Beethoven and Britten
February 18, 2010
Last weekend, I had the incredible opportunity to perform Beethoven’s 6th Symphony and Britten’s Sea Interludes with the SFCM Symphony Orchestra. What a program!
I knew I’d love the Beethoven- it’s a classic! Did you know that he wrote it while he was going deaf? It’s his “Pastorale” Symphony; he basically walked outside and imagined what nature sounded like and put it into one of the greatest masterpieces of all times. It really is some genius writing.
But the Britten absolutely blew my mind. What a monster! I loved every second. I’ll try to get a recording of us and post it here sometime soon, but it is really amazing. I was frustrated because I felt like the orchestra had so much untapped potential, but we pulled off a pretty successful performance. Well, two performances, to be exact.
The conductor made a special visit to my teacher’s office today to tell him how impressed he was with my performance of these two pieces today. That was definitely nice to hear 
This weekend I’m performing with the New Music Ensemble. We are playing Varese, “Deserts” for winds and percussion. It really taps into the extreme capabilities of each and every interest and is a wonderful piece in its own right. Again… not too easy! We are performing it at the Pacific Rim Festival next month as well.
Between these concerts and the 4 auditions earlier this month (i.e. last week), I think school is definitely keeping me on my toes.
Oh, and I’m almost done with the National Flute Association Young Artist’s Competition CDs. Just a couple more things I want to re-do tomorrow and I’m all set! Phew!
Next week: Skydiving!
Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine’s Day
Much Love,
Calisa
February
January 27, 2010
Fasten your seatbelts, February 2010 is gonna be a doozy!
The schedule is as follows:
January 20th, Civic Symphony of Chicago audition CD (recorded and sent!) ((I realized this qualifies as January, but I thought I should add it in))
Saturday, January 30th, 10:20 am- Tanglewood Audition (also technically January…)
Tuesday, February 2nd, 6:40 pm- National Orchestral Institute Audition
Wednesday, February 3rd, 6:20 pm- National Repertory Orchestra Audition
Friday, February 12th, 8:00 pm- San Francisco Conservatory of Music Symphonic Orchestra. Program to include Beethoven Symphony No. 6, Britten Sea Interludes, and Walton Violin Concerto.
Saturday, February 13th- National Flute Association Young Artist Competition and Orchestral Masterclass applications due. CD includes: Prokofiev Flute Sonata, Sancan Sonatine, Telemann Fantasy No. 6, Bach St. Matthew’s Passion, Beethoven Symphony No. 3, Gluck Dance of the Blessed Spirits, and Mendelssohn Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Saturday, February 13th, 8:00 pm- San Francisco Conservatory of Music Symphonic Orchestra. Program to include Beethoven Symphony No. 6, Britten Sea Interludes, and Walton Violin Concerto.
Saturday, February 20th- San Francisco Conservatory of Music New Music Ensemble Concert. Works by Varese, Harrison, Schulthorpe and Susa.
Sunday, February 21st- San Francisco Conservatory of Music Concerto Competition. Performing Martin Ballade from memory.
Saturday, February 27th- Cannot come fast enough! Wish me luck.
Calisa
Nutrition
January 21, 2010
Do you ever feel like certain people come into your life at the same time for a purpose? I do. Between my two roommates, one is studying to be a nutritionist and the other is a marathon runner and coach for Team In Training. They both run, go to yoga, and eat vegetables 24-7. Literally. No sugar, no caffeine, no alcohol, no processed foods. It’s pretty impressive.
Then I went to the acupuncturist, and he told me I should cut out sugar because it heightens symptoms of anxiety.
Then my friend Jessica, who I’ve known since I was born, has started a new blog with the purpose of helping people with nutrition and exercise. She’s a fricking badass mofo, guys. She just started it, but I think it’s something to keep an eye on.
http://marathonmunchies.wordpress.com
Considering all these things happening at once, I feel like it’s probably a sign that I should get my eating in order. Not for weight, which is never a motivating factor for me, but for overall good health. I’m tired of eating something, not feeling good, and then wondering exactly what it was that made me sick. The egg? The cheese? The fat? I don’t know!
My roommate wants me to cut out everything except vegetables and meat for 2 weeks. Then slowly start adding things back in. Dairy for a little bit, then carbs, etc. That way I can find out exactly what is bothering me.
However, this means that I don’t get to eat cheese! That’s terrible news. But it’s just 2 weeks. It would be a fun experiment…or not.
Now I’m craving brussel sprouts!
-Calisa
Let’s Help!
January 14, 2010
So, it turns out that when you make a donation with your credit card to a charity, credit cards still charge the transaction fee. This results in about $250 million dollars profit a year for them. Even more during a major crisis, such as the one in Haiti.
The only credit card company in the US that doesn’t do this is Capital One. I do not have a Capital One card, but if you do, use it! That way 100% of the profits will go towards the cause.
If you are like me and you don’t have Capital One, well, making a donation is still really important! Google makes it suuuuper easy to donate for relief efforts in Haiti if you go here:
And, if you’d like to donate more, say $50 to the Red Cross, American Airlines will give you 250 miles as a thank you!!
Could come in handy for flights later on.
Even $10 helps. Let’s do what we can
Happy New Year!
January 2, 2010
Today is a palindrome: 01022010 (meaning it reads the same forwards and backwards)
Best wishes to everyone for a wonderful 2010 filled with light, love and laughter!
Love,
Calisa
Tour de Duo
November 4, 2009
Pianist Margaret Halbig and I are gearing up for the first of our three concerts this season, starting with this Sunday at 7 pm.
We’ll be performing the Prokofiev Sonata in D Major for flute and piano, as well as the Zyman Sonata. Margaret and Bridget Callahan will play Clark’s Sonata for viola and piano, which one of the most beautiful pieces I have ever heard. They both play it beautifully.
We’ll also be performing at 10 am Sunday morning at Santa Barbara’s First Congregational Church. So if you want to get goood music and a great sermon all in the same setting, please come join us.
The evening concert is at 7 pm in Geiringer Hall at UC Santa Barbara. We look forward to seeing you there!
-Calisa and Margaret
San Francisco Conservatory of Music
September 30, 2009
I am honored to be attending the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. It is truly an amazing place. The building is stunning, the acoustics are beautiful, and it is centrally located to just about everything this city has to offer.
I work at the San Francisco Symphony a few days a week, which is two blocks away from the Conservatory. The opera house is next to that and Herbst Theatre, another great performance venue, is just next to that. All of these buildings are across the street from City Hall, which is a sight to behold.
I am constantly inspired here. I get to study with Timothy Day, the principal flutist of the Symphony, and then I get free tickets to see him perform with one of the best symphonies in the world. I heard them play Mahler Symphony 1 last week and was beyond blown away. Words cannot describe that experience. Suffice it to say that it was the most amazing concert I have ever been to.
In addition, I’m performing in several of the ensembles at SFCM, including the Symphony Orchestra, the New Music Ensemble, and the String Chamber Program. Outside of school, I’m working with a fantastic guitarist, Tony Kakamakov, which is extremely exciting. Keep your eyes and ears open for some very exciting things coming from this flute-guitar duo!
And if that wasn’t enough, I still get to teach wonderful young flutists both privately and in a chamber music setting at the Peninsula Youth Orchestra in Redwood City. We work one-on-one, as well as in duets, trios, quartets and full flute choir. The students at PYO are amazing and I love working with them.
I have lots of concerts coming up, so please always check my homepage for the latest updates!
-Calisa
New Beginnings
August 12, 2009
I’m officially moved in to my new apartment in Cole Valley, San Francisco! I can’t believe it! I’m so ecstatic and still in awe of everything that has happened.
I love my apartment and my roommates. We live in a quintessential San Franciscan flat with moldings, stenciled wallpaper, a 1/2 and 1/2 bathroom, and beautiful bay windows with flower beds right outside the window. To top things off, there is an amazing falafel restaurant just ten feet away, and it is only a 12 minute MUNI ride to SFCM (San Francisco Conservatory of Music)!
My best friends and I moved me up from Southern California to San Francisco on Sunday morning in a fancy Uhaul, threw everything in my new room, and drove back early Monday morning to get back to work bright and early Tuesday! It was a crazy 24 hour period, but it was so much fun. The storage unit is even emptied out!
I’ll go back up to SF Sunday afternoon after my performance at the All Saint’s Church in Santa Barbara, and then I have a meeting on Monday, and the SFCM orientation is Tuesday morning! Next week will be crazy… meetings, orientations, registrations, and auditions!
Did I mention I’m excited? Everything has worked out so well I keep pinching myself because it just seems too good to be true! I’m keeping my fingers crossed that things keep staying so positive
Cheers to new beginnings, new friends, new places, new opportunities, and of course, to new music!
-Calisa
Share Our Strength: There is Strength in Numbers
July 6, 2009
Wedding of Tobias and Julie
June 30, 2009
On Saturday, June 27th I had the priviledge of playing solo flute at the wedding of Tobias and Julie Hollerer at the Santa Barbara Courthouse Sunken Gardens.
Not only is the venue absolutely beautiful, but it is free as well! Because it is public property, anyone can get married here for free. The downside, however, is that you can’t reserve the space. I’ve always secretly wanted to play at a wedding here since I found out about this, and am thrilled to have played at Tobias and Julie’s wedding.
Sure enough, everything was absolutely perfect! The weather was gorgeous, there were no other weddings on the entire property (at noon on a Saturday!), and the atmosphere was just lovely.
It was a small affair, around 30 guests, standing room only. Tobias and Julie used to play the flute, so I had the opportunity to play some of my favorite sonatas and concertos; Telemann, Bach, and Mozart to name a few. Nothing superficial for this couple! I was thrilled to play some legitimate repertoire And we topped it off with “Fly Me to the Moon” at the very end.
My favorite part was during the ceremony. Each guest ready a stanza of a pre-selected poem, and in between each stanza, I played a phrase of Bach’s Sicilienne. The timing was perfect; the last stanza ended with the last phrase of the piece.
It was simple, beautiful, and incredibly special. Everyone was so happy to celebrate the love of this couple, and I was honored to be a part of this incredibly special day.
Sometimes I have to pinch myself- am I really so lucky that I get paid to be a part of the most important day of a someone’s life? I suppose so. Being a musician can be hard work sometimes, but days like Saturday make it all worth it. The wedding was a reminder of how remarkable it is to find love in this world, and how fortunate I am to witness it on a regular basis.
Congratulations, Tobias and Julie!
~Calisa
