Parker Ramsay

Semester rolls along, even though it’s coming to an end pretty soon. As jury season is in full swing, the mood around school is palpably grim as violinist upon violinist bemoan the requirements to play Paganini studies ad nauseam and pianists discuss the seemingly endless rows of sonatas and lieder they have to accompany. Everyone’s … Read more For Meryl

There comes a point in every student’s career when you return to a piece you’ve worked on before. It’s an essential part of artistic refinement, but the implications can be complex. There’s no way to approach the piece with the same freshness as you did originally. You start to remember the last performance, and the … Read more Ten years on…

Easter went by without a hitch. But like many of my colleagues in the organ world, I’m still recovering from Holy Week. As with many things in life, the problem is not so much the work so much as strategizing how to get away from it. I failed miserably.  My Holy Week Monday I can’t remember … Read more Batman v Superman

It took Juilliard 6 weeks to remove a petrified cockroach carcass from a staircase near the harp studio. I hate cockroaches. Almost as much as I hate useless emails from university administrations. Dear Students,                                           … Read more This week at Juilliard

Claustrophobia finally set in. Despite this city’s size, it’s been possible to go for days on end without leaving Lincoln Center. I live on 64th, study on 65th, work out on 67th, work on W 69th, and shop for groceries on 72nd. It’s convenient and a little infuriating all at once. Sensing my increasing irritability, … Read more Maundy Thursday

Finding a place to unwind has proven difficult, as New York may be the loudest place I have ever been.  Or slept. As of late, I have come to abandon hope of sleeping before 3am or so, as the tenant above me has a knack for self expression. Shouts of “fuck,” “shit,” “why are you doing … Read more 2am, The Chelsea Diner

The last few weeks have been a dry spell, as my attempts to write anything interesting about my new apartment on 64th Street have ultimately failed. Just in case you’re interested, here’s the rundown: Packing is time-consuming. Why do I own 38 Oxford shirts and 56 ties, but no cereal bowls, coffee mugs or an … Read more Eco

I finally had some “down” time yesterday after a fairly packed Ash Wednesday. I should have slept in yesterday morning, but rather than giving in to wintry malaise, I decided to recharge my batteries with a bit of visual stimulation. Among the many benefits afforded students at the Juilliard School, one is free admission to … Read more Shapes, Notes

Having lived in New York for 5 months, I feel ashamed that I had never heard of Muji until just last week. Such was my ignorance (and perhaps my pervasive phobia of Midtown) that it took the visit of a friend from Chicago to rectify the situation. As you might have guessed, I’m a little highly … Read more If on a Winter’s Night a Coffee Spoon

It’s 7 am on Sunday morning, and this organist is heading into work at a small Episcopal church on the Upper West Side. Being only two days after Christmas, I’ve yet to recover from the marathon of carols on Christmas Eve into Christmas Day and the accompanying sleep deprivation from the sales up and down 5th Avenue.