On stage

Sophie's school concert featuring Grade 3 and 4 happened on August 17. Unfortunately I had a concert the same night but the rest went to cheer her on. The theme was
"Countdown", an old top-of-the-pops-type TV programme.

The next morning, a sunny but freezing and windy one, a select few from the MSO braved the elements on St Kilda Pier, some of us in frivolous little black tops to have some publicity photos done for our upcoming European tour (Jan 19 - Feb 4 2007). Now I know how the models feel when they have to do the bikini spreads on some wintry beach.

Rosie and a group of girls from her class were selected to compete in the Tournament of the Minds, an annual city-wide event with various categories including science, maths, drama etc. They were in the drama category which required them to write their own Greek tragedy (10 minutes or less in length), make their own costumes and props, rehearse and perform it for the judges with absolutely no adult involvement. Jessye, Sophie and I went along to watch the performance which was held at La Trobe University. It was quite clever and well-prepared with song-and-dance commentary from a chorus interspersed. Rosie put on her biggest stage voice and spoke her lines very clearly which was a feat in itself. The judges gave them an instant verbal report afterwards. I don't think they won or we would have heard about it but they did themselves proud.

Later that day, Sunday 20th August, we all went to a combined 50th and 14th birthday party. The 50 was Michele Picker, an MSO bass player who's 14-yr-old son Thomas
shares the same birthday. There were several Sophie-sized girls there and it didn't take them long to get together. Our Kiwi friends, Mary Allison (MSO 2nd violin) and hubby Peter James Smith (illustrious painter) led the dancing to the live band provided by Michele's hubby, Dave, and friends. We left before it got too threatening.

On August 25th Peter and I witnessed Jessye's first public performance as a violist at a Lauriston after-school soiree. She played one of her Grade 5 exam pieces very well on her borrowed school viola. Next weekend she will be checking out a potential one of her own when our old friend, Yoshito from Antonio Strings in Christchurch, brings one over for her on his monthly Melbourne visit. I forgot the camera so have no pictorial evidence of this historic performance. That night she let her hair down at a friend's birthday party and the stress of the viola debut was thankfully forgotten.

At a recent MSO fundraiser I was seated next to a physiotherapist called David McKenzie who is a great talker and it didn't take long to find out that he's spent the last 20 years working with stroke victims. He is adamant that far more than is usually expected can be achieved in the way of rehabilitation and he was very interested to hear all about Rosie and her forays into physio. The short story is that he was keen to see if he could be of some help to Rosie and came to see us for the first time on Monday 28th August. Rosie and Peter took the morning off and we had a good 2-hr seesion with him. After a workout inside, we all (including Fred and Barney of course) traipsed over to Carlton Gardens where David assessed Rosie's current ability as a frame of reference timing her running and skipping between two trees, special walking exercises, hopping tasks etc. She must have been exhausted at the end of it all. We've been doing some just about every day since along with Susan's exercises (our original physio lady).

Tomorrow we'll see David again.

Last week we had the pleasure of Ed Allen's company ay work when he came over to sit in our horn section for a recording week. We recorded 3 truly unmemorable and very difficult (for the first violins especially) symphonies by Alexander Tansman which will no doubt languish in University library collections all over the world. Lunch was the highlight. My old mate Briar was working that week too so we hung out with Ed who was interested to talk trees with her. (Briar's hubby, Alan, has a big tree farm and Ed has planted hundred's on his and Vicki's Martinborough property.)

Sophie's ballet exam certificate showed up in the mail. She passed with Distinction!!!! and showed it to the dogs.

Father's Day was duly celebrated minus Jessye who was away on a whitewater rafting weekend with a school group. (As it turned out the river was too low for rafts so it
became a kayak and canoe weekend instead.) Eleanor was working that night but Will came over for dinner and opened his very late birthday presents. After dinner Sophie
gave us a recital of her Grade 2 cello pieces as a warmup for her exam the next day. Her exam report came in the mail a couple of days ago and she was delighted with her
"A" pass. Grade 3 here we come!

Somebody took some portraits of Fred and Barney in their favourite daytime nap spot.

This morning we went to Melba Hall, the very nice recital hall at Melbourne University, for the Parkville Music School (where the girls learn piano) Gala Concert. Jessye valiantly agreed to play even though after last year's one, where she had a traumatic memory slip, she vowed she would never play in Melba Hall again. Fortunately, this year's performance went very well and mercifully for the rest of us, she had her music up just in case. Sophie also played - she is unfazed by performing so it's much less stressful on the involved spectator.