It's that time of year when we look back at the year that has just passed, and forward to the year that's just started. Even though I have been considerably absent from here for the last few months I seem to have quite a bit of time on my hands at the moment so I thought I would do it anyway.
At some point over the next few posts I will probably explain why I have time on my hands, but lets start at the beginning. January 2018 feels like a very long time ago now, well it is a whole year, checking in my diary I see that in January I played in exactly zero formal concerts, but I did manage a couple of informal gigs, one with the Jazz/Blues band I play electric bass in and one as a guest with a local wind band. I still did quite a lot of playing with open rehearsals, play days and regular rehearsal. January is generally one of my quietest work months so in 2018 like most years I devoted quite a lot of time to seeing friends, family and recovering from Christmas. I also managed to go to a pantomime a friend of mine was acting in. Looking back on my post of exactly one year ago I was clearly on a bit of a downer but getting over it. A couple of days letter I was complaining here about the treatment Trans Women had been getting in the press over the previous year. I can't say that it got better in 2018, indeed it got a lot worse, as a community we felt under constant attack, and that took it's toll on all of us.
By the 9th I was writing about my Brass Band, Croydon Band, and the exciting plans we had for the year ahead, well I have to say that at least some of those plans worked out very well. We had some great fun playing we ran some brilliant workshop days and managed to recruit some extra players along the way. We may not yet be quite a full band, but we are bigger than we were, and on Monday we move into a new rehearsal venue that will take up right into the heart of the local artistic community.
A lot of the next couple of months was taken up by Lent and Easter, concerts with Orchestras, Brass Bands, Wind Bands and Cross The Line, the Jazz/Blues Band I'm part of. There was of course one of the highlights of my year WOW, playing for the WOW Festival Orchestra is very special to me, and I really, really hope that I'll be needed again. I fear that as more and more young women are beginning to take up heavy brass playing I may well very soon be surplus to requirements.
At some point over the next few posts I will probably explain why I have time on my hands, but lets start at the beginning. January 2018 feels like a very long time ago now, well it is a whole year, checking in my diary I see that in January I played in exactly zero formal concerts, but I did manage a couple of informal gigs, one with the Jazz/Blues band I play electric bass in and one as a guest with a local wind band. I still did quite a lot of playing with open rehearsals, play days and regular rehearsal. January is generally one of my quietest work months so in 2018 like most years I devoted quite a lot of time to seeing friends, family and recovering from Christmas. I also managed to go to a pantomime a friend of mine was acting in. Looking back on my post of exactly one year ago I was clearly on a bit of a downer but getting over it. A couple of days letter I was complaining here about the treatment Trans Women had been getting in the press over the previous year. I can't say that it got better in 2018, indeed it got a lot worse, as a community we felt under constant attack, and that took it's toll on all of us.
By the 9th I was writing about my Brass Band, Croydon Band, and the exciting plans we had for the year ahead, well I have to say that at least some of those plans worked out very well. We had some great fun playing we ran some brilliant workshop days and managed to recruit some extra players along the way. We may not yet be quite a full band, but we are bigger than we were, and on Monday we move into a new rehearsal venue that will take up right into the heart of the local artistic community.
A lot of the next couple of months was taken up by Lent and Easter, concerts with Orchestras, Brass Bands, Wind Bands and Cross The Line, the Jazz/Blues Band I'm part of. There was of course one of the highlights of my year WOW, playing for the WOW Festival Orchestra is very special to me, and I really, really hope that I'll be needed again. I fear that as more and more young women are beginning to take up heavy brass playing I may well very soon be surplus to requirements.
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