Kesly Nemo

I have been a mediocre person and a mediocre musician.

Yes, life can seem like too much sometimes [very often], but what if I changed my perception? As Gina says, "life just isn't that hard". I know that expecting perfection is preparing myself for deception, but there is really so much that I am able to do. I'm not living up to my potential.

Many times, I remember I have sucked at performing. I'm going to work changing my presence. Gonna become the diva and wonderful person I am destined to be.

No more badmouthing, that is the worst. El que esté libre de pecado, que lance la primer piedra

I have the goal of mastering my musicality while recording my progress in a very detailed way. I can't find commitment due to myself dealing with my mental health. I lost progress in learning how to learn. That's the goal: study and a bit starting my freelancer-musician career.

I'm looking forward to being the student, teacher, and the life coach that I need. Need to get myself back on track. I need to take care of my personal life so it doesn't interfere with my creative process. Now I understand, I cannot have one without the other. So I will try and keep track of all my activities.

I must take it day by day, by week, by month, and year. I want to create a long-term hobby. Let's see where this takes me. I am afraid to fail, as I feel happens often to me, but I can do it! I'm going to concentrate in the trial-error of my process towards being better.

1:30 hr

30 min Solfeggio: Solfeo de los solfeos 1A 85 +Maj7 chords by fourths +Major harmonic scales by fourths.

1 hr Viola Technique: warm-up, Major harmonic scales 2 octaves* by fourths, Maj7 chords 2 octaves by fourths, Emaj Flesch no. 5-6

5:15 hrs total

Viola technique 1 hr:

10 min warmup (stretching, open strings and vibrato)

15 min major scales by fourths 1 octave

15 min Maj triad arpeggios by fourths 1 octave

20 min Flesch Eb major 3 octaves for range and double strings by thirds (no. 5-6)

Viola etude and repertoire 50 min:

30 min Kreutzer no. 2.

20 min C. Bach concerto III mov.

Read: Hal Crook's Ready, Aim, improvise 2 hrs

Solfeggio 10 min: Solfeo de los solfeos 1A 84, major scales and major triad arpeggios by fourths

Ear train 15 min.

D minor melodic with arpeggios.

I need to work on scales. This month I will prioritize my audition repertoire and the admission process for UC.

I'll try squeezing my school load and the jazz stuff. But my priority is solely on the audition. Just one month of extensive work on repertoire.

Kreutzer 6

Contrapunto: ejercicios 4ta especie dos voces 38 min.

Piano: Gmaj, Fritz 30 min.

Viola: repertoire Zelter concerto, étude Mazas 8.

Jazz: standard Au privave melody by ear, Parkers Ornithology solo, Coltrane lick and transpose.

Gotta practice recording myself and face how I sound so I can fix it to the point I don't feel ashamed.

Mazas 8.

Intonation is a bit off, especially on the insecure notes like F and the harmonics.

Better start practicing those slow open strings again for a straight bow and firm pressure.

Practice slowly subdivisions to get precise timing without the metronome.

Dynamics need more emphasis

Practice vibrato with the goal of having a more loose, controled and relaxed wrist.

Solfeo: Lectura 30 min Laz 100, Gutiérrez 6:8; auditivo 50 min.

Contrapunto: ejercicios y análisis 4ta especie 2 hrs.

Extra: arreglo Tank parte de cuerdas para Slang Big band 4 hrs.

It´s been 1 year, 5 months and 25 days since April 14th 2019, the day I decided to start learning jazz.

Now, I know I´m more experienced and have gained much knowledge since back then, but I feel empty. Even though music is not as measurable, I would like to have a journal to grasp a bit more on what I´m learning or that of what I´m learning I should be learning.

I´ll try posting something at least once a week about what I´m learning, playing, composing, transcribing, working and all those things enrolled on making me a better, full rounded musician. After all, I don´t want to be just a sight-reading violist.

I actually just got declined from a job interview. That is going to be a motivation on being a better freelancer. Let´s see how I do.

I hope to come back a year from today and be able to recognize the things I´ve done. Make myself proud.

Solfeo:

15 min. en Oído perfecto y 5 ejercicios de reconocimiento de acordes.

10 min. Laz 1 + 10 min. Solfeo de los solfeos 3a (a partir del ejercicio 19 clave de do en primera)

14Teoría cantada

Armonía:

Armonizar ejercicios Cap. VIII Hindemith con bajo (c# y c). Tarea

Análisis Les sauvages Rameau parte C y revisión general.

Schöenberg -Tratado de armonía moderna Cap. IV

Viola

Escalas Flesch G

Estudio

Moncayo sonata I, II, III

Christian Bach I, II, III

Extra:

Gioia

Saxophone warm up & stretching exercises

Warm ups 8. With arms raised and stretched above the head (180° relative to the trunk), open and close the fingers. Be careful with this exercise, because it can tire. 13. Separate and join the fingers. 26. With the arms along the body bend (flex) the elbows with the palm facing towards the body and stretch (extend) the elbows with the palms facing the ground. In this way de flexoextensión movements are combined with pronosupination movements. 36. With the head make a very smooth back and forth, as if you were saying yes, while the neck is kept straight. It is very important that the head is well aligned with respect to the shoulders and that the movement occurs in the upper part of the vertebrae cervical.

Stretching 71. Flex the interphalangeal joints by placing the metacarpophalangeal joints in maximum extension with the wrist flexed. From this position make a separation active fingers. This exercise allows the stretching of the intrinsic muscles of the fingers. 84. Cross your arms behind your body with your elbows stretched and try to pull gently backwards noting the stretching of the pecs and the musculature of the arm. 85. Stand next to a wall with your arm stretched at shoulder height and your hand leaning against the wall with your fingers wide apart. The feet are parallel and aligned. To perform the stretch step back with the outermost foot so that the pelvis and the chest go back and the hand does not come off the wall. It can be intensified by turning the head also back. Pectoral and flexor stretch of the arm, forearm and fingers. Repeat with the other arm. 92. Standing, hips, knees and feet are aligned with the pelvis in neutral position. From this position place the left arm stretched down hooked to the hip with the wrist extended and the right upwards touching the ear with the flexed wrist. In a simultaneous action, pull both arms in the opposite direction. Repeat with arms on opposite position. 94. With both arms stretched but higher, at the level of the shoulders, and the pronating forearms with wrists flexed and fingers outward, pull the arms forward and try to enter the sternum more, so that you can stretch the area posterior of the back (between the scapulae). 97. Stretched, with the head resting on the occiput (avoiding arching) and the legs bent with the feet flat on the ground, we first bring one leg to the chest and then we will repeat it with the other, to finally bring both legs to the chest until you notice stretching in the lower back (lower back).

Violin / Viola warm-ups and stretching excercises

Warm ups 11. Close the fingers of the hand following the sequence: first flexion from the proximal phalanges, second from the knuckles, third from the last phalanges (distal interphalangeal joints). Keep your thumb apart. 15. With the help of the other hand, rotate each of the fingers five times in every sense. Do it with both hands. 23. With the palms of the hands facing the sky and the arms 90 with respect to the vertical (elbows close to the body) bring the hands inwards (little finger) and the outside (thumb). 30. Raise and lower the shoulders. Both at the same time and alternately. 41. Combined movement: from the initial position of a straight head, look at the forehead, turn to the left and incline with the chin attached to the body for later move the head to the right and return to the starting position.

Stretching 66. With the palm of the hand facing up and the help of the other hand, gently pull down each of the fingers. Note the stretch analytically in each finger. 67. Interlock fingers and stretch arms with palms out. Note the stretching on the palms and palmar of the fingers. 72. Arms in front of the body, right elbow fully stretched; hand left is placed on the palm of the right hand pulling back the fingers and the wrist; the thumb is kept separate. You can go down to pull the tip of the fingers. Note the stretch on the inside of the forearm, wrist and fingers (flexor zone). Repeat on the opposite side. 73. Arms in front of the body, the right elbow fully stretched with the fingers closed and flexing the wrist with the help of the other hand. Note the stretching on the outer aspect of the forearm, wrist and fingers (area extender). Repeat on the opposite side. 84. Cross your arms behind your body with your elbows stretched and try to pull gently backwards noting the stretching of the pecs and the muscles of the arm. 91. Standing or sitting we turn the head to the right side while with the right hand at chin level gently help turn the head a little more. Repeat on the other side.

Today is my first day in Tepic for the quarantine. 

I really didn´t want to be alone all the month so I´m staying with my family. Everything is really ugly back in Guadalajara. People everywhere are panicking.

I´m quite demotivated, for I have not been advancing on any school tasks. Today I´ll try and get up on at least two classes, even better if I advance in all. Let´s see how it goes.

Haven´t played in two days because of a contracture. It´s painful, that´s why I´m not playing in the moment: so it won´t get worse. This way it´s a short pause.

My mom has given me medicine and my sister a massage. I will be back to practicing tomorrow with the proper warmup.

In the plus side, it helped me to meditate of how this year I´m going to approach my jazz study by setting short term performance and theorical goals. I was having quite a crisis three days ago. 

Relax shoulders. Don´t swift the bow for a cleaner sound.

Vibrato 65bpm. Increase by fives.

F minor: slow scale, arpeggios and thirds.

Kreutzer 3: sixteenth notes up to 100bpm with intonation.