Hard to believe it is Friday - we have just one more PDQ rehearsal before the gig tomorrow. I called the NPR station and asked them to give away a couple of tix (totally last minute, but they are so nice about fitting us in!) and I actually got another gig! It is for a school chamber music program, and lasts the first week of June. Seems like it will work out great since D is in school during that time, and J could always pick him up that week if necessary.

The PDQ concert is kind of terrifying - just because you want it to be funny, but to do good schtick (spelling??!) you have to really know what you're doing (no sightreading). Unfortunately we are basically sightreading (read everything once, except the opera which will be hilarious)

The Fuga Meshuga is a quartet for fl, ob, bsn, vln - PDQ decided it is hard to tell where the theme is in a fugue, so he has the person playing the theme stand up during the theme playing, then sit for the rest of the time. Does that make sense? So we are up and down, and as the piece starts overlapping the theme it is quite funny. THEN, if you are a musical type, you know a composer might use the Inversion of the theme (changing the direction of the notes, instead of going up a 5th you go down a 5th etc). So the flute player stands up, bends over and plays the inversion of the theme. Then the violinist plays the Retrograde (starting at the end and playing to the beginning) by turning backwards to play, and the oboist gets the thrilling Retrograde Inversion, (backwards and upside down) by turning around and playing the oboe between the legs. This is actually written in the part. I am so not thrilled about doing this! And of course you have to have that part memorized, and the piece keeps going...