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There are two flights a day to Hancock, MI… and in the winter, they frequently get cancelled. Hancock is in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and it is absolutely the snowiest and coldest place I have ever been. It makes Rochester, NY, where I lived for 7 years, seem... mild! I mean, check out this map:
 
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Tiffany here. I am still in Hancock as I write this, although I am (hopefully) leaving soon. I came on this winter adventure to play two concerts of new music about the Great Lakes commissioned by the American Wild Ensemble. 
 
Although there are usually seven players in the ensemble, this particular project included flute, clarinet, violin and cello. All of us except the violinist arrived safely on Tuesday night, ready to get in two days of rehearsal and play a concert on Friday and Saturday for the Weekend of New Music at Michigan Technological University. We knew it would be tight but were certain it was possible. 
 
The big news of Wednesday morning… 
 
Lauren, our violinist, called to tell us her flight was cancelled and she was rebooked on the second flight that evening, which gets in at 10pm. So… that meant no rehearsal with the whole group on Wednesday and lucky for Lauren,  ten hours at O’hare!  
 
The trip was full of some big question marks… would she arrive, could we actually put this music together, and would any of us get hit by a snow mobile? (There were almost as many of them as there were cars!) 
 
Despite the challenges, it was an incredible trip that reminded me of some very important attributes of being a successful musician. Four of the big takeaways/reminders…. 
 
  1. Being flexible and having an attitude of “I can do that” gets you really far.
  2. You're never too old to remind yourself that “there are two dynamics in chamber music: the projecting voice and the listening voice." -Marian Hahn
  3. The errors you make on stage always seem more egregious than they were, which is why you have to seek the truth.
  4. There is so much more to a performance than what is technically happening to YOU.
 
Read the rest of the story to find out why I was reminded of all of these things – and to find out what happened to Lauren! Just click the image below. 
 
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I feel incredibly lucky to play and work with people that are not only musicians I admire, but people with the most loving and “can do” attitudes out there. It makes you feel like anything is possible.
 
Go find yourself some people like that! And stay warm out there. 
 
Much love, 
Tiffany, Ixi & Ted 
 
 
 
ps: What happened on this snowy adventure and why was I reminded of all these important takeaways?! Read “I can do that" on the blog today. 
 
pps: This was me boarding the plane… no jet bridge. Just… walk on out there and hop on a plane. How do pilots see through all that snow? Don't even wanna know. 
 
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A couple of posts from last week you may love!
The Progress Principle demonstrates the power of small consistent wins.
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Why designing your environment is so important:
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