The thought of a great weekend ahead!
Lang Lang's concert at the RAH tonight and teacher's concert tomorrow!

The weather! (Don't get to say this very often...)


Have fun!

So you're going to get your fix of Albeniz then (Iberia Bk1)?

My erstwhile colleague and Head of Music at the school in which I work, thought he'd have a go at one of the Fellowship Diplomas and decided that if he prepared for it he'd offer Schumann's G minor Sonata and .... Prokofiev's Sonata No.7 (on tonight's programme).

The third movement especially, goes at some lick and will probably allow Lang Lang to look somewhat manic as he plays it.

When my colleague's wife heard him play through that last movement she said, "Oh, you're not going to be playing that everyday for nine months, are you!?"

He never sat that diploma!

Don't let that anecdote put you off though; I'm sure LL's rendition will be exciting, to say the least.

Thanks!


It is really strange but I've actually never been able to listen to him properly yet. Everytime I've seen him on TV I've been so mesmorized (or in fits of laughter more like it!! ) by his performance that I haven't been able to concentrate on the music itself!!!
For that reason I'm looking forward to seeing live tonight so I can make up my mind as to whether I enjoy listening to him or not!
Will report back!!

FINALLY being referred to a specialist rheumatologist...

Biology exam over and done with!! Whether or not I've done well, however, is another matter...

So pleased to hear this, Celeste. I do hope they can get to the source of your problems and give you a healthier life.

My parents agreeing to give/lend interest free and give over time me the money for a new flute. Azumi 2000 here I come!

Do you think it went well today, madbassoonist? that was what's made me happy today too-doing biology and PE exams, and seeing an old friend unexpectedly!

Thank you, BM. I just want some answers now!

Having an early birthday lunch with my dear Pa and finishing my Guildhall reports!

the weather...... lunch with a friend and a dog walk with her..... hot tub with family and friends.... all in all a good day....

I'll let missypiano do a full report, but it was rather good

Just about everything !

~ it being my birthday
~ reading lots of lovely birthday messages on the forum and on facebook
~ meeting David Barton
~ having a lovely morning at Guildhall - sprogs were AMAZING and got Happy Birthday sung to me several times by students/parents/teachers
~ being made a chocolate Rice Krispies cake with a sparkler in it by one of my Guildhall Dalcroze colleagues
~ eating TWO whirly ice-creams
~ sitting in the sun by the Barbican Lakeside
~ having a lovely evening with Bagpuss and an old schoolfriend of hers
~ still having all my cards and presents to open tomorrow
~ looking forward to the Kodály Choir tomorrow

I'm sure there's more...!

Reading the above post.

fantastic post to read am glad your haveing a great birthday and all. enjoy your presents and choir

Cyrilla!

See you at choir. Katyjay gave me a bit of practice yesterday. Top Ab above the stave, I ask you...

Fairly well, although I had to guess one question that we hadn't learnt (human evolution, convergent or divergent?) and later found I'd got it wrong. Oh well.

One of my friends also had to do Biology in the morning then PE in the afternoon, and said they were both terrible! I think she's exaggerating though.

How did yours go? Remind me are you Year 10 or Year 11 re-taking?

*faints at the thought*. Did you get vertigo??? Don't think the altos will be up there this afternoon .

And thank you Clari-Netty!

I think we may be doing different exam syllabuses-I'm in year eleven and was doing the AQA B3 exam paper, but the school is highly pushy and largely regards anything lower than an A* as substandard ( ) and so was resitting the B2 paper too, and I don't remember any questions about evolution I think they went okay thank you, fingers crossed (although if we are doing the same exam and I missed hte evolution question, perhaps it didn't go as well as I thought! )

I was invigilating this exam but didn't bother looking at the exam paper this time around, so couldn't verify whether or not there had been a question on evolution. I always think the papers ought to be 30 minutes long rather than the 45 minutes; that seems inordinately long for the content; same for Chemistry and Physics papers too, especially the modular multiple-choice papers taken earlier in the cycle.

When we took the 1a and 1b multiple choice papers, I don't think there was a single person in the exam took longer than twenty five minutes to do the paper and thoroughly check their answers. I tend to take about thirty to thirty five minutes in the 2 and 3 papers, but again, I know many people who do it much faster than this.

Watching, and photographing, our daughter (on her 50th birthday), her husband, her son, daughter & our grandaughters partner all 'going ape' in Dalby Forest. It was a very hot day. If anyone is looking for an interesting physical challenge I can recommend GoApe (no connection).

Seeing (and having a good old chat with) a friend I haven't seen for some time - and singing in the London Kodály Choir this afternoon.

It was just lovely : and it's given me more education in pre-1750 music : I sort of need that being a clarinettist...

....which you can do, so there

I decided today that it'd be fun to sing along with three of the four lines during rehearsal. At pitch...

voice held out for my choir's performance at Ham House this afternoon.

alll at once? Wow, now that needs demonstrating next time..

Well, anything Bobby McFerrin can do...

*books ticket*

I was sitting next to Baz and it was a very impressive feat (I was trying it too but the bass line defeated me - at pitch, that is!).

But who would ever want to sing the bass line?

aw thanks

Only having one lesson that I need to attend at school today, therefore meaning I got to leave at 10 o'clock and have the rest of the day to revise and practice

I singing the bass line - just annoyed it's the one line I can't sing at pitch .

I'm stuffed if it sinks below about a 2nd line Bb/B...

With a sore throat I can get down to the Bb two octaves below middle C! Otherwise the C, a tone above is my limit.

Clavicembalo, why don't you come and join the choir?! We could do with some more basses (sore throat or no)!

I have slogged away at it all afternoon and most of this evening and the first draft of our summer concert programme is now safely put away on my computer. I feel really relieved.

Of couse I should now post on the scream thread because I have yet to write all the announcements and stage dirrections and prepare the first full version of the pupils' programme. But that can wait until tomorrow!

Phew!!

Must be a different board (mine is OCR I think?) - ours was 40 minutes, covering B1, B2 and B3 modules. Only takes 25-30 minutes though. Ours aren't multiple-choice, and although we have some tick-the-correct-box questions, they've recently introduced 'longer-answer' questions worth 3 or 4 marks where you basically write 3 points about the subject in a mini paragraph.

About the pushy school thing - we did Unit 2 of Maths in March, but over half of the Year 11s were re-sitting (the school pays for one resit), some because they'd got one mark off A* Quite a few people in my set were told they basically have to re-take, because they 'only' got A. It makes sense I suppose, because you can't resit Unit 3 and that's worth much more.

Ahh fair enough the issue I have with the school entering for resits is that it really is unnecessary-I got A*'s in my biology and maths modules, and yet I'm resitting both as they weren't "high enough"

mwl1 and his lushness.

Fiona and her ineffable delightfulness

Ach, away with ye!

()

I need some aftersun...

I need some duringsun...

You have my sun lotion! THIEF!!!!!

You have my tanning lotion!!

Hehehe... want it back you big girl?

My legs...

*MY* legs are transparent! You have a suitable amount of fur that it's not obvious that your legs are pale.