Dear Young Musician,
I understand how difficult it is when you're coming out of school and trying to find a job.  I know what it means to stand in the grocery store and wonder if you can afford that extra packet of Ramen noodles.  I realize it's scary to not know when the next gig will come along, how the rent is going to get paid this month, or if you can scrape together the money to take auditions.  I get all this because I've been there.  Right after college I dove headfirst into the freelance scene and it was really tough.  So tough that I may have been tempted by an audition like Louisville's.  It seems like a pretty decent deal, good pay, steady work, but trust me...it's a wolf in sheep's clothing.  I urge you, DO NOT TAKE THE AUDITION.

Here are a few of my reasons why:
1) Salary- Consider this the bait.  $925 plus benefits seems like a decent deal, but this is a board that just fired THE ENTIRE ORCHESTRA.  Do you trust them to work with the new musicians to maintain that salary package?  What happens when you move your whole life out there, away from family, friends and other work and they suddenly decide they "can't afford" to pay that much.  
2) Quality Control- As musicians, we all aspire to be the best we can possibly be.  We spend years honing our craft, but I have seen little evidence that the orchestra's board understands or respects that fact.  Keep in mind, this is an organization that put out a job advertisement on Craigslist.  This fact alone makes me distrustful of their ability to assemble an orchestra that can play at anything approaching a professional standard.  When we finish school, we tend to think we've learned what we need to know about playing our instruments.  I can tell you from personal experience that it's just the beginning.  After you win an audition and join an orchestra you learn an incredible amount from your colleagues.  If you really want to reach your potential, you need to draw on their experience and expertise with the repertoire.  
3) Personal Marketability- If you're considering this to be your "first job" and that you'll be able to "move on to something bigger" think twice.  Having the Louisville Orchestra on your resume is going to be like having a big red flashing neon "Don't Hire Me" sign over your head.  Why?  By working for them, you are hurting a fellow musician.  You have taken someone else's job. The music industry is very small and your reputation is all you have.  Don't tarnish it by working for an organization that has garnered the hatred of virtually every professional musician in the country.

Please, respect your colleagues, respect yourself and know that other jobs will come open.  The Board of the Louisville Orchestra has proven that they are untrustworthy and do not value the well-being of the orchestra or its musicians.  If you win a position you will be walking into a situation that could very well end your career before it has even begun.  
Thank you for listening, 
Karen Birch Blundell

How can I forget?  Long tones are like oxygen, you need them.  Somehow they slip out of my practice routine.  I don't notice their immediate departure, but soon I start noticing that my scale is a little wonky, or I can't sustain a line the way I want to, or my tone is thinning out in strange ways.  Then I get all agitated and annoyed with myself for a day or two before it occurs to me that I haven't been doing my long tones.  This usually occurs when I'm trying to pack a lot of practicing into a short amount of time.  Now that I have Elizabeth to take care of, luxurious practice sessions are few and far between.  She's pretty good about hanging out and listening to me play, but sometimes she gets bored easily.  She gets cranky when things are too repetitive or stay too long in a minor key.  It really is a balancing act between staying on top of my playing and keeping her from screaming in protest. The poor long tones get pushed aside in favor of flashier passage work that keeps her entertained and keeps me prepared for upcoming performances.  I've got to figure out a better system because the long tones really do make a tremendous difference in my ability to control the oboe.  Mostly I need to remember that a little bit goes a long way so long as you're doing something consistently.  She can put up with five minutes of long tones a day, especially if I can distract her with her favorite toy or a pacie.  I know my playing will thank me.

There's been a lot on my plate lately, we moved recently, I've been working when I can and I'm recovering from a rather nasty pulled muscle in my back.  So I've been a tad serious.  Roo (my nickname for Elizabeth) has been hearing about it all.  I talk to her constantly; when I'm cleaning, when I'm cooking, even when I practice with her in the room.  I don't know how much she really understands, but I know it's a bit more every day.  Last night I was walking around the apt. with her on my hip and I decided we needed to tango together.  I grabbed her hand, stuck it out in front of us and danced around the room, singing every Piazolla piece I could remember the melody to.  She smiled and laughed and seemed genuinely delighted.  After each melody I stopped for a brief rest.  Soon, as I put my hand up and asked "tango" she'd put up her little hand to meet mine.  Honestly, I was a tad surprised that she figured out my intentions so quickly, she's only five months old after all.  Still, her sheer joy when she hears and interacts with music is inspiring to me.  It reminds me how much I love the art, and that learning through it can be an incredibly joyful experience.  Sometimes people have the perception that what we do as Classical performers is all about being serious.  Music allows us to explore all elements of the human emotional experience, but sometimes we forget to revel in the fun stuff, the joys of hearing a melody that makes us smile or feel a bit lighter in our bodies.  I'm so lucky I have a little girl around to remind me "if you're happy and you know it, clap your hands" or take a tango across the apt.  It helps.

I just want to let everyone know, the deadline for applications to Eastern Music Festival is March 1st.  There's still time to get your tape in.  If your an orchestral musician or pianist between the ages of 14 and 21, please consid applying.  It's a great program with a lot of playing, great concerts, fabulous guest artists, master classes, etc. in short, it's a fantastic way to spend your summer and you should apply!  If you'd like more information visit the website: www.easternmusicfestival.org

As I write, I'm printing out the music for a piece I'll be playing in a couple of weeks.  I'm very excited because this is a piece I've performed several times, but I've never played the Oboe 4 part.  One of the things I really love about freelancing is the opportunity to learn a new part of repertoire that's already familiar to me.  In a full time orchestra job, you play the same position all the time.  Freelancing, I could be doing anything.  There's an excitement and a freshness to it that I enjoy immensely.  In the case of this work, it'll be a real challenge to approach the notes on the page as if I've never heard the piece before.  I need to step back and make sure I'm laying a good foundation with the rhythms and notes.  In other words, I can't assume I know how to play it just because I know how it's supposed to sound.  Sometimes I find it difficult to be patient in that situation.  My ear is so far ahead of my fingers that I trip myself up, or get frustrated that things aren't coming easily.  It's trying at times, but I'm so glad I have the opportunity because I wind up understanding the work on a much deeper level.

I'm visiting my parents and have come across some old recordings of various school ensembles, youth orchestras, etc.  The first thing I decided to listen to was a recording of my junior high school band.  I figured i'd have a good laugh. To the contrary, I was shocked by how good we sounded. We were playing difficult repertoire with complex rhythms and harmonies. As I listened, I started to remember how much work we put into that program and how proud we were when we did well.  I was very lucky to attend schools that set very high standards and then gave us the tools to achieve them.  I learned that you had to work hard if you wanted to do something well.
Sometimes I worry that in order to be fair, we short change students.  We oversimplify tasks and set standards to the lowest common denominator.  I'm very glad that my teachers didn't take that route.  They constantly pushed us to be better and we took that challenge very seriously.  My high school band motto was "Excellence Speaks for Itself" and Bernard Lurie, my youth orchestra conductor took time every rehearsal to remind us, "You are not a youth orchestra, you are a professional training orchestra."  The lessons I learned in these groups stuck with me and allowed me to have the patience and perseverance I needed to become a professional musician.  I hope that I'm able to pass them on to my own students and, of course, to little Elizabeth.  

i am a type A personality. I like organization and schedules and feeling like i have control of my time.  Having a newborn throws all of my best laid plans into chaos.  I'm on her schedule now.  It's challenging to find practice time.  Reedmaking is nearly impossible. The early stages, processing and gouging cane, have gone right out the window.  It's a big adjustment.  My entire life has been oboe centered, and now i need to shift focus.  I need to keep playing, it's part of who I am, but i'm making adjustments where i can.  I've ordered some gouged cane from a source i trust and leave my oboe assembled so i can grab a few minutes of playing time here and there.   It's not my ideal way to work, but it's the best way for me to work now.  The amazing part is how appreciative i am of playing time.  I'm enjoying my practice time immensly, particularly when my little audience member gives me a big smile.  I hope i'm able to set a good example for her, even if it is only ten minutes at a time.