And so, my day off became two and I really needed some time out.  I wouldn't call them days off as such and I will be needing some serious chill time very soon.  I find it quite hard to switch the ideas off and when things eventually settle and I hit cruise speed, I'm looking forward to sitting down and reading and just being.  My harp week is going nicely and it was lovely to practice yesterday - it wasn't out of sight, out of mind after all!  I'd even go so far as saying my time away from my harp has reinforced my passion!  I enjoyed getting stuck into one of my favourite musical works, Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique which I will be playing in this weekend.  This masterpiece is an obsessive hallucinatory romp from tranquil scenes to nightmarish visions.  At the time he wrote it, Berlioz was infatuated with the love of his life, Harriet Smithson, who he eventually married.  They separated after years of unhappiness - plus ça change...

Every piece presents its challenges and as I started to practice it again for the umpteenth time, I was reminded why it can reduce harpists to jelly - the main difficulty for me is that I have to sit there for 15 minutes or so before playing a part that lasts 5 minutes and is technically demanding and musically fundamental.  It starts with the tantalising anticipation of the first harp arpeggios seemingly emerging from nowhere.  They increase in intensity until that unmistakeable descending scale - sparks should fly!  What follows is deliciously intricate writing that conjures up the glittering effervescence of a ballroom.  By Friday evening my aim is to be away from the harp for an hour, then sit down and play it with ease and comfort and pleasure!  And I'll settle for good enough.

Berlioz was quite a character by the sounds of it - he was an opium fiend as was the trend at the time, and I think that can be heard in the ethereal, dreamlike sound quality of the only movement involving harps.  Yes, that's the other difficulty.  Once our movement "Un Bal" is over, we graceful, elegant harpists have to sit there for the rest of this (fantastique!) piece whilst trying not to analyse what just passed and where, from personal experience, I want to run round the room shrieking and yelping.  That's  adrenaline for you!

As a harpist, my footwork is ridiculously important, and as I mentioned in a previous post, having the right footwear is paramount.  I spotted these beauties below on a recent shopping venture, and I was a bit concerned about playing in them.  I've always shied away from open toes as the pedal could get stuck in there and that should be avoided at all costs, but I tried them yesterday and they are lovely to play in.  Happy feet = happy harpist!

I also got just a few pairs of socks for my shift work...!!