Martin Plays Violin and Samples Food

U-bahn station

2009-09-03T15:41:00.002-04:00

The other day on the U-Bahn, the train went through a station that was much more richly decorated than the others I'd seen around here. The walls were completely covered in marble, as were the supporting columns on each platform. I didn't take a picture, but some other people have- it turns out that this marble decor is quite famous.

more about Charlottenburg

2009-08-31T03:27:00.002-04:00

So Schloss Charlottenburg, which was originally named Lietzenburg, was commissioned by Sophie Charlotte. She was a pretty big deal in terms of her social standing and royal family history, but on the tour's audio guide, it mentioned that her mother's grandfather was King James I of England. From my ninth-grade Scottish History class many years ago, I remembered that James I had previously been known as James VI of Scotland, taking over that job when he was just over a year old. It's always good to see Scotland's influence in distant lands.... This means that Sophie Charlotte's great-great grandmother was Mary, Queen of Scots!

Charlottenburg

2009-08-30T17:18:00.001-04:00

For the last week I’ve been in the Berlin area, I’d been wanting to check out Charlottenburg, a part of town known for its enormous and ornate Baroque palace and gardens. Today seemed like the perfect opportunity! I got a ride there, which saved a bit of time- I needed every minute inside the palace since there was so much to see.

Schloss Charlottenburg was mostly destroyed during WWII, so like many of Berlin’s historic structures, it was painstakingly reconstructed relatively recently at great expense. Almost none of the original furnishings survived the war’s fires and air raids, so much of what’s there now was brought in from the area’s other palaces (including the now-demolished Berliner Schloss) to make the atmosphere a little more reminiscent of how it was a few hundred years ago. The palace now houses many priceless works of art, but many of the original ceiling paintings were replaced by white ovals during the rebuilding process.

Terrace Party

2009-08-30T17:17:00.001-04:00

On Saturday afternoon and evening, the Willerts hosted one of their terrace parties on the roof of the Stargarder Strasse building. It’s a cool setting- a couple of different decks, all with great city views. Unfortunately, it rained on and off for a few hours late in the afternoon, so all 40 of us moved in and then back outside a couple times.

There was a LOT of wine and food for a crowd of this size- sausages grilled outside, and inside, a chef had been hired to prepare a buffet:

But my favorite part, of course, was the CHEESE!

After seven hours of partying, everyone was too worn out to do much cleaning up, so that waited until this morning. A few of us had leftover cheese, bread, and cakes for breakfast outside while the tables were still set up.

Poor Mendelssohn

2009-08-25T18:01:00.000-04:00

Mendelssohn wrote some great music, so when I saw "Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Park" on the map, I was expecting something rather grand in his honor. THIS is what they gave him? A little patch of overgrown messy vegetation? To be fair, the rest of his eponymous park (on the other side of the Mendelssohn-Bartholdy U-Bahn station) is a little nicer, but you'd think they would have put the statue in the part of the park where you can actually walk!

Today was a long day- I assumed a triple identity- 80% tourist, 10% athlete (ran a few miles this morning), and 10% violinist (praticed a bit tonight). A lot of walking- starting out at Mendelssohn's park, then to Potsdamer Platz to take a look at the Sony Center and its stunning canopy/roof, then to the Philharmie and musical instrument museum. Some good violins there- I hope they let people play them every now and then! Then, I walked over towards the Reighstag and the Brandenburger Tor at Pariser Platz, on to the Statsoper, and finally to Alexanderplatz (a.k.a. "Alex"), where I opted to wait in line for about an hour just to get a view of the city from up at the top of the Fersehturm, one of the tallest structures in Europe. It was a little expensive, but I REALLY like good views (from anywhere-- car windows, airplane windows, mountains, towers like this one, hotel rooms, etc.), and it was a clear enough day that the visibility was about as good as it could have been, given the considerable layer of window dirt. But that's a minor complaint- I really enjoyed it.

Berlin Pictures

2009-08-24T05:51:00.001-04:00

are here: http://picasaweb.google.com/mshultz/Berlin

.. check back soon for more! We went on a short bike ride to forage for mushrooms this morning- now it’s badminton and kayak time.

Arrival in Germany

2009-08-23T17:00:00.000-04:00

After two relatively painless and on-time flights (and making it through the maze of CDG Airport in Paris), I got to Berlin’s Tegel airport around noon on Sunday. Instead of going to Eberhard and Elke’s place in the city, Eberhard took me directly to their place by the lake. Actually, it’s two small houses across the street from each other, both with gardens producing parts of tonight’s dinner- plums, apples, carrots, potatoes, and tomatoes. The salad at lunch came from a nearby farmer—local eating seems to be the norm here!

After lunch and a nap, it was time to enjoy the lake- kayaking and swimming. There were a few other people out on the water, but it wasn’t so crowded for a weekend.

The weather’s been perfect- warm and sunny during the day, and then cool enough to have dinner outside by a fire. Very relaxing first day so far! (pictures will come eventually….)

Leaving Japan

2009-07-29T15:21:00.000-04:00

It's hard to believe that it's already time to leave Japan. I've done a lot in seven weeks, but after spending 51 consecutive nights in seven different hotels, I'm okay with going back to the US now. My flight leaves in just under twelve hours, and I'll soon be going to Tsukiji for a final sushi breakfast before going to the airport.

Here's a picture of the view from our post-concert reception at the Hotel Pacific in Shinagawa:

Pre-Concert Hearts Game

2009-07-25T11:42:00.000-04:00

... before Mahler 5, which went pretty well tonight! Tomorrow afternoon's concert may not happen, depending on how the weather holds up. We leave for Osaka on Monday, then Tokyo on Tuesday.

Brahms Horn Trio

2009-07-24T10:25:00.000-04:00

I played in a chamber music concert tonight- Brahms Horn Trio with Eliko and Andrej. We performed in Naie, a small town about an hour and fifteen minutes from Sapporo. Here's a photo from our dress rehearsal.

More Baseball Pictures

2009-07-24T10:16:00.000-04:00

... are here.

Fighting Ham, Hokkaido-style

2009-07-22T10:16:00.005-04:00

Just one word: FUN!

..but here's the long version:

On Monday night, a group of about 30 of us from PMF trekked over to the Sapporo Dome, the local pro baseball venue, home to the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. Of course, even though the "ham" part comes from the name of their corporate sponsor (Nippon-Ham), it's preferable to introduce ambiguity and call them the Ham Fighters instead. (are they fighting on behalf of the ham, or against processed meats?)

The whole thing was really cool- much different from American Major League baseball. Each team has a section of the outfield seating allocated for their most dedicated fans, who wave flags and belt out songs and chants with military precision. In a way, it's all very courteous- you're supposed to let the at-bat team do the cheering and chanting, so everybody gets their turn to make noise.

Plus, there's better food- don't you wish that you could get bento box dinners at MLB games? For beer, too, they have a smart system- beer vendors (representing all of Japan's major breweries) roam the aisles with keg-backpacks instead of bottles.

To top it all off, the Ham Fighters won the game! Last time I checked, they were still narrowly in first place in the Pacific League (the Japanese equivalent of the AL, since they use a designated hitter).

Big Day of Baseball!

2009-07-19T22:19:00.003-04:00

In about five hours, I'm off to go see Hokkaido's Nippon Ham Fighters try to hang onto their lead in Japanese baseball's Pacific League. We're planning to get cheap outfield seats- the noisy part of the stadium! Trumpets, drums, fight songs, etc.... If we're able to get tickets, I'll have lots of pictures to put up!

Until then, I need to do a whole lot of practicing- we start Mahler 5 rehearsals tomorrow. Yesterday's concert got rained out, so we had some unexpected free time. Fortunately, the reception went ahead as planned!

Kimono day

2009-07-17T10:29:00.000-04:00

The Washlet

2009-07-13T08:16:00.002-04:00

Lots of people talk about Japan's high-tech toilets, and these things are everywhere- even convenience store restrooms. To be honest, I can't remember the last time I sat down on a non-futuristic toilet seat in this country. The Washlet (sold by Toto, www.cleanishappy.com) accounts for the majority of the 2.7 million toilet/bidet/butt-washer toilet seats sold annually in Japan, and there are many models in their product line. The most basic is the Warmlet, which does just what it sounds like- a little unnerving the first few times, until you realize that the heat didn't come from the previous user. In cold weather, it's GREAT. The middle-range Washlet is the standard, equipped with a bidet, butt-washer, pressure control, and a giant stop button (perhaps the most important part). The high-end models also add a dryer, completely elimiating the need for paper, and some even have a lid that automatically opens when you approach, though I haven't encountered either of those features in the wild yet.

Time

2009-07-11T11:01:00.005-04:00

I was thinking about perception of time last night after our Mahler 2 concert (which went very well- probably my most enjoyable Mahler performance experience). You ever had that feeling when you're so focused during a performance that you lose track of a larger sense of time? I think a lot of in the orchestra experienced this yesterday- after what seemed like not much time had elapsed, we were already well into the last movement!

In a way, my Japan experience has been a little like this. Lately, I typically haven't been aware of what day of the week it is (since that hasn't mattered as dates for hotel reservations I've had to make, or the number of days left before a performance). I also just realized the other day that I've now been in this country for a month! Similar to last night's Mahler, I've lost track of how fast this summer is going by.

Kaiten Sushi experience

2009-07-07T10:14:00.003-04:00

Dinner tonight? Sushi, of course! I went to one of Sapporo's hot spots for sushi, a kaiten (conveyor-belt) restaurant in the big mall above the train station downtown. I'm not kidding about the "big mall" part- nine floors! The sixth floor was just restaurants, and even though I didn't know exactly where to find this particular place that everyone had recommended, the long line outside gave it away. People in Japan seem to have a limitless capacity for patience when it comes to good food... the length of the line tends to be a good indicator of restaurant quality. After maybe 45 minutes or an hour of waiting, we finally got seats at the counter. Definitely worth the wait, and the fish was all very fresh and reasonably priced, too!

Salmon and its accompanying roe (ikura) seemed to be the house specialty, though I finished up with some excellent unagi. Totally satisfying meal, all for 2362 yen (just under $25)- you'd never be able to get such good sushi for that kind of money in the US. (tea was included, too)

Convenience Stores

2009-07-06T01:20:00.004-04:00

While there are some things that I wish were different about Japan (more trash cans in public places, yet somehow things stay pretty clean), the convenience stores here are way better than anything I've seen in the US. Whenever you need something, there's never too much of a walk required to find a convenience store close by. Second, they've got great food! Yesterday before this Strauss waltz concert, I was pretty hungry and had about half an hour to kill. Armed with the modest 1000-yen per diem money they'd given us for dinner, I thought about how great it would be to enjoy a small bowl of soup. Sure enough, I only had to walk one block to find a convenience store, where I got this perfect little bowl of soup (with vegetables and gyoza) for only 270 yen.

The vegetables were very fresh, and it smelled and tasted great! Try finding real food in an American 7-11...

Sapporo pictures

2009-07-06T01:08:00.002-04:00

My Sapporo photo album is up! I haven't taken any pictures yet of the Sapporo Art Park, where we do most of our music stuff, but I do have a few pictures from around town. I've gone running a lot in the park across the river from our hotel, which was the center of the 1972 Olympics. The outdoor stadium (home of speed skating and the opening and closing ceremonies) and indoor stadium (hockey) are all visible out of my hotel room.

I've also got a few pictures from Odori Park, where we played a concert of Strauss waltzes, polkas, and marches last night, featuring principal players from the Vienna Philharmonic.

Please check back soon for more updates!

TV

2009-07-04T10:14:00.003-04:00

I was on the evening news tonight in Sapporo! We had the opening concert for the festival this afternoon, and I guess a local TV crew was there. The whole event took a VERY long time, since all of the celebratory speeches for the festival's 20th anniversary were delivered in both English and Japanese.... The opening act was unquestionably the highlight, though- a local elementary school band. It was a little odd seeing this little kids playing so well and putting out so much sound- their band recently won second place in a national elementary-school competition! It made me think of that classic Marimba Ponies video (but considerably less caffeinated, fortunately).

Vending Machines

2009-07-02T10:41:00.001-04:00

Suspicion confirmed – Japan has the highest number of vending machines per capita, with around one for every 23 people. They’re everywhere here, which is fortunate when I need to get my hands on a bottle of Pocari Sweat. (as many people have wondered before, what is a pocari, and what’s so great about drinking its sweat?)

Kyoto pictures online

2009-06-30T06:46:00.004-04:00

Kyoto pictures are here!!

I got to see a lot in just a day and a half! (and got a haircut, which concluded with a powerful motorized shoulder massage)

Sapporo is pretty nice- it feels so different from the Tokyo area, though- a lower population density and more cars, but I guess I am in the suburbs. Out of my hotel window, I have a great view of a "Homac" (Home Amenity Center) store, which I'm guessing is like Home depot. No music yet- we had an orientation today, and orchestra rehearsals start tomorrow.

State-Sponsored Cuteness

2009-06-29T09:25:00.002-04:00

It seems like everything in Japan, even the most mundane public service, needs a cartoon mascot to get a message across. I’ve posted a few pictures of this kind of stuff in my Picasa albums, but here are the highlights.

1) Tanemaru – Commemorating the the 150th anniversary of a city’s port requires some serious celebration, so that’s why Yokohama asked Tanemaru to help out. This little guy (is he a sprouting potato? a bean plant? a boat? all three?) is everywhere in Yokohama- on countless city signs and in furry-animal form on shop and hotel counters.

2) The “watch-your-fingers” subway bear – This friendly little bear cub warns against getting your fingers trapped in closing doors. (Yokohama)

3) Mr. and Mrs. “Don’t take your spouse’s eyes out with a fish-hook” – while not cute at all, this sign’s graphical aid really drives home the point. (Sankeien Garden, near Yokohama)

4) Blue-Hat Bird – I’m not sure what this bird is saying, but it must be important, judging by the exclamation mark. (also in Sankeien Park, near Yokohama)

5) Subway Badgers (?) – Similar to the bear in Yokohama, these furry mammals also bring a cautionary message.

6) Fat Trash-Buddies – seriously, how could you not listen to what they have to say? (first, on bus-shelter trashcan, then in a bathroom- Kyoto)

…. that’s all for now, but there will be more to come, I’m sure.

Leaving Kyoto- Shinkansen

2009-06-29T09:19:00.002-04:00

Back on the Shinkansen now after two fun days in Kyoto- saw beautiful temples, a rock garden, and a Shogun castle, and I took care of some business this morning (got a new watch battery and a very precise haircut that concluded with a shoulder massage from a high-powered machine) but it’s time to go to Sapporo for PMF now. If all goes as planned, I’ll meet up with eleven other PMF people this afternoon in Haneda Airport, the busier of Tokyo’s two airports, for the flight up to Hokkaido.

A word about these trains- everyone knows that they are fast (especially the Nozomi series that I’m riding now), and everybody knows that Japanese people sit at the polite end of the spectrum, but the politeness shown by passengers and employees here is especially impressive. So far on this trip, I haven’t heard a single word from another passenger, everybody has their phones on silent mode, and both the conductor and snack-car lady are immaculately dressed and bow deeply upon exiting each car.

The Shinkansen trains in Japan are cheaper than Amtrak’s Acela service on the northeast corridor, much smoother, and they run ALL the time during the day, at least every ten minutes. This seems to be how everybody gets around between the major cities in this part of the country- most seats seem to be filled on all 16 cars per train. Oh, and it’s always on time, apparently.

2009-06-27T11:23:00.000-04:00

When I went to Akihabara, the world's ultimate electronics/gadget neighborhood, all I got was this doughnut-shaped screen cleaner. The best part is that it actually works pretty well! I'll take orders if anybody wants one!

Apparently this sort of thing can easily be found here. There was also a chocolate cake with a strawberry on top.

The great syllabic switch: going from Tokyo to Kyoto

2009-06-27T10:55:00.002-04:00

After three action-packed days in Tokyo, it’s time to relocate to Kyoto for a couple days before taking the train back to Tokyo for the flight up to Sapporo for PMF. We kept ourselves busy in Tokyo from morning until night every day, but every moment was so fulfilling. I’m now sitting inside this incredibly fast and quiet Shinkansen (a.k.a bullet) train, so I thought this might be a good opportunity to spill out a few memories of Tokyo. Here are some of the highlights-

1) Leaving Yokohama- we’d stayed up late enough the last night of MMCJ in Yokohama to see the sky getting light in the morning- perfect time to go for a walk. In other cities (Baltimore, perhaps?), going for a walk at 4:15am would be a pretty stupid idea, but in urban Japan, this doesn’t pose the same threat. We walked from our Navios Hotel on a pedestrianized former rail bridge toward the Landmark Tower (currently the tallest “building” in Japan, depending on how you use that word). Rain forced us to turn back, but we saw the water completely full of enormous jellyfish!

2) Akihabara – in a humble understatement, the signs in the Metro identify this part of Tokyo as the “electric town.” We spent several hours at just one store, Yodibashi, which was easily several times bigger than J&R in New York. Think excessive x100. The prices were quite good, except for this HUGE Panasonic TV, a bargain at around $56,000. One could buy a respectable violin for that kind of money!

It’s kind of exhausting to see so much electronic equipment in one place, as much as I love the stuff.

3) Kamakura – known for its ancient Buddhist structures, Kamakura took forever to get to, but still seemed very much like part of the Tokyo metropolitan area. I’m not clear on the exact dates of construction, but it’s a stunning place- huge temple on a hill, with enormous ponds down below filled with lotuses and turtles. Hunger hit soon afterwards, so we ate a Zen-style soba meal in town.

Kamakura is also known for its gigantic Buddha statue. Made of bronze (help me out, fact-checkers), this thing has been around for about 800 years, outliving the temple (destroyed by a tsunami) that used to cover it. It’s pretty impressive, and so big that I almost didn’t even notice it at first as we approached its pedestal.

4) Dinner with MMCJ friends-

After a very long subway ride, we met up with some friends at a champon restaurant. Great food, and fun to share with the others! It was followed by many other courses, including this beautifully-presented sashimi course:

5) Trendy Harajuku Party- during dinner, a member of our group (Aya) got a call from a friend inviting us to a party at a bar in Harajuku, a neighborhood that rivals Ginza and 5th Avenue for its impossible wealth. We felt a little underdressed entering the building (which had a Chanel boutique on the ground floor), but the party itself turned out to be casual enough that they still let us in. Cool people, good DJ, and a great view from the balcony:

6) Asakusa – this area of Tokyo is famous for its important temple and incalculably large number of souvenir vendors. The temple was beautiful inside, but had scaffolding covering the whole exterior. In its many centuries, this temple has burned down many times, most recently during the war. Thousands of people contributed money for its reconstruction, so it’s in pretty good shape these days.

7) The Golden Turd – At first, I felt a little sorry for the fecal shape of this moment atop a section of the Asahi beverage company’s offices, but apparently Japanese people laugh about it, too.

8) Sumida Boat Ride – This isn’t the fastest way to travel around Tokyo, but the boat ride was quite scenic. We went under something like 19 bridges and passed several cool sights, like the major Sumo arena and the Tsukiji fish market (more on that later).

Also, we floated by my future home:

9) Monorail – I don’t really remember the Disney World monorail from when I was a little kid, but this one definitely beats the train connecting terminals at Bush Intercontinental Airport. We crossed the famous Rainbow Bridge for an evening across the river in Odaiba. Unfortunately, the bright red sun had just finished setting when we stepped onto solid ground again!

10) Okonomiyaki Dinner – Some people call this the Osaka equivalent of pizza, but I don’t really see the parallels, besides the two obvious ones (hot and filling). In any case, VERY tasty. They mix up a bunch of vegetables, noodles, and an egg, then cook the whole thing at the table. Each blob is personalized (not shared by everyone at the table).

11) Ginza at Night – We just missed the closing time for going to the top of the Tokyo Tower, so we made up for it by taking a stroll in the ever-lively Ginza neighborhood, which was on the way back to our hotel in Meguro.

12) Tsukiji Fish Market – guidebooks talk about how great it is to watch the wholesale tuna auction every morning, but I didn’t make it past the retail seafood section, which is filled by hungry people like myself looking for the freshest seafood breakfast in town. I arrived before 7am, but that’s apparently on the late side. Great fun, but I smelled strongly of fish for the whole metro ride back to the hotel. Check out this giant tasty oyster I had as appetizer before switching to nigiri:

12) House Concert- it was great to spend some time with Lachezar and Chieko, and they generously invited me to a house concert outside of Tokyo this afternoon. I hadn’t heard Lachezar play in two years, and he delivered a solid recital. I think that the hosts of the party are fairly influential people, often hosting guest musicians from abroad who come to town to play at Suntory Hall. Very generous folks, too. When one lady there found out I was going to Kyoto tonight, she offered to give me a heavily discounted rate at the hotel she owns in Kyoto! Sadly, my reservation at another hotel (with a small room and no view) was prepaid.

.. now, we’re almost to Kyoto already, so I’d better pack up the computer!

now in Tokyo!

2009-06-24T20:47:00.002-04:00

Caution! I'm not going to proofread this (I'm in a hurry)- please excuse the inevitable typos!

Sorry for the delay- I was busy being a tourist for the last few days! We had our final orchestra concerts for MMCJ, first in Tokyo at Kioi Hall and then in Yokohama at Minato Mirai Hall. In the free time between concerts, I went to Sankeien Garden with some friends- beautiful place, and I put up a lot of pictures in my Picasa album for Yokohama. (Gotta run in a second, so I'll add links later).
Then, I arrived in Tokyo yesterday for a few days of fun between festivals. We (a few MMCJ friends) went to Akihabara, the electronics district. I'd been impressed by the J&R store in New York, but the one store we went to was easily several times bigger, and just one store of MANY.
Pictures coming later! Also, we made a stop for ramen in Shibuya, which looks like Times Square, but with way more and way bigger video screens, and FAR more people. Supposedly, the main intersection outside the station has the highest pedestrian volume of any place in the world. Something cool about the giant video screens- somehow, they've figured out how to configure the audio for each screen so that you can clearly hear the sound for whatever screen you're facing, but it's not so loud that it really interferes with the other screens so much.

Time to go- Kamakura today! Pictures soon.

catch of the day

2009-06-20T08:37:00.000-04:00

Yokohama update

2009-06-20T05:20:00.003-04:00

Been busy with orchestra rehearsals in Yokohama and haven't had time to post much of anything. There are some pictures on my Picasa web albums, though.
First, from Kazusa, and most recently, Yokohama.

Arts and Crafts

2009-06-15T21:45:00.004-04:00

For Monday's "International Cultural Forum," they brought in Kaishin Makuta, a calligraphy sensei from Chiba University, to give the foreigners an introduction to the art. After a few frustrating attempts with small paper (everything came out all blobby on the page), they decided I was ready to upgrade to the real deal- paper so big it has to go on the floor. Here's me writing "dream" (copying the example in orange by my left foot):

Today is our last day (and last concert) in Kazusa- tomorrow we all move to Yokohama for a week of orchestra playing.

Sashimi day

2009-06-15T09:14:00.005-04:00

Quick post- here was tonight's dinner at the fancy Japanese restaurant here:

and a close-up of the sashimi plate:

and dessert (watermelon and Mystery Mild 'n Sweet Blue Gel):

Stay tuned for pictures of today's calligraphy class.......

TV

2009-06-13T09:41:00.002-04:00

Jon Stewart is taking over the world... they have the Daily Show on TV here in rural Japan.

First real day...

2009-06-11T08:19:00.003-04:00

Today mostly went well- the morning began with our orientation meeting, followed by seven hours of rehearsals. We mostly got off to a good start, but it was uncomfortable at first getting used to everyone's playing. Fortunately, this was all punctuated by some excellent meals! Beef with noodles for lunch (plus a few other small courses) at a pretty fancy restaurant, and dinner was a buffet (lots of tempura choices and delicious fruit) at a different place. Breakfast has also been consistently excellent- a combo Japanese/Western buffet at the European-style restaurant ("Camellia") at the hotel. They've got huge windows looking out on an enormous and tranquil water garden, complete with a waterfall backing up to the trees. Apparently, this is the rainy season- seems a lot like a typical summer day in Scotland, actually!

Public Service Announcement in Tokyo

2009-06-11T08:15:00.000-04:00

first day in Japan!

2009-06-10T00:54:00.003-04:00

I finally got settled in at the hotel in Japan last night... after a very long flight and a number of train rides (was it three? four?). We got off the ground late in Houston, because the in-flight entertainment system was not working! They said we couldn't depart until it was fixed, so after four hours of replacing parts, they finally just gave up and had us take off anyway (they rebooted again during the flight, and of course it worked fine). It was running Linux, though not too successfully, as this picture shows- a whole lot of errors (the computer at each seat seemed to be loading an OS image from a server on the plane)

The jet lag didn't seem too pronounced after a good night's sleep (thanks, melatonin!), and I got some good practicing done this morning, probably thanks to the tranquil practice room view:

Back to practicing now, then off to Tokyo this evening to hear a concert.

Welcome!

2009-06-06T23:53:00.000-04:00

Hi! I'm about to go to Japan and Germany this summer, so check back here for notes and pictures...