#i've also got a few things from the mozart requiem

[birlwrites]

for atfhv playlist can i suggest looking into star wars soundtracks and the orchestral arrangement of black mamba by aespa? they've got a dark dramatic vibe that could maybe work imo

my concern with much of the star wars soundtrack is that i'm going to associate it VERY STRONGLY with star wars and not be able to mentally divorce it from that context if that makes sense? like that's why i couldn't put the first part of beethoven's 5th in there - other associations are too strong

i just listened to that arrangement and YES that is the sort of thing i'm looking for!! thank you!!

[link-the-bard]

An update I guess?

I realize I haven't really been active here for the past few years other than the occasional reblog of something. Most of my time is spent on twitter nowadays (@linkthebard if you wanna follow me there). But in case anyone wondered what I've been up to, here goes:

About a year ago I made the decision to go back to school to complete my undergraduate degree in vocal performance at Marshall. I was extremely nervous to go back to the place where I thought I burned all my bridges when I dropped out, but the audition was with one of my old professors I respect a lot as well as the new voice faculty members, and it was a cathartic experience. Nearly a decade's worth of anxiety about how I left things melted away. I got accepted back in, no problem. I picked up right where I left off, and my new advisor was able to find a plan for me to get out in as little as 3 semesters.

My fall semester was a little rough, as I was getting used to university life again. But it felt so good to be back in school doing what I love to do. My new voice professor instilled in me a confidence I haven't felt in a long time, and I won a regional competition. I performed in my first staged production in a long time, a staging of a song cycle. I passed my piano proficiency hearing with flying colors, and I got a near perfect score on my conducting final where I conducted the symphonic band through a selection of music. I floundered a bit in my analysis class, as the work was extremely hard and took me longer to complete than I had time, but I learned so much about modern compositional techniques and new works that have inspired me. Completing schoolwork was an issue for me in my only non-music class though, and I didn't pass, but it didnt impact my gpa too much.

I'm now at the end of my second semester back, and I couldn't be happier. I've accomplished so much these past couple months. I was one of the winners of a prestigious competition for the school of music, and as a winner I get to perform with the university's orchestra. I was also selected to represent the school of music at a research and creativity symposium being put on by the school of science, meaning I get to perform a short 15 minute recital. These performances are coming up quickly, and I'm very excited about them. With the chamber choir, I performed for a bishop installation at another college in WV, which was really interesting. We also just performed Mozart's Requiem with the WV Symphony Orchestra (we also performed Handel's Messiah with them in December). We performed a small concert with music from both events a couple weeks ago, and I got to sing part of a solo for it (while sick lol). I'm really enjoying my biology class, and music technology has been really fun. I'm doubling up in music history from opposite ends of the spectrum (ancient music vs new music), and I'm doing very well in both.

I can attribute my success to having a massive amount of support from my boyfriend, as well as being back on ADHD meds that help me stay on top of things. It was a struggle this past year to get a source that was stable and wouldn't break the bank, but I finally have stability in that. My boyfriend and I are house hunting for our new permanent place together, and I'm so excited for when we can do the move. I'm also excited for my final semester in the fall. I declared a minor in religious studies so I can continue as a full-time student (I don't have many music classes left to take, so it'd drop me down to part-time if I didn't declare this minor, and I would lose financial aid). The semester will be spent working on my senior recital (singing for 1 hour is a feat!), working on 3 classes for the minor (studying islam, jewish holocaust, and taking a film class), and preparing a larger staged opera (condensed, as we don't have the resources for a full production sadly). It's gonna be very time consuming, but I'm excited to get to it.

That's all that's really been happening with me. Before returning to school I was miserable and working retail. I spent years in stagnation and just got sick of it, making the decision to go back to school. I'm so happy where I am right now, even if it means being separated from loved ones while I study. I actually have hope for the future, the confidence to go for the career I want, and the support to make it happen. Man, things are just good right now.