Hello! It has been a while!
by Clare
Wow, time flies! It has been a while since we last updated our blog! Here we are again! How have you all been?
So here is what we had been up to lately! As soon as we hit the new year of 2023, we suddenly got very busy! Things started to go back to the way it was (kind of) before the pandemic. Scott got many accompanying gigs, from concerto competitions, recitals to local festivals! (In fact, he is out right now doing a dress rehearsal for a clarinetist’s recital!)
We had a mini tour in February, during when we played in Vancouver and on the island, including Qualicum Beach and our first time at the Chemainus Classical Concert Series! We had a great time everywhere we went, and we were always so happy to learn how much the audience enjoyed our programs! In fact, the organizers at the Chemainus Classical Concert Series told us that several of the audiences went up to them right after the concert and asked how soon we could be back! That makes us so happy that our music communicated and brought enjoyment to the audiences!
Aside from all the playing, we both started getting local students, and we are adjusting to the life in Langley! (I think Scott adjusted much quicker than I did! Haha…..) It was at the beginning of the pandemic when we moved here, so things weren’t really the same; it was hard to visit places like how we used to visit places. After two years of being at the new place, we finally went to a nice cafe in Fort Langley on a nice sunny day the other day, and now I feel like I am starting to get to know Langley. Here are some pictures from our studios’ student recitals! We did it separately, but everyone played very well! (I forgot to ask my students to come on stage for a group phone, so here are some screenshots!)
In the whole month of January, I was invited to FairChild Radio FM 96.1 weekly for five weeks to share topics on learning piano. It was a lot of fun! It was a live call-in show, so some listeners did call in to share their experiences and/or to ask questions. Hope I was helpful! The photos are taken before the pandemic actually! Now we can do live right from home, so I didn’t have to travel! Photo Credit: Mr. Wei-Sheng Wang
In the past month, since Scott was often away from home, I’ve learned to make the French madeleine and canele! The madeleines I’ve tried so far are the packaged kinds from stores, so I’d always thought they are more like wet sponge cakes until I tried it freshly baked! Oh My GOD! They are so light and airy and soooo good!!!!! The canele on the other hand, I had been avoiding it subconsciously because I read the recipe several years ago and pretty much stopped at “wait for the mixture to sit for 48 hours”! I didn’t have the patience, and I heard many things could go wrong, so I decided to try something else instead. Finally, I think it’s time! So I researched for a good recipe, watched many videos for tips and what to watch out for. I used fresh vanilla beans and the gold rum. The result?! Here is another Oh My GOD!!! We love it! I had a friend who just came back from France to taste test for me, and she said it was just as good as Faubourg’s! I couldn’t help but dance after hearing that! Haha! So my two new skills learned - madeleine and canele!
You may have noticed that we haven’t been doing much in-home recordings lately. We have been getting live concert invitations, so we have been busy playing live. Our time at home is significantly reduced now, and so we haven’t been able to keep up with the recording speed that we were doing during the pandemic. We hope to do more though! Meanwhile, we have been sharing pieces from our recent live performances, so you can always hear some of our videos on our YouTube Channel!
In case you have been wondering - no, Scott still hasn’t cut his hair! He now has new hair accessories - hair ties and hairbands! I think he looks good without the accessories though, what do you think?! Let us know what you think! Haha….
Finally, we were going to play our debut concert in Langley back in the end of February. To our surprise, heavy snow decided to visit on the day of, so we had to postpone the recital. We finally got a date! So our first time in Langley will be on April 29th 2023 at 7pm! We truly believe that it shall not snow in the end of April…. haha! Admission is by donation, anything will help support us to continue doing what we love! You can learn more about the program here. We hope to see you there! Special thanks to Tom Lee Music for sponsoring our concert, and special thanks to Cecilia’s Bakeshop for sponsoring the reception!
So this is a brief update of what we have been up to. How about you? Share with us about what you have been up to!
