The semester is about halfway over already. We are currently in the 7th week of the semester and fall break is next week.

In many ways, the semester is running quite smoothly. I have three very long days. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I leave the house at 6:30am. On Monday, I get home at 6:30PM. On Wednesday, I head to choir rehearsal after I get out of school and get home at about 9:30PM. On Fridays, I get home at 6:30PM unless I attend a concert or meet someone for dinner.

I have classes at 8 and 10 am, then at noon and 2PM, and I have office hours from 3-5PM each of those days. They include two sections of fundamentals of music (pre-theory 1), one section of theory 1, and one section of a gen ed music appreciation class.

It's a lot, but I am getting most of my prep and correcting done during my breaks at school, so when I am home, I can focus on my other projects.

The majority of my students seem more engaged this semester, and several students have taken the initiative to come and get help during office hours.

The biggest obstacle I have is meetings on Tuesday and Thursday. They are the only days I can have meetings, and sometimes I am running out of time to do composition work. Then last week I ended up with a bout of food poisoning, so that knocked me out on one of my days off.

That's not good, because I need to get this chamber opera finished by the end of the year!

Regardless, the project is progressing. I have roughed out the orchestration on almost half of it. I will be OK at this pace, just OK. But I am not someone who likes to procrastinate, so I want to have some wiggle room (and not use it all up!)

My Uncle Bob, who was my Dad's twin, died this past week. He was the extended family member I was closest to. Even though he always lived several hours (and even days, at points) from wherever I lived, I had the opportunity to visit him at least 6 times in the last twenty-five years. My epic road trip this past July went straight through Nashville, so I had the chance to stay with him then. He gave me a folder of some information he had about the family tree, which is very special to me, and I am grateful for the time I got to spend with him.

In one last bit of news, last month I forgot to tell you that I compiled a book of original piano pieces for beginner and early intermediate pianists. It is titled 70 Progressive Recital-Worthy Pieces for Beginning and Early-Intermediate Pianists. More info below in the "On the Website" section!

In the Concert Hall - May

Performances are quiet right now, but I am submitting to tons of many calls for scores and other opportunities and still waiting to hear back on many!

In the Composition Studio

I'm working on my chamber opera, Mirrors. Things are going slowly, but steadily. I have learned that with such a big project as this, I experience the Ugly Chicken Stage for every song within the opera.

This stage is named after the adolescent stage of a chicken's growth, when they have lost all the cute down feathers and their adult feathers start growing in. Sporadically. Feathers sticking out all which way in random places. The chickens are no longer cute chicks, but downright ugly feather-y things.

In my composing, this means I start working on a new section which starts out fun and "cute" and then I get to mid-process and start thinking, "This is so bad, this writing is terrible, I hate this project, why I am doing it. who am I thinking I can compose anything of worth?" And then, finally the piece starts looking decent again and I feel better. I finish that song, go to the next one and slog through the Ugly Chicken Stage again...

It happens with every project!

Now, I just name it and say, "I'm in the Ugly Chicken Stage!"

What has surprised me with the chamber opera is that I keep hitting this stage, and that's when I realized I was going through it for each scene. Ohhhh, this is like multiple projects in one!

On the Website - New Piano Pieces

My book of piano pieces for beginning and early intermediate pianists is now available for purchase! There are options for individual and studio licenses. Get to it by clicking the button below:

In The Music Hub

The Music Hub is open for enrollment! Learning piano is something you can try risk-free with a money-back guarantee! (Click the buttons for details.)

Two options:

If you are just starting out or need a refresher on basics, check out the Piano Accelerator Program, a six-month program that costs less than one semester of a group piano class at a community college. Click the button below to learn more.

Or you can jump right into the membership and get access to all the modules for a monthly rate that is less than half the average cost of private lessons. Click the button below to learn more.

On the Blog & YouTube

I put up a demo of Fur Elise, which I am teaching in the Intermediate Classical Pieces Module in The Music Hub. (This is not a teaching video, just an overhead demo.)

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On the Air

​I am very behind in the podcast, but it is not forgotten...I'm working on it! I hope to get it back up and running.

I was a guest on a podcast, but I don't know when the episode will come out. I will keep you posted!

In the Shop

Pop musicians have merch, so why shouldn't classical musicians?

I have created a logo that blends my musician self with my herbalist self and put it on various items.

The featured item this month is the insulated water bottle to keep your water cold in the heat! Heather Niemi Savage Logo Insulated Water Bottle | Zazzle​

(If you scroll down, you will find other products from the collection.)

On The Road

I am saving up for this Go Camper I want to get so I can easily travel to conferences and performances. I love camping, plus it is better for me to eat food I prepare myself. It will also save a ton of money and allow me to pack things I might need that I wouldn't be able to carry onto a plane, like boxes of scores.

So far, $35 has been donated to the fund, and I am very appreciative! If you would like to contribute, click on this button below.

For Fun

I created a quiz titled, "What Kind of New Music Performer are You?"

One of the things that has bugged me for a long time is that there is no single definition of "new music" or "contemporary classical music."

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While the eclectic nature of today's music world is welcoming to a lot of different styles, it can be hard to explain what you do, and I think a lot of people can get the wrong idea about new music. Or think that there is some sort of "hierarchy" where one style of new music is better than another.

So, to put some levity into this situation and also to make some sense of it, I created this personality quiz to find out what performers are looking to play and why. (I think it is easier to sort performers than composers.)

If you are a performer or conductor of new music of any kind, please try out this quiz! And if you think it is fun and insightful, please share it!

You can find it here: https://heatherniemisavage.com/what-kind-of-new-music-performer-are-you/​

Please forward this email to someone you think might be interested.

If you have performed one of my pieces, please let me know through this link:

​https://heatherniemisavage.com/report-a-performance-2/​

Many, many thanks for your support!

Feel free to email me: heather@heatherniemisavage.com. I'd love to hear from you!

Happy Music Making!

Heather Niemi Savage