June 7 - On a Clear Day You Can See 1000 Measures

Second lesson at the Apple Store -- mostly using an external backup drive and dealing with iMovie (+ can use the Mail program there and in the city, but not at home, hmm) -- then third rehearsal for SFCCO June 9 show, back at PHNH, a great day, with great views, and the music sounding pretty great, too -- all coming together and proceeding on schedule... dreaming of Waiting for Godot 52 orchestration....

June 6 - Multi-Basking

Working on Godot orchestration, towards 51, proceeding moderately, while enjoying the sunshine and scanning visuals and importing tracks into iTunes in preparation for the Summer semester...

June 5 - Temptations of Street Agony

Last opportunity to take to the road (during this semester break) for two sequential days, and I am tempted, with a morning sky that seems to say, "Anywhere but here," then the sun comes out and I'm lucid once more, or as lucid as I'm likely to be -- keeping the goal of orchestrating Waiting for Godot 50 in sight....

June 4 - Slow Mow

Lunch with Harriet at local Mex spot, then work continues on Waiting for Godot orchestration, aiming for 49 -- not in quite such a hurry, since cast and I are content to work with the simplified instrumentation, which sounds interesting in conjunction with Keisuke's live piano.....

June 3 - Beach Sandwich

Went to Gray Whale Beach today, first in quite a long time, a bit of sun through the clouds, then it was fog once more. Oh for a coast averaging about 10 degrees warmer and 50 percent sunnier. But then, one supposes it would be as overrun as some places in S Cal.

Read the NYT and had a falafel sandwich, but also sandwiched the beach (and a brief hike from the Montara Mountain parking lot to the next beach access south, thereby connecting a series of dayhikes from the abandoned low-slung seafood restaurant in Montara to the equally closed porno drive-in at the Marin-Sonoma border -- hey, everyone has to have a goal....) between two rehearsals at GH.

The first was the weekly Sunday Waiting for Godot rehearsal, and Act I came together in a well-nigh run through in just about a half hour -- Yes! -- such that we could spend more than a solid hour on Act II. No Eliza today, so I stood in as Vladimir -- almost memorized, myself (by now I have subbed for everyone on stage, and this has helped the direction) -- along with the rest of the excellent cast. Went back to Act I to put Lea in the mix (she has to arrive late at rehearsals and missed the first run-though. Lucky's speech is now staged with Kat on the box in a frenetic mock lecture, while Lea holds her arms up as in religious ecstacy. Have way through the madess, they change roles.....

Second was the second rehearsal of the San Francisco Composers Chamber Orchestra Hi, I'll Be Your Composer This Evening show, covering all the music, as JKB is honeymooning today -- he and his flame married yesterday!. All of SFCCO rep a pleasure to get to know better with all this hands-on experience -- brilliant! -- so, looking forward to concert along these lines....

Hallucinating Godot orchestrations of selections 47-48...

June 2 - Party Prosek

Party at Erling's tonight -- couldn't stay long, had to eat and run, but glad to see we've got 21st-Century Music back up on the web.

Then Harriet and I off to Lisa Scola Prosek's beautiful and engaging Belfagor, with a warm-up act of a scene from a fine work-in-progress by Peter Josheff -- will write both up for August 2007 issue of 21stc. Lots of friendly folks involved and present, at Thick House, including first rate performances by

Soprano Eliza O'Malley -- in both works, first time to hear her in one of her partner Peter Josheff's pieces... very happy to have her appear as Vladimir in Waiting for Godot in less than two weeks(!).

+ also in Lisa's Soprano Maria Mikeyeko (GHP), Alto Gar, Tenor Aurelio Viscarra (GHP), and Bass Cliff Romig, with pretty much an SFCCO chamber ensemble of clarinetist Rachel Condry, violist Katie Wreede, bassist Ken, plus cellist, with Lisa on piano, conduced by Marty Stoddard, with pianist Alexis Alrich in the Josheff.

Direction and visuals, also excellent, by Jim Cave and Jakob.

In audience, Michael McDonagh, who will be writing up Paul Dresher's The Tyrant for San Francisco Classical Voice. Also good to see Tony and Hillary, proprietors of Thick House, who are certainly supportng local opera....

Back home, contemplating Godot orchestration 45-46...

June 1 - Death of Taxes

Something close in the air today as grades are finally filed electronically and the IRS is even more belatedly dealt with in a like fashion. Habit is a great deadener and perhaps a great enlivener, with orchestration continuing to conceive Waiting for Godot 43-44.