Science and Music - Music's Effect on the Brain

Hello all!

I'm here again and busy as ever! Tomorrow I get to perform again but this time in front of a large group of cellists at an event Butler has started called Cello Day! Every year my professor has hosted this event and invited both of his studios and many other cellists in the surrounding area to particpate in a cello-filled day. Usually there is a recital, a masterclass, a cello ensemble where we all get together and sight read cello choir repertoire, an informational documentary and a time to try out cellos from a local luthier. I am so excited! (If you are interested in participating next year just click here to register)!

And now to address my topic:

Recently in a class of mine we were discussing music's effect on the brain. My classmates (and the professor) began to name all of the different ways that music is impacting brain funciton - developmental growth, slowing down the impact of dementia and altering psychological moods to name just a few. I was amazed. Music is, yes, an artistic passion of mine, but I am realizing more and more each day that it is a necessity - science can prove it!

Journals and articles from around the world:

CNN: This is Your Brain on Music

Oxford Journals: The Power of Music

Live Science: Music's Effect on the Mind Remains Mysterious

New York Academy of Sciences: Effects of Music Training on the Child's Brain and Cognitive Development

Science Direct: Music and Emotion

Oxford Journals: Music listening enhances cognitive recovery and mood after middle cerebral artery stroke

These articles are simply the tip of the iceberg. It seems like each day scientists are discovering new ways that music is vital to a society's success. This gives me faith in the ability of classical music to thrive in this fast-paced world we live in. 

Science and Music - The Physics Behind a String

Hello all! 

Things are busy here at school. Busy but wonderful. I just finished playing in a cello masterclass with Michael Haber - a former member of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra who has served as a faculty member at Oberlin College, Indiana University, New England Conservatory, Eastman School of Music and University of Akron. It was such a pleasure to play for him and recieve helpful comments. 

Anyhow, recently I was sitting in my Digital Arts course listening to one of my fellow students present and was amazed to hear about how the Fibonacci Sequence (click here for an explanation) plays out in music and the arts.

In fact, it is amazing how much overlap there is between science and music. Music is not simply emotions and feeling, but also technique and mathematics. I am not much of a scientist (not at all, in fact) but I always find it interesting to view my career choice from someone else's perspective. 

Slow Motion String

Isn't it so intriguing how volatile the movement of the string actually is? From my perspective everything seems quite placid and smooth!

On Blessings and Stuff

It's been another long day. Perhaps I should say another long week.

I know I am just one of many college students experiencing this back to school phenomenon but still (!) I am unsure of how it shocks me every year. How was I this busy? How did I do all these things? But somehow life keeps moving, and I keep moving and hopefully in the end I grow as a person.

But it's nights like these when I feel the need to stop. Sit myself down on my yoga mat, in boxers shorts, with a journal and a mug of "Stress Relief" tea (it really is a miracle worker) and just think. 

And though I've been stressed and overworked

all in all

it has been a good month.

Here are just a few of the things that tonight I am really thankful for:

1. I got engaged. To a pretty fantastic guy. And we're both really excited

2. In 8 months and 6 days I get to marry him!

3. I am living with some amazing people

4. I'm at a phenomenal school where I'm learning so much

5. I have awesome friends (I'm talking about you Kate, Emily and Ariel!) Thanks for the messages.

So blessed. So tonight instead of stressing out about homework, the presentation I have to give tomorrow, or the cost of gasoline, I am going to spend time gulping some tea and just taking it all in. Thanks to so many people for supporting me this year! You all are so loved.  

A Word from the Front

Hello all! Greetings from the presitigious Jordan College of the Arts!

I am now in my third week of studying at Butler University and am loving it! I have delved headfirst into being a student which means staying up extremely late, continuing to get up early, reading until my eyes water and refuse to stay open and eating an exorbitant amount of unhealthy food e.g. Chips Ahoy cookies. Other than my unhealthy work habits, everything is going quite well here! I am starting to get into a routine (for instance, I am now attending a regular yoga class at the HRC. Woot!) and I think after this week finishes up I will feel partially sane.

One thing that I am absolutely LOVING is my major change. What?! You're probably asking. No, I didn't change out of music. Instead, I changed my major from a B.A. in Cello Performance to a B.M. What's the difference? The difference is that a Bachelor of Arts is more general - you take more liberal arts electives rather than music courses. A Bachelor of Music translates to taking a lot more music courses. Which is what I came for, right?! So far I'm loving it.

I ran into a friend from high school youth symphony the other day and couldn't stop gushing to her about my classes. Just this semester I am taking Fundamentals of Chamber Music, Introduction to Digital Arts, World Music and Pedagogy! And that's excluding my symphony, chamber ensemble and private instruction credits! It's fantastic! It feels completely unreal to me to be attending classes where I'm learning things like how to mark scores, transpose parts for different instruments, analyze performances and make my own professional website - which I will be sharing on the blog once I complete it.

Yet while it has been so much fun to be so connected and involved, it can also completely overtake my schedule. This week and next I am going to do my best to really focus my energy on my work so that I can relax away from the computer and textbooks.

Have a fantastic week!
Ellie

The Proposal

Wait what?! Yes, that's correct! I'm engaged! I've unfortunately been so busy every since that day preparing for school and moving in to my house that I haven't had a chance to give the details to everyone. So, here's the story. 

A few days ago, maybe a week, my best friend Sonja (you can find her blog here) sent a FaceBook message to me, Jordan and her fiancé, Stephen, asking if we wanted to go on a picnic in the gardens of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Everyone responded positively and so we all began discussing what time worked for each of us and who would bring what food. Unbeknownst to me, the three of them had a separate FaceBook conversation from which I was excluded discussing how to pull off a suprise proposal.

So on Tuesday the 20th of August, Jordan and I set out for the IMA. We had met at about 4:30 that afternoon with the plan of meeting up with Stephen and Sonja at 6:30. Unfortunately (for Jordan) we sped through our grocery shopping and other errands and at 5:30 I suggested that we go the gardens early and walk around. I, ignorant of what the night held, didn't realize that I had messed up the plans by arriving early. Jordan, however, was obviously distracted and dishevelled. He kept checking his phone and furtively glancing around. Completely out of character, he became instantly decisive and authorative. 

"Let's go down these steps and around that group of trees and then up the road by the back of the museum. There's a really cool bridge there. You'll like it."

"But then we'll miss all the flowers."

"We'll walk through those later after Stephen and Sonja get here."

I conceded. And the bridge was sort of cool ;)

As Jordan and I meandered our way around the outside of the gardens back to the parking lot, I received a text from Sonja saying that "traffic was really bad" and that they would be late. "Typical". I muttered. Needless to say, that was part of the plan. Sonja and Stephen would send me a late text while actually setting themselves up in some bushes for secret photographing. 

Though they were "late", Jordan and I decided to set up anyway and wait for them so we grabbed the blanket and food out of the car and began to walk back toward the gardens. It was only after the whole affair that Stephen and Sonja told me that we all nearly ran in to each other. This picture was snapped right after they ducked behind a tree. Paparrazzi at it's best.

We got to the picnic area, just south of the Lily house, and J began spreading the blanket on the ground. I was still upset that Stephen and Sonja were late and was looking around fervently for them saying, "I bet traffic wasn't actually that bad!" 

In order to get me to stop looking around Jordan nonchalantly handed me a leather journal that had been wrapped in the picnic blanket. "This is something I put together this summer when I was bored." I opened the journal to the first page which read "Ellie and Jordan's Adventure Book" (I almost teared up when I saw the UP reference). I flipped through to find pictures of all of our "adventures" and cut outs of maps of the places we want to go. A letter was tucked into the last page of pictures.

I read the letter, savoring all the references to this past year apart and of our mutual hope for a future together. As I moved to the second page of the letter I went to give Jordan a hug and my hand felt his heart beating the fastest I had ever felt it. Before that moment I hadn't an inkling of a clue, but then I knew. I skimmed over the last paragraph of the letter and saw the final sentence "So Miss Elizabeth Glorioso, I have a question for you . . ." When I looked back, he was kneeling in front of me with a ring. "So I do have a question for you" he continued. "Will you marry me?" I burst into a puddle of tears and forgot to answer. Finally, after being prompted . . .

 I said "yes".

The End

In just about three hours I will be leaving Freelander Theater for the last time of the summer and Ohio Light Opera's last show of the season will be closed. Mind blown.

It is crazy to see how quickly the time has passed and how far removed I feel from my first post about my time here. This summer has been an amazing experience and I am eternally grateful for all of the lessons I've learned, friendships I've made and experiences I've gained.

Good Bye Wooster Ohio!

What I've Learned: A Summary of My Time at Ohio Light Opera

With just 7 days left at Ohio Light Opera I am spending more and more of my time focusing on what I've learned from this experience. As I prepare for my auditions I can't help but wonder if my teacher will notice a difference in my playing. And will the difference be for the better or the worse? 

For the past two and a half months I have been living in a tiny town in the heart of Ohio. Every day during my time here I've picked up my cello and practiced or performed an opera. I now have the music and lines of seven different operas/operettas constantly rolling around in my head. There might be a diagnosis for that. I have played an average of 5 hours a day - and that's counting only rehearsal and performance times, not the time that I spend warming up and rehearsing my solo repertoire.

As a natural pessimist I strive to mentally take note of encouraging moments, rewarding experiences, etc. Here's my mental list from this past week.

Ohio Light Opera has helped me

musically:

- To better follow different conductors

- To learn music quickly and accurately

- To listen to the rest of the orchestra 

- To appreciate a long-standing art form

- To exude confidence in playing

- Realize the importance of starting from the string

socially:

- To look for friends in unlikely places

- To push myself to try new things

- To be willing to admit my quirks 

- To practice diligence

And because pictures often speak more than words can. Here's a summary of my time at Ohio Light Opera in photos. :)

The first friend outing!

We found an Ohio Light Opera poster from 1992

My first dress rehearsal

I'm going to miss this amazing store.

Tulipan's will be sorely missed

OLOween party with the crowd!

I've made so many good memories this summer and learned so much but, let's be honest, I'm ready to get back home, see my siblings, move into my new house and go on a date with my boy.

Let the school year commence!