There have been heating problems at my studio since the beginning of winter. Not in a necessarily bad way; it was way too hot. It would be below zero but in my studio, the temperature would be approaching 28 C. Yesterday I finally realised a solution. I covered up the heating grates in the floor. Doing this had the effect of blocking the heat and forcing it to other areas of the building. Now the studio is at a comfy 20 C and I don't have to open the windows on a freezing day. I only regret that it took me so long to figure it out.

The broadway show for which I've been writing arrangements has been thankfully postponed until the fall. There was no way I could get all of those charts done for a performance on February 5. The producers did the correct thing by pushing the show back.

Now I can work at a less-frantic pace and also delve into other projects and maybe even look for gigs. I have a land line at the studio now and I want to use it. There is a local song contest sponsored by the local newspaper. I think I'll send in an entry.

I worked on a medley for the musical this afternoon. It's going very slow and I find it to be hard work, both creatively and methodically. I'm not sure how much I will be able to complete. I did manage to play my tenor for a few minutes today to get back into playing shape again for next week. I also did some touch-up painting on the ceiling of my studio in order to cover up some water stains. Also, I found PDF file of my thesis from two years ago. A publishing company in Germany contacted me a few weeks ago about reviewing my thesis for publication. It was a surprise but I just sent the thesis to them a few minutes ago. I'll be even more surprised if they want to publish it because I don't like the topic I chose. I'm sure I could have done something more artistic and meaningful. Well, it's out of my hands now.

Happy New Year to anyone reading.

I have a lot of arranging work to do for a tribute to Broadway show that is scheduled for Feb. 5. That doesn't give me much time. I've completed a medley of four Andrew_Lloyd_Webber tunes and am going to begin a new one tomorrow. Today I didn't get anything done as I wasn't feeling too great so I slept for part of the day. Hopefully I'll be better tomorrow to continue.

I've arranged to get a business phone line put into the studio next week so I'll have a Yellow_Pages listing. I'm looking forward to that. Hopefully a few more students will come my way too.

I've finally finished this post on Christmas Day. I wasn't sure if I should post it but here it is.
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Finally the run for the musical is over. I always have mixed feelings about these short-runs I play. I'm glad to get on to new things but at the same time I miss the act of doing the show and of course the bit of bread I get for playing in the pit. However, this production was not a happy one for me due to another woodwind musician who I think didn't like me at all for whatever reason. It all seemed to start with of an Eb clarinet.

My music called for an Eb clarinet but I didn't own one and I wasn't about to rent or buy one for the amount I was being paid. So I spoke to the musical director (MD) and asked if the company would rent one for me to use during the production. In the meantime at rehearsals, I was playing the Eb clarinet parts on Eb alto saxophone since those instruments are in the same key. After one of the rehearsals the MD approached me and wanted confirmation about renting the Eb clarinet. The MD asked the other older musician's opinion (call him B) and he commented that the Eb clarinet was too hard to tune and the alto was covering the parts. I read between the lines "it's too hard for you so don't even try". I was rather stymied by his response which was really none of his business to begin with but to be fair the MD asked his opinion. When I got home, I e-mailed the MD arguing that I would be able to play the Eb clarinet and the show would benefit from it because it is what the arranger called for in the music. The MD agreed so he rented it for me. I wanted to play the Eb because it would give me experience on the instrument, I was up for the challenge and it would be easier for me to play the show because I wouldn't have to transpose by octaves on the alto saxophone.

At the next rehearsal, the Eb clarinet came in and I used it in the rehearsal. It was more sensitive to tune so I struggled a bit while getting used to the smaller fingerboard and the sensitivity of the instrument to various lip pressures. After about two numbers, B turned to me and said "that just sounds BAD with a scrunched up nose". At first I kind of laughed because it did sound bad. But he was serious and repeated "that really does sound bad." But that got my fur up and I spoke up "I just got the thing and have never played it before in my life!" He backed down and said "yes that's true."

I didn't know it at the time, but B had a career in orchestras and as a soloist. Later on, in the pit, I learned about how super-critical he was to anyone who didn't meet his expectations. He made an offhanded comment about the young voice director about how "she had no idea what she was doing." To me, she was doing the best she could with the size and talent of the group. The comment was simply pompous. He would also talk about his own successes, how much money he made, his nice house. Ironically, he also hit up other musicians for gigs during the show.

I have worked, and still do work with high-quality musicians. Almost all of them have treated me well, seeing me as someone who struggles but strives to achieve greater heights with music. I certainly don't need criticism like that from a community orchestra. If I was playing in a professional production in New York or Toronto, the criticism would be an entirely justified as I would be striving to hold my job and reputation. However, this show was far from that plus the music was extra challenging. At the end of the run, B didn't even turn to say good-bye to me as we were packing our instruments up for the last time. I'm not used to people I work with not liking me, at least in an obvious way. I hope I never have to work with him again because he made music-making into a miserable experience for me.

Last night I conducted my first "master class" at my studio. The master class consisted of the students introducing themselves, performing a bit, and playing together as a group. I don't know what their impressions were but I hope to do more in the future. However, I may name it something different than "master class." The term "workshop" is appealing to me.

This week will be consumed by my playing in the pit for a local production of the musical "A Christmas Carol." Last week, I read the Dickens story for the first time and quite enjoyed it. I wanted to experience the original text after seeing many dramatic interpretations in my life. I still enjoyed it.

Today we got our first snowfall of the year. Very late for this area. We just experienced the first November on record that received zero snow. Quite disturbing.

Tonight I had a concert at a school in Mississauga with my big band. The concert was at 7:30 so I figured that I could teach like normal until 4:30, hop in the car and arrive at about 6:45 with plenty of time to set up. When I got to Toronto I hit serious traffic that slowed me down to a crawl. The worst part about it was that I needed a bathroom badly after buying an OJ on the 115. I stuck it out and things opened up when I merged onto 427 S so I thought I was fine. I was brought to a halt again with the merge onto the QEW. After sitting there for several minutes without moving and the time being 7:15, I called the drummer and informed him of my situation. He suggested an alternate so I changed lanes and got on the Gardiner Expressway back to Toronto (going the wrong way) and took Kipling with hopes of getting on the Queensway, which would take me right to the gig. I eventually did make it to the Queensway but then, guess what? Heavy traffic again. My bladder was close to bursting at this point. I was inching forward when suddenly there was a bang from my car. I thought my transmission seized or something. Then I realised that I had been rear-ended. I got out and the other motorist, a young guy with a buddy, got out and he apologized. We looked at the bumpers but the damage, if any, was minimal. We exchanged information and he said he'd pay for any repairs because he "had lots of money" but implored me not to tell his parents. I was stressed to the max trying to get to my gig with a full bladder and didn't want to hang around exchanging information. He seemed forthcoming and I didn't really care so I told him I'd give him a call. I moved onwards and got to the school about 10 minutes later. In the meantime, the drummer called me back to see where I was. I was at a red light about 1 minute away at that point, which was 15 minutes late for the down-beat.

I arrived, dragged my stuff inside in one shot and made it to the washroom. The band was waiting for me (I think that's a first) and I threw on my tuxedo shirt, bow tie and jacket but didn't have time to change out of my black jeans or put on my cufflinks. I put my horn together, sat down, and the bandleader counted us in. I felt the stress suddenly drift away as I started to play, with the happiness of doing something that I loved. My attention tonight, at least at first, was in a tight focus on the music, allowing me to not make the silly errors I sometimes make. I assume that effect was from adrenaline. The band played well and the small but appreciative audience enjoyed the music. One of the singers from my 50s band showed up to listen to the band too.

After the gig, I was in a bad way. I was hungry, dehydrated, had a headache, and faced a two-hour drive back home. The first thing I had to do was gas up the car, followed by a burger at Lick_s. As good as it was, it didn't go down well due to my condition. I drove up to the highway and spotted a motel that was reasonable so I decided to get a room. However, it was sold out. So I hit the road as far as Whitby and saw another motel. I went in there but also, no rooms. I don't understand what the heck was going on today with it being so busy. I ended up taking a nap in the car for a couple of hours. I woke up feeling the cold of the autumn night creeping into the vehicle. However, I felt better and more alert so I drove the rest of the way back to my studio where I dropped off my gear and then headed home.

Today a print that I ordered of Charlie Parker arrived. It's really nice as it's imaged directly onto a piece of hardboard. I've wanted to order this print for a long time to add a touch of class to the studio. I hung it in the stairwell just outside my entrance as you can see.

A couple of days ago, a woman phoned to inquire about gift certificates. I told her that I didn't have any but then said I could make some if she liked. She was quite happy about that so I got busy and I went to Apple Works to design it. I decided that I might as well try to sell more as a product since someone inquired. I made a custom certificate for the lady who inquired and she came in today and bought it. Now I have a couple of signs indicating that they are available to get the word out. There might be more students migrating over to me since people seem to be saying good things about me as a teacher. Finally my degrees and diplomas are starting to pay off. But I think it's more about me simply caring about my students learning music.

Tonight I'm auditioning for a folk festival at a downtown bar. I will be playing two of my songs. Two people will be selected tonight to perform in Toronto in February. I'm trying not to get too wound up about this and just go in there and play for the room. I'll write tomorrow about the result.