ClarinetFest: Day 2 (Clarinet + Electronics)

For me (Rachel), Thursday of ClarinetFest was a day of clarinet and electronics.  I performed on the Electronics Potpourri concert at 1 PM, so my morning was consumed with warming up and rehearsing the piece.  The dress rehearsal was fairly hectic, since everyone needed time in the hall, but each performer had different tech needs.  Some players used video, some performed with CD accompaniment, and others (like me) were doing interactive works with computer.  I think in the future it may be better to have everyone rehearse in order due to the complex tech changes between pieces, but it ended up working out fine.

During the concert, I had fun hanging out backstage with the other performers: Leslie Moreau, Michael Dean, Mauricio Salguero, Karen Dannessa, and Elizabeth Gunlogson.  My performance got off to a rocky start - I spent a couple of awkward minutes onstage while the sound engineer fixed a technical issue.  But these things are normal when performing interactive music, and after we got the piece running I think it was a successful performance!  One standout piece from the afternoon that clarinetists and composers seemed to really like was Samuel J. Hamm's piece fixion for clarinet and computer, played by Leslie Moreau.  Overall, it was great to experience ClarinetFest from a performer's perspective, and kudos to all the great volunteers coordinating the stage management!

After my concert I was able to stay to hear electronic gurus Gerry Errante and D. Gause perform works by Andrew May, Russell Pinkston, and Christopher Hopkins.  The afternoon of electronics continued with performances by Michael Lowenstern and  Laura Carmichael.  As a player with interest in the field, I thank Nathan Williams for coordinating this afternoon of music for clarinet and electronics, as it is a small but growing genre that is becoming more approachable as our computers become faster and more powerful. 
-Rachel