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Today was the day I did my first ever live Christmas concert for the “public”. It was in a dedicated pop up group on Facebook, and it was separate from my self care den, so that those who weren’t interested in the Tropic side of things wouldn’t be put off. It was also my first paid concert, so I had to make sure that it was away from normal access.
My last teaching day is tomorrow, but it’s a quiet week, with only a couple of students due to appear, so I’ll be using the final week before Christmas Day to catch up on personal things and finally getting round to making the husband’s Christmas card!
The concert itself was in two parts, with a 10 minute “interval” but let’s rewind a bit…
Having had a severe anxiety disorder for most of my life, last year was the first time I ever dared to go “Live” on my piano. I was terrified! What if people thought I was hopeless? What if I made mistakes? What if I went so red with embarrassment my palms got too sweaty and I fell to pieces?!
December 2020, I survived. I took requests from Tropic customers, and it was an exclusive for my den – formerly “Jen’s Tropic Den”. Feedback was amazing, and from that I promised to go live every month in my den to play the piano for my community.
Fast forward to December 2021, and I’m ready for the next level. I built my confidence gradually over the year. February I sang to people for the first time. August I took “blind” requests (any piece of music, I’d acquire it and perform it within 1-3 days, the longest I took was a week for a particularly tricky piece!)
The next level? Playing a PAID public concert! Inviting everyone! Not a mean feat when your personal profile is virtually invisible because of years of being so private. I spent 3 weeks in between work/socialising/attending things, messaging people to invite them privately… It was worth every minute though, I had some lovely conversations, even connected with a few new people through networking. I did multiple lives across different groups, promoting my Christmas music, and making the effort to be as visible as possible!
Just short of 40 people attended my first concert, it was amazing! The atmosphere was amazing especially because a virtual concert can often lack the atmosphere that you’d obviously get at a real life concert… People watching felt uplifted, some felt nostalgia of carol singing days, others remembered hearing certain tunes during student life or childhood, and everyone finished watching the concert feeling very Christmassy!
I began with a fancy arrangement of Deck the Halls, then ran through a handful of requests from both Tropic customers, and any members of the “public” who had bought a premium ticket. The first half ended with a wintery Classical number called “Song to the Evening Star” by Wagner.
The second half began (like last year) with the trickiest piece in the programme. Ode to Joy was an unusual request, but as a Japanese Christmas Song I couldn’t refuse, but it also meant that I had two weeks to acquire it and learn it so it was at a performable standard. More requests were played, and people were absolutely loving it. Of course I had to round off the concert with “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” as that is becoming my signature conclusion piece for my Christmas concerts!
Fun was had by all, and I was so happy that I could brighten a whole community’s day up with the magic of music!
I’ll be winding down after tomorrow, and will be back teaching from the week of the 10th. Don’t forget that I teach online as well as in person, so if you want to learn (or you have a child who would like to learn) just get in touch for more info!
Thanks to all those who’ve supported me both in the concert, and over the last year, wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, and see you in 2022! It’s going to be epic!
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