Surviving Sophomore Year

So, sophomore year happened.

And we survived! But if you haven’t been a sophomore yet, people aren’t kidding when they say it’s the hardest year of college. Especially for music. Not only do you have that “sophomore slump” thing going on, but you also have an ever-increasing workload so it almost seems like the more you work, the less motivation you have to do it. It’s not a good combination.

But I’m looking back at the whole year now and I’m thinking that if I had to do it again, there’s a few things I might do differently to make it less stressful. So a few bits of advice I wish I took (which I guess really apply to anything):   

1) Don’t over-schedule yourself. It’s great to always want to volunteer for things. It shows a level of commitment and passion for what you do. But remember that time for you is just as important. So do volunteer, but don’t over-volunteer. Learn when you have too much on your plate and devote yourself to doing a few things wonderfully instead of many things at a mediocre level.

2) Limit worrying. We’ve all been there. It’s a stressful week, we’re all tired, and we still have so much work to do. What does the hallway sound like? Worries and complaints. And while most of them are probably justified and we need an outlet for our frustration, I learned something this past semester that I think will apply to everyone:  Let’s not waste our energy complaining when we could just do whatever it is we’re complaining about and get it over with in the amount of time we would spend complaining about it. Let’s use our time wisely.  

3) Be mindful. I was fortunate enough to have a few counseling sessions as an extra credit part of my educational psychology class, and the wonderful woman I met with taught me the importance of mindfulness. This basically means that when you’re doing something, invest yourself completely in it. Either you’re doing something or you’re not. So when you’re in class, you’re in class, and when you’re on break, you’re on a break. You’ll tire more easily if you worry about class during your breaks and thinking about your next break during class. Keep those separate.

And most importantly…

4) Don’t forget why you’re doing this. In the midst of all the stress, remember that you’re doing something you love. Don’t let the 4 (or 5 or 6) years you spend in college scare you away from a lifetime of getting the job you’ve always wanted. Tough as it is, it would probably be harder knowing you gave up something that early on. If you want it, stick with it!

Hope this helps! I know it will help me next year! ♫

Concerts and Conferences

(Post from April 12th. I had this post saved on my computer, but forgot to publish it…ooops! Anyway, enjoy.)

          One of the best things about RIC is that even though it’s mostly a commuter school and pretty much nothing happens on campus on the weekends, it’s still close to downtown Providence and all the artsy events that happen there. This weekend’s events: performances by the Rhode Island Philharmonic orchestra, and the National Association for Music Education All-Eastern Conference 2015. I actually was able to go to both of these, and wow was it worth the time.

The Friday night Rush Hour concert was such a nice way to end the week. For starters, the program was fantastic. It featured music by the French composers Ravel, Saint-Saens, and Berlioz (Coincidentally, I had just taken an exam on a few of these in my music history class that morning – yay for connections!). As a flute player, I’ve come to really love French music. There’s just something about it that’s so gorgeous. The first piece, an excerpt from Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite, also featured musicians from the Rhode Island Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. The Rush Hour concert only features a portion of the Saturday night program, so we only heard the fifth movement, but it was so magical and fairytale-esque even on its own, just short and sweet. Berlioz’s Queen Mab Scherzo from Romeo and Juliet followed in the same fashion. We also got to hear this amazing cello concerto by Saint-Saens, performed by Mr. Alban Gerhardt; again, we only heard one movement, but the performance was absolutely stunning. Watching Gerhardt perform was sort of mesmerizing – I could hardly believe the sound of the cello and how fast his bow moved! The concert finished with the Ravel Bolero, which was done beautifully (Props to the snare drum player who took on the 15 minute long ostinato!)

Our view of the Phil before the concert started

Oh, and another great thing about being a student is…DISCOUNTS! Seriously, if you have access to these, TAKE THEM!!! For example: we can pay $25 for a college card for all RIPO concerts at the beginning of the semester, show up at the will call window the night of the performance, and get front row seats!

I kid you not. Front row. Pretty much free.

...So yeah, take advantage of those discounts!

So after leaving the concert and singing the Bolero for the rest of the night, I got up bright and early and headed to the convention center for the NAfME All-Eastern Conference. And if you’ve never gone to one of these conventions, you should. Because if you’re in music and you’re a nerd like I am, this is the place you want to be. Not only do you get to go to all these great workshops and presentations about various music topics, but you get to see all these great exhibits.

Instruments! Instruments everywhere! Brand new shiny, beautiful instruments. And books! Classroom stuff! I played a bass recorder today. How often do you get to play a bass recorder? Oh and all the cute little music merchandise stuff like jewelry and t-shirts. Seems like you can never have enough of those (I bought a flute keychain :P )



^Bass Recorder!

The presentations were great and I learned a lot from them. I went to one about vocal development in young children; one on creativity, listening, and improvisation, and one about how to find resources when teaching outside your comfort zone. It also fit nicely in with what we’re doing in my practicum class right now, so now I feel super in the loop about music learning theory (yay more connections!)

So it was a very musically educational weekend. Not to mention it was pretty nice weather too. Sunny and not freezing for the first time in a long time. So my advice: Don’t sleep all weekend. Go have fun at these cool events, especially if its free or discounted. It’s worth the time.