During our 2 minute warming breaks we stand over the single electric burner that heats my room. N___'s heater was broken today, and it's especially cold outside. I wear a scarf even though it feels funny under my violin, and N___ has a shawl and sits on her fur coat for warmth. When our fingers are sufficiently simmered, we dash back to our instruments for another run-through. The piano is worse in my office, but we trade the instrument choice for heat.
A___, N___'s boyfriend who comes in from Ashgabat on days off, huddles in to turn pages and we begin. If we've both practiced, things go well. My ego is boosted by playing in my office since I always play more in-tune than the piano! The lower 2 octaves mostly play 2 notes at a time, and the octaves get a bit closer together as they go up. I'm surprised at how tough the pianos are considering they go from stiflingly hot summers to freezing winters with no air conditioning or heat. Natasha and I survive the cold through giggles, complaints, and desire to perform.
Our concert is planned for the 27th of Baydak. (They require teachers to use the new Turkmen months even in English class to force us all to learn them. I'll stick with the Turkmen months, so it you ever meet a Turkmen in America, you can understand each other since they won't know that another name for the months exists. At least our concert isn't in the month named after our great leader . . . or his mother-- January and November, respectively. Baydak is 'flag' in English.) We hope to have use of several heaters by then to make the auditorium warm, but at least the audience will be sympathetic.
Wish us luck!
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