Dharma in Hamburg

I'm in Hamburg this week, spending the Thanksgiving in Germany.  It's two years in a row I do this - I was in Munich last year!  I'm Japanese and don't really have much nostalgia with turkey meat, but did bring back fond memories having Turkey with friends.  I do my own turkey sometimes, but my French husband isn't that keen on the turkey taste so much--they don't eat much in France either.   So not knowing how to cook, and having inviting guests for the feast, I cooked a 'practice run' which was a large chicken.  I called it "practice chicken" and made my husband laugh.

Here I am rehearsing with the Hamburg Symphony.  My foot pedal is doing fine, but still adjusting the sound quality of the electric violin, with compressor, filters, reverb, and so many variables.  Funny I don't have to adjust sounds on my wooden box with 4 strings attached at all :)  There is a funny feeling of sound you are not so sure how you are making, and completely in the hands and mercy of speakers and the sound technician at the booth.


The piece is The Dharma at Big Sur by John Adams, performance is tomorrow.  I know the 'philosophical' significance of Dharma but for me, I can't shake the "Daruma-san" I grew up with, or every Japanese child grow up with!  We have games like "Daruma-san, Daruma-san, let's stare at each other, the first one to laugh, loses, 1, 2, 3!!" and we make the funniest faces try to make the other person laugh.  I'm doing that with my kids at home....  I guess he was a very serious guy -- oh well, having to bring ZEN to China, and said to have stared at the wall for NINE years meditating...  :)