In just a few days I will be heading to Paris with an amazing fan club for the La Maestra Conducting Competition.  Wim, Suzanne (and family), Ria, Frans, Irene, Ton, Sanna, and Lineke; what a joy and honor for me that you will be joining me in Paris to support me.  It warms my heart to have such amazing people around me at this important event.  I'm grateful to you!

My favourite composers at the moment are:
(early) G.F. Händel, JS Bach, W.A. Mozart
(orchestral later) Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Ravel
(choral and strings) Pēteris Vasks, Mäntyjärvi, Arvo Pärt, Rautavaara, Knut Nystedt

It says a lot that the Romantics don't really pull my strings anymore.  Thank goodness round 1 has two of my composers listed above, and round two is completely unknown music next to two pieces that I can perform in my sleep.  (I've sung Parto Parto for at least a decade). 

The last round, would I get that far, will be a joy.  Brahms 4, which I conducted in a final exam 20 years ago, Beethoven 8, one of my favourite Beethoven's, Debussy's Fētes, one of the only pieces that I like by the composer, and a new very experimental piece by Manon Lepauvre.

Allons-y!

After six months of a roiling amount of emotions elicited by a constant bombardement of horrific news emitting from the Palestinian territories, it seemed impossible to concentrate.   I can't describe in words the amount of emotional turmoil that this season has brought to me.  Rage at the amount of brainwashing causing the allowance of indiscriminate terror upon millions of people, fear of consequences of speaking out, a blasé feeling about making what I feel is sometimes superficial music in such a time of grief, whereas before music seemed all-important, concern about my future career and ability to support my children, concern about my children's future in a world falling apart politically, economically, and environmentally.  All of these deep feelings of insecurity, horror, helplessness, fear.... I know many of us are able to keep going simply by suppressing the majority of these feelings.  If we let them in, they, as a flood, would overwhelm our brains, and society would completely fall apart even more than it is doing now.  However, I also know that those of us who are highly sensitive have difficulty to stem the tide.  We are the ones who find it, in these terrible times, incredibly hard to concentrate.  
I feel for you, I stand by you, I support you.  Let us stand together to look forward, to help those that are left, and to be there especially for the children of tomorrow who so desperately need our help.  Keep a goal in mind.  Concentrate.