So it's coming up to the end of my first semester at Berklee and I wouldn't have it any different way. It has been quite like a roller coaster, but perfect. It has been inspiring in so many different ways. I have been motivated after going to a clinic, having a terrible practice session, my friend's amazing talents or just thinking about the legacy I have put myself into. Every step I take around Berklee has a new piece of inspiration and a new topic to learn from. Can't wait to see where I end up! And this is only the start!
Anyway, the last 2 weeks started with being the calm before the storm or finals come hitting hard! There was Thanksgiving this past week which I spent with my sister, Michelle, in Charlottesville, Virginia spending the week in the Hoo Crew at UVA. We watched a girls soccer game and the grudge match, UVA vs Virginia Tech Football game. The girls won their soccer game 2 - 1 with a girl on the USA national soccer team scoring the winning goal. That was pretty cool, but then the football game was crazy! Huge, stadium stadium; big grudge match; sitting at the front of Hoo Crew; next to the marching band and behind the Virginia Tech bench. Abuse was flying! It was fantastic! Most would say the abuse was flying mostly from me, but they're definitely lying! Atmosphere was great! The marching band was awesome and put everyone in the perfect spirit for the game. Sadly UVA lost 16 - 6, but it was a fun day!
It was also nice taking a break from the big city. Getting some time with space. UVA has a beautiful campus with a very Native Grecian(!!!) architecture. A lot of columns! I loved going on runs around the campus. Through their rugby pitch, around the Rotunda, amphitheater and just running along the corner. All in all a nice couple of days. Thanksgiving dinner wasn't entirely traditional, but we're foreign so it's ok!
In addition, having that time away did make me realize how much I appreciate being in a big city and especially Boston because it's a very nice, safer, more relaxed big city. I think it's the perfect blend for me. I love being in the middle of everything where you don't even have to contemplate wanting to go somewhere, you just go and walk. It's everything I wanted after living in Harston. Going to Cambridge always required too much thought, time and planning, driving or a long sweaty cycle! Now there is no planning or effort required! Just go!
But now that I'm back, it's go time! Finals are around the corner as well as ratings auditions and planning and registering for next semester. I have registered for my classes, but I was only allowed to start registering on one of the last days. Some stress came up because a class I had to take, Acoustics, was completely taken before I even had the chance to get it, but at Berklee you can email the teacher and ask them to let you in anyway. Doesn't make sense, but I did that and now I have got into that class, so crisis averted! I needed that class because you have to have taken that class before you can apply for the Music Production and Engineering Major, so I'm very glad I was let in there.
Another funny story is how I tested out of the Conducting 1 class. I went to meet with the head of the Conducting classes, George Monseur, who is quite literally the reincarnation of Leonard Bernstein, it's fantastic! I told him this, stupidly enough, and replied with, 'I didn't like him that much...' And immediately face palmed myself and thought 'Of course! Bernstein is way too stubborn a person for there to be enough space on the planet for two of him!' But yeah, I met up with him to discuss testing out and he just asked me my past experience so I told him I took a class at Junior Guildhall etc. so he said, 'Ok come back next week and I'll give you a little test and we'll see what you can do.' So I did that. I came back to see him and we sat down and I told him what his plan was for me, but then he said he didn't have time for it, so he just asked me my previous experience, I told him and then he just went and got the sheet to sign to say I'd tested out... It was rather surreal and random, but I'm out! And I'm waiting to hear back from him with regards to being in his class because that one was also initially full.
Other than those two, I had no problems registering for classes and I'm just ready to keep my good work going into the next semester. One thing I'm really excited for, though, is my Private Drum Lesson. I signed up for lessons with Henrique De Almeida. His drum clinic was the first one I saw after coming here and I've asked around for advice on who I should pick for my private instructor and everyone said Henrique is tough. He is very disciplined and he will whip your technique into shape. Perfect! That's what I need! I feel like, at the moment, I don't really know how to practice and the biggest thing lacking in my playing is technique, so I couldn't possibly think of a better teacher. I can't wait to really solidify the holes in my basics and hopefully from there be able to skyrocket in progress at a much faster rate.
After this, I have some super exciting much closer in time. I am going to the Zildjian Factory and taking a tour around the factory. Not only that, there was a secret host of a masterclass at the end of the tour and I found out that the host is Gerald Heyward!!! He is one of the main innovators of Gospel Drumming, which is all the rage right now. It's all very creative, virtuosic, technically demanding and musically zany forms of linear drumming. Linear drumming you never play with more than one limb at a time making it all very smooth, flowing and constant awesome! I'm so excited! Also, being in the place where most of the best cymbals in the world are made and seeing how it's done. Zildjian, in my opinion, is among 1 of the top 3 cymbal companies, so I am so excited to be able to stand in the home of it all. And apparently Berklee has it's strongest ties with Zildjian over all other cymbal companies as featured in the latest Berklee chops video called the 'Berklee Mega Drum Project' which was sort of weird... Check it out! It's cool, but not what I expected, but that's a different topic, which isn't important now. But Zildjian fully decked out all cymbal requirements for that video FOR FREE!!! I am still, every day, so honored to be able to walk around in this hub of the worlds high musical priorities. It's mind blowing!
After that, finals. Should be fine. As I've said enough, I only have simple classes so far so nothing to worry about, but it is getting busier than normal. After that, I get to go home! Sort of in two ways. Go back to Cambridge and see all my friends who I've missed so much and spend Christmas with I can only hope to be my future family in law and then share my experiences with my own family when I take Hannah to my new home in Belgium (which I've never seen before) and initiate her into the family fully with the New Year's plans. Can't wait!
I thank you very much for taking the time to read this. I hope you find this anywhere near as exciting as I do. I just want you to see how amazingly contrasting and interesting this world can be.
And if you've enjoyed this maybe you'll also enjoy my drum covers? You can find them in the tab at the bottom of the home page labelled 'To my other videos', which should take you to my YouTube page.
Please stay tuned for the next installments and I will try to get them out more frequently, but I'm trying to make sure I get enough content in and I spend enough time to thoroughly write this.
Hope your life is well
Anyway, the last 2 weeks started with being the calm before the storm or finals come hitting hard! There was Thanksgiving this past week which I spent with my sister, Michelle, in Charlottesville, Virginia spending the week in the Hoo Crew at UVA. We watched a girls soccer game and the grudge match, UVA vs Virginia Tech Football game. The girls won their soccer game 2 - 1 with a girl on the USA national soccer team scoring the winning goal. That was pretty cool, but then the football game was crazy! Huge, stadium stadium; big grudge match; sitting at the front of Hoo Crew; next to the marching band and behind the Virginia Tech bench. Abuse was flying! It was fantastic! Most would say the abuse was flying mostly from me, but they're definitely lying! Atmosphere was great! The marching band was awesome and put everyone in the perfect spirit for the game. Sadly UVA lost 16 - 6, but it was a fun day!
It was also nice taking a break from the big city. Getting some time with space. UVA has a beautiful campus with a very Native Grecian(!!!) architecture. A lot of columns! I loved going on runs around the campus. Through their rugby pitch, around the Rotunda, amphitheater and just running along the corner. All in all a nice couple of days. Thanksgiving dinner wasn't entirely traditional, but we're foreign so it's ok!
In addition, having that time away did make me realize how much I appreciate being in a big city and especially Boston because it's a very nice, safer, more relaxed big city. I think it's the perfect blend for me. I love being in the middle of everything where you don't even have to contemplate wanting to go somewhere, you just go and walk. It's everything I wanted after living in Harston. Going to Cambridge always required too much thought, time and planning, driving or a long sweaty cycle! Now there is no planning or effort required! Just go!
But now that I'm back, it's go time! Finals are around the corner as well as ratings auditions and planning and registering for next semester. I have registered for my classes, but I was only allowed to start registering on one of the last days. Some stress came up because a class I had to take, Acoustics, was completely taken before I even had the chance to get it, but at Berklee you can email the teacher and ask them to let you in anyway. Doesn't make sense, but I did that and now I have got into that class, so crisis averted! I needed that class because you have to have taken that class before you can apply for the Music Production and Engineering Major, so I'm very glad I was let in there.
Another funny story is how I tested out of the Conducting 1 class. I went to meet with the head of the Conducting classes, George Monseur, who is quite literally the reincarnation of Leonard Bernstein, it's fantastic! I told him this, stupidly enough, and replied with, 'I didn't like him that much...' And immediately face palmed myself and thought 'Of course! Bernstein is way too stubborn a person for there to be enough space on the planet for two of him!' But yeah, I met up with him to discuss testing out and he just asked me my past experience so I told him I took a class at Junior Guildhall etc. so he said, 'Ok come back next week and I'll give you a little test and we'll see what you can do.' So I did that. I came back to see him and we sat down and I told him what his plan was for me, but then he said he didn't have time for it, so he just asked me my previous experience, I told him and then he just went and got the sheet to sign to say I'd tested out... It was rather surreal and random, but I'm out! And I'm waiting to hear back from him with regards to being in his class because that one was also initially full.
Other than those two, I had no problems registering for classes and I'm just ready to keep my good work going into the next semester. One thing I'm really excited for, though, is my Private Drum Lesson. I signed up for lessons with Henrique De Almeida. His drum clinic was the first one I saw after coming here and I've asked around for advice on who I should pick for my private instructor and everyone said Henrique is tough. He is very disciplined and he will whip your technique into shape. Perfect! That's what I need! I feel like, at the moment, I don't really know how to practice and the biggest thing lacking in my playing is technique, so I couldn't possibly think of a better teacher. I can't wait to really solidify the holes in my basics and hopefully from there be able to skyrocket in progress at a much faster rate.
After this, I have some super exciting much closer in time. I am going to the Zildjian Factory and taking a tour around the factory. Not only that, there was a secret host of a masterclass at the end of the tour and I found out that the host is Gerald Heyward!!! He is one of the main innovators of Gospel Drumming, which is all the rage right now. It's all very creative, virtuosic, technically demanding and musically zany forms of linear drumming. Linear drumming you never play with more than one limb at a time making it all very smooth, flowing and constant awesome! I'm so excited! Also, being in the place where most of the best cymbals in the world are made and seeing how it's done. Zildjian, in my opinion, is among 1 of the top 3 cymbal companies, so I am so excited to be able to stand in the home of it all. And apparently Berklee has it's strongest ties with Zildjian over all other cymbal companies as featured in the latest Berklee chops video called the 'Berklee Mega Drum Project' which was sort of weird... Check it out! It's cool, but not what I expected, but that's a different topic, which isn't important now. But Zildjian fully decked out all cymbal requirements for that video FOR FREE!!! I am still, every day, so honored to be able to walk around in this hub of the worlds high musical priorities. It's mind blowing!
After that, finals. Should be fine. As I've said enough, I only have simple classes so far so nothing to worry about, but it is getting busier than normal. After that, I get to go home! Sort of in two ways. Go back to Cambridge and see all my friends who I've missed so much and spend Christmas with I can only hope to be my future family in law and then share my experiences with my own family when I take Hannah to my new home in Belgium (which I've never seen before) and initiate her into the family fully with the New Year's plans. Can't wait!
I thank you very much for taking the time to read this. I hope you find this anywhere near as exciting as I do. I just want you to see how amazingly contrasting and interesting this world can be.
And if you've enjoyed this maybe you'll also enjoy my drum covers? You can find them in the tab at the bottom of the home page labelled 'To my other videos', which should take you to my YouTube page.
Please stay tuned for the next installments and I will try to get them out more frequently, but I'm trying to make sure I get enough content in and I spend enough time to thoroughly write this.
Hope your life is well