January 31 - Sex and the Staging

It's almost February, so it's time to start staging Sex and the Bible: The Opera (Part I), with Lucifer (Marilyn Pratt), Adam (Robert Benda), Eve (Kim Anderman), Maria (Serpent),



God of Creation (Liz Finkler),




Cain (Liz), Abel (Marilyn),



Noah (Nanette McGuinness), Noah's Wife (Kim), a crowd of sinners (Maria, Nathan Marken,



Indre Viskontas, and



Crystal Philippi),



the Triune God of the Chester Mystery Cycle (Marilyn, Liz, and Theresa),



Abraham (Robert), Sarah (Kim),



Hagar (Maria),



God of the Covenant (Marilyn), Lot (Nathan), and Lot's Wife (Theresa), plus God of Abraham (Indre), the Angels of Life and Death (Crystal and Liz), Lot's Daughters (Marilyn and Nanette), and a crowd of Sodomites (Indre, Kim, Theresa, and Maria). Fine progress for today.



Before,



it's another page (16) composed for Vespers: II. Psalm 109: Dixit Dominus,



after, preparation-for-publication of same for Psalm 4.

January 30 - How It Is

Yet a third recommend, now for Chase Buestad, re St. Mary's, plus page 16 of Vespers of 2010 composed, then in



low



light



towards Diablo Valley College to finally make slightly slower versions of Sex and the Bible re Dinah, Potiphar's Wife, and Pharaoh Had a Dream.



Back in the car, now city-wise for the



San Francisco



premiere of a



new chamber orchestra version of Alban Berg's Wozzeck, surprisingly fully-bodied, and fully professional,


with a cast including John Duykers and



Michael Desnoyers (Haemon for last season's Antigone), a



stunning




presentation of the 20th Century's greatest



opera, from beginning



to



end (with a review soon in 21st-Century Music [online at 21st-centurymusic.blogspot.com and 21st-centurymusic.com]),



with violinist Monika Gruber (SFCCO) and clarinetist Peter Josheff (SFCO / Goat Hall Productions) in the pit -- greeting the latter two after the impressive show.



Homeward past a carousel



of



apartments



and



light to



prepare-for-publication page 16 of Psalm 4.

January 29 - Mysterious Plans

Beth is over for a Sex and the Bible production meeting with Harriet and moi, and we decide on a color scheme of black, white, metallic, pinks, and purples -- keeping to the notion of stripper poles and adding the possibility of tent-like banners.



Afterwards, design a postcard for the production, do another Mills Graduate Music recommendation (now for Cindy Collins -- she and Rachel are applying to different programs...), mail off same at post office and purchase stamps for the current and back issues of the Journal, compose through page 15 of Vespers: II. Psalm 109: Dixit Dominus, and do through the same interval for the publication-preparation of Psalm 4.

January 28 - Fly Away

Page 7 of Vespers: II. Psalm 109: Dixit Dominus composed before flying away past Long Barn, the Chinese Wall,



Rohan, and



Eden to a pale



Mt. Diablo at its namesake Valley College, bestowing Quiz 1 (Treble Clef, C Major Scale...) upon lucky Music Theoreticians. Two new class members, so still hovering around 30 participants, then south toward the



Acalanes Highlands,



and



Deer



and



Rheem



Hills, to



St.



Mary's



Syufy



Hall to track down the dance schedule for this coming late April (since certain emails have not been forthcoming), walking



hither and



yon, encountering Marty, and eventually Rebecca and Linda --



finally determining that Friday, April 30 is the best date for the Robert Schumann / Alexander Zemlinsky / San Francisco Symphony performance.



From here, back in the car, over the Coast Ranges through Redwoods Regional Park to



Mills College, with another walkabout (signage leaving something to be desired),



ultimately finding the way to the



Graduate Admissions Office, dropping off Rachel's recommend, and learning that the postmark, rather than the arrival date, is the deadline. Back on the freeway and



frontage road (looking across the Bay to Mt. Tamalpais), north to



CopyWorld to pick up the February 2010 and back issues of 21st-Century Music (21st-centurymusic.blogspot.com and 21st-centurymusic.com, with the print copies mailed soon). Place an order for Sex and the Bible business-card-sized promos, then off to Marin to grade the Theory Quiz 1's at Celia's (everyone gets an A), check the post box, and finally return home to prepare-for-publication page 7 of Psalm 4.