I'm back!!

It's been a long time since my last post.  Thanks for your patience!

I've had a very eventful month:

• 3 concerts at the IDRS in Tempe, AZ
• A family vacation
• Teaching at the Interlochen Advanced Bassoon Institute
• A retreat with bassoon players in northern Michigan

The concerts in Arizona were among the most difficult I've ever played. They went well, though. Anyone interested in hearing them can order a recording by going to IDRS 2011 and downloading the recording order form.

My concerts were:

•  June 2, 2:00pm (Men Who Don't Bite Quartet)
•  June 3rd, 10:15am (Debussy, Sciortino, Bernaud, Griebling-Haigh)
•  June 4, 7:30pm (del Aguila)

Anyone entering the Meg Quigley Vivaldi Competition can hear my performance of "Sortilège" by ordering a recording of the performance there.

It was fun seeing old friends and former students at the Conference. A bunch of us went to a Diamondbacks game one night.

Afterwards, my host and fellow bassoonist, Chip King, coaxed me into joining his Tuesday night runners' group for some hill repeats on the outskirts of Phoenix.  After the workout, we hiked up a small mountain to watch the sunset.

Then we went to a Mexican restaurant where Chip and I provided the entertainment!

But we only brought one stand, so some runners helped out:

I had sworn the bassoon wasn't going to get out of its case until July, but Chip is a very persuasive guy!

Later that week my family joined me for a driving tour of the Southwest. We had a terrific time seeing Lake Powell, Moab, the Arches National Park and the Grand Canyon.  Melinda's favorite, however, was Goblin Valley State Park, where part of the movie. "Galaxy Quest" was filmed.

Upon arriving home, I jumped in the car the next day and drove up to Interlochen where I was the guest artist at the Advanced Bassoon Institute. I worked with the students for two days and played a recital with friends Eric Stomberg, George Sakakeeny and Leigh Miller-Munoz.

On the way home I stopped for a few days at a bassoonists' retreat near Houghton Lake in northern Michigan, hosted by Jim Poe. It was very relaxing. I showed the movie, "Double Stop" which is now available on DVD.

Now I'm home relaxing, weeding the garden beds and writing this blog!  Look for the next one in a couple of days!