(no subject)

I started taking organ lessons with Chris Lane, the assistant organist & choirmaster at Mem Church, over the summer, starting shortly before ESS. Between his schedule and mine, we have managed to have a grand total of three lessons together. I practice pretty regularly, generally late at night after calling it a day in the lab, and have made some progress, I think. The pedalboard is no longer utterly foreign, I've gotten familiar with legato organ fingering techniques, and have started to get a feel for the non-legato touch called for in Baroque music. I am also starting to get my hands and feet coordinated enough to play pieces with non-trivial pedal parts.

I've gotten roped into playing in the Harvard Organ Society's midnight Halloween recital tomorrow. There is currently a dearth of undergraduate organists, and I'm one of two Harvard students playing. Carson Cooman, one of the Mem Church staff musicians, and Chris will also play. Chris will be playing the "Allegro" from Widor VI, one of the pieces with which he just won the Canadian International Organ Competition in Montreal, as well as Boellmann's Suite Gothique, with its exceptionally spooky closing toccata.

A busy musical week -- Wednesday I also get to make my debut at the Arlington English dance with Susie Petrov and playfulfordian.