Regarding Henry

Well, my little chunk nephew was born last wed...and what a boy. Weighing in at 10 lbs. he came into this world with a vengeance. I can't believe how much i love my little nieces and nephews, and every time there is another my heart gets a little bigger. Hopefully that means I will be able to love my own kids as much. H. is so squishable...I could just kick him.
In other news I failed, I mean failed, an ear training test today. I was literally getting dizzy looking at my staff paper, trying to hear inverted chords and cadences and then, yea right, notating them like the genius musician I am. I caught myself holding my breath during the test...the walls closing in crushing me with chords and intervals...My teacher who is very matter of fact said that I was not alone in my horrific grade and I just have to practice. "But I practice every day!" I said. "Well," said he, "you'll just have to practice more." In spite of that infuriating response, he is one of the best teachers I have ever had and I am thankful for his no nonsense most of the time.
On the upside, I found out that I got the Messiah solo I wanted. It is the soprano solo for the "He Shall Feed His Flock" portion. I am super excited. It will be different than most things I have done, mostly because it will be a full orchestra! Here is a link to someone far greater than me performing it...It is a two part. first alto, then soprano (me.) You should listen to this youtube clip...it is quite beautiful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5jeelU1Vb4