classical programming. After being rejected by the Metropolitan Opera, which has to this day never performed a work by an African-American composer, he began to focus exclusively on chamber music. I've actually performed a piece by him, Summerland for wind ensemble.

Today, I heard his granddaughter perform.

Celeste Headlee, a lyric alto and Detroit NPR correspondent, performed several of Still's art songs in the West Building Lecture Hall at the National Gallery of Art in a concert series honoring African-American History. Art songs are performed as mini movements without applause until the end of a cycle of four to six songs. Typically art songs are collaborations between vocalists and pianists offering composers' music to libretto, or prepared text.

Friends from DC Twenties, a collegiate social group.

Although most of Still's works were composed for a soprano, Headlee chose works that were executable for an alto with an extended range. I fell more in love with her emotional intent than with her artistry. It was obvious that maybe some of the songs should really have been performed by a soprano. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the intermittent discussion about the composer with whose style merged staunch classicism's strict form and functionality with the raw emotion in Afro-American themes.

For each art song Celeste completely changed her character and lived in the moment. I felt that this was most represented by Still's accompaniment to Poeme by Philippe Thoby-Marcelin.

Poeme

Dawn had not yet broke,
but I arose,
rubbing my eyes.
'Round about all were sleeping.
The banana trees beneath my window
shivered in the calm moonlight.
Then, I took my head in my hands
and thought of you.

"Living in the moment" is now my motto. It has been a struggle to ignore precariousness and worry about my future.

Poeme is so simple, and so relevant. The character is just enjoying the moment in what seems like a very relaxed atmosphere; they're thinking about his/her loved one. Just this past week I've witnessed a lot of artists just living in the moment: Alvin Ailey: American Dance Company, the 21st Century Chamber Players, and today's gallery concert with Celeste Headlee. You know there's tons of stimulation here in DC. I also went to my ballet class as usual at the Capitol Hill Workshop, an Arts Career Fair at Studio Theatre, a lecture on the African-American and Latino Vote int he 2008 Presidential Election at the Center for American Progress Action Fund and I heard Kevin Klose, the President of NPR speak to TWC students. Whew!

Dancing with a few classmates after Ballet Technique at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop.

DC has made me "think in the moment" about my future plans. It's not that I was completely decided before and now I've experienced an earth shattering intervention; it's just that now I'm more aware my true interests, dislikes, talents, challenges, and aptitudes. I have been required to completely be responsible for myself while I've been interning at the National Endowment for the Arts and form my own existence, here, in DC.

…my cup is empty.

Soho Cafe near DuPont Circle at 23rd and P

Features: Collegiate scene with a decent (not comprehensive) menu and free wireless internet.
Drink: House roast blend and double egg croissant.

My cell has the worst batteries ever and can you believe I can't get any reception! Why are those people so loud on the Metro? Is it that serious? Why can't my iPod battery last all day!? My computer was charging overnight and it still needs to be plugged up? Now, I've got to walk all the way across the room to plug it up. Gosh! Yeah, so I bumped into you, so what? Get out of the way!

After a day of perpetual thoughts like this, now, imagine if you woke up tomorrow and saw absolutely nothing. Pitch black. You could feel, you could smell, you could hear; you just didn't see anything. No longer could you see the view from your window, you couldn't read the newspaper, you couldn't maneuver around your bedroom without bumping into things; you had to guide yourself with your arms. You couldn't pour yourself any milk or make coffee or turn the radio on to your favorite morning station. You'd hear, "good morning" from someone close by, but their face could only be remembered.

Imagine if you were blind.

Growing up visually impaired is severely different from sudden blindness. There are accredited schools across the country that ensure the same educational opportunities as students without visual impairment. Deaf and dyslexic students are accommodated similarly. However, these teachers need supplies. How does a student with these varying maladies use textbooks or other tools?

At left: A student using RFBD instructional materials.

Photo Courtesy of RFBD Public Relations

Organizations like Reading for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFBD) help supply this need. DC is home to one of the few regional centers in the immediate Maryland area. I volunteer here. I can choose to volunteer either evenings or weekends to record texts for students at all levels –even post-secondary. Footnotes in legal practice texts are already difficult to understand, now imagine recording a concise explanation. Let's not forget the student that has to then transfer this sound into useful material for exams, etc.

I definitely began to see how little emphasis I use in normal conversation to allow all vowels and consonants to breathe. It's a working process because I talk pretty fast. I can't help it, being away from home takes a lot of energy to transfer over the phone. I have so much to unleash when dishing with friends.

Recording a text in a booth at the RFBD-DC Center at Friendship Heights.

When I started to volunteer at RFBD-DC, I felt ashamed. There are so many things that I take for granted. Since this past Saturday, my first volunteer session and orientation, I have found a change in the way that I interact with others. I've found that I am now a rebel in social interaction. On the metro, I make it a point to make eye contact with people I do not know. Obviously this is a bit uncomfortable for some. In most cases it results in conversation. You know, why is it so hard to smile? Isn't that something inherently apart of the human experience? Why can't I strike up a conversation with someone I haven't met? Why do we make it difficult to fellowship with each other? What is to fear?

I challenge you to meet someone today that you've never met before. Smile, and above all else, listen.

…my cup is empty.

Reality Check 1

It is understood that we are products of the influences in our environment. As a musician, I am a product of arts organizations with good leadership and cultural initiative. Arts agencies supported me in the beginning. Arts groups and patrons bought my first clarinet; they also provided for me amazing experiences at arts festivals, camps, and competitions. Arts organizations have supported me in college. These organizations have purchased my textbooks, supplies and even bought food. Leaders and teachers in these organizations inspired me to continue pursuing a performance career in the arts despite the harrowing realities of a lifetime pursuit of excellence. They provided means for me to creatively contribute to my community and become an effective citizen. It is these arts organizations that I blame when it is difficult, that I go to for help, and that I thank for their existence. I have a debt to repay and I know it will accrue interest in the future. My life's work may be the only way to give back.




Me and my roommate Armando at the National Gallery of Art.








The world environment, however, is changing. Our society spends more time with technology than we do with the people surrounding us; the people with perspectives, the people with stories, the people with dreams, the people with talents, the people living. It is easy to be distracted by our environment. We find ourselves spending less time in the performance space and more time as consumers of electronics. This current of behavior is not an obstacle for the arts, but will definitely require arts organizations to adjust. This is where I want to help.

As a classical clarinetist, I have performed in different capacities with the symphony orchestra, wind ensemble, opera, musical, and even in marching band. The audiences of each are very, very different. People will go to the events where they feel they are welcome to experience something that is meaningful to their existence. They want to feel included, they want to feel entertained, questioned and essentially subjected to an arts experience. They want to feel needed. Not all arts organizations see the need to diversify their audience, yet many commission new music, for a traditional audience. Who will continue to listen?

I believe the best way to do this is to diversify programming that is outreaching for diversity—inclusive of minorities and youth. Multidisciplinary arts programs would be more effective and would involve many arts, artists and more reception.

I attended a production of The Whiz as performed by the students at the Duke Ellington School for the Arts in Washington, DC where I am currently interning with the National Endowment for the Arts. I watched a kaleidoscope of cultures as teachers, parents, and friends entered the auditorium. I saw the presence of pride and appreciation as they were all so very excited for what was about to happen on stage that collaborated all of the school's arts departments. Smiles and laughs of fellowship permeated the experience. As "Glenda," the good witch, descended from the sky of the stage to tell Dorothy that the power was within her self, I glanced over and saw a little girl mimicking the motions of the talented student before her. The two connected. She became the actress that, to her, represented something that she wanted to become—an influence in her environment. I only hope that my future in arts management and leadership may inspire others to be inspiring.

I must repay.

Curtain call at the Duke Ellington School for the Arts.

Starbucks at Eastern Market near 7th and G

Features: It's the same on most corners.
Website: www.starbucks.com
Drink: Dark Roast, black, no sugar, and an Odwalla Citrus C monster

It was at Starbucks back home that my closest friend and I talked for five solid hours before I boarded the plane the next day to take the town here in DC. I miss her so much. It's rare that you find that great friend who knows what you're thinking before you say anything.

We text daily.

I will definitely miss her and many other friends' graduation ceremonies this May. It was a hard decision to take this opportunity. However, I had to convince myself that graduation is the last thing to look forward to in the cycle of collegiate study and to commit to experiencing as many career oriented programs as possible, especially while I have university support. This opportunity couldn't hurt. It just postponed graduate school, not my life. Plans changed, not my intentions. My priorities changed and I allowed myself, and my heart, to follow.

This week has been very reflective. I've learned the most about myself every day just since the last time we spoke. What did I do? What happened? Well, I definitely exposed myself to quite a bit of art that dealt with issues about the human experience and I too experienced something new.

Last weekend I went to the Rosslyn Theatre where I saw a silent production of Romeo and Juliet by Synetic Theatre. I didn't think I would be artsy enough to get it, but I totally did and really enjoyed it. The production wasn't exactly completely silent. An electro music technician was involved in creating atmospheric sounds for everything happening on stage. The sounds, of course, were pre-recorded, but they had to happen at just the right time to make the scene work and accompany the actors on stage. Check out the DCist review.

The Clarice Performing Arts Center at the University of Maryland hosted the 25th Annual Choreographers' Showcase. The choreographers competed to get into this competition. I particularly enjoyed a piece involving only one dancer. The choreography created a sense of paradox between the world of our work lives and the intimacy that we experience alone. This was most represented in a segment where the dancer placed a suitcase on the ground and looked inside where a video camera displayed her image on a scrim behind her. So, as she's looking into this suitcase, you see an enlarged version directly behind her. I don't know, I just thought it was really brilliant. It said to me that we look to live as we live to work. Do you get me?

Only this past Wednesday (02/06/08) co-workers of mine and I headed up Pennsylvania Ave. to catch a free (yes, free) dance performance at the new Shakespeare Theatre. Their concert series is every Wednesday offering performances from contemporary music groups to poetry readings. This particular performance featured traditional Indian dance betwixt several contemporary pieces. Indian dance would be great for the youth. The dance tradition is a mixture between an early form of dance technique and simple storytelling. The dancers became various characters in Indian mythology.

Just from a few days, one can get exhausted attempting to see all of what DC has to offer artistically. I'm going to miss this educational prism. No matter where I look there is some type of culturally enlightening experience waiting for me to take advantage.

What I meant earlier about learning about myself had to do with my first ballet class. Yes, that's right. I took a beginner's ballet class at the Capitol Hill Workshop at Eastern Market. I needed to do something that I felt was for me and for just the sake of learning something new. As a clarinetist attempting to survive in an extremely competitive job market, I can easily say that I have had somewhat of a psychological revamping. In this field, you cannot be mediocre. There is no exception. To survive as an artist of any medium, perfection, and excellence is always the goal. Our performance teachers tell us that daily. Let me preface that by saying this is a great tool for success in other fields. Imagine if you went to a basketball game and 9 players performed at maybe 75% accuracy. Now put that statistic in a concert where 9 musicians played only 75% of the right notes. Would that be acceptable? We would allow for some artistic "of the moment" mistakes, but generally speaking, it's not just overlooked.

Back to how this relates to my taking the ballet class. This environment was comfortable because it had to accept my failure. I walked into the room with absolutely no clue what I was about to get into. Initially I kept staring at myself in the mirrors laughing at how ridiculous I looked. I caught myself thinking that I was a fake. I thought that I needed to stop, that I should be doing something else, that I shouldn't be there. After twenty minutes I began having fun, smiling, and well, living. I plan to study ballet through the rest of the semester.

I suggest you start doing something you have no knowledge about. You'll learn something new and most importantly learn about yourself.

…my cup is empty.