Casey Gsell

Queensland Conservatorium is hosting a double reed day.  Come out on March 21 and show your double reed pride!  I’ll be one of the guest teachers along with many great Australian musicians and teachers.  There will be chamber music, workshops, help for beginners, masterclasses, instruments to try, concerts, and lots more.

The Queensland Oboe and Bassoon Competition was this weekend in Brisbane, Australia.  It was presented by the Australasian Double Reed Society and held at the Queensland Conservatorium.  The Conservatorium is in the middle of a beautiful riverside park with big ferris wheel, an open-air market, and cafes.  I ate some churros from a street vendor.  Not quite like real Mexican churros, but still tasty.

I won the senior sections and best overall performer, performing Mozart’s Concerto for Bassoon, Dutilleux’s Sarabande et Cortège, and Mignone’s Valsa da Outra Esquina.

with the judges and sponsor

backstage

Buddha and drum, resting

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This weekend was the Australasian Double Reed Society Competition in Sydney, Australia.  It was good fun!  It was two full days of great double reed players of all ages.  Oboes, bassoons, cor anglais, chamber music, and even a fagottino quartet!

I won first prize in the Senior divison, performing from Weber’s Concerto in F Major and Mignone’s 16 Valsas para Fagot Solo.

Here’s some photos from Sydney:

with the judges

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On the airplane over to Australia, I was sitting in the window seat.  I noticed the woman next to me was working on a book of music theory exercises, so I asked if she was a musician.  She is an early childhood music teacher, and she does these books of theory exercises for fun.  We had a great talk about Schubert, Schumann, Copeland, Shostakovich, Ravel, and Debussy (which New Zealanders pronounce de-BUSS-y).  We traded teaching stories.  All of a sudden, she stops, looks at me very seriously, and leans in as if to tell me a secret.  Quietly, with great emphasis, she whispers:

“I am just mad for Music.”

Here’s some photos from my audition trip to Zürich.  I made the final round, winning 500 Swiss francs.

Löwendenkmal

to Lücerne

his master's voice

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Here’s some pictures Matt took from our hike on Rangitoto Island.  In Auckland’s harbor, it’s a small volcanic island that erupted about 600 years ago.

a lava cave (Lord of the Rings, anyone?)

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The New York Times just ran a big article on Caleb Burhans, an NYC freelancer who went to Eastman (the same time as me).  He is starting up a great career by playing multiple instruments, singing, composing, and performing in many styles.  In many ways he represents the new generation of musicians that are figuring out how to make a living without traditional orchestral jobs.  He works in so many different musical contexts.  There’s a video interview with him as well.