Lunchtime Music, COVID-Style
When all the COVID shutdown madness started and I found myself working remotely (not from home due to crap internet, but from my awesome church - Immanuel Lutheran), I decided that I wanted to do something productive and personally-fulfilling each day to offset all the negative, soul-sucking garbage I seemed to find at every turn. Since sight-reading has never been my hugest strength (I'm not terrible, but I can always be better), I decided that sitting in an empty church choir room was a great place to start my mini-sight-reading boot camp. So I started using my lunch hours to learn and record new music. But since sight-reading - not perfection - was the goal, I enforced time limits and made myself move onto a new part at the end of an hour - even if it wasn't perfect (which it NEVER was - often by a long shot). When I had learned all the parts to a song, I recorded... And however it turned out, it turned out. As a self-proclaimed perfectionist in many areas of my life, and particularly music, this was/is REALLY hard.
My first recording was posted on March 30 and I'm still working on new music daily (I've posted 18 so far). I'm proud that I've kept it up and have been so encouraged by friends and family along the way (probably the reason I've been able to keep it up). Anyway, if you're interested in following along with my #lunchtimemusic recordings, I post them on my YouTube Channel. I've also been able to collaborate with several friends on some songs, including a BFF from college, Erik, who has worked with me on six of them (and we are working on a seventh now)! The happiness and fulfillment I've found in putting these together, particularly with my buddy, Erik, has been indescribable. I hope you enjoy watching/listening as much as I have enjoyed working on them. Admittedly, I've spent more than one lunch hour per part on the ones I do w/ others... I mean, just because I want to improve my sight-reading doesn't mean my friends should have to suffer.
I've said many times that I'll be sad to have to go back to work at my office someday, because this practice has been such a significant, beautiful addition to my life.
One of my favorites (that the hubby did with Erik and me):