New Life Goal: Be Mr. Teague

If I could, I would do the whole trip all over again. Even the bus ride. Although I did learn that personal space is important to me. And that I probably have way too much stuff. And bacon always makes breakfast better. 

But I kind of already knew that. I also learned that I have probably have the best standmate of all time. And that most people are generally good. 

But I already knew that too. I learned lots of cool facts and figures about New York City!

But upon reflection, that's not what stands out to me. Perhaps it was the old saying "how do you get to Carnegie Hall?  Practice. " is actually how you get anywhere worth going. 

Or perhaps it was the resilience of the city, and by connection,  our country. We're still here, standing strong because we are worth it. 

Or perhaps it was the sheer size of New York City. There are millions of people there, but it almost never felt overcrowded. It felt natural, almost organic. And everyone was welcome. People working together can create incredible, well, anything. 

And we did. We were just a micro community in New York City, but we created something better than ourselves. As we started hitting cords in the final choral of Angels in the Architecture, it seemed like we were transcending. Now, I know many others say they saw Mr. Teague crying (including Mr. Teague) but I didn't see tears. As I looked up for the final cords, I saw Mr. Teague glowing. I have never seen anyone glow like I saw him glow then and I don't think I ever will again. It was a glow that told me that we were not ourselves anymore. We were more than ourselves; we were one with the music,  with one another, and, maybe, with something or someone greater than ourselves. I will never forget that oneness, being more connected than I ever knew I could be. 

And now we're home and are already preparing for another concert. But how do you prepare when you know it will never ever be the same? 

You play on. And maybe that's ultimately what I learned from Carnegie and New York.  It doesn't matter what happens; you play on. So I will play on. And maybe one day, I too will become so good and so connected to something that I, too, will glow.

I guess that's all for now.

Today it was back to nose to the grindstone.  Unless you were one of the few ( many) who stayed home. Then you start tomorrow.
It all seems like a dream. Just 48 hours ago we were on the greatest stage known to man and now we're getting fussed at for not doing our homework.  But the magic of the whole experience lives on. I know I stumbled through the day, half expecting to see a skyscraper whenever I turned a corner really fast.
And none of the magic would have been possible without any of you. Everyone worked so hard, so I wanted to take the time to say thanks. Thank you Mr. Miller. Thank you Mr. Teague. Thank you to our teachers, our chaperones,  the administration,  our supportive student body, our bus drivers,  our parents, our fellow band mates, Ms. Mullen, Ms. DePeder, Mr. Ball and all the other middle school directors, our elementary school teachers who helped cultivate our live of music,  the random people we met on the highway and in the city who we probably scared half to death, the restaurant workers for feeding us and not panicking, our friends, and all the other people who helped us on our way.
In all seriousness, thank you to the people who came to cheer us on and the people who trusted us enough to let us go. We experienced the best concert we will ever have (unless you become a professional.  Then all bets are off) and we loved every millisecond of it. If I could do it all over again, I would do it in a New York second. 

We Played a Concert and It Was Fun.

Our final day in New York was a blast. The alarms let us sleep in a full extra 15 minutes and we were grateful.  Until we realized we still needed to pack.  Then we rushed around like mad people, which we kind of are. It comes with the program and that's why we love it.
Breakfast was excellent. There was real bacon. Remember that person who has been needing active culture yogurt?  Well, the staff was even more on point today,  catching that person as they entered the room and gave them two active culture yogurt, which officially makes them some of the best staff on this trip. We wouldn't have been as well fed without them. So, thanks!
Over the morning we all toured Carnegie Hall. In simple words, it was shiny. In more grown up words, Carnegie Hall is so full of history (and gold). It is beautiful,  both visually and auditory.  The sound rings like I have never heard before, resonanting even off of the resonants. I don't think even that does the sound justice in terms of quality and beauty. The history is rich. It was built by Carnegie (duh) in the late 1800s as a gathering place for artists, philosophers, politicians ( they don't need any more gather places. They have plenty) and the like. It remained open during the Great Depression but almost was killed the 1970s. But it wasn't and all was well because the city bought Carnegie Hall. And that, in a very compressed nutshell,  is the history of Carnegie Hall that I can remember.
Lunch was still a private affair.
We had our rehearsals in the afternoon ( fun fun fun!) And dinner was catered in. Dinner (sandwiches, pasta, fruit, salad, juice, cookies, etc) was wonderful.  Popular vote puts in the upper appreciation and enjoyment of all meals of this trip.
Then we got to the most important part of our trip: actually playing our instruments. All the bands did well. From the performer's perspective,  the sound bounced off the walls. It was easy to get lost in the music and forget the science part of music and easy to forget to watch. But it was easily the best concert and most enjoyable one we've ever had. From thw audience's viewpoint,  it was nice. The bands blended well, and we could hear everything, from the piccolo to the tuba to the random person dropping stuff or coughing or breathing. Most interesting concert I've ever heard, especially from up in the Dress Circle ( 3rd tier). We couldn't be more proud of everyone for all the work they put in and hope they had the time of their lives tonight. Soon we will load the buses and on back to the land across the cornfields, where there are trees and small houses and grass and no New York pizza.
We should implement a New York pizzeria when we return. That'll fix that problem.

Actors make great tour guides

My Sunday started with the alarms going off at unnatural times of the morning. I wasn't even sure the clock could read that early. Breakfast was a quiet, delicious affair.  There was bacon. I was happy. The person who needed active culture yogurt yesterday got two yogurts today. The staff was perfectly on point and we couldn't have been more appreciative of all their hard work.
We started our day on the bus with a guided tour from a native New Yorker. She was amazing (and she has a degree in singing. She gave us a sample. I wish I could sing like her).  We saw Midtown, Harlam, Central Park (we got to get out and walk around. It was very icy and snowy and beautiful.  Plus, many important movies have been filmed in Central Park. That was cool), the docks, and a thousand other amazing places. There is so much history in New York and learning all about it was a perfect way to spend the morning.
Then we went on a ferry. I spent most of the tour out on the upper deck.  It wasn't too cold once I'd been out there for a while. We passed the coast of New York and New Jersey and Statue of Liberty. Everyone took about a bajillon pictures in the cold. Our tour guide (he has a BFA in acting) for the boat was hysterical. He had us in informed stitches the entire trip. The river was filled with ice, so navigation was difficult but the tour was still awesome. It started to snow by the end of the cruise. Pretty, but made travel interesting.
Lunch was a private affair.
The musical was amazing. Matilda was much darker than the movie but it was better than I thought it would be. The music was superb and the plot line added depth to the story I had never considered before. I think the 18 people who went really enjoyed it. The other 182 people went to Aladdin.  They said it was really good. The carpet flew and they couldn't even see the wires! Broadway magic. Best thing ever.
Dinner was in a fancy restaurant hotel near Times Square. There were so many desserts that several people are probably suffering from sugar comas now. The food was delicious too.
We even got back to the hotel a little early! People were talking, practicing, and starting to rest up tomorrow,  the highlight of our trip: Carnegie Hall. We all have been working so hard for so long that I can't believe that we have finally reached our goal. No pressure, self. No pressure at all.

We didn't do too much today, did we?

Today was easily the best day so far. Our phones were ringing at 6 (which, honestly was not the best part of the day. Good and necessary,  but not fun.). I think we finally accidently answered and promptly dropped the receiver.  Then everyone was up.
Breakfast was excellent. There was a great variety of food. I was particularly pleasantly surprised when the wait staff went out of their way to get some active culture yogurt for someone who needed it. They were all working so hard to get us the food we needed to power us through the day, and we, as a band, are very thankful.
Our first stop was the 9/11 museum.  Only one of the waterfalls was on at 9 o'clock in the morning, and that only made the whole experience more somber. A couple of names had white roses next to them, probably left by loved ones. Inside the museum was even more memorable. We saw remnants of the towers, twisted iron and steel, a crushed fire truck, remnants of the footings. There were so many names, so many faces so many stories. So many names. We were really moved by the memorial, and we all appreciated the purpose and message of such a strong memorial.
We spent most of the morning at the 9/11 memorial. Afterwards, we went to lunch. My group went to 48th street and got aome authentic New York pizza. It was easily some of the best pizza I have ever had. The crust was just the right crispiness,  the cheese was delicious, and the toppings was delicious,  especially the pineapple. It might have been a bit too greasy, but that didn't stop it from tasting great. 
After lunch, we had time to wander around and explore. We went to see the Rockefeller, the ice skating rink, 5th avenue,  and most importantly St. Patrick's cathedral.  I've never been inside a cathedral before or any Catholic church before, and St. Patrick's cathedral was beautiful. Even though it was under renovation.  The stain glass was in a Middle Age style, with dinner plate halos. But they were beautiful, eloquently done. I loved being able to have the time to see what we wanted to see. It was relaxing to be so free.
We also got to go to Radio City Music Hall. Tons of the greatest performers have graced the staged of Radio City Music Hall and we got to hear all about them. We also saw all thew beautiful architecture and art. The bathrooms were kept in the orginal design, so the sinks are mint green and the hand driers are orginial to the 1930s. I made sure to use paper towels. We even got to meet a Rockette! They are world renowned for their precision while dancing and kicklining. Becky talked with us for a few minutes about what it takes to audition, the kind of work she does, and we took pictures.
We also went to the Top of the Rock. It was amazingly beautiful and awe-inspiring up there. We were about 65 stories off the ground, so we were amongst the skyline and above the overly fat pigeons. I overheard a couple of kids get into a friendly disagreement over which building was the Chrysler and which the Empire State. I don't think we ever came to an agreement.
Dinner felt slightly rushed because everyone was running around, but it was delicious. Then we got about three minutes in Grand Central Station. It was one of the most amazing building I had seen all day. There are constellations painted on the ceiling, beautiful chandeliers everywhere, and the clock in all the movies actually does exist!  I was very excited.
The New York Philharmonics were amazing. The third sympathy was the best piece. It was loud and quiet and fast and slow and unpredictable and completely easy to understand.  So, in other words, plain and simple. But there was a soloist in the second piece and he was amazing. His technique was flawless and he was a joy to listen to.
So, basically, we didn't do too much today. Just saw practically all of Manhattan,  except the parts that we didn't see. And we're all looking forward to another exciting, packed day tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow, we'll finally figure out which building is the Chrysler and which is the Empire State.

The Highlight of Our First Big Day: Hour Long Meals

We finally found the hotel, which ended our rather eventful first day. The bus was as nice as it could be. Everyone was really great, especially in regards to each other. We all tried to sleep, which failed miserably. I maybe got 2 or 3 hours of sleep. We were all so excited to arrive at Ithaca. Ithaca is apparently near two other colleges, Cornell and a community college, so the town is a great college town with great scenery. At least according to our tour guide before our clinic with Dr. Peterson. He is amazing and great with us. He really helped us to improve, even if we didn't get more than an hour with him. He was a blessing to learn from, and he helped improve  us and gave us confidence  for our concert at Carnegie Hall on Monday. Lunch was a lot of fun. There are pictures of North band kids eating in the Ithaca cafeteria. There was so much good food and great fun. After a good hour for lunch (I loved having the luxury. It was a feeling of calm after a busy, busy morning.) we got back on the bus, which was almost exactly like the ride from home to Ithaca, except  people went to sleep faster. We stopped at the Willowbrook Mall (which was not actually in Willowbrook. I was slightly confused when I first found out but that's  probably because I was half asleep when I heard about the mall.). It took several of us reading several maps and walking around in circles to find the bathrooms (they were hidden behind the food court) and the food court. We had another full hour to eat (I could get used to this. I think everyone  else can too). It took us about half an hour to get to the hotel and took the loading crew about 10 or 15 minutes  to completely  unload all four buses. They worked so hard so fast and helped to get the band into the hotel as quickly as possible. Now we're  all just winding down, all excited from today and for tomorrow. Can't  wait to get to experience  New York City for the first time. They say it's  the city that never sleeps. I'm  sure we will find out tomorrow.  Me, I'll just be happy to see Percy Jackson walking around Central Park.

All packed and ready to roll

Sarah Fantinel

The loading crew just finished loading our bus. They all worked super fast and hard through the cold and everything just fits. It was the most challenging,  heavy game of Jenga ever, but we wouldn't trade it for a second. No one could be more excited about it all. The excitement has been building all day and all year. It feels very climactic to finally be ready, packed, loaded, and everything. We're setting off on our way just as soon as we get the word. Can't wait to get to Ithaca in the morning and officially begin playing on our tour. We've got an exciting night ahead!

Transition of Blog Focus - #NYNouveau

As our tour begins today, the focus of our Blog will transition to a reflective focus, allow faculty, staff and students to share their perspectives about the tour as it's happening.

Meet our DGN #NYNouveau "Team Blogger" ...

• Adam Behnke
• Lauren Birkmeier
• Ben Cortez
• Sarah Fantinel
• Victoria Iacovetti
• Rachel Martello
• Mr. Miller
• Ms. Mullen
• Tanner Ryan
• Mr. Teague
• Hannah Thompson

 We hope you enjoy staying connected to these students, and faculty, as the tour unfolds.