Bizet, Busy

Pardon the cheesy title, but I couldn’t resist…

Since I’ve gotten back from Istanbul, my schedule has been quite a bit fuller than it was earlier this year.  Right after I got back, the Sarajevo Philharmonic began rehearsing a program sponsored by the French Embassy, featuring Bizet’s Symphony in C.  We also played Beethoven’s Leonore Overture and Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C.  (I found it funny that the entire concert was in C Major!)  Bizet’s Symphony in C Major features a lengthy oboe solo, so I had my work cut out for me.  I wasn’t completely satisfied with my playing in the concert, but I wasn’t disappointed either.  I guess many members of the audience liked my solo, because at the post-concert reception, I was recognized and introduced several times.  I got to meet “zee French ambassador”, as well as representatives from the French, Italian, and Spanish embassies.  Of course, I had fun enjoying my 15-minutes of fame.

            The weekend after the concert seemed to fly by, and I was still recovering when we rehearsed La Traviata on Monday, and performed the opera on Tuesday.  My days were completely packed with rehearsal and concerts all week, because in addition to playing La Traviata, the orchestra began to work on our upcoming program, (Brahms Symphony No. 1 and Dvorak Cello Concerto) and my quintet performed a short concert in the nearby city of Zenica.

            Our quintet concert was on Wednesday evening, and I got to spend a bit of time with them in Zenica both before and after the performance.  I think I’ve written about it before, but I’m definitely the odd one out: the rest of my quintet is older, male, and Bosnian.  I’m glad that they are very gracious about translating everything that goes on for me.  J

            I’ve heard that the cevapi in Zenica is a bit different than in Sarajevo, so it was interesting to investigate this claim on Wednesday afternoon.  (One of my quintet colleagues is from Zenica, and another is from Sarajevo, and I’ve overheard them heatedly debating which city serves better cevapi.)  Of course, I don’t eat cevapi, which are little spiced sausages, but I do eat the bread, onion and cream cheese that are served with it.  I’ve had the bread (somun) and the cheese (kajmak) many times in Sarajevo, so I decided to try it in Zenica and make a comparison.  It seemed like the bread in Zenica is prepared a bit differently, it’s softer, moister, and a bit spongier.  The kajmak is also a bit fluffier.  I’m not sure what I prefer.  I think maybe it’s good to be diplomatic in my quintet anyway, haha.

            In addition to the Bizet concert, preparing the Brahms concert, playing La Traviata, and performing a quintet concert (whew!) I also played in a children’s opera this week called “Jezeva Kuca”, meaning “Hedgehog’s House”.  The woodwind parts have some tricky little technical passages in them, so I was grateful that the performances were relatively low-pressure situations.  I got lost once or twice during some of the repeats/cuts/pages turns, but always found my way back.  I’m glad that I’ll have a shot at redeeming myself when we play it again later this spring.

            So, I guess that’s the short update on how my life is going in Sarajevo, and why I’m quite behind with my blog.  I hope that I will soon have some time to be a bit more reflective and write something more interesting…