I don’t know about you, but I am done with January. Actually, to be honest, I am done with winter but I think we all know that’s not going anywhere soon! It’s not that I haven’t enjoyed January, it’s been filled with many sunny days, birthday celebrations, exciting events and some plain, old-fashioned family fun…but, still, I’m done! I think I am just ready for that fresh, new feeling that a new month brings and, no matter how much fun I try and fill January with, it still seems like it’s the longest month of the year!
So, I am really looking forward to flipping that calendar page and saying hello to February. February: a nice short month, the month of love, the month that officially says we are half way to summer! What’s not to like about February? Well, maybe that it’s still part of winter? 😉
Anyway, a new month just always seems like a fresh start and it’s got me excited about planning the second half of our year. We’ve been having a lot of fun “hosting” our first ever Piano Olympics. I have so enjoyed the enthusiasm of all the students and parents and think that over all it has been a success….not perfect…but definitely a success. I’ve found it challenging to fit it all in at times, especially in our MYC classes which are so full as it is and so I am definitely realizing that there is some tweaking and re-organizing to do before I pull it out again in 2018 to make it even better….and maybe a little lower maintenance for the teacher. 😉 Anyway, all in all it has been so fun and so exciting to see all the events completed and stickers going up all over those Olympic Flags! We have just two more weeks to get in a couple more events–all events MUST be completed by February 13th, so that I can tally it all up and get ready for our “Closing Ceremony and Medal Presentations” during the week of February 18-20. February 18-20 will be another Masterclass week with a special schedule…keep your eyes open for an email with class times to sign up for. After that week, regular lessons will resume until we close our studio for Spring Break: March 31-April 6.
I have updated our calendar with these upcoming events, so you are welcome to print off another from this link: http://mmmusicstudio.wordpress.com/check-the-schedule/
You will also find our Spring Recital now TENTATIVELY on the calendar! And, yes, I did place it in a different month–that’s not a typo! I am hoping to try something a little “fresh” with our recital this year. I found last year that there was a bit of burnout happening towards the end of May and a whole lot of soccer practices! My poor high school students were stressed over upcoming exams and final assignments and other students were running from music lessons to the soccer fields like there was no tomorrow. Finding time to polish and perfect a recital piece in the midst of all this seemed to be adding even more stress. So, this year I am thinking we should try something new: a recital in early May. And so, the plan for now is that our Spring Recital will be Friday, May 9, 2014 at 6:30pm at the same venue as our Christmas Recital followed by approximately one more fun of lessons before summer break. If anything changes, I will let you know!