I made a reassuring discovery earlier: The director my oral reasearch presentation is on is French, and I never really registered his name at first. I kept thinking "Jacques Cousteau," which made me feel very silly. I was quite glad to look back at my assignment sheet and find out that his name is Jacques Copeau. Three cheers for not being as ditzy as I feel!
On a slightly more "Oh, Nita" note, it's just after noon, but I feel totally Monday-morning'd. Because of daylight savings time, I woke up after 1:00 yesterday, and so I didn't go to sleep until 2:30 last night. I am now very tired. Getting out of bed didn't seem like a priority to me this morning. When I finally did get up, I stood in front of the mirror and looked at my pajama pants as if they were the weirdest thing ever. When I realized what I was doing, I left my bedroom, but, instead of going into the bathroom to put in my contact lenses, I stood outside of it, poking the basebaord-type molding around the doorframe. I even said "poke." I have no idea why this seemed like the thing to do.
Miraculously enough, I was 5 minutes early for class. I laid on the floor on my stomach (acting classroom--no desks or tables), and my prof dropped the presentation schedule on my back. I made a noise and looked up, and he was looking at me funny. But I was there in time to learn about Stanislavski! I still don't get Method acting, though. There must be a reason it's called "Method," but there seems to be only one thing to it, all the ways I've ever heard it described.
My Ligeti paper went well enough, but I could not figure out the pattern for the Piano Etude #9. So I turned that to my advantage and said that the randomness was the main device used to make the piece "ametric," as I termed it. I juxtaposed the random but existing emphases of the etude with the continually unemphasized (and continually emphasized, in the B section) contralpunctal pulse stream of the string quartet. *pats self on head* Even if it's not what the prof wanted me to get at, I think it merits a paper. As I said in my conclusion, if music is sound over time (and people have already asked what the requirements are for the sound), then Ligeti asked what the requirements are for the time.
Watch me fail... But at least I got the concept of the ametricness from the performance notes, so I can't be *that* off.
I'm putting off going to the library to get books on Copeau because I don't think I can stay awake through a day's worth of reading, much of it in French. I think I'll compromise by doing online research today so that I can focus my book readings tomorrow. Thank God this doesn't have to be a scholarly paper, nor must the sources be scholarly. Our bibliography is supposed to include anything we found helpful, and I asked about the scholarly requirements of the sources to be sure. To Wikipedia!
Oh, and lastly, I got my first choice for the female actor for my 383 final scene, but everybody wanted, like, four males (well, two people wanted four males, but that's still 8 males when only about 9 auditioned and 11 other directors also need male actors), so I backed down completely on that front. I wound up e-mailing Nathan to get him to ask Andrew Henry if he'd be interested. Nathan said he'd pass along the message, but I haven't heard back yet. I e-mailed him again this morning to say that I needed to know soon, because I'm starting to worry. The actress I cast has a voice recital three days after the performance of the scene, so the last week can't be intensive rehearsal, which means that we need to get started soon.
3/10/2008
3/06/2008
I May Still Be in School, but at Least I'm Studying Neat Stuff
I have the Ligeti pieces for my paper in front of me. The paper is due in 25.5 hours. The String Quartet Number 2, Third Movement, actually looks pretty straightforward. Most of it is hemiolas, rather than phases. (Edit: *kicks self*) The Etude 9: Vertige will be more difficult. They've simplified the notation in the music I have, so that each cascade of notes isn't beamed separately after the four "bars." The in-class paper I wrote was infinitely easier because I had a handwritten copy of the score I was writing about, whereas most of the rest of the class was using a printed version that didn't have any submetrical "bar lines" written in. The Vertige is based on a concept that's easy enough to understand, but I think I'm gonna go see if I can find another version of the score (though that's not likely--people don't like to post sheet music online if it's still under copyright, or if they're trying to sell it).
So that was the first look I've taken at the music, despite earlier insistences that I was about to go work on it. I'm feeling much better about this paper now. All I have to do between now and when the paper is due (except, of course, write the damned thing) is go to rehearsal for an hour and a half tonight, and spend three hours on my Directing class, one negotiating with my classmates about who will cast which actors from the auditions over the past two days, and two hours immediately after actually in class, playing with my ground plan for my scene. I managed to get a script and choose a scene, though not until early yesterday afternoon. *meek look* I'm doing most of Act 2, Scene 4, from Arthur Miller's last play, Broken Glass. I like it. Now, if only the negotiations weren't at 8am tomorrow... I'm not sure how much sleep I'll be getting tonight. ^_^
New contender for creepiest line ever, from a play by Harold Pinter (didn't catch the title):
Interrogator: This is my big finger. This is my little finger. How many times were you raped?
(Prisoner: I don't know.)
The kid in my class who's directing that got almost everybody who came to auditions to do some part of one of the interrogation scenes. I told him we were going to leave scarred.
So that was the first look I've taken at the music, despite earlier insistences that I was about to go work on it. I'm feeling much better about this paper now. All I have to do between now and when the paper is due (except, of course, write the damned thing) is go to rehearsal for an hour and a half tonight, and spend three hours on my Directing class, one negotiating with my classmates about who will cast which actors from the auditions over the past two days, and two hours immediately after actually in class, playing with my ground plan for my scene. I managed to get a script and choose a scene, though not until early yesterday afternoon. *meek look* I'm doing most of Act 2, Scene 4, from Arthur Miller's last play, Broken Glass. I like it. Now, if only the negotiations weren't at 8am tomorrow... I'm not sure how much sleep I'll be getting tonight. ^_^
New contender for creepiest line ever, from a play by Harold Pinter (didn't catch the title):
Interrogator: This is my big finger. This is my little finger. How many times were you raped?
(Prisoner: I don't know.)
The kid in my class who's directing that got almost everybody who came to auditions to do some part of one of the interrogation scenes. I told him we were going to leave scarred.
3/03/2008
Monday
I have had a productive day so far. I woke up in time to eat a proper breakfast *and* stop for coffee on my way to school. In fact, I got to school a tad early, which was slightly awkward, as I had to go make an announcement in a Drama 102 class, and I wound up kind of standing around there waiting for it to be 9:00 so I could do so. The announcement was for the auditions for actors for the final scenes for my Directing class (ooh, four "for"s). The 102 class is the version of play analysis that everyone and their dog can take, so I'm hoping some people sign up for auditions who we might not have considered as potential actors.
Stupid fact: Our final scenes will require us to spend fewer hours in rehearsal than our midterm scenes did. We each had to act in two scenes in addition to directing our own for our midterm, and with 8-minute scenes, that worked out to 24 hours of rehearsal. For the final, though, our scenes have to be 12-16 minutes, so that's only 12-16 hours of rehearsal. We have to make an entire workbook, though, so it'll be as much work, but not all of it will have to be with other people at scheduled times (thank God).
I haven't decided what scene I'm doing, but I have to have it chosen by the auditions tomorrow evening. I'm thinking of doing a scene from Arthur Miller's "The Creation of the World and Other Business," or whatever the exact title is. It depends on which scripts I can get ahold of. If worse comes to worst, I'll do something from Death of a Salesman, or maybe Pinter's The Lover. I know at least one other person is doing a scene from that play, but I actually have a copy of that script. *ponders*
I dealt with Faculte Saint-Jean. I went to talk to someone last week, and they wrote down what I was concerned about with the marking and said that they'd talk to the prof and for me to come back today. I did, and I was told that, despite the fact that the situation could be considered unfair, it was the prof's perogative to mark assignments as he saw fit. I was thanked for my input, since things like this are considered during staff evaluations. I considered going back and talking to the U of A admin to get my Spring term stuff sorted out, but I had other things to do.
Those other things included buying new shoes, since mine were cracked on the bottom and melting snow was making my socks wet. I found a very comfy pair at The Shoe Company, and I also bought myself a cute pair of Keds because they were on clearance for $15 and they'll go well with jeans. ^_^ Then I went pillow shopping. That's not a fun task. My pillows were starting to get all bunched up and uncomfortable, though, and it's been affecting my sleeping. You can spend a ludicrous amount of money on pillows. I wound up buying pretty basic pillows, but they're "gusseted," so they're more even and not as "pregnant"-shaped. I can't believe I'm discussing pillow types in my blog, and that doing so requires me to use quotation marks...
I'm now off to do some work on my Theory paper that was supposed to be due tomorrow, but everyone in Wind Ensemble begged for an extension because they went to Calgary this weekend, so now it's due on Friday. It's on two Ligeti pieces (he's a kind of weird post-minimalist for those of you who don't know). Essentially, we have to answer the questions "What is it and how does it work?" for each piece, then compare the pieces. I don't anticipate this to be very difficult, especially with this only being a 6-page paper, but I'm reluctant to really do any work on it, since it requires such a fine-tooth comb approach, and right now I'd rather nap. ^_^
Stupid fact: Our final scenes will require us to spend fewer hours in rehearsal than our midterm scenes did. We each had to act in two scenes in addition to directing our own for our midterm, and with 8-minute scenes, that worked out to 24 hours of rehearsal. For the final, though, our scenes have to be 12-16 minutes, so that's only 12-16 hours of rehearsal. We have to make an entire workbook, though, so it'll be as much work, but not all of it will have to be with other people at scheduled times (thank God).
I haven't decided what scene I'm doing, but I have to have it chosen by the auditions tomorrow evening. I'm thinking of doing a scene from Arthur Miller's "The Creation of the World and Other Business," or whatever the exact title is. It depends on which scripts I can get ahold of. If worse comes to worst, I'll do something from Death of a Salesman, or maybe Pinter's The Lover. I know at least one other person is doing a scene from that play, but I actually have a copy of that script. *ponders*
I dealt with Faculte Saint-Jean. I went to talk to someone last week, and they wrote down what I was concerned about with the marking and said that they'd talk to the prof and for me to come back today. I did, and I was told that, despite the fact that the situation could be considered unfair, it was the prof's perogative to mark assignments as he saw fit. I was thanked for my input, since things like this are considered during staff evaluations. I considered going back and talking to the U of A admin to get my Spring term stuff sorted out, but I had other things to do.
Those other things included buying new shoes, since mine were cracked on the bottom and melting snow was making my socks wet. I found a very comfy pair at The Shoe Company, and I also bought myself a cute pair of Keds because they were on clearance for $15 and they'll go well with jeans. ^_^ Then I went pillow shopping. That's not a fun task. My pillows were starting to get all bunched up and uncomfortable, though, and it's been affecting my sleeping. You can spend a ludicrous amount of money on pillows. I wound up buying pretty basic pillows, but they're "gusseted," so they're more even and not as "pregnant"-shaped. I can't believe I'm discussing pillow types in my blog, and that doing so requires me to use quotation marks...
I'm now off to do some work on my Theory paper that was supposed to be due tomorrow, but everyone in Wind Ensemble begged for an extension because they went to Calgary this weekend, so now it's due on Friday. It's on two Ligeti pieces (he's a kind of weird post-minimalist for those of you who don't know). Essentially, we have to answer the questions "What is it and how does it work?" for each piece, then compare the pieces. I don't anticipate this to be very difficult, especially with this only being a 6-page paper, but I'm reluctant to really do any work on it, since it requires such a fine-tooth comb approach, and right now I'd rather nap. ^_^
2/25/2008
Anger!
So I have a contingency plan. Even if I am successful, I worry that getting the marking system for my Francais course so that it's fair (with the intervention of the administration, as that's what's required) would be a logistical nightmare. The retroactive changes would require that all assignments be recollected and remarked, and some of them have been torn up and thrown out because the unfair grading system turned their 70% assignment into a 0%. I worry that the marks wouldn't be fairly altered across the board. Really, the students aren't obligated to keep their assignments just in case somebody proves that the prof is being a jerk (though he is a perfectly good guy, otherwise--I have no problem with him as a person or as a teacher, just as a marker).
My contingency plan is thus: withdraw from the course; the deadline for doing so with a grade of W is March 14th--I just checked. Then take some other language in the Spring/Summer terms. Not French, because that would require a placement test, and, also, I'm currently bitter. You know, for a place that's desperate for students, Faculte Saint-Jean hasn't been very good to me. I took a course there in first year and hated it so much that I changed my minor. At least I passed that course (though only with a 5 on the stay-9 scale). (*huff* I'm upset right now and am therefore making many typos. Excuse me if I don't catch them all.) And now with this marking insanity that probably has my grade at around a 20%, I am further annoyed with the place.
Maybe I'll take Spanish. It'd be fairly easy for me, plus it would be useful to be able to say something other than "Tengo fria," especially if I wind up living someplace warm come the fall.
The biggest problem, I think, will be convincing my parents. I think they'll be more ok with it when they realize I'll be done school only about two months later than expected, but the paying for two more courses worth of tuition may not go over so well.
I need to calm down. I going to go make some tea, maybe, or do some breathing exercises. I just saw my GP this morning, and she suggested that I get physiotherapy on my neck and shoulders to see if it helps with my migranes. I just can't imagine why I would be tense, though!
*seeths some more*
My contingency plan is thus: withdraw from the course; the deadline for doing so with a grade of W is March 14th--I just checked. Then take some other language in the Spring/Summer terms. Not French, because that would require a placement test, and, also, I'm currently bitter. You know, for a place that's desperate for students, Faculte Saint-Jean hasn't been very good to me. I took a course there in first year and hated it so much that I changed my minor. At least I passed that course (though only with a 5 on the stay-9 scale). (*huff* I'm upset right now and am therefore making many typos. Excuse me if I don't catch them all.) And now with this marking insanity that probably has my grade at around a 20%, I am further annoyed with the place.
Maybe I'll take Spanish. It'd be fairly easy for me, plus it would be useful to be able to say something other than "Tengo fria," especially if I wind up living someplace warm come the fall.
The biggest problem, I think, will be convincing my parents. I think they'll be more ok with it when they realize I'll be done school only about two months later than expected, but the paying for two more courses worth of tuition may not go over so well.
I need to calm down. I going to go make some tea, maybe, or do some breathing exercises. I just saw my GP this morning, and she suggested that I get physiotherapy on my neck and shoulders to see if it helps with my migranes. I just can't imagine why I would be tense, though!
*seeths some more*
2/21/2008
Thursday Night
I feel very odd right now. I've had a migrane for a few days, and I feel kind of dizzy and nauseated, and I can hear a sound like shifting sand in my ear. Luckily, I've taken thousands of milligrams of Advil today, and nothing actually hurts. I didn't eat dinner until just now, and I hadn't realized how hungry I was--I feel much better than I did half an hour ago. But, yeah, these things can be remarkably debilitating. I made a doctor's appointment for Monday to get a new kind of medication, since the Cafergot isn't working for me in the least anymore.
It is Reading Week. This makes me happy and well-rested. I have been keeping busy, of course, what with going to my grandfather's funeral this past weekend. Winnipeg was bloody cold, but I guess that goes without saying in February. There were fewer people than at my grandmother's funeral, but it was still well-attended. Everybody cried. I bought Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? at the bookstore in the airport on the way out, and I guess I should finish it. It's a very easy read. I brought my copy of Blink with me to read, originally, but I really wanted fiction. I described Blink to my mom and Kathy (who came to Winnipeg with us), and they both declared that it sounded like something they couldn't ever be interested in. They laughed.
I was using Netscape on my parents' computer earlier today, since nobody's bothered to download Firefox, and it prompted me to download an update. That seemed weird to me--I thought AOL put Netscape to bed?
Joanne will be arriving in Edmonton in a few days. This calls for socializing!
Yummy thing I discovered today: Easy Mac with BBQ sauce. Mmmm...
It is Reading Week. This makes me happy and well-rested. I have been keeping busy, of course, what with going to my grandfather's funeral this past weekend. Winnipeg was bloody cold, but I guess that goes without saying in February. There were fewer people than at my grandmother's funeral, but it was still well-attended. Everybody cried. I bought Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? at the bookstore in the airport on the way out, and I guess I should finish it. It's a very easy read. I brought my copy of Blink with me to read, originally, but I really wanted fiction. I described Blink to my mom and Kathy (who came to Winnipeg with us), and they both declared that it sounded like something they couldn't ever be interested in. They laughed.
I was using Netscape on my parents' computer earlier today, since nobody's bothered to download Firefox, and it prompted me to download an update. That seemed weird to me--I thought AOL put Netscape to bed?
Joanne will be arriving in Edmonton in a few days. This calls for socializing!
Yummy thing I discovered today: Easy Mac with BBQ sauce. Mmmm...
2/12/2008
Reasons Why I Want to go Back to Bed Right Now
1) I'm tired. I had a busy weekend, then only got 4 hours of sleep on Sunday night. Last night was better, but not enough. Plus, I feel like I should stock up on sleep, since I don't think I'm going to get huge amounts over the rest of the week.
2) The Edmonton Journal has a "Venting" section three times a week. Today, somebody said the following: "You cannot claim there is evidence of climate change without first documenting long-term changes in average temperature. Hotter temperatures in summer and colder temperatures in winter average out to zero over time." There is no typable emoticon for what this makes me feel.
3) I e-mailed that Venting bit to Peter earlier today, and so I pulled up the sent e-mail in IE (not the browser I'm using for Blogger) to copy and paste the quotation so that I wouldn't have to go upstairs and get the newspaper again. After I finished with Hotmail, I signed out and tried to close the browser. It kind of hiccoughed, and when I clicked to try to close it again, I wound up closing both it and the browser with my blog post. Thank God for autosave, but it was like one extra little kick from the world.
4) I got a letter from the ATA telling me that I need to renew my membership, and this only served to remind me that I have no idea what my future in teaching (or in most anything) will be.
5) I got an e-mail from a woman with the Faculty of Arts telling me I sent them my convocation information by mistake and that I need to talk to the Faculty of Education. This was a personalized e-mail. Also? No, *Beartracks* sent you my convocation information because my BMus is through your faculty, even though the Faculty of Education handles most of the processing because it's the faculty I'm currnently enrolled in. Also, yes I talked to them--like Beratracks told me to. *headdesk*
2) The Edmonton Journal has a "Venting" section three times a week. Today, somebody said the following: "You cannot claim there is evidence of climate change without first documenting long-term changes in average temperature. Hotter temperatures in summer and colder temperatures in winter average out to zero over time." There is no typable emoticon for what this makes me feel.
3) I e-mailed that Venting bit to Peter earlier today, and so I pulled up the sent e-mail in IE (not the browser I'm using for Blogger) to copy and paste the quotation so that I wouldn't have to go upstairs and get the newspaper again. After I finished with Hotmail, I signed out and tried to close the browser. It kind of hiccoughed, and when I clicked to try to close it again, I wound up closing both it and the browser with my blog post. Thank God for autosave, but it was like one extra little kick from the world.
4) I got a letter from the ATA telling me that I need to renew my membership, and this only served to remind me that I have no idea what my future in teaching (or in most anything) will be.
5) I got an e-mail from a woman with the Faculty of Arts telling me I sent them my convocation information by mistake and that I need to talk to the Faculty of Education. This was a personalized e-mail. Also? No, *Beartracks* sent you my convocation information because my BMus is through your faculty, even though the Faculty of Education handles most of the processing because it's the faculty I'm currnently enrolled in. Also, yes I talked to them--like Beratracks told me to. *headdesk*
2/07/2008
Blah
So shortly after I wrote my last post, my grandfather died. *sad* The funeral will be in a week and a half--instead of his 93rd birthday party. My mom wrote a eulogy while waiting for the window repair people to show up this morning.
Also, I totally forgot about my tech rehearsal with my Directing prof today at noon. I feel horrible, and have been self-medicating with sedatives, chocolate and Diet Coke with Lime. I fully expect to get an earful tomorrow morning during class, every bit of which I quite deserve.
Marilyn just stopped by to talk to me. Among other things, she showed me a book titled "How to Listen to Modern Music (Without Earplugs)." She turned to an excerpt of Xenakis' writing on linear polyphony, which was under the heading "Not a Clue [What This is Talkin About]." This made me laugh. Or, well, it made me kind of want to laugh. Marilyn seems to me to be one of those people who descend upon the world and get absorbed into the gushy outer layer and stay there. Did I mention the sedatives? It's time for Concert Band...
Also, I totally forgot about my tech rehearsal with my Directing prof today at noon. I feel horrible, and have been self-medicating with sedatives, chocolate and Diet Coke with Lime. I fully expect to get an earful tomorrow morning during class, every bit of which I quite deserve.
Marilyn just stopped by to talk to me. Among other things, she showed me a book titled "How to Listen to Modern Music (Without Earplugs)." She turned to an excerpt of Xenakis' writing on linear polyphony, which was under the heading "Not a Clue [What This is Talkin About]." This made me laugh. Or, well, it made me kind of want to laugh. Marilyn seems to me to be one of those people who descend upon the world and get absorbed into the gushy outer layer and stay there. Did I mention the sedatives? It's time for Concert Band...
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