Empty Room

I'm sitting on the floor and taping editions of violin parts from Brahms Trios together. Our trio coach, Frau Kilcher, lent me her Henle editions and I figured, hey, might as well copy all 4 trio parts - well, 3 but 2 different editions from Brahms himself of the B Major Trio. It's empty enough here for the doors to echo when they shut, for the cold to seep into my body when I sit on the floor, and for me to hear the old fridge buzzing away in the middle of the night. I'm noticing the parts of my room where mold is growing and also the fact that the daddy-long-legs have now been replaced by giant mutant-like flies. I cannot deny that in some ways I'm thrilled to leave this house. But let it be said that we enjoy a truly beautiful German garden, and this was my first time living in a house that's at least 150 years old. The end of one year/officially half a school year has come. After performances galore, the Brahms Chamber Music Competition of last week, and four different parties (including the surprise goodbye party Maaike and I gave Frederika & Mathilde last Friday), things are winding down. At this time in three days, I'll be sleeping in a hostel in the Olympic Village in Helsinki. Where has the time gone? I came here on September 19, 2006. It's been almost 10 months. During this time, I have learned German & can understand a lot of French, adapted to life without a clothes dryer, have seen one film in the movie theaters, traveled, lived alone, dated a French guy, acquired a set of German parents aka my old landlords, lived with less than half of my normal wardrobe, ate breakfast every day, gained weight, had a constant case of sniffles due to the immense moisture here, lost weight, stopped wearing makeup and drying my hair, became completely ok with spider inhabitants, cooked more than I ever have in my life, learned to truly drink and enjoy beer, taught English, wore (am wearing!) sweatshirts in July, and made friends from literally around the world. I played Ysaye, Prokofiev, Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, new music from student composers, Bach, Lutoslawski, Gershwin, Faure, Bloch, Ravel, cheesy wedding tunes, Handel (and Halverson), Vivaldi, Nick Tolle, Harbison, Beethoven, the viola, and of course Sevcik. I've had 2 German teachers, a string quartet + a piano trio/duo teacher, 2 private violin teachers, and 2 master class experiences with guest professors. I cried because I felt completely alone when Virginia Tech occurred. I cheered when Democrats beat out Republicans in elections. I discovered Simon Fischer's Basics and am a changed violinist. I learned to count out in euros as comfortably as dollars and nickels. I danced to Turkish music and to atonal chords. I watched all three Shrek films in Spanish. I ate in Parisian boulangeries and Antwerpen chocolateries and Turkish donor stands and the Musik Hochschule Mensa (cafeteria)...and of course there were pretzels. I saw the Berliner Philharmoniker. I experienced the World Cup in Germany. I learned to never sign up with Deutsche Telecomm again. I played musical chairs but in German. That's not even scratching the surface. What a year it's been here. I can't wait for what comes next.