Tobotorsdag: Silverbasorkestern

ESI runs a ~twice-monthly concert series, Tobotorsdag (Tobo Thursdays), and this week was the first of the season. Our guest artists were the Silverbasorkestern, whom I had vaguely supposed might all be playing silverbas harpa. But nope: of the six band members, only two are playing harpa — and one of those also plays a variety of other instruments, though never more than two at once (cittra and harmonica). They also had, let’s see, a fiddle, a bass, three guitars, and a uke — and I am probably forgetting something. Their show was kind of like a middle-of-Uppland version of a country band, all very good-humored, and it was great fun.

Afterward there was (of course) a fika break, and then a big session and dance in the main hall — players spread out along two sides of the perimeter, dancers in the middle. I played for a while but had to fold early because I was way underslept. Dang. It was nice to have some of our class-learned tunes surface in a “real” setting.

Also this past week:

• Switched allegiance in music theory class to “group 3” (the extra-curricular group), thus bowing out of simple sightreading and notation.
• First class in arrangement with Niklas. In which I can understand him just fine as long as he is also writing on the board and talking about things I already get.
• After two solid weeks of feeling inept at the changing of my bow hold, I finally had a couple of little breakthroughs and sorted some of it out, in time for my second lesson with Ditte. Progress! How many more hours in front of the mirror d’y’reckon it’ll take?