Mi Contra Fa

No, Really: Keep a Logbook

True Story: I've been assigned a data analysis task at work. Based on an ancient (4 years old!) email chain that happened to get re-forwarded to me, I saw that I had apparently written software for this very task in 2008.  I do not even remember doing that.

A search of my hard drive has turned up some supporting software, but nothing like a "main" file.  And the files were in unexpected locations - tiny subfolders with obscure names, nothing to indicate they contained analysis code.

Hoping against hope my 4-years younger self had a clue, I hauled out my lab notebook from 2008 and flipped to the spring.

"Data by hand: "

"Data by automated analysis: "

SELF! What program? Located where on your computer? HOW DID YOU DO THE ANALYSIS?

Notes. Good ones. Take them.  *facepalm*

Beowulf Birthday Bash

First, before I forget - one of the reasons "Veni" was giving me such a headache was that I had it in the wrong mode. It's Mixolydian, not Lydian.  Now that I'm starting on the right note, it works great.

I've had the week from Introvert Hell (four 10-11 hour days of business conference) so I was not as well-practiced, well-rested or even coherent as I might have been.  But!  I had a lovely time.

Got to sit with the Bright Hills Bards, who are always awesome. 

Entered a bunch of old stuff into the Northern European A&S display.

Showed a few interested folks the lyre; Mistress Molly very generously gifted me with veil pins for the demonstration.

The Anglo-Saxon poetry class had four! students, who followed right along and said I was making sense.  We didn't do a writing exercise, at least partly because I forgot to bring paper and pens for it. D'oh.  So (since at least 3/4 were performers) we talked performance modes instead.

Also in good scop fashion, after I performed "Beocat," I was asked to do it again for the kitchen folks.  Kitchen folks approved and offered me a small measure of mead. Yum!

Got to geek out a bit about my garb with Aaradyn.  Possibly a bit too much...  ("Why did you pick purple and red?"  "Oh! Blah blah Arnegunde blah blah round pins blah pin suite blah blah")  Pleased to report that the chained pin suite/belt combo works very well to  hold the coat/robe in place in lieu of the round pins.

Ooh, also on the costuming front: Since it was chilly, I wore the wool veil I made originally to go with this ensemble.  As it is a bit heavy, I put on my gold-threaded headband (just for bling), then over it put a linen cap from Revival Clothing.  I pinned the heavy veil right to the cap instead of to the headband.  Worked like a charm!  (Got the idea from this book, I think. Or possibly this one.)

I went outside to say hello to Aaradyn and Baron William, and Aaradyn introduced me to her Highness, who was lovely.  We spoke for a bit about poetry and music, and Baron William said some very nice things (apparently I wrote a poem about armoring? And he's kept it?  Very sweet!)

Finally: the performance!  It was not error-free, unsurprisingly, but I think it went very well.  I was not pleased with myself for being on-book, and my eye contact for those pieces was sketchy at best, but life's life.  Despite all my good intentions, practice has just not been happening - although I wonder if it may, soon.  It feels sort of like my energies are swinging back into this.  Still, self-care first - work has picked up with a lot more responsibilities and I need to do things like get exercise and play with the kids.  All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.  One thing at a time.

"Veni" with harp

I added some really basic harp to this piece.  ('Really basic' accompaniment is still new for me.) 

Depending on how you look at it, the melody (adapted from Sequentia's version) is either plagal Lydian mode or a major key.  (It doesn't contain the fourth above tonic that would resolve which.)  On my Ardival Rosemarkie, tuned in C major, that means tonic is an F.

All I'm doing is, if I recall correctly, (bass, treble) CF cf, DF cf, CF cf, Cf cf.  One teeny change from C to D gives it just enough motion to not feel too flat.

At least, I think that's what I came up with last night. c is a fifth up from F, or a C a fourth below, which is why it works with an F tonic here.  I don't think I was playing Fc fc', because the highest c' on my Rosemarkie is plinky and not very nice.

Still don't have the Latin words memorized, and still get caught up on the final couplet. I originally wrote it as "briskly/quickly," then changed it to the approximate rhyme "swiftly/quickly," and actually sing it every which way (including sometimes 'quickly/quickly,' ergh).  Practice, practice, practice...