More Jet Lag
Today we were invited to have lunch at Gro's house. Gro is the flutist in the BWQ and she and her husband Rolf have a lovely old home on a narrow cobblestone street. They have done a beautiful restoration on almost the entire house. They sang the Song of Bergen for us and toasted our arrival and friendship. We gave them some Hawaiian coffee and some cute aloha shirt magnets as a greeting. We then sat down to something akin to a Thanksgiving dinner. We had goat, lamb sausage, all sorts of cheeses and butters, and some terrific wines and liqueurs made by Rolf. It was a meal of traditional Norwegian holiday food which we enjoyed thoroughly.
After lunch we walked to the Bergenhallen concert hall which is just a block from our hotel. Per, the bassoonist, gave us a little tour where we saw the dressing rooms, break room, rehearsal rooms and main hall. We were a bit envious of the dressing rooms and lockers since we don't have such facilities in Honolulu, but the hall itself was the most impressive sight. The seating is fairly steep providing the audience with excellent sight lines and the acoustics seemed very fine. The front row of seats is on the same level as the orchestra, so no one has to look up to see the performance or has the sound travel over their heads. I imagine sitting in the front row would be very exciting- almost like sitting in the orchestra itself!
After another quick nap we returned to the hall to rehearse for our programs later this week. It was good to play through some of our repertoire in our new surroundings. The reeds always change due to the different temperature and humidity, and lips need a bit of adapting to the change of time zones and weather. After rehearsal we had dinner at a very nice Indian restaurant around the corner. We hope to sleep through the night and wake up rested. Four nights of sleep in the last six days has left us in need of a long and restful night.
Rolf and Gro, our wonderful hosts for a traditional holiday meal
Gro after a spirited rendition of the Song of Bergen
A beautiful table set for a terrific meal
Sue playing a giant flute sculpture
Jim walking through a neighborhood of historic wooden houses
SWQ posing with a statue of Bergen's most
famous violinist Ole Bull
Jim checking out the timpani section. Stu?
After lunch we walked to the Bergenhallen concert hall which is just a block from our hotel. Per, the bassoonist, gave us a little tour where we saw the dressing rooms, break room, rehearsal rooms and main hall. We were a bit envious of the dressing rooms and lockers since we don't have such facilities in Honolulu, but the hall itself was the most impressive sight. The seating is fairly steep providing the audience with excellent sight lines and the acoustics seemed very fine. The front row of seats is on the same level as the orchestra, so no one has to look up to see the performance or has the sound travel over their heads. I imagine sitting in the front row would be very exciting- almost like sitting in the orchestra itself!
After another quick nap we returned to the hall to rehearse for our programs later this week. It was good to play through some of our repertoire in our new surroundings. The reeds always change due to the different temperature and humidity, and lips need a bit of adapting to the change of time zones and weather. After rehearsal we had dinner at a very nice Indian restaurant around the corner. We hope to sleep through the night and wake up rested. Four nights of sleep in the last six days has left us in need of a long and restful night.
Rolf and Gro, our wonderful hosts for a traditional holiday meal
Gro after a spirited rendition of the Song of Bergen
A beautiful table set for a terrific meal
Sue playing a giant flute sculpture
Jim walking through a neighborhood of historic wooden houses
SWQ posing with a statue of Bergen's most
famous violinist Ole Bull
Jim checking out the timpani section. Stu?
1 Comments:
At 6:04 AM, Anonymous said…
It all sounds and looks like great, great fun, and goodness, what delicious food!
-am slightly jealous, but happy you all are able to see Norwegian surroundings.
Hope to see you in Hawaii sometime.
Patty
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