The Snow of 2010

New Yorkers got pounded with snow in January and February. Two of the bigger storms hit on January 2 and February 10. Generally I'm not a big fan of snow, but this year it was especially pretty because there was very little wind. The snow could cling to the branches of the trees, and my everyday world took on a bit of magic.

Here are the best of my winter snow pictures. Most are from Stuyvesant Town, the Manhattan apartment complex where I live. Others are from Times Square where I work.

The Stuyvesant Town Christmas tree looked quite elegant in the snow!

A completely different type of evergreen, I can't decide if this tree looks ballerina-like and comical, or menacing and ghoulish.

Back view of the playground outside the building where I live.
It's closed today, kids.

Front view of the same playground. Note the time on the clock over the center structure. It's 10:30 AM and I'm clearly late for work.

A cluster of snow-lined trees.

The red bark on this tree contrasts nicely with the snow.

The cab adds a splash of color.

Times Square, looking north on Seventh Avenue. Here, the snow melts quickly from the traffic and the heat of the subway under the street. My camera wasn't able to show how hard it was snowing, but that's why the cars and buses all have their headlights on at 11:20 AM when this picture was taken.

From the 15th floor of the office building where I work, we can see the snow gracing Madame Toussaud's hand atop her wax museum located on 42nd Street.

6:43 PM and it's still snowing in Times Square.
Yes, friends, I went to work in a blizzard. Sad...

© 2010, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

My Flute Journey Continues

Since the December 25th arrival of my Peter Noy flute, I've been happily adapting to it. Both my embouchure and my hands are undergoing many changes. As I practice every day, I see rapid progress. If nothing else, switching from flute to flute over the past few years has taught me how to quickly adjust to a new instrument, a skill I hope I will no longer need!

Playing a different flute involves work in several areas.

• EMBOUCHURE: One must learn how best to direct air across the flute's blow hole so that a variety of timbres can be produced and proper pitch can be maintained. This area of work involves strengthening and retraining the muscles of the face and lips.
• HANDS: One must train the fingers to cover the holes. The fourth finger (the ring finger) on each hand is usually the most problematic, as it is the weakest and hardest to control. The finger span of my hands is average, but even so, I need to develop more strength to consistently cover the holes when playing at top speeds.

To strengthen my embouchure and hands, I am doing two types of work:

• TECHNICAL: Long tones develop embouchure strength and accurate pitch. Finger exercises allow me to work on various patterns that will develop my coordination while I gain strength in the wider hand stretch required of my right hand. I'm working on my left hand position, rolling the headjoint inwards to give more freedom to my left wrist and to better balance the flute against my index finger. I'm also paying attention to throat articulation and the position of my right thumb.
• TUNES: To keep from being bored out of my mind, I declared January to be Polka Month. Polkas are easy to learn and fun to play in sessions. Conal O'Grada, my teacher at Willie Clancy Week last summer, taught us some polkas so I reviewed those. I'm also learning a few from Fliuit, a flute instructional tutor by June McCormack as well as from The Irish Flute Player's Handbook by flutemaker Hammy Hamilton. I've worked on 15 polkas in January and I'm having a pretty good time, so maybe I'll keep going for another few weeks.

Thinking about how I came to develop these transitioning skills, I started to recall my journey through Irish traditional music. Being an inveterate list maker, my recollections took the form of a timeline which begins before I started blogging. Once the blog was established, I had a place to reflect on my frustrations and record my progress. Note the links and corresponding labels used for grouping similar topics.

• July 2003 Purchase of a Cillian Ó Briain Improved Feadog D whistle at the The Living Tradition shop (now closed) in Cork City, Ireland.
• 2003-2004 Whistle lessons with Bill Ochs
• Spring 2004 Took Mick Moloney's History of Celtic Music at New York University
• Spring 2004 Joined the NYU-based Washington Square Harp and Shamrock Orchestra (WSHSO)
• 2004-2005 Took whistle lessons with Mike Rafferty (Rafferty)
• 2004-2008 Attended Catskills Irish Arts Week (Catskills Irish Arts Week)
• Fall 2005 Switch my primary instrument from tin whistle to flute
• 2005-2006 Weekly Flute Lessons with Mike Rafferty (Rafferty)
• July 10, 2006 Inspired by Joanie (Flute Journey)
• 2006-2010 Occasional flute lessons with Mike Rafferty (Rafferty)
• Jan 28, 2007 Starting to Play in Sessions (Flute Journey)
• Feb 02, 2007 Silver Flute vs. Irish Flute (Flute Journey)
• June 13, 2007 Alternate Fingering for C# (Flute Journey)
• Oct 21, 2007 Playing in Sessions, an update (Flute Journey)
• 2007-2008 Played with Lorcan Otway in Sorcha Dorcha (Sorcha Dorcha)
• March 29, 2008 Sandalwood Headjoint for my Silver Flute (Flute Journey)
• April 20, 2008 Flute Dilemma Again (or rather, still) - re-evaluating the silver flute solution (Flute Journey)
• May 09, 2008 Flute Dilemma Resolved - decision to get a Peter Noy keyless wooden flute (Flute Journey)
• Aug 17, 2008 Finding an Interim Flute - purchase of the Casey Burns mopane Folk Flute (Flute Journey)
• Dec 17, 2008 Flute Choice Refined - decision to add keys (Flute Journey)
• April 30, 2009 Ireland Bound - switch to a borrowed Burns boxwood flute (Flute Journey)
• July 2009 Attended Willie Clancy School of Traditional Music, Miltown Malbay, Ireland (Willie Week)
• Jan 16, 2010 My New Flute - arrival of the Peter Noy flute (Flute Journey)

The collage below makes the point in a more concise way, showing the variety of instruments I've played since 2003.

Top left - borrowed Casey Burns keyless boxwood flute

Top middle - my Cillian Ó Briain tin whistle (2004 photo, lesson with Mary Bergin)

Top right - Peter Noy head joint, on loan, for my silver flute

Bottom left - borrowed Terry McGee keyless African blackwood flute

Bottom middle - my Casey Burns mopane folk flute

Bottom right - my Wm. S. Haynes handmade solid silver flute

Center - my Peter Noy 6-keyed boxwood flute

Yes, the years since that momentous visit to Ireland in 2003 have been full of growth and adventure. During that time I've become acculturated in the world of traditional Irish music and have learned many tunes. I've experimented with Irish piano accompaniment and have discovered I can sing a bit when I'm of a mind to do so. I've even tried set dancing. Flute is my primary interest though, and now that I have a good instrument I'm ready to do some serious work on my playing abilities. If only there were more hours in the day!

© 2010, Linda Mason HoodTruffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement