February 29, 2008: "Hotaru Koi"
Overall, I think this conducting lab went pretty well. I was familiar with the piece because I performed it my sophomore year of high school. I was surprised to see the challenges this piece presented. While the conductor must stay out of the way for the most part, I was challenged with this lab; I learned a lot! One thing that I think I did really well was getting the ensemble started and then just getting out of the way. That is necessary for this piece. Also, I think I did pretty well with the extreme dynamic changes within the piece. I struggle with forte but I think it went well this week.
While there were things that I did well, Andrew brought to my attention a few things that I can improve on for next time. For instance, I was prepping the beat early when transitioning between dynamics. It was a beat early and he brought to my attention that I need to prep the beat at the last possible moment. I will practice this for the future and I think I will get it right next time. Also, when I was finishing the piece on the pianissimo, etc., I was lowering my beat pattern. Andrew suggested that it might have a stronger affect if I raised up the gesture. This was confusing for me because I did not practice it that way, I had to focus more on my elbows/entire arm, and my center of gravity is lower than a mans. While it was a little uncomfortable, I gives me other options for future pieces. I learned more on this piece then I thought I would; it was a productive conducting lab.