Hey guys,
Just got back from my year end Band Concert that I was singing the Japanese song at.
I've been dealing over the last few days with nausea caused by some antibiotics i'm on, so i was a bit worried about how well i'd sing, feeling so off. I haven't been able to get more than a piece of bread down alday, till now (managing to eat some plain spaghetti...i'm so hungry but so nauseaus!)
anyways...
It went very well. no errors, nothing. The crowd, for the first and last time that night, went silent. i mean, even the other students up in the top gym shut up. it was amazing. and cameras went off...incredible.
The mic worked perfectly, and it gave a very nice, clear tone. better than praise band's, actually. but i like my regular mic better xD
the only thing that got me was, since i'd been playing the clarinet before (you have to frown hard while playing to get a sound out) i had weak muscles in my cheeks, so i couldn't smile very well. so I tried to project rapture in the song, and smile every now and again for a bit. I tried to keep smiling, but my cheeks felt like melted cheese, or goo...
after we finished, everything was silent for all of about 3 seconds before everyone just erupted. tons of whistling, yells, screams. more cameras... xD
so, i went back to my band and went back to clarinet again till we got to the intermission.
I didn't even make it out of my band chair for 10mins!!!
a woman in her 40s somewhere was on me, wanting an autograph...which scared me haha. it was really freaky. she was so close she was breathing down my neck. she said she wanted an autograph for "when you become famous" which i seriously doubt. that's a several million to one chance, really.
but I think the thing i really appreciated the most was...
A girl from Kagoshima, Japan came right up to me. See, when i was wanting to go and do an exchange student year, thats the EXACT city i wanted to go to!
She was adorable. I could understand her quite well. she was really shy and, naturally, polite. since I'd read on the manenrs and what not in prep to go (never did in the end) i did the exact same, which made her open up even more.
she really touched me there, and i felt like crying or something. I was so stunned someone from japan visiting heard! and she actually said i pronounced everything very well...i thought for sure i must have said something the wrong way xD
All the students were all over me, whenever they recognized me. many were saying that "if you go into canadian idol, i'll vote for you!!!" and things like that.
all the adults that approached me (about 20) were talking a mile a minute. I eventually hid myself in the upper gym with the more controlled, senior band students, lol. It was too much nearly for me. I mean, I've only sung for a church band! xD
I'm so sore atm, but it was worth it. an amazing experience, lol.
its a great way for me to know what to expect for the PGX Idol competitiion, a local thing to support young musicians who wish to go to vancouver to audition for canadian idol.
who knows?
-sigh- i'm still back there, haha...
:shock:
What an awsome report Rachel. I was thinking on my way into work this morning about your performance, I thought it was last night. I can imagine how wonderful it felt when the girl from Japan came up to you. That is great.
Way to go.
Jim
“The hardest thing in life is to know which bridge to cross and which to burn” - David Russell (Scottish classical Guitarist. b.1942)
WOW, Rachel.
That was a great report. How cool was that?
Congratulations. Now you know how it feels to MAKE IT!!!
Bish
"I play live as playing dead is harder than it sounds!"
Congratulations on a job well done, Rachel! And I hope you're feeling better so you can enjoy your accomplishment! :D
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-:¦:- ((¸¸.·´ -:¦:- Elecktrablue -:¦:-
"Don't wanna ride no shootin' star. Just wanna play on the rhythm guitar." Emmylou Harris, "Rhythm Guitar" from "The Ballad of Sally Rose"
Congrats on the gig and a great report. Hope you're back to full strength soon.
8)
I've had a lot of sobering thoughts in my time.
It was them that turned me to drink.
Great report; thanks for sharing!
"Everybody got to elevate from the norm."
Thanks guys :D
Yeah, i was really really taken when the japanese girl came up to me. the fact that she was so nervous to approach me (bowing constantly either is nervousness or admiration) really got me. I'm not exactly hard to approach xD but so many don't get that. I'm pretty quiet to everyone except my friends. if i'm approached however, i don't hesitate to talk.
I'm feeling a bit better, but not much. Mom will be calling the doctor's office for dealing with this annoying minor side effect, lol. I've been able to eat more now, but its basically been very plain wheat sphaghetti, haha. not much. and water, which i'm at least drinking lots of, haha.
yeah, it was really overwhelming. I've never performed anywhere except in front of friends and family, or at the church in my PRaise Band, with solos every month.
in the end, it was becoming a bit too much staying in the foyer at the intermission (directly after the singing practically) so, once i found Robyn and mike (pianist) kelsey and the other mike, we rand out to the warmup rooms, then to the upper gym, so that we could escape.
of course, that was only a 5min rest. all the band students watch from the upper gym, on risers. so they started to all drift back up. thankfully, more controled seniors sat around me, as said. haha...
oh, i'm definitely enjoying the moment, even though i'm sick xD haha...
it's a guarentee today word has gone around the school. I was thinking of going to do yearbook signing with everyone, but i'm a bit too sore from all the running around i did yesterday (i was on my feet from 7am to 10pm, with only 2hours of sitting time)
there was stage set up (a stage for the bands) and choir riser set up, then mic checks, placing lights, doing a practice for half an hour in the gym for band. going through the japanese song twice, to make sure the mic worked right, walking around the school with tara at lunch (completely voluntary, i admit. i could have sat then...but my nausea would have gotten me) thank GOD for tara, she's such a great friend, she cooled me down more, lol...
Haha, i'll be checking tomorrow's paper for sure to see if we get our usual mention. because of the stage lights, i couldn't make out who the camera flashes belonged to, so i have no clue if it was the paper or not.
^^ I can't wait to do something with Kelsey next year though. we'll be going through songs this summer, learning them, and then the next concert we'll choose what fits best.
and my foster family (PRaise Band, lol) will be so hapyp whenI tell them how it all went. Amy was super nervous when i told her the numbers of the crowd, and she was a bit worried.
we still have our gig to do on Saturday. it'll go awesome! ^^
thanks for the support, guys!
Good for you! Makes you wanna go out there and do it all over again (without the sickness, for sure).
"Nothing...can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts."
hahaha, yup!
Apparently there is a band thing being held at the opera house (entrance by donation) for a cause. I'm asking our band teacher if we can go (Mike and I) to show the song there as well.
There is also something in Quesnel, but atm, that's farther down the list.
and then this saturday is the Praise Band gig.
Its a busy week, music wise!
xD
