Fun with Photoshop

This has got to be one of the funniest threads ever.

Rest in Peace

Juan Fransisco Garcia
06/16/40 - 01/19/05



May you be listening to old salsas and sones in heaven.

And the winner is . . .

After much deliberation, headache, heartache, confusion, elation, frustration, and hopefulness I have made up my mind regarding my instrument debate.

I have picked the hautbois, better known as the oboe.

It goes against all of my logical thinking, but in the end I decided to go with my heart on this one. And my heart has been a pretty loud and steady champion of the oboe all along. Someone had mentioned passion to me along the way. I brushed it aside at first because the whole passion thing has NOT helped me at all in making up my mind about my career.

However in this case, I think I did make the choice with my heart and not my mind; I have followed my passion. While I do enjoy the clarinet it has not managed to make tears stream from my eyes at the sound of the first note.

This is a tremendous undertaking for someone as "old" as me. (Trust me on this one, those cats in the orchestras all started while their age was still a single digit number.) But for once I am confident that I have made the correct decision. And this is so important to me that I will not allow anything to interfere with it. Maybe that is why this decision had to come before the career one. Maybe that's why the career one just hasn't worked out yet. With this one out of the way (one week before school starts up again - how convenient!) I should hopefully have some brain power to attack the career one. And I think that I have picked up some skills that may prove useful with further decision making.

History of the decision:
Summer 2004: I hear "The Swan of Tuonela" (Sibelius) on the radio and fall in LOVE with the sound immediately. I discover it's an English horn, which is a big oboe. I have no idea at that point what an oboe sounds or looks like.
Fall 2004: My desire to actually play Classical and not just listen to it comes back REALLY strong. I pick up the clarinet I bought a couple of years ago and start to make squeaks, I mean sounds, on it. I go to a friend for pointers and he helps me some.
Late November: I set up trial clarinet lesson.
Dec. 9, 2004: On a whim, I decide to rent an oboe and give it a chance.
Dec. 11, 2004: Trial lesson on clarinet. Goes VERY well. Teacher is great and super friendly and says I sound like I've been playing for months. I am so encouraged I almost cancel my upcoming trial oboe lesson.
Dec. 15, 2004: Trial oboe lesson. I went in able to produce maybe 3 notes. Teacher is a bit serious and I'm not sure I will work well with him nor the instrument.
Dec. 16 through Jan. 09: Go back and forth on the oboe/clarinet debate 100000000 times.
Last Monday 1/10: Paquito's clarinet playing was inspirational to me throughout the concert. I was about to throw the towel on the oboe. But once the YOA came on stage and I heard the oboes I was mesmerized by them and started at the two oboists for the remainder of the concert.
Last Tuesday 1/11: Determined to finalize my decision before I went crazy, I decided to write an email to my clarinet teacher (the one I had a trial lesson with). After writing furiously and in a stressed fashion for 3 hours I came up with the email below. The clear winner appears to be the clarinet. But as soon as I hit the send button, I thought to myself "Ok, I am going to be an oboist". Isn't that weird? Though I could rationalize it on paper why the clarinet was the best choice it didn't make up for the joy I felt at playing my little "ducky" sounding oboe. Or for the joy I feel when I listen to orchestral music and the oboes or english horns come out to the forefront. Or my fanciful daydreams where I place myself in the middle of the orchestra and imagine me playing those parts. So indeed passion has won. Maybe this is a new chapter for me. Prior to this I think I've only made one other decision based on passion. :-)

My only regret is not having started this 10 years ago. Or 20 years ago. But as I mentioned above, I am alive and healthy. And this is a noble undertaking that I am very happy about and with God's blessing it will turn out well.

Here is the meat of my email to the clarinet teacher. I think writing this was cathartic experience. Somehow it helped me sort out all my thoughts and feelings.


Anyway, I write to you because I need some help in making my oboe vs. clarinet decision. This whole debate started in that I wanted to play orchestral music. I've loved Classical music all my life but for a variety of reasons I didn't get involved with formal instrumental lessons until I was out of college (I was a Music major at Columbia). By then I had figured I was already too old to ever get good enough to play in an orchestra so I picked the saxophone with hopes that I could play at least merengue.

However over the years my desire to play in an orchestra never waned and so I decided to revisit the concept. I figured that even at age 30 if I try hard enough I could get to that level some day. Certainly I won't be playing for the NY Philharmonic, but there are many amateur orchestras in this area. Since I have some woodwind background (though it's on sax) it seemed logical to stay within the same family. The clarinet seemed like the logical choice and that's why I purchased an instrument about a year ago. I tried to play it at home a bit and it didn't go very well so I didn't pick it up again for months.

Over the summer of 2004, while studying for a Physics final, I heard a haunting piece on the radio. It was Sibelius' "Swan of Tuonela". Never in my life had I heard a more beautiful sound. After doing research on the web I found out that the sound came from an English horn. So that's where the whole oboe thing emerged from. Prior to that I had never really enjoyed the sound of the oboe because I had only heard it in the context of Baroque music. But after hearing the English Horn I fell in love with it and thought that maybe I should play oboe instead. That was the beginning of the oboe/clarinet debate.

Since last seeing you I signed up for 4 trial oboe lessons at a school in Westchester. I'm playing on a rented instrument through the end of February. The first lesson was quite difficult but by the second one the teacher was impressed with how much better my sound and intonation had become. So I'm guessing that either instrument would be of similar difficulty for me.


Here are some of the things I've been thinking about and need some opinions on:

Sound: While I adore the sound of the English Horn (EH) above all other instruments, the smaller oboe is not as beautiful to me. I would say I definitely like the clarinet sound better than the regular oboe. But then again my oboe sound is still quite atrocious. This issue of sound is what is confusing my decision the most. A lot of my other concerns are more clear cut one way or another. I've spoken to some people who say that if it's the EH sound that I love that that's what I should play, but sound is not my only concern. My problem is that I love the sound of many instruments. I definitely love the clarinet sound as well. And I love the cello and piano sounds too. As well as the bassoon, french horn, and trombone. If I were to play every sound I love I'd be bad at all instruments! I need to focus on one.

Fingering Technique: I may have mentioned to you during our lesson that what was frustrating me about the clarinet were the open holes. I was getting SO many squeaks that I wanted to just cry. The oboe fingerings are much more comfortable for me so in that respect the oboe is more favorable. Another thing I've heard is that while the oboe is very difficult to produce a nice sound in, the parts written for oboe are not all that hard technically and that the clarinet parts are second only to the violin in their difficulty. Certainly the clarinet has a much bigger range. And since it is easier to get a satisfying sound on it I would imagine that the parts are indeed more difficult. Could you verify this for me?

Competition: Some days I think I just want to play whatever would make it easiest for me to get into a group. Sometimes I am afraid of the clarinet because it seems that sooooo many people play it and that I would have way more competition to deal with. Whereas most people run away from the oboe so maybe even if I am only decent, I might actually get picked due to need. What is your opinion on this? Am I going to have to be SUPER good to play anywhere as a clarinetist. I'm sure this is definitely the case for concertos. But how about just for regular ensemble playing? Will it be easier for me to get a spot as a oboist? Or am I going to have to be SUPER good regardless?

Repertoire: The oboe teacher was talking about how the oboe is so great because there's all this Baroque repertoire for it that isn't available for clarinet since the clarinet was invented later. I guess that comment could go either way. It's not that I don't like Bach and his contemporaries. I think the music is nice to listen to but I don't feel overly compelled to play it. My favorite era is definitely Romantic, with Classical as a second. So in terms of repertoire I think the clarinet is the winner (with the exception of some Romantic EH pieces like the Sibelius I mentioned above).

Reeds: Oboe reeds are an absolute nightmare to deal with. I'd heard all about it but didn't really appreciate it until I started trying to play. I sound completely different based on what reed I'm on. Some reeds don't respond in the higher register. Others make it difficult to stay in tune. I already cracked a reed lengthwise! Now I understand why everyone starts making their own reeds. But do I want to be spending time doing that? I'd rather be playing! I've watched some concerts on TV and observed how even professional oboists are frantically working on their reeds even in the middle of a performance. Though they always end up sounding beautiful once they come in, I'm not sure I want to deal with that kind of stress. Clarinet reeds come from a box even if only a couple of them turn out good. Clarinet is the definite winner here.

Embouchure/Breathing: The oboe embouchure takes some getting used to. Also, one can get light-headed if one doesn't let air out of the lungs frequently. I don't have that breathing problem on the clarinet. And while the embouchure is not exactly the same as a sax one, it's a bit similar. Clarinet wins here too.

Sax doubling: It seems that if I wanted to continue to play sax in the future the clarinet would be a more natural primary instrument.

Versatility: Clarinet wins hands down here. I could play many other types of music as a clarinetist: big band, latin jazz, klezmer, banda, etc. Just last night I went to the Paquito D'Rivera concert in carnegie hall and he played his clarinet on several pieces. Though one could also argue that if I wanted to play those types of musics I could just take out my saxophone.

Upkeep (Time and Money): An intermediate oboe is more expensive than an intermediate clarinet. Also the reeds are a lot more expensive and you go through them faster. I feel that the oboe will be more demanding of my time as well. I'm not implying that the clarinet is easy but it seems less jealous of your time. I put my oboe down for three days after I got sick and when I picked it up again I felt like I was starting over. I picked up my clarinet after not playing for a week, and I was able to go right back to where I was within minutes. Considering that I may be going to graduate school for the next few years (and maybe even starting a family during that time), is one instrument more convenient than the other in terms of practice time and money spent on its upkeep? I feel like the clarinet may have a slight edge here. If my practice time will be limited by other real world concerns, does it even make sense to try to pick up what is considered one of the hardest instruments (oboe)? However, it almost seems that maybe the oboe is very difficult to start on but then levels off whereas the clarinet is relatively easy to start on but becomes harder to keep up with as you advance. Like I feel that it will take you way longer to become an intermediate oboist than an intermediate clarinetist because of the issues with the sound, reeds, intonation and embouchure. However it would take you longer to go from intermediate to advanced on the clarinet than on the oboe due to technique. Is that true?

Solo vs ensemble: For some reason I am really afraid of solos and being in the spotlight. My biggest musical joy comes from being part of a group. I enjoy playing a smaller part that blends into something bigger. I've never liked to be the showcase. That's part of why I stopped playing sax. There was all this pressure to learn to improvise and do those solos and I was mentally blocked about it. Maybe it was just a confidence thing and once I'm good enough I'd lose the fear. It seems to me that as an oboist I'd have to come to the forefront of the orchestra more often than as a clarinetist. Is this true? Also English horn parts are not all that common in orchestral music. There are many concerto type pieces where the instrument is in the forefront. But in regular symphonies I would think that these players would be playing an oboe not an EH. Am I correct in this assumption? Or are there players out there who play ONLY the EH?

I have no idea what the orchestral world is really like which makes these issues hard for me to decide on. I am sure that getting good at any instrument will bring me infinite satisfaction. But I just don't want to look back from that point and say "Oh darn I should have taken up the other one instead".

Any advice would be very helpful to me!

50 Years and 10 Nights

I had never been to Carnegie Hall before and was not disappointed this past Monday night when I attended the Fujitsu Jazz Festival tribute to Paquito D'Rivera, "50 Years and 10 Nights of Show Business". We had crappy balcony tickets so the sound could have been a tad bit louder but this did not diminish our enjoyment of the evening. I liked the slightly informal feel to the concert. I've been asked to shut up at Lincoln Center since I tend to get excited and chatty during my favorite parts. But I was able to periodically whisper to JC without annoying anyone. I'm not sure if it's a Carnegie Hall thing or just because there was a statistically significant portion of Latinos in the audience.

The concert began at 8:10 PM with Bill Cosby opening up the stage with some jokes. He even made fun of Paquito's shoes! Paquito came out with his band which included piano, bass, drums and percussion as well as a marimba player and a steel drummer. They paid homage to Dizzy Gillespie with an avant-garde arrangement of "Night in Tunisia" which Paquito referred to as "NightMARE in Tunisia". The piece was all over the place metrically and had a really interesting, airy sonority due to the instrumentation. Paquito also has a harpist as part of his orchestra which seems wrong when you first see it. All doubts are erased once you hear Edmar Castaneda! In addition to the usual strumming, he can play the harp so that it sounds exactly like a double bass with his left hand and nearly like a piano with his right. He did a long improvisation this way. I didn't even know you could get that kind of sound from a harp. It was intriguing to see an instrument take on a new identity.

After that he invited Michel Camilo onstage. When he mentioned the fact that he's from DR we gave a little shout from our balcony. Michel and Paquito played "Why Not", just piano and sax. It was great watching them interact as they played. They are at ease with each other and used to making good music together. Then some other invited musicians came on for more pieces. I was a little disappointed that Michel didn't play a lot and that his pieces were entirely jazzy/bluesy in feel. I would have loved to have heard him tumbando in a more Latin number.

Paquito then told a story about how some years ago his mother wanted him to meet some artists friends of hers. He was hesitant to but after she offered to cook him a nice dinner he agreed. And he says that meeting these ladies changed his life. They are "Las Hermanas Marques", a pair of elderly sisters who play guitar and maraca and sing. They did two cute pieces ("Esto es Felicidad" and "La Tartamuda") which the audience thoroughly enjoyed.

His next story was about the cool, jazzy jingle of a radio station in Miami. "NY Voices" sang it live from behind the curtain and then they came out to sing a couple of tunes. This quartet sings in the style of Manhattan Transfer (the group that influenced Juan Luis Guerra). They too were amazing. I'm not the biggest vocal music fan since I'm obsessed with instruments, but to hear human voices harmonize so perfectly and beautifully was really moving. Though very different in idiom, they reminded me a bit of Chanticleer, which I heard for the first time over the holidays. The first piece was completely a capella and the second featured nice scatting by the mezzo soprano.

Rosa Passos, the famous Brazilian singer also performed some pieces while playing guitar. She has a beautiful voice. However I'm not the biggest fan of the slow stuff she does, so at this point I took a mental intermission (the show was so long they skipped intermission) and read the program and just zoned out a bit. That is until acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma came out to accompany her. It was great to hear him live; he truly makes that cello sing!

We travelled to Argentina with a few Tango pieces. Two dancers provided elegant accompaniment to the music. In addition to the pianist Pablo Ziegler and Paquito, there was an accordionist and a guitarist on stage. I have not listened to a lot of Tango but I enjoyed their minor melodies and the melancholic feel of it.

The string section of the Youth Orchestra of the Americas (YOA) came out to accompany Paquito on his clarinet as he performed some Classical pieces, one by Brahms and another by Mozart, the latter which he lent a jazzy bend to. His sound on the clarinet is very sweet and it was inspiring to hear him play the Brahms.

Even more inspiring was when Bebo Valdes, Cachao, and Candido came on stage to play. Bill Cosby joked that all three of them together are almost 300 years old! A lot of people were near tears when they started playing. We all had a sense that it was an historical moment and that we were very fortunate to hear these three legends playing together. Candido was absolutely charming: smiling the entire time and looking like he was having a grand old time on the congas. Cachao looks very frail but that didn't stop him from jamming on that bass. Bebo still has a very refined air to him and I really enjoyed his style on the piano (more than Michel's actually). His chords are not overly clunky (almost more reminiscent of the Romantic era than jazz) and his melodies are very lyrical. The three of them together created magic that night.

At that point the entire YOA came onstage to perform a Gershwin potpourri as the finale. Paquito started it off by doing the intro to "Rhapsody in Blue" on his clarinet. Then they switched into "Summertime" and his wife, soprano Brenda Feliciano, sang the tune. The piece went on for a while with Brenda singing and the very accomplished orchestra accompanying. The concert finished with one of my favorite endings ever, that of "Rhapsody in Blue" (think United airlines commercials).

The show ended, aptly so, with a standing ovation.

It was definitely an unforgettable and inspiring night.

Destruction Derby

It seems we have acquired our own source of a series of unfortunate events. Oh yes. The source is in our home and below I will describe the events that have happened thus:

* Our beloved and trusty Saturn decided to not turn on one day. Nevermind that it has the peppiest start we've ever heard on a car. For some reason, one day recently, it decided to be uncooperative. We should have seen the writing on the wall. We did manage to bring it back to life through a very long boost done in the midst of a snow storm.
* A cell phone bill large enough to cover the costs of a decent cruise vacation was recently received.
* The commemorative messages I had saved on my answering machine for years got deleted! As did our greeting, which was replaced by mostly white noise and a few grunts thrown in for good measure. No wonder we've not received a new message in weeks . . .
* Toasty the toaster died. Actually he's having mechanical difficulties. You are no longer able to keep the bread down unless you manually hold down the handle and even when you do you can feel resistance in there. "Where's my toast?!!?" Now that he has been replaced by Toasty II a funeral service for Toasty will be held shortly.
* A dead, half cooked chicken was found wrapped in foil in the refrigerator. Ewww!
* During an errand run, the guts of the Saturn's key mysteriously fell out of a pocket (as in the alarm deactivator). Attempting to open said car with the key itself resulted in the activation of the car's alarm system and ignition shut off. Expensive cab rides home to get second set of keys and back were required.
* Fancy_Cordless_Telephone_01 is out of service. It seems to have take a vow of silence, but only intermittently.
* Mabel's mattress has a lovely red Nyquil stain on it which matches with . . . errr . . . nothing.
* A strange aroma of allergy producing wildflowers recently permeated the closet downstairs.
* In one of the most unfortunate events yet, black ink from the Lochness Spider Mistress was found all over the bathroom last night! It was in the grout of the tile floors, on the nice digital scale, on the toilet and sink, and on the gray walls. Picasso was called in to repaint the walls.

There are also reports of unprecedented and unending bouts of sickness and chronic stepping in poop.

Stay tuned for the hapless couple's continuing tales of bad luck.