Cantata – Bach | Music | Conducting | Ensemble Direction | Violoncello da spalla | Viola da spalla | Conducting

Why a Bach cantata ensemble needs a conductor

(Originally posted on April 18, 2010) In December 2001, I was in Brussels visiting my good oboist friend Katy. Thanks to her, I was able to sneak into the Flemish side of the conservatory and observe some of Mr. Sigiswald Kuijken’s baroque violin lessons. In between those lessons he taught (all in different languages), he came to me and asked a few questions. When he asked me what my goal was, I told him that I wanted to organize my own Bach ensemble and direct Bach cantatas regularly. “Well, then you must be a violinist, and that explains why you are here,” and he went on, “who do you study […]

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25 random things about me (2nd version)

(Originally posted on my facebook page in 2009) 1. I was born with hypopituitarism (pituitary dwarfism), and used to self-inject HGH (human growth hormone) into my thighs everyday growing up. 2. Because of my hormone situation, I was still a soprano when I was 20 years old. I never really experienced adolescence in the way normal kids do. I might still be in pubertal stage without the surge in hormone production. 3. My dad, a limnologist and a retired environmental chemistry professor, is now an amateur beekeeper, and my mom is a potter and a calligrapher. 4. My sister and I once had chipmunks as pets. 5. I think cilantro