Well, tomorrow begins a new academic year at my new school, The Ohio State University. For me, school has kind of started as I have had a couple of lessons, a week of meetings and such, and know several of the TAs. I got my lockers in Hughes Hall for my tubas yesterday, and am waiting till I can store them away elsewhere. Working on getting a new F tuba that suits me, which means probably waiting through a long line at the Student Academic Services building to see if I can request $3000 extra in loans for the quarter and end it at that.
I am just guessing it will be a headache and I will walk away needing a letter and all that stuff.
Had a birthday this weekend, and it was great besides going a little over the edge Friday night with friends.
So, I figure it will take a couple weeks to get into the swing of things. Auditions are Thursday for me, and things begin next week. Quarters are weird because you start very late and only have 10 week periods instead of 15-16, but this is the last year any Ohio school can be on quarters. The first big goal I want to try to follow is David Zerkel's 10 points, which I will list at the bottom. These are great playing and musical goals, and I will try my best to follow them (especially listening to music for other instruments). My academic classes seem light this quarter, which will give me a lot of time in the practice room.
-------------------------Personal Goals-------------------------------
Better Financial Health
I have too much in credit card debt and loans. One of the things I am going to do while I am in school is to pay off all credit card debts. I regret when I have to pay off loans, but I am hoping by using budget apps and debt payoff solutions and David Ramsey stuff I can manage this better and get out of credit card debt by time I am 28. This means I have to dip into my savings which I didn't want it to fall below the amount I have, but I won't pay rent on a credit card again and pay those off faster, then get back into financial shape. I should sell my F tuba by summer and live off that money for summer.
I have bought 2 budget apps for my iPhone. AceBudget and DebtPayoff. For $2.15, I can manage my debts and finances at my fingertips along with my bank app, and get in better financial health. I wish I could have done this at Miami, but never too late to get back into shape. I guess this means any gig money will go to credit cards.
Better Health
I should invest $30 in a digital scale, but I will wait for a few days. I don't intend on losing weight, but cooking more at home. This will help with financial health by not eating out or drinking much alcohol (I have money set aside for this though to have some good times with friends), as well as be healthier than eating out.
I am going to try to be using the rec center, even if it is 20 minutes a day and drink more water. This will help moving on the elliptical.
Also, drinking a max of 1 coke (pop/soda) a day, this will help out immensely. Nathan/Megan MacDonald have been a big inspiration in this. Nathan has lost over 100 pounds eating extremely healthy and exercising and if I can lose 40 pounds over 2 years it would be amazing.
Less Driving
As an OSU student, I pay $9 a quarter to use the COTA city buses. There is a stop right near my apartment and a stop right near Weigel Hall. It is inconvenient and I can't stay out late, but it is a great service, and I save $700 plus gas/wear and tear on the car over the year (I need to verify that they don't take the permit out even if you don't get one).
I have not filled up with gas since September 4th, and if I luck out, I can go a month on a tank besides gigs out of the area (but hey, then I am making money). So, I figure on a normal month with insurance I can get by with less than $150 with gigs, or $100 on car fees, including insurance. This year, it should save me $1000 by not driving to school.
More Personal Time
Watching TV on my computer, sleeping, waking up earlier. I am 25 now, and since I am riding the bus, I think riding the bus will prioritize my time and such at school (besides the current lunch issue the first couple of weeks).
I might add more on later
Zerkel's 10 Points (for those curious)
Here are my notes from a chat to the brass students at UGA on Day 1. A top ten
list of sorts... I hope they listened!
1. Take your classes seriously. Theory, Ear-training and Music History provide
you with the tools to understand the language of music and your mastery of
these subjects WILL help you play your instrument better. If you have had a
math course beyond algebra, music theory should present no problems, as it is
structured in a very systematic way. Ear-training will help you learn what you
need to hear, whether you are playing your instrument or standing in front of a
band. Music History will equip you with the tools to approach your
interpretations from informed perspective and will give you the insight needed
to play with style.
2. Listen to as much music as you can! Naxos online music library is a great
resource, as is our incredibly complete music library. A hard, but not
impossible, goal is to spend the same amount of hours listening that you spend
practicing. Listening to music and familiarizing yourself with a broad spectrum
of music is where your REAL musical education will take place.
3. Learn and know your scales and arpeggios, as they are the building blocks of
western music. Realizing that virtually everything that you play is constructed
with scales and arpeggios will make mastering your instrument exponentially
easier.
4. Schedule your practice time as though it were a class and make yourself a
tough attendance policy. Success in music, like anything else in life, is
dependent upon disciplined and persistent effort. Hard work will trump talent
any day of the week. The world is filled with incredibly talented people who
never reached their potential because they were lazy. It is the observation of the
brass faculty that the overall work ethic of the students in the school of music is
quite lax compared to other places that we have been. Each of you has the
power to reverse this condition that affects the culture of music here at UGA. It
is really cool to not suck… daily practice will help you to appreciate your
potential and your ability to improve.
5. Go to concerts! There is no substitution for listening to live music—every
performance you hear provides you with the opportunity to learn something
about your own performances. Whether you will teach or perform, you will
spend the rest of your life evaluating performances and diagnosing the
strengths and weaknesses of what you hear. You will develop this skill much
more quickly if you are going to concerts.
6. Embrace what technology has to offer us in developing as musicians. Rhythm
and Pitch are the two empirical truths in music--- either they are right or they
are wrong. Don’t look as your metronome and tuner as though they are nagging
you that you are not good enough—learn to make chamber music with your Dr.
Beat and to look at your tuner as the teller of truth. If you really want to use
technology to improve your performance skills, purchase a digital recorder such
as a Zoom 2 (or use Quicktime on your computer) to record your practice. This
will help you to become your own teacher. The greatest period of growth that I
have ever had as a developing musician happened when I was recording and
evaluating my practice on a daily basis.
7. Be curious! Strive to know the repertoire for your instrument. Practice
something everyday that is NOT part of your lesson assignment for the week.
Read ahead in an etude book or check out some music from the library. This will
help your sight-reading skills immeasurably. Strive to be a comprehensive
musician, not just a jock on your horn!
8. Play with your peers! Form a chamber music group or play duets with a peer
as much as you can. Chamber music empowers each of us to make musical
decisions without the input of a director, which is a critical skill. Playing
chamber music will also help grow your ears in a dramatic way.
9. Be serious about your pursuit of excellence. Set the bar high and work hard to
be the best that you can be. Music is an extraordinarily competitive field—
remember that there is always someone somewhere that is working harder than
you are and someday you will meet them at the audition or the interview. You
owe it to yourself to be the best musician that you can be. You will only be a
great band director if you are first a great musician.
10. Know that every great musician in the world still considers himself or herself
a student of music. Wynton Marsalis is a music student. Joe Alessi is a music
student, as is Gail Williams, Steven Mead and Oystein Baadsvik . Make lifelong
improvement and lifelong learning your goal. I am not as good as I think I am
and neither are you. The older I get, the more I realize that I have only begun to
scratch the surface of what there is to know. Use this blessing of an opportunity
that you have as a full-time music student to your advantage. Your hard work
will pay off in the end!
