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April was full of settling into our apartment, attending and playing in a few concerts, and a couple of trips! One of my favorite things is to settle into a new apartment. Between finding a home for everything, designing the layout for various spaces, and watching it come to life, it satisfies the interior designer / amateur architect in me. In our one bedroom apartment, we have a wall bed in the dining space (unorthodox, I know, but a bucket list idea for me!), two office spaces, a living room, kitchen, and a cozy patio with a desk for reading/writing and a view of the pool! This may be my favorite space I’ve ever lived in. It feels so inherently like us, and I’m thrilled to see this space come to such vibrant life with art, decor, and memories. I had so much fun in playing percussion again with Austin Symphonic Band in my first concert in a year. The last time I played with them a year ago, I had no idea when I’d be back. Well, while playing in the final piece of the program ten months later (which was Alfred Reed’s Second Suite for Band), I couldn’t help but smile and tear up a little bit out of sheer euphoria. I haven’t felt that moved by performing in such a long time. In this moment, I felt like I was back home: with community, great music, and even better music-making. Even while writing this right now, my heart feels so full. To round out the end of the month, I drove six hours east to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to watch the premiere of my Ozymandias: Concertino for Timpani and Percussion Quartet, performed by Chase Gillett and member of the LSU Percussion Studio. It was so spectacular! Chase is an incredibly talented percussionist, but his timpani playing is an another level. The solo part for the concertino is considerably difficult with its many melodic passages. To top it off, he played it on Dresden Timpani, which require more attention to footwork across the drums. The four musicians supporting Chase were really talented percussionists that absolutely understood the assignment in their constantly shifting musical responsibilities. I’m honored that he put it as the final piece on the program! Congrats to all on their performance, and special congrats go to Chase and fellow C. Alan composer Steven Wimberley for completing their doctoral studies at LSU!
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